| Description: | This course, taught entirely in Italian, is designed to provide students with an understanding of the literature, scientific achievements, philosophy, politics, artistic movements, and civic life of Italians over time. It discusses the most important Italians and their achievements from the Middle Ages up to the present. During the Middle Ages, a specific social and cultural identity distinct from that of ancient Rome was born. Through an examination of the century's main artists (Dante, Boccaccio, Petrarca, Leonardo, Michelangelo et al.), scientists and philosophers (Machiavelli, Galileo, Bruno et al.), and politicians (Lorenzo il Magnifico, Mazzini, Garibaldi, Cavour et al.), we will examine the main events in Italian history, as well as the country's cultural evolution. |