This course will trace the broad outlines of the history of classical Arabic literature from the late eighth century onward. The major and most representative genres and authors will all be brought into view, as the Arabic literary production gradually passes from a long flourishing period to a stage of relative decline. In highlighting examples of both learned prose and poetry and "popular" literature, this class seeks to give students a basic understanding of the vitality and depth of the medieval Arabic cultural heritage.

• Administrative literature, imaginative or artistic prose (adab)
• Historiography, cosmography and geography, travel writings
• "Modern" and "neo-classical" poetry of the Abbasid period
• Arabic poetry from Andalusia and Sicily
• Epic literature and The Thousand and One Nights

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

Teaching

Frontal lessons, class discussions, analysis of texts

Course books

• Allen, R., La letteratura araba, Il Mulino, Bologna 2006, pp. 9-39, 44-58, 83-214.
• Amaldi, D., Storia della letteratura araba classica, Zanichelli, Bologna 2004, pp. 48-211.

and a choice between:

• Ibn Battuta, I viaggi, ed. C.M. Tresso, Einaudi, Turin 2008.
• Ibn Hazm, Il collare della colomba, a cura di F. Gabrieli, SE, Milano 2016.
• Ibn al-Muqaffa, Il libro di Kalila e Dimna, a cura di A. Borruso e M. Cassarini, Salerno editrice, Roma 1991.
• Il libro della scala di Maometto. Testo latino a fronte, a cura di A. Longoni, BUR Rizzoli, Milano 2013.
• Le mille e una notte. Le storie più belle, eds. F. Gabrieli and M. Cassarino, Einaudi, Turin 2006.
• Pucciarelli, V., Dante e l'Islam. La controversia sulle fonti escatologiche musulmane della Divina Commedia, Irfan Edizioni, San Demetrio Corone 2012.

Optional reading:

• Irwin, R., ed., The Penguin Anthology of Classical Arabic Literature, Penguin Classics, London 2013.
• Van Gelder, G.J., ed., Classical Arabic Literature. A Library of Arabic Literature Anthology, New York University Press, New York 2013.

Further readings, including a selection of primary texts in Arabic and in translation, will be added to the required reading list during the semester.

Assessment

The assessment consists of an oral exam evaluated on a scale of thirty. The student is asked to discuss a topic of a general nature suggested by the teacher, in which he or she demonstrates the ability to master the contents, to distinguish the fundamentals and synthesize, to explain clearly and coherently, and to use an appropriate vocabulary. After the presentation, which will last around 20 minutes, the teacher reserves the possibility to ask more specific questions also about other themes of the program.

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.

Course books

Students who do not attend class must contact the teacher for their program of study. Required readings include:

• Allen, R., La letteratura araba, Il Mulino, Bologna 2006, pp. 9-39, 44-58, 83-214.
• Amaldi, D., Storia della letteratura araba classica, Zanichelli, Bologna 2004, pp. 48-211.
• Casari, M. "Percorsi tematici nel viaggio eurasiatico dei testi", in: M. Capaldo, F. Cardini, G. Cavallo, and B. Scarcia Amoretti (directors), Lo spazio letterario del medievo 3, Le culture circostanti II, La cultura arabo-islamica, ed. B. Scarcia Amoretti, Salerno Editrice, Rome 2003, pp. 459-498.
• Denaro, R., "Postfazione", in: Le Mille e una notte, ed. R. Denaro, Donzelli, Rome 2006, pp. 575-589.
• Toelle, H., K. Zakharia, Alla scoperta della letteratura araba. Dal VI secolo ai nostri giorni, Argo, Lecce 2010, pp. 21-213.

in addition to

• al-Ghazali, Lettera a un discepolo, ed. S. Ciccarello, Sellerio editore, Palermo 1992.
• Ibn al-Muqaffa, Il libro di Kalila e Dimna, eds. A. Borruso and M. Cassarini, Salerno editrice, Rome 1991.

and a choice between:

• Ibn Battuta, I viaggi, ed. C.M. Tresso, Einaudi, Turin 2008.
• Ibn Hazm, Il collare della colomba, a cura di F. Gabrieli, SE, Milano 2016.
• Il libro della scala di Maometto. Testo latino a fronte, a cura di A. Longoni, BUR Rizzoli, Milano 2013.
• Le mille e una notte. Le storie più belle, eds. F. Gabrieli and M. Cassarino, Einaudi, Turin 2006.
• Luqman, l'Esopo arabo. La favola di animali dalla Grecia al Medio Oriente, ed. V. Giarratano, Irfan Edizioni, San Demetrio Corone 2011.
• Pucciarelli, V., Dante e l'Islam. La controversia sulle fonti escatologiche musulmane della Divina Commedia, Irfan Edizioni, San Demetrio Corone 2012.

Optional reading:

• Irwin, R., ed., The Penguin Anthology of Classical Arabic Literature, Penguin Classics, London 2013.
• Van Gelder, G.J., ed., Classical Arabic Literature. A Library of Arabic Literature Anthology, New York University Press, New York 2013.

Assessment

The assessment consists of an oral exam evaluated on a scale of thirty. The student is asked to discuss a topic of a general nature suggested by the teacher, in which he or she demonstrates the ability to master the contents, to distinguish the fundamentals and synthesize, to explain clearly and coherently, and to use an appropriate vocabulary. After the presentation, which will last around 20 minutes, the teacher reserves the possibility to ask more specific questions also about other themes of the program.

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.

The student can request to sit the final exam in English with an alternative bibliography.