Appunti Letteratura nglo-americana

Elena lamberti

Giovedì 17-19 piazza s.gioavnni in monte 2, aula grande

Office hours: October/December Monday 1.30pm-3 no need to book

Check pagina docente

NO CLASS on 3/4 October, 28-30, November 1, December 8

Events:

Lunedì 30 sept 16-18 conservatorio Giovanni battista

Picturing race and social justice in us comics - Friday nov 8, 9am-11 - aula magna via Filippo re (during

class)

Comics and videogames are part of narrative

3 websites: [it’s possible do internship]

CanadaUSA/it > you have essays, articles, reviews of north American culture

Wetell/en > spin-off permanent seminar on comics

Wetell-school/en

The literary identity of North America United States and Canada

Introduction to North American literature written in English (important to specify cause in Quebec

there’s french) with a special focus on identity issues and the making of national literatures.

Literature was used to manipulate/political reason

The course is an overview to historical, cultural, literary point of view but for the exam you can explore

more than what we talk about

Poetic is a combination between rhetorical devices and what the author believes in, original and

traditional

1776 American revolution

!! Read chapter 1 of the scarlet letter for next lesson

•

We also analysis how themes are seen today

Material on virtuale (just the part covered by the copyright) or unibo library

You choose what to read based on bibliography in progress file on virtuale (info on the site)

Secondary sources (multimedia) discuss primary source (novels)

You create your customised reading list and then submit to professors (elena or Mattia) - not the plot

but more reason

Exam dates [file on virtuale] > jan 8/feb 4

1 may, 1 June, 2 July, 1 September

I manuali sono da leggere non da memorizzare, non chiede nel dettaglio tutte le cose menzionate

(Ita-Preferisce il 1 manuale - iuli)

Come to the exam with the list of the sources, theme > non è una presentazione!

WHY YOU CHOSE

Graphic novel can be a primary source

2/10

Wednesday Thursday USA, Friday > Canada

DISCOVERING AMERICA

Catholic Church went to North America and Canada and apologies to indigenous people for the way

they treated them in the past

First apology was another, now the pope is doing the same

Dominant narrative, systemic narrative

Puritans approach America as the promised land, as tabula rasa empty place to fill with their

mentality

We western have named the discovery of America as renaissance, but this all was very hard on the

indigenous people > now they call themselves first native and then Canadian,

“Rethink Columbus Day” is an issue nowadays

Black Lives Matter > they were considered slaves and not human being

Indigenous were considered human being

Literature plays a great role in the national identity

Shared collective project politically monitored that tries to create a unit to make the nation progress

They had to create a narrative to make them proud to be American

Different visions of

WESTERN DOMINANT HISTORY USA

Columbus (1492)

We the people, outstanding beginning 1776 of deceleration the indipendence > all white man,

oligarchy that lies (we are all equals and then they have slavery)

We will start with mayflower contract

On virtual there is an extract that we will read next lesson

Hamilton the musical, very famous, Hamilton is one of the pilgrim fathers, was not so white, he was

outsider adopted came to the usa and became very important cause he was a consultant for the

politician (economic part), the musical adapted his biography that made him famous

Slavery is also a business (not just human right) in the context

WESTERN DOMINANT HISTORY CANADA

Who discovered it? John Cabot, giovanni caboto veneziano, an italian

More or less the same period, in some point usa develops more fast than Canada, why? Political

reasons and geographical reason

GEOGRAPHY MATTERS very much so

Picture of the queen and premier of Canada signing document 1980’ - repatriation of construction -

from now on we are no longer colonies

(Declaration of usa was war)

For Canada is totally different scenario

Canada is the only country where speaking a language is law, legally written

(Margaret Atwood poetry)

Canada was Created 6 years after Italy - it was still undery the monarchy of uk, part of the

commonwealth

Oldest republic in the (western) world is San Marino

The narrative of discovering America was full of wonders for us (colonisers), exploration, collecting,

adventures and more.. Framing otherness

Costantino Beltrami from Bergamo, he was a celebrity he discovered Mississippi(?)

