MC 201 — Mafia Movies: Crime and Corruption in Italian Popular Culture
3 credits; 2 lecture and 2 lab hours
This course looks at Italian film and television representations of the Mafia. Students view selected films and analyze them within the context of the historical and social development of organized crime in Italy. Texts discussed also include novels, historical studies, film criticism, photography, documentaries, and popular songs. This course is cross listed with FI 202. (G6: The Arts; G7: Humanities).
MC 202 — Rome: The Making and Unmaking of the Eternal City
3 credits; 3 lecture hours
Perhaps more than any other city, Rome is caught between two seemingly incompatible realities: the vitality of a modern capital in constant expansion and the inertia of an ancient city that houses countless treasures of artistic, archeological, religious and historical significance. In this course we explore a variety of texts (ancient and modern) and films which have shaped the image of Rome over several millennia. (G5: Western Civilization; G7: Humanities).
MC 204 — Images of the Mind: Introduction to Chinese Calligraghic Art
3 credits; 2 lecture and 2 lab hours
This team taught/ interdisciplinary course is cross listed with Fine Arts and introduces students to Chinese calligraphy. Through guided training students gain knowledge of key concepts, methods and techniques of calligraphy and brush pen writing. Students will also receive a thorough background in the history of the art form and its significance in Chinese culture, literature and language.
MC 241 — Italian American Cultural Studies
3 credits; 3 lecture hours
This course is taught in English. This course is a critical examination of Italian American cultural expression in literature and the arts from the late 19th century through today. Students analyze a wide variety of related texts including novels, short stories, plays, and poetry, as well as film, music, and the visual arts. (G7: Humanities, G10: American History).
MC 251 — Italian Cinema
3 credits; 2 lecture and 2 lab hours
This course is taught in English. This course is cross-listed with FI 246. This course introduces students to the world of Italian cinema. They survey some of the defining elements of Italian cinema from its inception to contemporary Italian cinematic practices. Screenings include Neorealist masterpieces, cinema d'autore, commedia all'italiana, spaghetti Westerns, and contemporary Italian films. (G6: Arts; G7: Humanities).
MC 252 — Latin American Fiction: 1960-Present
3 credits; 3 lecture hours
This course is taught in English. Students examine selected texts of Latin American fiction (in English translation) from the 1960s to the present. The course focuses on the literary themes and writing techniques of the authors and on the sociopolitical and historical conditions of Latin America where the texts are set.
Prerequisite(s): EN 121 (G7: Humanities; G9: Other World Civilizations).
MC 261 — Latin American Cinema and Resistance
3 credits; 2 lecture and 2 lab hours
This course is taught in English. This course is cross-listed with FI 225. Students are introduced to Latin American cinema, considering the pivotal role of diverse forms of resistance, focusing on issues crucial to understanding the continent's cinematci creation, including cultural identity, race, ethnicity and gender. They develop a critical understanding of the evolution of Latin American film practices since the 1960s to current trends. (G7: Humanities; G9 Other World Civilizations).
MC 262 — Revolution as Spectacle: Mexico
3 credits; 3 lecture hours
This course is taught in English. Students explore the cultural production concerning the Mexican Revolution, between 1910 and 1940, through interconnected perspectives obtained from critical sources and written and visual archival material. They study the impact of Mexican literary and artistic revolutionary movements of Latin America and the United States during this period.
(G7: Humanities; G9 Other World Civilizations).
MC 263 — Contemporary Spain through its Cinema
3 credits; 2 lecture and 2 lab hours
This course is taught in English. This course examines different narratives of cultural identity in contemporary Spain, particularly from the period of the political transition from dictatorship to democracy from 1975 to the present, through the analysis of film.
MC 313 — Writing Women of the Italian Renaissance
3 credits; 3 lecture hours
This course introduces students to the lives and literary endeavors of a selection of women who lived in Italy during the Renaissance and addresses how these women were written about in the context in which they wrote. Topics addressed in the course include their purpose and motivation for writing, the kinds of texts they wrote and the audience served, and the effect of social class and religion on their work. This course is conducted in English. (G7: Humanities).
MC 331 — Film Genres: Melodrama
3 credits; 2 lecture and 2 lab hours
This course is cross-listed with FI 335. Students are introduced to the genre of melodrama and its development from the silent era through the present day. Students analyze formal and thematic elements, with a focus on political and social-cultural contexts: Screenings include classical Hollywood pictures, soap operas, telenovelas, and films from Asia, Europe, and Latin America. (G7: Humanities).
MC 345 — Food for Thought: Gastronomy in Italian Literature and Culture
3 credits; 3 lecture hours
From the excesses of the Roman table to today’s ‘Slow food movement’ it is through food that Italians have affirmed and defended their cultural heritage. This course traces the historical evolution of Italian cuisine and maps an overview of Italian literature and culture through an analysis of influential literary texts. Taught in English.
Prerequisite(s): EN 121 (G5: Western Civilization; G7: Humanities).
MC 351 — From Modern to Contemporary Latin American Women Writers
3 credits; 3 lecture hours
This course is taught in English. By looking at diverse genres (poetry, short stories, novel, chronicle, essay and scriptwriting) this course introduces students to Latin American literature written by women. This course also provides a critical understanding of the sociopolitical realities of the Latin American continent as seen through the lenses of creative work by female authors. (G7: Humanities; G9 Other World Civilizations).