Silvia joined the RLL Ph.D program at University of Chicago in 2012. Her interests include 19th and 20th century Italian literature, American and Comparative literature, Literary Theory and Linguistics. She plans to focus in particular on translation as bridge between cultures and literatures and as means by which authors have technically and thematically enriched their literary traditions. Silvia holds a BA in Italian Literature and an MA in Modern and Contemporary Italian literature, both from the University of Milan, Italy.
Research interests: 19th- and 20th-century Italian literature, American and Comparative literature, Translation, Literary Theory and Linguistics
Dissertation: Belonging to the Threshold. Appartenenza and sradicamento in early 20th-Century “Italian” literature
Recent Courses in RLL
- ITAL 10300 Beginning Elementary Italian III (Spring 2020)
- ITAL 20400 Corzo di perfezionamento (Autumn 2019)
- ITAL 23217 Challenges of Translation: Italian Poetry and Prose (Spring 2018)
Recent Courses in RLL
ITAL 10300 Beginning Elementary Italian III
This course expands on the material presented in ITAL 10200, reviewing and elaborating the basic patterns of the language. Successful completion of ITAL 10300 meets the language competence requirement.
ITAL 10200 or placement.
ITAL 20400 Corso di perfezionamento
This course helps students achieve a very high level of composition and style through the acquisition of numerous writing techniques. Using a variety of literary and nonliterary texts as models, students examine the linguistic structure and organization of several types of written Italian discourse. This course is also intended to help students attain high levels in reading, speaking, and listening through readings and debates on various issues of relevance in contemporary Italian society.
ITAL 20300, placement, or consent.
ITAL 23217 Challenges of Translation: Italian Poetry and Prose
The course focuses on the analysis and production of translations of Italian literary texts. We will compare different English translations of classics of Italian literature, such as Dante's Inferno, Boccaccio's Decameron, and Petrarch's Canzoniere. We will analyze translations of modern poetry and prose, by authors such as Montale, Calvino, and Pasolini, and discuss the effectiveness of Ann Goldstein's recent translations of Elena Ferrante's tetralogy and their role in securing the author's success abroad. Students will also be faced with the challenges of allegedly untranslatable texts, such as those produced by Futurism. The course will shed light on the ways in which translations shape our reading of the Italian literary tradition and on the strategies involved in transporting literary artifacts across cultures. Students will be encouraged to produce their own translations and provide feedback on each other's texts in a workshop setting.