116-462 Sex and Power in the Renaissance

Completion of 37.5 points of Italian at intermediate or post-VCE level for third year. Admission to the postgraduate diploma or fourth year honours in Italian for fourth year. European studies students wishing to enrol in this subject would normally have completed 37.5 points of European studies at second/third year, see Prerequisites.

The subject will examine two classics of Italian literature, Boccaccio's Decameron and Machiavelli's Il Principe. The first, composed in the 1350s, is a classic of comic writing which became an essential reference-point for later writers. Students will study a selected number of stories to understand their narrative structures and their major themes. Il Principe is the foundation work of modern political science. Its reputation has ensured continuing interest in such a provocative work. By the end of the subject students should have acquired a basic knowledge of Renaissance culture and politics. Students should also have gained an understanding of narratological analysis and applied it to the Decameron.