Department of Italian
MPhil in Linguistics (Italian)
For students interested in studying Italian linguistics at Masters level, the Faculty currently offers a one-year postgraduate MPhil in Linguistics (Italian). This combines a range of taught courses with a substantial element of independent research and personalised supervision that can in practice be tailored to meet the particular interests and needs of individual students. The Italian pathway within the MPhil in Linguistics is therefore ideally suited for students wishing to gain a broad grounding in Italian linguistics and/or an in-depth introduction to specific areas of interest, as well as offering the possibility to combine the study of Italian linguistics with that of other Romance languages (for details see the French or Spanish & Portuguese departmental web pages). The course begins in October, and ends with the examination of a thesis in the following June. Many students then proceed to do research for the PhD degree, for which a master's qualification is increasingly a pre-requisite.
Course structure
At the beginning of the course in October, students are interviewed by the Director of the MPhil and a specialist in Italian linguistics with whom they agree a study plan for the Michaelmas (October to December) and Lent (January to March) Terms that best suits their individual needs, interests and previous experience. The MPhil programme is structured progressively, with a change in balance through the year so that in the first two months there is intensive instruction through lectures, and by the last three months students carry out independent research full-time.
In Michaelmas Term, students must attend the Research Methods and Linguistic Theory courses. In addition, students will receive personalised supervision in areas of Italian linguistics relating to their choice of essays (see below).
In addition to benefiting from personalised supervisions, in the first four weeks of term, students will follow a minimum of four courses in Italian linguistics and corresponding courses in general linguistics (which may sometimes be in the form of 'directed reading') in areas they have not previously studied in detail so as to broaden their knowledge of linguistics. For example, students choosing to follow the course in Italian Syntax will normally be required to follow the Department of Linguistics' introductory course in Syntax. Work in the Michaelmas Term is assessed by two essays of 2000 words and one of 4000 words. Students will be expected to work largely independently on writing the essays.
In Michaelmas Term there will normally be teaching available in the following areas of Italian linguistics (the format of the teaching as either lectures or direct reading will depend on the number of students taking each course):
- Italian Syntax
- Italian Phonetics
- Italian Phonology
- History of Italo-Romance
- Italian Dialectology
- Italian Dialect Syntax
- Neapolitan Dialect
Over recent decades research on the syntax of Italian has figured heavily in much of the generative literature, not only shedding light on significant aspects of the structure of Italian but also making a remarkably influential contribution to issues in general linguistic theory. Through supervisions and extensive directed reading, students will gain an in-depth knowledge of issues in descriptive Italian syntax by investigating a wide range of structural phenomena (e.g. word order, nominal structures, cliticisation, negation, perfective auxiliary selection, complementation) and, at the same time, will have the opportunity to explore the significance of such phenomena in relation to a variety of theoretical approaches (e.g. Government-Binding, Minimalism, Relational Grammar).
Supervision in this area aims to provide students with a detailed introduction to the principal aspects of Italian articulatory phonetics. In the context of the spectacular wealth of regional and dialectal variation found within the Italian peninsula and the islands, particular attention is paid to the comparative study of some of the most significant areas of regional variation, as well as consideration of sociolinguistic issues such as standard pronunciation.
Ideally studied in conjunction with Phonetics, students wishing to study Italian Phonology will investigate a wide range of phenomena from Italian and the dialects (e.g. raddoppiamento fonosintattico, intervocalic /S/-voicing, metaphony) in relation to a variety of different phonological approaches (e.g. Lexical Phonology, Metrical Phonology, Optimality Theory).
Within this very broad research area, students study the evolution and structure of Italian and the dialects which, thanks to extensive historical documentation, prove an ideal empirical testing ground and source of data for issues in general and historical linguistic theory. The integration of linguistic theory with detailed diachronic analysis is one of the central aims of supervision work, encouraging students to combine the study of issues relating to the structural evolution of Italo-Romance (phonological, morphological and syntactic) with the linguistic analysis of texts.
Through supervisions students are introduced to the unparalleled wealth of linguistic variation found within the Italian peninsula and the islands traditionally known as the dialects of Italy. In addition to studying the linguistic geography of the Italian territory, students also explore in detail the most salient phonological, morphological, syntactic and lexical characteristics of the dialects. There is also the possibility for students with clearly defined interests to study a particular dialect or the linguistic situation of a specific region.
Best studied in conjunction with Italian Syntax, supervisions in this research area survey a wide range of phenomena in the syntax of the dialects of Italy which offer fertile, and often virgin, territory in which to profitably study parametric variation and universal principles of language structure. Through the close study of such phenomena as inflected infinitives, subject clitics, word order and perfective auxiliary selection, students will be encouraged to assess the significance of the dialects for general issues in generative syntactic theory and language typology.
