On Not Knowing Italian: Reading and Writing in Other Languages
A Seminar with Visiting Hurst Professor Rebecca Walkowitz
This seminar explores recent work on the history and politics of languages, in particular the concepts of monolingualism, multilingualism, translation, and "native" command or fluency. We'll ask how the concept of a first or native language, and of a writer's authority or obligation to use that language, has shaped our approaches to literary history, close reading, and world literature. Readings for the seminar can be found here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B_mam7b2RXR-c3owRWV0TDlXalk?usp=sharing.