Italy possesses incomparable artistic and historical patrimonies. Studying Italian is a gateway to the world of great and lasting achievements in the arts and sciences, to centuries of history and culture that paved the way for future civilizations.

Why Italian at Sewanee?

The Italian Studies program offers the opportunity to study Italian language and culture as well as courses in Italian literature, art, and cinema.

Language classes are taught in a full-immersion classroom, where you will work toward gaining proficiency in reading, writing, speaking, and listening, while learning about the rich complexity of Italian culture. At Sewanee, your Italian studies will be excellent preparation for studying abroad or traveling in Italy, an experience steeped in food, fashion, design, and art.

You will also have access to the Italian House, an immersive housing option on campus. Every semester, the Italian House offers a variety of extra-curricular activities, from movie screenings to cooking classes, open to all students of Italian at Sewanee

A Sampling of Courses

Representation of Italian Landscapes

During the Easter semester of 2021, students in Italian Studies 301 are studying the representation of natural and urban landscapes in 20th century Italian literature. They read a variety of poems that Italian authors have dedicated to their cities. As a creative project, students were asked to write a poem about their hometown, expressing their feelings for the city and describing a few locations that are particularly meaningful for them. Students could choose between a more traditional style of poetry (like Umberto Saba and Alda Merini did in “Trieste” and “Per Milano”) or to create a visual poem (tavola parolibera) following the example of the Futurist artists we studied, like Fortunato Depero.

 

 

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Italian Studies

Programs of Study

Requirements for the Minor in Italian Studies

Meet Some Professors

Sewanee's First Italian Studies Major: Szonja Szurop

Ciao! My name is Szonja Szurop, and I'm a senior student from Budapest, Hungary. Starting as an Art history major at The University of the South, Italian arts always formed a central part of my coursework. However, as I took more classes in the Italian department, I realized that I loved the culture and wanted to dive into it more than my concentration could cover. I especially enjoyed enhancing my language fluency which, thanks to the small class sizes and passionate faculty, went through an unbelievable advancement here at Sewanee. Eventually, I pursued a semester-long study abroad in Rome that gave me the final push toward the idea of creating my own major. Without the immense support of my Sewanee Italian professor, I could have never succeeded with my petition, though. I'm grateful that I had the chance to become the first Italian Studies major at the University because this program allowed me to learn what I'm so enthusiastic about on an advanced level and prepared me better for my post-graduate career.

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Contact

David Colbert
chair of the Department of Spanish & Italian Studies

dacolber@sewanee.edu
Gailor Hall 232, Ext. 1945

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