Maps > when you name you appropriate

The idea of discovering America is a big thing

If you want to include 21° century things reviewing thing we study in the exam we can (just one)

Example of how the discovery of America is approached:

-Stephen graham jones (indigenous ancestors) made a comic ‘kill Columbus’ the first volume, from

Texas that is a very conservative country but there are some new voices that is interesting to

Post apocalypse is the most common genre for indigenous, why? Apocalypse can be considered as

destruction lately, the fear of a destruction is a familiar thing to them

Columbus is a symbol, an icon of an historical event

-comedian(?) Leanne Betasamosake Simpson

She has a lot of genres, difficult to establish a genres (traditionally)

Indigenous radical resurgence indigenous intelligence

Canoe is a representation, described with human aspect

A dialogue, there are some indigenous words

A multimedia product

Indigenous are more usually oral

Totem is an archaic, they have tattoos for memorising passages of life > is not art

Literature is not only the books, it may be considered many ways of storytelling

The classic texts important in America discovery are [the last slide]

First academic literary narrative(?)

They talk about invasion, conquest, invention not discovery

First literary counter-narratives 1970

9/10

No longer discovery but invention

Starts the process of riapropriation of their identities

Seventies is a very important period > ethnical revival > resurgence of ethnic voices

Like > Leslie Malcom silko - counter narrative ; Maria Campbell

Thrasher > eskimo from Calgary in Alberta

[[alberta in Canada è conosciuta per le morti di cancro e tumore per lo sfruttamento delle risorse di

multinazionali? Sulle comunità indigente]]

Popular counter narratives 1970 [in eu 68 rivolte, in America prima in 64 > Brooklyn uni

-cinema > soldier blue, massacre, the pov of the indigenous, and a pov of a soldier who believes in the

good of educating the indigenous he dis

-music

1970 there were already the Vietnam war

Vietnam war > the dirty war - it makes the American question their role at war

The movies opens a national … question the ‘good Americans’ and take responsibility for that

The audience is Americans, the song is important affronta le tematiche della contro narrativa

‘Can’t you see there is another way to love her (America)’ - land, body, care (like in the canoe)

Seventies in Italy we have Fabrizio de Andre - fiume sand and creek > we are part of the same

community and have to take responsibility > from this tragedy of sand creek 64 the event new spread

globally

THE RIGHT TO RETELL HISTORY (RETHINKING NAMING AND CULTURAL APPROPRIATION)

Many use these themes now

Thomas king > the inconvenient Indian - trauma belong to the past, consequences of it belong to the

present

Ned Blackhawk - other ways to love their lands and community

Michelle Latimer

Sugarcane

Inheriting trauma from the past

Intergenerational trauma is the same experience (trauma) through the generations

Trauma is one of the consequences of “discovering” America

We talked about indigenous but now we’ll talk about the afro-Americans (the right to retell history -

slavery, Africans brought to America and their traumas)

Underground Railroad was system of secret path that could lead slaves to free states

1830’ abolished slavery in Canada

Author > Colson whitehead - “the Underground Railroad” interesting take on usa of a famous

contemporary author > series on prime

On Netflix amend (from amendment) 14 amendments the right of citizenship

New voices, new controversy

Cancel culture - controversial theme

If you cancel the problem you don’t remove the problem

(Letture su virtuale non obbligatorie ma attuali sul cancel culture)

10/10

From pilgrim fathers to the scarlet letter

PURITAN AGE

Rhetorical legacy

From the MAYFLOWER COMPACT to ANNE HUTCHINSON

There is a pic of thanksgiving, celebrating the pilgrim fathers, fondant element of the USA identity

Document of mayflower is very important, freedom

Pics of puritans,

One of the first Dissenters Anne Hutchinson

The first settlement was British was called Jamestown from the king

Economy > tobacco ; the first production was not food but tobacco

-British series called Jamestown ; pov of women who rebels against the patriarchies of the time a [it

could be one of the secondary sources]

MAPS > 1 with local names, 2 with new names of the new world

Naming is a way of appropriating

Concept of property from nothing > symbol: fences > create a territory, what’s inside is yours

Analyse the narrative and the structure, the poetic (message of the author and the form) content and

structure

Short video documentary on the pilgrims

Who were the pilgrims? Soldiers, merchants,

They wanted a pure centered religion, away from the corrupted one in uk

They were supposed to land In virginia but they arrive on Massachusetts

They needed a founding moment, the documentary question how this moment is created, storytelling

plays a big role

A community of people signed on the boat before they landed > they needed a new contract 1620 -

