Expatriate Writers in Rome

Imagine yourself standing on the top of Capitol hill, surveying the topography of Rome. What is your response? How have previous writers shaped your view of the eternal city? In this week long course, students will be staying in the historical center of Rome, and exploring British and American responses to the eternal city through different genres: travel writing, letters, a novel, a novella, a short story, and selected poetry. We will begin our exploration with the 18th century grand tour, then read the Romantic poets of the early 19th century, and then follow in the footsteps of early modern writers. To do this we will visit the Forum, the Palatine, Colosseum, Baths of Caracalla, Circus Maximus as previous writers did. We will discuss the influences of writers on our responses to Rome at the Caffe Greco, and attend a lecture at the Keats-Shelley Museum. At the end of this course, students will not only be familiar with literature about Rome, specific historical figures and themes, but will also have gained a fuller understanding of the city itself.

Instructor:  Ms. Pauline Fry 

Requirements
ENGL 288E - All students will take two quizzes, participate in a literary salon, and complete a final (essay) examination on the final day of class.  This course is open to all students who have successfully completed at least nine hours of university study.

ENGL 388 - In addition to fulfilling lower-level requirements, students will complete a project which will be presented to the class at the end of the week. 

This Field Study course is applicable to an upper- or lower-level course for English, humanities, Italian Studies, or elective credit.  

Registration
Tuition for a three-semester-hour course must be paid to the UMUC Europe field representative at your education center.  Tuition Assistance and Financial Aid are applicable toward tuition.
 
Textbooks
Textbooks, which must be read prior to the beginning of the course, will be sent to the field representative in the education center where the student has registered for the course.  Textbooks will cost approximately $45.  Textbooks and prices are subject to change; field representatives should contact the Field Study Office at the time of registration to confirm details.  Textbooks will include the following:

Daisy Miller: A Novella Henry James
The Marble Faun, Nathaniel Hawthorne
Travels Through France and Italy, Tobias Smollet

Students will receive an information packet containing the following readings, which must also be read prior to the course:
"Roman Fever" by Edith Wharton
Selections from The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain
Selected poems by Byron, Keats, and Shelley
 
Accommodations and Transportation
The instructor has reserved a block of double-occupancy rooms with private bath and  continental  breakfast in Rome for approximately 440 euros per person, including seven nights in the hotel and breakfast. (Students will pay the hotel directly since the fluctuation in the dollar makes it hard to estimate exactly the cost per person.) Please bring at least EURO 50 to cover all the museum admission fees, site fees, and a literary salon fee.

Upon registration, students should immediately contact the instructor by email regarding accommodations: p.fry@flashnet.it.

Transportation to and from Rome is the responsibility of the student. 

Schedule
First class meeting:  1800 hours Saturday, 15 March at:

Hotel Giotto Flavia
Via Flavia 84
00187 Rome 
tel. 06.42011651.
Final class meeting:  Saturday, 22 March , ending at 1300 hours.

Important!
Before completing travel plans, it is the student's responsibility to verify with the field representative that the course will be offered on the dates indicated.  A fee of $100 will be charged to students who cancel from the Field Study course after the registration deadline. 

••••  Registration Deadline:    29 February 2008  ••••

Last updated: 19 December 2007

On related pages:  Sample Syllabus  |  Field Study Home  |  Field Study FAQ