PERSIAN LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE A

Course objectives

General goals: advancement of the students’ linguistic skills and literary knowledge, through the reading of various prose and poetry texts belonging to different epochs. Specific goals: at the end of the course the student (1) improves his/her competence of the modern Persian language (spoken reception B2; written reception C1; overall spoken production B2; written production A2). Moreover he/she acquires sufficient knowledge of the Persian classical language and literature, as well as of history of the language, textual criticism, and principles of prosody and metrics; (2) is able to read, understand and analyze the texts of the classical Persian literature read during the course; (3) on the basis of the translation exercises carried out in class and at home, he/she is able to read and translate into Italian modern texts of different contents, both literary and non-literary; (4) has the necessary competence to read and understand, with the appropriate reference tools, texts of the Persian classical literature, discussing with others the interpretative issues; 5) can autonomously continue his studies also on the basis of instructions on how to plan research projects.

Channel 1
PAOLA ORSATTI Lecturers' profile

Program - Frequency - Exams

Prerequisites
The student must already have attended and passed the exams of Persian language and translation I, II, III, corresponding to levels spoken reception B1, written reception B2, overall spoken production B1, written production A2 of CEFRL. In addition, he must have a basic knowledge of the forms and poetic motifs on the Persian literature and have an idea of the problems connected with the study and periodization of this literature.
Books
Anthology of classical prose and poetical texts available in pdf at the beginning of the course. Alessandro Bausani, La letteratura neopersiana, Roma, Nuova Cultura, 2011 (La Sapienza Orientale – Ristampe): Cap. IV: La poesia lirico-panegiristica, pp. 307-416; Cap. VI: Il masnavi, pp. 579-741; Cap. VII: La prosa, pp. 779-835. (I capp. I e III must have already been studied)
Frequency
Attendance optional, but highly recommended.
Exam mode
The written test consists of a translation, from Persian into Italian, of a modern prose text not translated during the course, of the kind of texts translated as an exercise during the lessons. The only Italian-Persian dictionary allowed is that of Alessandro Coletti and Hanne Coletti-Grünbaum, Dizionario persiano-italiano. New edition by Paola Orsatti, in collaboration with Melissa Fedi e Federica Ponzo, Rome 2021). Monolingual dictionaries of the Persian language are also allowed. The use of grammars or notes of any kind is prohibited. Students are also advised to bring a dictionary of the Italian language. The oral exam focuses on all the texts read during the courses. The oral exam focuses on all the texts read during the courses. The student must be able to read, translate and comment the texts. Furthermore, the student must be able to answer questions concerning the history of Persian literature from the origins up to the Mongol period, with reference to the texts and authors treated during the course, and in particular to the subject of the course, related to the problem of the origins of this literature.
Lesson mode
Attendance optional, but highly recommended. For those who cannot attend, it is also possible to adopt a mixed teaching method.
  • Lesson code1055513
  • Academic year2024/2025
  • CourseOriental Languages and Cultures
  • CurriculumLingua persiana
  • Year1st year
  • Semester1st semester
  • SSDL-OR/15
  • CFU12
  • Subject areaLingue dell'Africa e dell'Asia