Italia Viva Voce

The main purpose of this advanced course, taught entirely in Italian, is to reinforce students' command of the language while orienting them in the exploration of the culture of contemporary Italy. Students will be able to practice the language in various communicative situations through an integrated approach. Inputs coming from various sources (articles, short literary texts, songs, pictures, audio and video clip) will be the starting point for a thorough analysis of significant aspects of contemporary Italian culture. Politics, literature, music, art, cinema, lifestyle, fashion, and material culture will be the subjects of structured activities, such as role-plays, debates, discussions, short oral presentations, online forums, and specific projects. Students will also explore the Italophone world on the Internet in search of information and source material for class discussion and individual or group projects. The cultural content of the course, the intense communicative practice, the revision of specific linguistic structures, the practice of various communicative registers (popular and standard, formal and colloquial), slangs, and special languages, should bring students to communicate effectively in a broad range of situations. Students will be asked to write short reports and comments, with the goal of refining their expository and argumentative skills.

© 2003 Nicoletta Marini-Maio

University of Pennsylvania