Departmental Newsletter for Modern Languages & Literatures at the College of William & Mary
Journalist and author Beppe Severgnini serves as editor in chief of the weekly magazine for Italy’s Corriere della sera newspaper, has long been a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times, and has written over 17 books. Since 1998, Severgnini has also written a daily column for the Corriere della sera, in which he… Read More
By Isabel Conti ‘22 in consultation with Alyssa Glauser ‘22 and Judith Tauber ‘21 Despite the constraints of a remote semester, William & Mary’s newly created Italian Club has grown and had great success in providing students with conversation hours, cooking lessons, and cultural activities over Zoom. We were able to provide students with an… Read More
By Judith Tauber ’21 As an alumna of Professor Ferrarese’s Fascism in Italy, I’m very glad to see that the course will be offered once again in Spring 2021: it is without a doubt one of the best courses I have taken in my last 3 ½ years at William & Mary. Professor Ferrarese examined… Read More
By Rita Paolino The global pandemic has impacted the lives of all of us; we all know that. Among the many things Covid19 has taken away from us is the possibility to enjoy performing arts in person. In fact, since March 2020, most theaters and opera houses across the country have been closed. Thus, while… Read More
Congratulazioni to our Italian Studies graduates: Tianyi Vanessa Cai (Art & Art History Major, Italian Minor) – recipient of the Italian Studies Book Award Tyler Cox-Philyaw (History Major, Italian Minor) Kathryn Donati (English Major, Italian Minor) Marisa Lemma (Government Major, Economics Minor, Italian Honorary Minor) Zoe Nelson (Government Major, Self-Designed Italian Major) – recipient of the MDLL Outstanding Achievement… Read More
By Prof. Monica Seger This year’s spring commencement was, like so many things right now, quite different than usual. Rather than gathering on campus with friends and colleagues from throughout Modern Languages and Literatures for a department-wide ceremony, students and faculty in Italian Studies celebrated from afar with a Zoom commencement of our own. Just… Read More
Zoe Nelson (Government Major, Self-Designed Italian Major ’20) shares her experience in the Italian Program over the past four years. In bocca al lupo per il futuro, Zoe! «The Italian Department’s smaller size was a fantastic fit for me, as it allowed for me to form meaningful individual relationships with other Italian Studies students, along with all of… Read More
Tianyi Vanessa Cai (Art & Art History Major, Italian Minor ’20) shares with us her special relationship with Italian language and culture. Grazie Vanessa! «Being a violin player and a fan of the virtuoso Niccolò Paganini, I registered for an Italian class when I entered college hoping to learn more about the language and its culture…. Read More
In the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, advanced language students have had the opportunity to work as Teaching Assistants for many years. The assistantship model has changed since its inception but the unique role of undergraduate TAs in language classes remains a key feature of our department. Professor Mattavelli, who became interested in teacher preparation and mentoring… Read More
Last month, our Italian Studies Program participated in a series of events in Washington D.C. hosted by the W&M Alumni Association. On November 7, Professor Monica Seger gave a talk at the W&M Washington Center and shared her latest research which is based in Italy’s Puglia region. Professor Seger studies the rich wave of novels and films that have emerged… Read More
The Italian House and International Fellow Chiara di Maio were featured in the 3rd episode of “Plant-based Eating for a College Lifestyle”, a video series by W&M Sustainability Interns. One of our Italian Major, Zoe Nelson, who is also an Intern at W&M Dining, participated in the video. Chiara, Zoe, and our students prepared a dish called “Pasta… Read More
On October 4th 2019, two of our students/artists, Alyssa Glauser and Laura Brancati, added a new masterpiece to the walls of the Italian House. It reproduces the world-famous Creazione di Adamo (The Creation of Adam), a fresco painted by Michelangelo on the Sistine Chapel’s ceiling that can be admired in the Vatican Museums. The resemblance to the original is… Read More
Our Program is proud to recognize the outstanding undergraduate scholarship in the field of Italian Studies of the following students who were inducted in the National Italian Honor Society this Spring: Vanessa Cai (Art History and Italian Studies, ’20) Emily Knoche (European Studies & French & Francophone Studies, ’19) Marisa Lemma (Government major & Economics… Read More