A rich and long literary tradition dating back as far as the late 13th century, coupled with an abundance of diachronic and synchronic variation, affords Neapolitan a privileged position amongst the Italian dialects, offering the linguist a rare opportunity to explore the structural evolution of one of the lesser known Romance varieties. Through a series of supervisions students are offered the opportunity to chart some of the principal phonological, morphological and syntactic developments of the Neapolitan dialect and familiarise themselves with the dialect through the close study of a selection of literary Neapolitan texts ranging from the 14th-c. Libro de la destructione de Troya to the commedie of the 20th-c. playwright Eduardo De Filippo.
In Lent Term, students are expected to follow two advanced courses, which will either take the form of seminars or 'directed reading'. The two courses a student selects will normally be relevant to the 20,000 word thesis, the preparation for which will be the main focus of their work from the start of Lent Term onwards. All students studying for the MPhil in Linguistics (Italian) take the advanced course 'Topics in Romance Linguistics' and one other from the list below:
- Formal syntax
- Formal phonology
- Pragmatics
- Experimental phonetics
- Historical linguistics
- Topics in Celtic Linguistics
- Topics in Germanic Linguistics
- Topics in Slavonic Linguistics
Assessment
Progress in the MPhil in Linguistics (Italian) is assessed in Michaelmas Term by two essays of 2000 words and one of 4000 words, chosen from areas in which students have followed lectures, classes, directed reading and supervisions during the first term. The essays must be in at least two different areas of linguistics, and at least one of the essays must relate to one of the specific Italian linguistics research areas listed above. The other two essays may, in accordance with the interests of individual students, relate to any of the general linguistics MPhil courses offered by the Department of Linguistics or the language-specific MPhil linguistics courses offered by the Department of French and the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, although, in practice, most students decide to conitnue working on Italo-Romance. Students must submit titles and brief summaries for these three essays by 12.00 pm on the Monday of the fifth week of Michaelmas Full Term. Titles will be subject to approval by the Department and by the Faculty's Degree Committee. Students will receive advice from the relevant subject specialists on the formulation of essay topics, but they will be expected to work largely independently on writing the essays.
In addition to following two advanced courses, students begin work on their thesis during Lent Term. The thesis demands independent study under the guidance of the supervisor and will involve a substantial piece of original research on a subject in Italo-Romance linguistics. This may be in a field other than the three examined in the shorter essays. A proposed title and summary for the 20,000 word thesis, formulated in discussion with the supervisor, must be submitted in mid-February, and this will be subject to approval by the Department and by the Faculty's Degree Committee. A day will be set aside just after the end of Lent Term for MPhil students to make a presentation of their research for the thesis. Because seminars finish at the end of Lent term, students can then devote themselves full time to research for the thesis during the Easter vacation and the Easter Term (April to June). The thesis is submitted on the seventh Friday of Easter Full Term, and about two to three weeks later there is an oral examination on the thesis.
Supervision
MPhil students start the course under the supervision of an assigned supervisor who will normally be a specialist in Italian linguistics (depending on their area of interest) and who can be called on for general advice; they consult subject specialists in the Departments of Italian and Linguistics as appropriate, for instance when writing the three short essays. A subject-specific supervisor is appointed at the latest in week 5 of the Michaelmas Term. The student will be guided by this supervisor throughout the research for the thesis.
Who should apply?
Applications for the MPhil course are welcomed from those who have or expect to obtain a good first degree (at least a high 2.1 or equivalent) in Italian. Normally students taking the MPhil have spent some time studying (Italian / Romance) linguistics or related subjects at undergraduate level, but this is not a prerequisite for admission to the course. Many students move straight into the MPhil after their first degree, but others come to it after a number of years away from formal study.Students interested in applying are advised in the first instance to contact Dr Adam Ledgeway (anl21@cam.ac.uk) who will be happy to reply to any informal inquiries (see also http://www.admin.cam.ac.uk/offices/gradstud/app-grad.html).
Funding
As a graduate student at Cambridge you will be expected to pay tuition fees and provide finance to cover your living costs for the duration of your course. In some cases, students pay all their own costs, but many are supported by charitable foundations, research boards or councils, and the University itself. All such awards are competitive, so there is no guarantee that you will win one. Further information on available sources of funding can be found on the following University website: http://www.admin.cam.ac.uk/univ/gsprospectus/funding/index.html.
Return to MPhil in Linguistics home page
