Italian

Italian unlocks some of the richest cultural and artistic legacies that have shaped the world. Across the centuries, Italy has played a role in the intersection of the arts, music, literature, medicine and science. Behind every discovery by an Italian scientist, every haute couture fashion and every advancement in robotics is a conversation connecting Italian traditions and values with change and innovation. Italian also provides the opportunity to engage deeply with a culture, not as a tourist, but from within. As a leader in design, fashion, food, engineering, aerospace and medicine, Italy holds a vital role in today’s global economies.

Exploring Italy through its language provides an understanding of Italian cultural differences that expand horizons and enhance experience. Sprezzatura, bella figura, and campanilismo: Learn from the culture behind the Sistine Chapel, the poetry of the Divine Comedy, the engineering of the Lamborghini, the good, clean and fair of the Slow Food movement, and the architecture of London’s Shard. In the third millennium, Italy is a multicultural nation, with one of the top 10 economies in the world. The Italian language, literature and culture provide an invaluable perspective on culture, the modern world and Europe in an ever-evolving global reality.

The Major

Italian

The Minor

Italian

ITAL 120: Italian I (4.0 units)

Introduction to current Italian. Oral practice, hearing and reading comprehension; grammar necessary for simple spoken and written expression. Lecture, classroom drill, laboratory drill.

ITAl 150: Italian II (4.0 units)

Continuation of Italian I.

Prerequisite: 1 from (ITAL 120 or MPVA 260)

ITAL 220: Italian III (4.0 units)

Continuation of Italian II. Review of structure of the language, drill in aural and reading comprehension, practice in oral expression.

Prerequisite: 1 from (ITAL 150 or ITAL 175)

ITAL 240: Italian IV (4.0 units)

Continuation of Italian III. Review and expand upon abilities to create with the language in concrete exchanges, descriptions, comparisons, questions and discussions relevant to current issues and topics.

Prerequisite: ITAL 220
ITAL 224: Italian Composition and Conversation (4.0 units)

Practice in composition and conversation; organized around a set of themes; develops close-reading techniques and discursive skills; reviews Italian grammar.

Prerequisite: ITAL 220
ITAL 175: Accelerated Italian for Speakers of Spanish and Other Romance languages (4.0 units)

Accelerated introduction to written and spoken Italian for students with a high level of proficiency in Spanish or another Romance Language. Students completing this course may enroll in the third semester of the basic language sequence ITAL 220.

Prerequisite: 1 from (SPAN 220 or FREN 220 or PORT 220)
ITAL 222: Italian Professional Internship: Communication and Culture (2.0 units)

Combined classroom discussion and supervised internship at companies. Practical experience in applying communication and cultural knowledge in a professional employment context.

Prerequisite: ITAL 220
ITAL 320: Critical Writing in Italian (4.0 units)

Advanced composition through critical reading of literary texts; comprehensive analysis of difficult grammatical structures and stylistics. Prerequisite: ITAL-224.

Prerequisite: ITAL 224

ITAL 402: Studies in Modernity (4.0 units, max 8)

Study and analysis of representative works and major intellectual, cultural, and artistic trends from the modern period (post-1800). Taught in Italian.

Prerequisite: 1 from (ITAL 320 or ITAL 300)

ITAL 461: Italian Theatre (4.0 units)

Italian dramatic literature from the earliest written documents to the present. Reading and close textual scrutiny of plays by major dramatists from the Renaissance to the present. Taught in Italian.

Prerequisite: 1 from (ITAL 320 or ITAL 300)