THE MAYFLOWER COMPACT

Couple of paragraphs that changes the history of the colonies

“Civil body politick“ > democratic

We are individuals, we are witnessing, we are doing things for the colony not the king

They are all the same, they maintain the same structure

Equal community is a rhetorical projection that is not visible yet (property)

10 years later > A MODEL OF CHRISTIAN CHARITY - john Winthrop

The dominant narrative for the community > leads to persecution, Salem etc

A model > something to follow

Based on the bible he becomes a preacher, becomes a religious leader

He establish hierarchy (caste) vertical, right to ascend, social ladder | this mentality changes

completely from the self-made man of the American dream, flip from American dream > white trash(?)

Myth-making > in this case is one man (John Winthrop) telling us

It takes it for granted, it’s given, no individual rights as part of the community

The richness is a moral condition, poor not as good as rich and have to educate

If you don’t respect you’re going to be punished

Repetition > brotherly affection, is it really? rhetoric, paternal affection cause one is superior to the

other

Tries to create a sense of community “we” “us” but is uncanny

Very famous statement that will be used all over in the future > American exceptionalism (politic)

All eyes are on us > we are exceptional and we cannot fail

In 10 years we have a different change of the community

• These documents create the first rhetorical alphabet

• This mentality creates norms and rules > dress codes, strict code

•

DISSENTERS: congregation vs free will

…

Roger Williams > spreading different ideas, kicked out

Anne Hutchinson > she’s not respecting the role forced on her, she’s not preaching against the

community she’s reading a text in a different way > this is a threat

Not bound by moral laws but by actions and thinking

She’s (considered) a traitor and heretic, wants to create a cult but mostly is the practical commercial

reason (against Indian slavery)

16/10

Antinomianism > against the law

She dared to speak her own truth against the dominant narrative

The first doc (mayflower compact) god presence is more rhetorical

Model Christian charity, god is instrument to cast population, the population has its own place

(position)

The Salem issue > SALEM, OLD AND NEW WITCH HUNTS

Salem is not an invention, it was tragic event - 1692-93 > 30 years after the model Christian charity so

the model is consolidated

30 people guilty and it a large number for the period

Salem is New England the core of puritan legacy

Everything started in a minister home, from little girls and this strange behaviour/hysteria spread

across women, we still don’t know the real reason

The scientific reason is not accurate, there could be cultural or psychological reasons and that’s what

makes it so popular

The most popular theory is from the cotton mather(?)

We see some theories in the ‘70s and ‘80s

With salem event the women start to be seen in a way that we will see through the years

COTTON MATHER [extert]

1693

Wonders of invisible world

Accuses indigenous

Creates a story that sells well within the community

The devils domain in the land not governed by god

FEAR is the key word

A language that is black and white, key in puritan literature, good vs evil

(Giorni di Alcione sono giorni di calma)

INCREASE AND COTTON MATHER

2 theoretician, philosopher of the period

Sample of the period

Cotton Mather, man of science and man of church = truth > 2 discourses clashes; science comes

from doubt

Faith vs science, another trope

Murdoch mysteries, Canadian to series > stereotypes, cliché > the person of science is a woman, the

faith one is a man

Question something that has not evident explanation > storytelling that comes from faith > you have to

choose the path

OTHER FORMS OF CONGREGATION, Pennsylvania

Possibly the first Treaty with the Indians

1681 Penn and other Quaker

Penn treated Indians with respect, this was incredible for that age that’s why he was considered

heretic from someone

One of the first to say we can live all together > even the United Nations has issues with that now

He launches a message so unique for the time, writes an essay

Victim of the devil, women are fragile and weak and not suit to run the community

SALEM WITCH TRIALS

-Myth making & counter narratives

Bewitched (vita da strega - serie) in the period of the counter narratives(?) > introduces through easy

elements cliches the idea of woman solving problems(?)

Sabrina vita da strega

The idea of what a which represents travels through time

How the idea of witch becomes intermedia trans media content

17/10

Witch is used as feminist movement

Wicked witch of the west, wicked the musical, from the wizard of oz

For the exam you can go for allegory repeated through texts

How many tropes gets repeated

Salem witch trials,

Then a movement born in 70s to bring witches back and their role for women