I am so thankful to have been part of the Modern Language Department since I began studying Italian my freshman year. Washington hall has been my home away from home and I am so thankful have gotten to know both the staff and the students that also call it theirs. The Department has shaped my… Read More
Being a part of the Italian department has been one of my best choices in college. Even though Italian did not come easy to me, the Professor’s have always encouraged and challenged me. I have enjoyed the engaging classes that I have been able to take with the department. Speaking Italian allowed me to study… Read More
By Judith Tauber Last summer, I conducted my Freshman Monroe Research Project on the Slow Food movement under the guidance of my wonderful advisor, Professor Mattavelli. I had been exposed to the principles of Slow Food—without realizing it—nearly my entire life because my family places immense importance on choosing only organic, local foods. However, I… Read More
By Arika Thames (Theatre and Gender, Sexuality, & Women’s Studies double major ‘19) This summer I had the pleasure of living and working in Italy for six weeks. After studying Italian for two years I was determined to spend my summer in the country in some capacity. Instead of studying abroad, I searched for… Read More
By Antonella Nicholas (Public Policy major and Italian minor, ’20) When I arrived in Italy, I found myself immersed in a hurricane of terms of endearment. Before starting my studies in Florence, I stayed in Rome for a few days, and in restaurants, shops, and downtown, I always heard “Ciao, bella” and “Grazie, amore.” It… Read More
By Alexa Conti (class of 2021) Every year, the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) sponsors 20 Italian-American college students to travel to Italy (for free!) for their first times. The Ambassador Peter F. Secchia Voyage of Discovery Program is meant to strengthen the Italian American identity by bonding young Italian-Americans to the country, culture, and… Read More
By Marisa Lemma (Government major & Economics minor, ’20). I had been dreaming about going to Italy for as long as I can remember. I remember telling my parents even in third grade that I would one day visit Italy. I would pore over my “First Thousand Words in Italian” book trying to soak up… Read More
By Erin Kitchens (Anthropology major and Italian minor ’19) I found Italian mostly by happenstance. On a whim I signed up for Italian, remembering how much I had admired the landscape and the melody of the language when I had visited as a 13-year-old. This decision, which I decided in five minutes, would shape my… Read More
By Kelly Konrad (Linguistics and French & Francophone Studies ’20). During the summer of 2018, I spent a month studying in Florence, Italy, where I took Italian language and art history classes at LinguaViva, an institution designed for international students. Spending time studying in Italy was the best choice I’ve made so far as a… Read More
By Chiara Di Maio Is there a better way to celebrate World Pasta Day on October 25th than making pasta from scratch just like our grandparents used to? We invited Chef Eric Christenson, owner of LOKAL, a nearby restaurant, to the Italian house to teach us how to make different types of pasta. Eric is… Read More
The Gamma Kappa Alpha National Italian Honor Society acknowledges superior scholastic performance in the field of Italian language, literature, cinema, and culture of students in higher learning in the United States and Canada. In spring 2018 the Gamma Kappa Alpha Chapter of William & Mary proudly recognized the outstanding undergraduate scholarship in Italian Studies of… Read More
Rachel Dubit graduates in Spring 2018 with a major in Classical Studies (Latin) and a minor in Italian Studies. During her time at William & Mary, she has studied abroad in Italy twice and in Greece. In addition to Latin and Ancient Greek, she continues to study Italian literature and German language and will participate… Read More
In March 2018 students in Professor Mattavelli’s class Italian Through Film had an exciting opportunity to skype with Pierfrancesco Diliberto (known as Pif), TV host and director of the movie The Mafia Only Kills in the Summer. The students watched the movie, read some articles and prepared a few questions for him. One of the… Read More
Contextualizing Family History Jacopo Gliozzi (Physics and Mathematics, ’19) Fascism is a word that we hear a lot in today’s climate. Especially on a politically conscious campus like William and Mary, the label of Fascist is applied often enough that it’s hard to keep track of what the word means exactly. That’s why, when… Read More
Summer Internship in Pavia Tyler Mlakar (International Relations,’19) Perhaps one of the most stressful tasks that students face during their time at the College of William and Mary is the search for summer internships. Summer internships are of major importance for both graduate school applications and post-graduation job opportunities. Students are always trying to… Read More
