Discover Venice: ENG 150: Literature Interprets the World (D)
Using Venice as our classroom, this course will focus on the exploration of Black expatriate writers in Europe and consider the appeal of looking outside the United States to understand freedom and equality on different terms than how Jim Crow segregation was organizing American race relations. We will read antebellum writers like Olaudah Equiano and Harriet Jacobs for whom Europe was literally a refuge from slavery; celebrated figures of the Harlem Renaissance like Josephine Baker and Langston Hughes, whose cosmopolitanism and Jazz Age sensibilities shaped modernism across two continents.
African Americans have long had a rich (and sometimes tense) relationship with Italy in particular: as Frederick Douglass wrote in his last autobiography, “All that one has ever read, heard, felt, thought, or imagined concerning Rome comes thronging upon mind and heart and makes one eager and impatient to be there.” In the mid-twentieth century, Italy became a temporary home for many black writers, including Ralph Ellison and William Demby, and the example of the all-Black 366th Infantry and the Buffalo Soldiers who helped liberate the Italian peninsula became a rallying cry for the resistance to Italian fascism after the Second World War.
Summer Session I
May 28th - July 4th, 2024 |
| Overview |
ENG 150: Literature Interprets the World (D)
Using Venice as our classroom, this course will focus on the exploration of Black expatriate writers in Europe and consider the appeal of looking outside the United States to understand freedom and equality on different terms than how Jim Crow segregation was organizing American race relations. We will read antebellum writers like Olaudah Equiano and Harriet Jacobs for whom Europe was literally a refuge from slavery; celebrated figures of the Harlem Renaissance like Josephine Baker and Langston Hughes, whose cosmopolitanism and Jazz Age sensibilities shaped modernism across two continents.
African Americans have long had a rich (and sometimes tense) relationship with Italy in particular: as Frederick Douglass wrote in his last autobiography, “All that one has ever read, heard, felt, thought, or imagined concerning Rome comes thronging upon mind and heart and makes one eager and impatient to be there.” In the mid-twentieth century, Italy became a temporary home for many black writers, including Ralph Ellison and William Demby, and the example of the all-Black 366th Infantry and the Buffalo Soldiers who helped liberate the Italian peninsula became a rallying cry for the resistance to Italian fascism after the Second World War. |
| Location |
Surrounded by water, Venice is an enchanting city built on 117 small islands. Its magnificent sights are best seen by walking along the narrow streets, crossing the many canals, and meandering through the piazzas. Piazza San Marco, Palazzo Ducale, and the Rialto bridge are three among numerous sites that make Venice an unforgettable city. In addition, Wake Forest students may conveniently explore on their own other parts of Italy such as Rome, Florence, Pompeii, Sicily among others.
In 1971, the University, with the assistance of Graham Martin, Ambassador to Italy and Wake Forest alumnus, leased the building that formerly housed the American Consulate. In 1974, the building was purchased by Wake Forest and named Casa Artom in honor of Dr. Camillo Artom, a professor at the Baptist Medical Center until 1969. His wife, Bianca Ara Artom, taught Italian at Wake Forest for many years and served as the director of Casa Artom during the summers until her death in 1994.
Casa Artom is a magnificent two-story building facing the Grand Canal. It is flanked by the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, which houses the Peggy Guggenheim art collection, and the magnificent 15th century home Ca'Dario. |
| Program |
ENG 150: Literature Interprets the World (D)
The course will focus on Black expatriate writers in Europe and consider the appeal of looking outside the United States to understand freedom and equality on different terms than how Jim Crow segregation was organizing American race relations. The course will introduce students to the long history of Black intellectuals and artists who embraced Europe as an alternative to the delimited political and aesthetic possibilities available in the United States. We will read antebellum writers like Olaudah Equiano and Harriet Jacobs for whom Europe was literally a refuge from slavery; celebrated figures of the Harlem Renaissance like Josephine Baker and Langston Hughes, whose cosmopolitanism and Jazz Age sensibilities shaped modernism across two continents; post-war writers like Ralph Ellison and James Baldwin with dramatically opposing views about the possibilities for the United States to reform its relationship with its Black citizens; and contemporary writers like Ta-Nehisi Coates, whose Between the World and Me introduced a new generation of readers to the fraught calculus underwriting the choice to leave America behind. |
| Faculty |
Dr. Christopher Brown
Assistant Professor of English
Email: browncm@wfu.edu
(336) 758-7133
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| Accommodation |
Casa Artom can accommodate 18 students. There are eleven bedrooms, a library, classrooms, a dining room, a living room, two kitchens, a patio, and an open courtyard. Modern kitchen facilities are available, and students often prefer to cook their meals together in the house. The house is wired for Internet access and students may bring their laptop computers. The faculty director has a suite upstairs consisting of two bedrooms and a bath. Washers and dryers are available in the laundry room. Casa Artom is conveniently located close to the Academia, the Guggenheim Museum, churches, restaurants, coffee houses, and small grocery stores. Participants reside at Casa Artom where they will share rooms with other students.
NOTE: All students participating in the WFU Casa Artom program are required to live in program-provided housing. Housing accommodations you may have on campus do not automatically transfer to abroad and certain housing accommodations (single rooms and private bathrooms, for example) may not be available. |
| Excursions |
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| Selection |
The resident professor is responsible for the selection of each group based on the following criteria:
*Academic suitability
*Social and emotional maturity
*Seriousness of the student in pursuing the academic and cultural aims of the program |
| Costs |
The total cost of summer study abroad can be broken down into four categories:
Program Fee - Usually covers room, in-country travel, excursions, some meals and other costs associated with the program.
Tuition – Students on WFU summer programs pay WFU summer school tuition per credit hour. The 2023 summer rate was $950/per credit hour. Expect a small increase for summer 2024.
Airfare – Varies per location. Students are responsible for their own airfare unless otherwise noted.
Personal Expenses – These will vary depending on the students' spending habits, cost of living in the destination country, and the number of meals included in the program fee. This may also include visa fees, vaccinations, academic supplies/books and other miscellaneous daily expenses.
Program Fee - $4,370
Tuition (3hrs) - $2,850
Airfare (estimated) - $1,600
Personal Expenses (estimated) - $2,530
Estimated total cost - $11,350 |
| Scholarships |
Scholarships are available through the Center for Global Programs and Studies. |
| Visa & Passport |
Passport Information
Students need to check their passport's expiration date and ensure that it will be valid for at least 6 months after the program's end date.
Students going on a summer program need to make sure their passport is valid through at least mid-February of the following year.
US passport holders who need to renew their passport should visit the U.S. Department of State's passport website for information on this process.
Non-US passport holders who need to renew their passport should refer to their home country's passport office.
Visa Information
If you are a US citizen, you most likely will not require a visa for your summer abroad program. If you do, details will be shared with you by GPS. Non-US passport holders should check with their host country's embassy or consulate to find out if a visa is required for their program or not. |
| Contact |
Dr. Christopher Brown
Assistant Professor of English
browncm@wfu.edu
(336) 758-7133
Tyler Favale
Study Abroad Advisor
Center for Global Programs and Studies
336-758-4072
favalet@wfu.edu
Casa Artom Global Ambassador
Willa Baker
bakewk20@wfu.edu
House Address:
Casa Artom
Dorsoduro 699
San Gregorio
30123 Venice, Italy
Phone: 011-39-041-522-2709
Fax: 011-39-041-522-0277 |
| Testimonials |
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