Course description
In this course, we will look at the changing image of Italy in three important novels: George Eliot's Romola (1863), a historical novel set in Renaissance Florence; Henry James's The Portrait of a Lady (1881), a tragic romance set in England and Italy; and E.M. Forster's A Room with a View (1908), a satirical romance set in Florence and England. On the one hand, the novels will be read for their own sakes, as they are all important works of fiction by great writers. At the same time, we will read them from the point of view of cultural history. During the nineteenth century, Italy was a highly 'significant other' for both British and American readers. On the one hand, as the center of Roman Catholicism, Italian life and culture had traditionally been regarded with suspicion and hostility by Protestants; as traditional attitudes began to change, however, especially towards art, the attitude towards Roman Catholicism began to shift and become more complex. This was especially strengthened by the rise of medievalism, in which medieval Italian art and culture began to be seen as representing an earlier, purer spirituality which Britain and America should emulate. This then led to a complex relationship with the developing notion of Aestheticism. At the same time, though, as the home of the Renaissance, and the country which had produced Leonardo, Galileo and Machiavelli, Italy was also seen by many as the source of modernity, science and individualism. This was strengthened by the view of Italy as the heir to the pagan Roman Empire. For all these reasons, representations of Italy were never merely representations of another country, but were always bound up with British and American notions of their own identity. At the same time, the nineteenth-century saw the beginning of middle-class tourism to Italy, and guidebooks and novels about Italy became increasingly popular. As we see the transition in the novels towards a more nuanced view of Italy and its culture, we also realize that the changing image of Italy tells us more about the transformation in British and American culture than about Italy as such.
In the course, after surveying changing attitudes towards Italy in the English-speaking world, we will examine each of the novels in turn, looking at them both in the context of the author's career, and focusing on the representations of Italy in the novels. At the same time, we will also look at the implied understanding of British and American culture in each novel. The course will be taught in a seminar style, with student presentations and discussion. Students will be encouraged to reflect on their own images of Italy and those which have traditionally been held in the countries or cultures from which they come. Broader questions which will be addressed are the role of images of other countries in our understanding of the world, and whether in a globalized world, such images can continue to have the cultural significance that they used to, have, or whether the notion of distinct national cultures is destined to disappear.

Learning outcomes
In this course, students will get to know three novels by great writers in the British and American tradition. They will also learn about the important role which Italian culture played in discussions of modernity in nineteenth-century Britain and America. More widely, they will be able to reflect upon and exchange views on the importance or otherwise of our images of other countries. The importance of understanding the historical roots of these images will also become evident.

Teaching and evaluation methods
The course will be taught in seminar style, with student presentations and discussions.
The final grade will be decided in the following way:
participation (25%);
presentations (25%);
final paper (50%).

Syllabus:
Week 1: Introduction: Italy in British Culture (1)
Week 2: Introduction: Italy in British Culture (2)
Week 3: George Eliot (Intro)
Week 4: Romola (1)
Week 5: Romola (2)
Week 6: Henry James (Intro)
Week 7: The Portrait of a Lady
Week 8: The Portrait of a Lady
Week 9: (Midterm)
Week 10: E.M.Forster (Intro)
Week 11: A Room with a View
Week 12: A Room with a View
Week 13:
Week 14 (Final)

Bibliography
Primary texts:
George Eliot, Romola (1862)
Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady (1881)
E.M. Forster, A Room with a View (1908)
(All these texts may be downloaded from the Internet)
Further reading
Kenneth Churchill, Italy and English Literature, Palgrave Macmillan, 1980
Hilary Fraser, The Victorians and Renaissance Italy, Blackwell, 1992
John Hale, England and the Italian Renaissance, Blackwell, 2008
John Pemble, The Mediterranean Passion, Faber, 2015