March was a very busy month for the Italian Studies program! We were lucky to host three wonderful guest speakers. On March 13-14 Professor Millicent Marcus of Yale University came to meet with students in Italian and Religious Studies, and to host a public screening and discussion of the classic film The Garden of the… Read More
This past semester, spring 2017, my students and I took part in a collaborative project with a group from Johns Hopkins University and two Italian filmmakers. The experimental documentary film Non Perdono (Non Pardon / I Don’t Forgive, 2016) explores current environmental, health and economic crises in the town of Taranto, Italy, long home to… Read More
On March 29th the Italian Program organized a guided tour of the wonderful exhibition Botticelli and the Search for the Divine hosted at the Muscarelle Museum. This is the most important Botticelli exhibition in the United States so far. A group of about 25 students, currently enrolled in our language classes, was guided through the… Read More
This year I had the wonderful experience of being a part of the group of student interns at the Muscarelle Museum of Art during the exhibition, Botticelli and the Search for the Divine: Florentine Painting Between the Medici and the Bonfires of the Vanities. Studying Italian and Art History while working in the museum have been… Read More
We were lucky to have Sara Mattavelli join us this year as a Lecturer of Italian Studies. Please enjoy the following video to learn more about her and what she brings to William & Mary!
(or Building Regional Connections Through Scholarly Exchange) On the final day of this fall semester I had the opportunity to participate in a symposium just up the road in Charlottesville, at The University of Virginia. The symposium, “Post-Humanism in the Anthropocene,” was sponsored by the Mellon Foundation and UVA’s Institute of the Humanities & Global… Read More
Anyone who has ever been in the Italian house will tell you about the warm and welcoming environment created each year by wonderful groups of students brought together by their shared interest in the Italian language, the culture and the people. While a few residents originally decide to live in the Italian house in order… Read More
There has never been a time in my life when I don’t remember my mother telling me stories of her junior year abroad in Montpellier, France. From describing her breakfasts to the amazing springtime trips with her friends, my mother filled my imagination with her memories and emotions from her life years before. It’s not… Read More
This may surprise people who know me, but studying Italian at William & Mary has been a joyful four-year-long leap out of my comfort zone. I came to William & Mary dreading the language requirement because it would cost me twelve to sixteen credits – time that I could otherwise spend studying something I was… Read More
Women are “allowed” to like art. We are allowed to like sculpture, landscapes, oil paintings, and architecture—the type of thing a character in a Jane Austen book enjoys. But not graffiti. An art form dominated by male artists, characterized by danger and illegality, is considered outside of our domain. Growing up, I was always told… Read More
As part of Majors Week 2016 the Italian Studies faculty hosted an aperitivo italiano yesterday evening in Washington Hall. It proved to be a great way to connect with current and future Italian Studies students, and to share some Italian culture. Over lemon sodas, parmigiano and various salatini (salty snacks) and affettati (cured meats), graduating seniors shared memories… Read More
We were thrilled to welcome Ghanaian-Italian filmmaker Fred Kuwornu for two great events in November, 2015. While here, Fred shared an extended rough cut of his near-complete documentary Blaxploitalian: 100 Years of Blackness in Italian Cinema, and spoke to a packed room about diversity and media in Italy and beyond. Later that same evening, he also screened… Read More
While living and studying in Milan, Italy as an exchange student after high school, I began to notice certain linguistic features that appeared exclusively in gay men’s speech. These included feminization of adjectives, affectionately tongue-in-cheek terms of address, and an animatedly flamboyant style. Given the work done by American scholars on the existence of and attitudes… Read More
By Akela Lacy, c/0 2015 This past winter break I had the opportunity to combine my interests in journalism, human rights and Italian. As part of William and Mary’s Sharp Journalism Seminar in conjunction with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, I traveled to Turin, Italy to conduct research on immigration from the Middle East… Read More
Professor Monica Seger is our new faculty member in Italian Studies. In this interview, Professor Seger talks about her research, courses she’s teaching, and how her passion for the environment breathes life into both.
