Learning objectives

The course is aimed at acquiring the basic historiographical theories on how to make history and approach the interpretation of the past. The course aims, in particular, to help students master the concepts and procedures that characterize historical research, the criteria used for determining the authenticity of documents, the statistical analysis of data or the comparison of phenomena, the strategies for the exploration of documents on history-related sites, the ways of collective sensitivity representation, and the contrast between continuity and rupture. Knowledge of the historiographical theories and documentary research techniques are core formative elements for the teaching profession and the construction of workshops with the students.

Programme

The body is a place / site of social and political conflict, but above all it is a cultural construction. The body of the hero is often recognized as an exceptional body endowed with almost miraculous qualities, such as to be able to defeat death. The body can represent a symbol of leadership, an object of worship or, on the contrary it can be seen as the place of the impotence and degradation of the opponent. During the Risorgimento, the citizen of the future Italian nation is described as endowed with a manly body, which / who is not afraid of war and martyrdom. In the nineteenth century the representation of the woman's body in paintings was a field for gender fantasy, from domination to a new liberty on the womens' conduct. The consideration of the body is at the basis of the identity of a social group or of a nation. In the longevity of the bodies, in the health rate and the body  shape imposed by sport and fashion, we can read the development of a society and its evolution. The study of the bodies / body offers us some greater insight on social living, more than through traditional historiographical approaches.

1. Introduction to the main concepts of a new historiography

2. The ‘Victorian’ body

3. Martyrologies and Italy as a nation-state

4. Women's body and the representation of desire

5. Charisma and leadership of Fascism / Fascists

6. The bodies of celebrities and sports stars

1) Learning outcomes (Dublin descriptors)

In relation to Contemporary History students should be able to demonstrate:

·  mastery of the fundamental historiographical currents, especially those revolving around the school of "Annales" and the teachings provided by cultural history and gender issues, with particular reference to the relationship with the other humanities and the educational-disciplinary approach;

·  understanding of the concepts and theories presented in the course;

·  the ability to analyze documents on history-related sites, write a bibliography and outline an approach to the study of a historiographic "problem", identifying the historical and social context;

·  the ability to use knowledge and historiographical concepts that allow to reason according to the specific logic of the discipline;

·  the ability to envisage research hypotheses, identify topics suitable for cognitive exploration, and use them in a teaching workshop.

The teaching material prepared by the lecturer in addition to recommended textbooks (such as for instance slides, lecture notes, exercises, bibliography) and communications from the lecturer specific to the course can be found inside the Moodle platform › blended.uniurb.it

Support teaching activities:

An optional seminar on ‘History and computer’ is offered to help students draft articles and history essays and explore online data and resources.

Teaching

Teaching methods: lecture-style and multimedia lesssons; discussions by the site Blended Learning.

Course books

Textbooks:

D. Mengozzi, Corpi posseduti. Eroi e martiri dal Risorgimento a Pinocchio, Manduria-Bari-Roma, Lacaita, 2012, pp. 282.

A.M. Banti, Eros e virtù. Aristocratiche e borghesi da Wattau a Manet, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2016, pp. 143, con illustrazioni.

S. Luzzatto, Il corpo del duce. Un cadavere tra immaginazione, storia e memoria, Torino, Einaudi, 2011, pp. 342.

H. Juvin, Il trionfo del corpo, Milano, Egea, 2006, pp. 200.

It is highly recommended to study the historical background of the 19th and 20th centuries in a good high school textbook.

Assessment

Assessment: Written examination.

Written exam with five open questions (worth 6 points each) relating to five key moments of the programme: the role of the body in the Italian Risorgimento and the formation of Italian national unity; the representation of the woman's body in european paintings; the transition from Fascism to democracy in Italy, seen through the story of Mussolini's body; the importance of the body from the years after World War II in Western society; the "triumph of the body", i.e. an idea of the body as personal property, to build and transform in relation to the trends of the last decades, following ideals and aspirations which are subject to rapid change.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

Teaching

Course books

Textbooks:

D. Mengozzi, Corpi posseduti. Eroi e martiri dal Risorgimento a Pinocchio, Manduria-Bari-Roma, Lacaita, 2012, pp. 282.

A.M. Banti, Eros e virtù. Aristocratiche e borghesi da Wattau a Manet, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2016, pp. 143, con illustrazioni.

S. Luzzatto, Il corpo del duce. Un cadavere tra immaginazione, storia e memoria, Torino, Einaudi, 2011, pp. 342.

H. Juvin, Il trionfo del corpo, Milano, Egea, 2006, pp. 200.

It is highly recommended to study the historical background of the 19th and 20th centuries in a good high school textbook.

Assessment

Assessment: Written examination.

Written exam with five open questions (worth 6 points each) relating to five key moments of the programme: the role of the body in the Italian Risorgimento and the formation of Italian national unity; the representation of the woman's body in european paintings; the transition from Fascism to democracy in Italy, seen through the story of Mussolini's body; the importance of the body from the years after World War II in Western society; the "triumph of the body", i.e. an idea of ??the body as personal property, to build and transform in relation to the trends of the last decades, following ideals and aspirations which are subject to rapid change.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

* PLEASE NOTE  Those who want to repeat the examination or present a different programme must plan it with the professor at least a month before the exam.