Learning objectives
Knowledge and understanding. The course will allow students a critical
understanding of the past as a tool for critical understanding of the
present.
Ability to apply knowledge and understanding. Lectures, individual study
and research conducted during the laboratory part of the course will give
students the ability to connect the past with the present, identifying
trends and long-term problems.
Autonomy of judgment. At the end of the course, students, on the basis
of their analytical knowledge, should have acquired the ability to collect
data and critically interpret the topics studied.
Communication skills. At the end of the course students should have
achieved the ability to clearly explain the main problems
Learning ability. The study commitment should give students a certain
methodological mastery, learning skills and ability to analyse sources
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of Early Modern and Modern History.
Course unit content
The course consists of a critical excursus on historiography and sources
on diplomacy during the early modern age.
Reference Books
Full programme
Attending students:
1) Roberto Bizzocchi, Guida allo studio della storia moderna, pp. 83-122
(ovvero il Capitolo Le Fonti) Laterza, varie edizioni.
2) Ventura A., Introduzione, in Relazioni degli ambasciatori veneti al
Senato, Bari, Laterza, 1980, pp. vii-cvi.
3) A. Contini, L' informazione politica sugli stati italiani non spagnoli nelle
relazioni veneziane a metà Cinquecento (1558-1566), in L’informazione
politica in Italia (secoli XVI-XVIII), a cura di E. Fasano Guarini, M. Rosa,
Scuola Normale Superiore, Pisa, 2001, pp. 1-57
4) Daniela Frigo, Corte, onore e ragion di Stato: il ruolo dell’ambasciatore
in età moderna, in “Cheiron”, 1998, n. 30. Vol. XV, pp. 1-43.
5) P. Volpini, Ambasciatori, cerimoniali e informazione politica: il sistema
diplomatico e le sue fonti, in Nel laboratorio della storia. Una guida alle
fonti dell'età moderna, a cura di Maria Pia Paoli, Roma, Carocci 2013, pp.
237-264 e Leggere un’istruzione a un ambasciatore, pp. 367-373;
6) De Vivo F., How to Read Venetian Relazioni, in «Renaissance &
Reformation», (2011) pp. 25-59;
or
P. Volpini, Ambasciatori nella prima età moderna tra corti italiane ed
europee, Roma, Sapienza University Press SUE, 2022, pp. 125-136
(dispacci e relazioni).
7) a paper with source analysis to be agreed with the lecturer. The source will be chosen from a list proposed during the course. The paper will be presented and discussed orally during the workshop and will form an integral part of the final exam.
Attending students may conclude the examination by submitting a second, more extensive paper in
written form, which they must then present during the final examination interview.
Not attending students have to contact the professor.
Changes in Syllabus may be communicated at the beginnig of the course
Bibliography
See the "Programma esteso" box
Teaching methods
Frontal and interactive lessons. After a historiographical and
methodological introduction, studies and sources on the diplomatic
mediation will be examined and discussed in class.
Sources and texts will be available on the Elly platform
Assessment methods and criteria
The exam consists of a critical analys of a source choseen with the
professor and presented during the lesson. Attending students
may conclude the examination by submitting a second, more extensive paper
to be submitted in advance in written form and presented during the oral examination.
Active participation in classes is required.
The exam is considered passed (18-23/30) if the student demonstrates a basic understanding of the sources presented by the professor during the exam, shows sufficient mastery of the topics covered in class, both in relation to the different sources considered and the critical analysis of them, expresses themselves in adequately correct Italian, and submits a research project of acceptable quality, as agreed with the professor.
Failure to meet these essential requirements will result in a failing grade. The exam is considered passed (18-23/30) if the student achieves at least the minimum course objectives. An average score (24-27/30) is awarded to those who demonstrate a more than sufficient or good level of proficiency in the aforementioned criteria. The highest scores (28-30/30 and honors) are awarded to students who achieve an excellent to outstanding level in the evaluation criteria mentioned above, with particular emphasis on their ability to develop an independent critical reflection on the sources.