I would have never guessed as a Freshman at William & Mary how much of an impact studying Italian would have on my life. I began college wanting to double Major in Hispanic Studies and Business, however after taking my first Italian class and spending so much time in the Italian House even before my… Read More
People might ask you: what does it feel like living in the Italian House? Guys, it feels great. Seriously. The year 2012-2013 was particularly full of events and activities. Besides an overwhelmingly funny and playful atmosphere, the I-House has even more to offer. It’s all about Italian culture, Italian language, Italian cinema, Italian food (…well,… Read More
When I came to William and Mary I never imagined that by the time of my senior year I would be completing a research paper in Italian. I took only the bare minimum required by my high school, and as a result was required to complete 4 semesters at the College. At first, it was… Read More
Opera in Williamsburg presents: L’Elisir d’Amore by Gaetano Donizetti. Live opera, fully staged with piano, violin, and clarinet accompaniment. At the Kimball Theatre, Friday October 26, 2012, at 8 PM. Tickets: $45 ($40 for seniors, military, and teachers/faculty; $15 for students).
The following story was written by Italian student Sally Wade: When I set off for my second journey in Italy, I was looking for an immersive experience. I wanted to see Italy not through a tourist’s eyes; I wanted to be more than a passive observer. I spent last summer in Florence studying Italian and… Read More
Casey Swann ’12 spoke to me a few days before graduation this May about her self-designed Italian Studies major, her study abroad research in Rome, Italy, and about her plans for after graduation.
by Cassie Prena Last Spring, I spent an unforgettable semester abroad at John Cabot University in Rome. Although my courses at the university and my daily life in a foreign country allowed a certain level of immersion, I was nevertheless determined to experience the more intimate aspects of Italian culture. I decided that an internship… Read More
In this video interview, I talk to Anita Angelone, Professor of Italian Language and Literature at the College. She discusses her latest research project on the Gypsies of Italy, some of the courses she’s currently teaching, and I also ask her to recommend something good to read.
In February, the William and Mary Italian Studies Department invited Ivana Corsale, an up-and-coming Italian documentarian, to debut her latest film as part of the 2011 William and Mary Global Film Festival. Corsale’s film, Unhappy Country, tackled a growing issue in Southern Italian society: the illegal and unhealthy handling of industrial waste. The beautiful, fertile… Read More
presents her documentary (un)happy country in Washington Hall 201. February 17, 2011 @ 7pm In the summer of 2010 Ivana Corsale travelled to Campania Italy to document the ongoing environmental and humanitarian crisis caused by the endemic mismanagement of household and industrial waste caused by the Camorra. Ludwigsburg, einem netzwerk fr kulturmanager und hausarbeit schreiben… Read More
Stephen Sheehi, Sultan Qaboos bin Said Chair of Middle East Studies, Professor of Arabic Studies in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, has received the 2018 Plumeri Award for Faculty Excellence, celebrating exemplary achievements of William & Mary faculty in teaching, research, and service. Prof. Sheehi’s work meets at the intersection of cultural, visual,… Read More