Alessandra Mirra

 

I graduated in Italian Literature from the University of Rome “La Sapienza” in 2004, and received a Doctorate in Italianistica from the University of Macerata in 2008. Both these dissertations engaged with specific aspects of Leopardi’s literary and theoretical production. I moved to Philadelphia in 2009, where I earned a Graduate Certificate in Cinema Studies (2013) and a Ph.D. in Italian Studies (2015) from the University of Pennsylvania. My main research interests are Italian modern and contemporary literature, Cinema studies, and post-humanism.

Courses taught:

  • Italian language at all levels (2010-2015)
  • Italian History on Screen (2016; 2017; 2018)
  • From Paper to Screen: Cinematic Adapations (2016; 2018)
  • Contemporary Italian Novel (2017)
  • Politics, Rhetorics and Power in Italian Culture and Beyond (2017)
  • Italian Food Culture in Art, Cinema, and Literature (2017)
  • Sport, Politics and Literature, in Italian Culture and beyond (2017)
  • Love in Italian Literature. From the 13th to the 20th Century (2015; 2016)

Publications:

Work in progress

  • The Politics of Talking Animals: Zoomorphic Political Satire (book project) 
  • Giving Body to Poetry: Martone’s Il giovane favoloso (article submitted) 
  • Anachronism as a Cinematic and Epistemological Device: Ettore Scola’s Una giornata particolare (article)

Books

  • Mirra, Alessandra. Leopardi teorico del tragico. Macerata: Eum, 2012 (pp. 270). 

Edited books

  • Leopardi: immaginazione e realtà. Ed. Alessandra Mirra. Venezia: Marsilio, 2015 (pp. 95).
  • Cicognani, Bruno. Novelle (1915-1929). Annotated edition. Ed. Alessandra Mirra. Firenze: Pagliai, 2012 (pp. 416). 

Book chapters

  • “«Nazioni senza canti e senza eroi». Literature and Politics in Leopardi’s Zibaldone.Leopardi: immaginazione e realtà. Ed. Alessandra Mirra. Venezia: Marsilio, 2015, 63-76.
  • “A Conversation with Jonathan Galassi on His Translation of Giacomo Leopardi’s «Canti».”  Leopardi: immaginazione e realtà. Ed. Alessandra Mirra. Venezia: Marsilio, 2015, 91-95.
  •  “Affetto”. Lessico leopardiano 2014. Novella Bellucci, Franco D’Intino and Stefano Gensini edts. Roma: Sapienza editrice, 2014, 19-24. 
  •  “D’Annunzio giornalista e romanziere - Dalla «Tribuna» al Piacere: un esempio di rielaborazione testuale.” Scrittori e giornalismo. Sondaggi sul Novecento letterario italiano. Ed. M. Dondero. Macerata: Eum, 2007, 9-27.  

Peer-reviewed articles:

  • “Rhetorical Strategies in Leopardi’s Zibaldone.” Italica 93.1 (2016): 92-104. 
  • “La giovinezza, l'innocenza e la morte: su una canzone rifiutata di Giacomo Leopardi.” Annali della Facoltà di Lettere e Filosofia dell’Univ. di Macerata XXXIX (2006):  225-252. 

Fellowships and Awards:

  • Salvatori Research Grant, 2017; 2014; and 2010

Center for Italian Studies, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

  • Dean's Scholar Award, 2014

School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

  • Excellence in Teaching Award, 2012

Department of Romance Languages, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

  • Leopardi Award, 2005

First prize, “X Concorso internazionale Giacomo Leopardi” , CNSL, Recanati