Corso di laurea in Beni Culturali

The main objective of the lecture course of study is the construction of an adequate conceptual apparatus for understanding the medieval past of Western civilisation. In addition to the knowledge acquired in pre-university education, the basic university course combines a critical reconsideration of the themes of the medieval age in the light of the most up-to-date trends in current historiography.

The fundamental themes of the Western Middle Ages, from the transition between Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages to pre-modern polities, will be tackled with a critical approach and multidisciplinary openness, taking into account recent acquisitions in related fields such as archaeology, art history, palaeography, diplomatics, and the history of written communication and literacy.

A basic course in medieval history assumes that students should build an adequate and general knowledge regarding a number of fundamental topics:

- problems and methods of medieval history and its periodisation;

- sources for medieval history;

- forms of power and social structures in the different phases of the history of the Western Middle Ages;

- evolution of the forms of medieval spirituality;

- economic trends and conjunctures in the medieval age.

- social and parental structures and frameworks of literacy and communication

Students must be able to apply this knowledge to frame and contextualise the various specific moments and developments in medieval history, with an adequate ability to evaluate and judge the sources analysed in class. Emphasis will be placed on a critical approach to historical problems and the ability to connect historical phenomena across time, both within the long medieval millennium and in relation to contemporaneity. 

Communicative skills

Adequate specific vocabulary should be acquired with regard to the topics considered during the course and their critical discussion.

Learning skills

The specific objective of the course is to develop the ability to learn the complexity of historical developments, which constitutes one of the fundamental skills for the humanities as a whole and for the formation of competences related to the world of cultural heritage and its specific professions.

This is a general course: it is therefore divided into two different sections, aimed at providing students with concepts, tools and information of increasing complexity.

A first introductory part is dedicated to the definition of the concepts and structures of medieval studies through a historiographical and critical analysis of the birth of the concept of the Middle Ages and its historical development (The Medieval Age: spaces, times, periodizations); an accurate examination of the testimonies and working tools of the medievalist (Narrating, establishing, recording and the eloquence of material culture); finally, an introduction to some of the most significant and recent trends in medieval history (Global History, Gender History: an opening)
The central part of the course is devoted to the systematic analysis of some fundamental themes of medieval civilisation:
the forms of politics (kingdoms, empires, cities);
the forms of spirituality (the church, the Islamic world, the Jews, dissent);
the forms of economy and society (demography, stagnation and development, urban and rural contexts, personal status, family structures, gender);
the forms of culture (literacy and written culture).

The lecture course is composed by classes in which the theoretical and general analysis of some main themes will be complemented with the guided reading of medieval sources (in translation), in order to offer to the students both a general information and a first direct approach to medieval sources.

At the end on the course, the exam will be oral, in order to verify what students have learned, and which skills and competences they have obtained: the evaluation is on the scale 30/30 plus laude.

• As for the skills, they will include an effective conceptual and analytical frame and fluent discursive and logical skills;
• competences will include a basic knowledge on the main instruments and themes required to the understanding of the medieval period; the familiarity with medieval events and practices; the understanding of the longue durée of medieval processes; the flexibility and ability to compare and interpreter a broad range of multi-layered and multifaceted historical phenomena.

The exams can be, if needed, also in English or French.

For students with specific learning disabilities (SLD) or disabilities, please review the support procedures (https://www.unito.it/servizi/lo-studio/studenti-e-studentesse-con-disabilita) and accommodations (https://www.unito.it/accoglienza-studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa) provided by the University, particularly the necessary procedures for exam support (https://www.unito.it/servizi/lo-studio/studenti-e-studentesse-con-disturbi-specifici-di-apprendimento-dsa/supporto).

Students with SLD are requested to inform the lecturer at the beginning of the course in order to agree on a personal learning path adapted to their needs, also beyond the compensatory and dispensatory measures provided for the examination.

The course will be activated in academic year 2023/24