Pia Schwarz Lausten

Short presentation

Læs seneste artikel: Ud af Napoli (om Elena Ferrante)

Primary fields of research

Primary fields of research

My two core research fields are:

Contemporary Italian Narrative

• mainly focusing on migration literature and postcolonialism for the time being but also Elena Ferrante

14th-16th Century Italian Literature

• focusing on the representations of Islam, Arabs and especially Turks in Italian Literature (historiographical, narrative, epic literature) and on the influence of Arabic narrative tradition on Early Modern Italian literature (Dante, Boccaccio)

Current research

Currently, I am working on a book project with the working title: Image of Islam and Turks in Early Modern Italian Literature (15th-16th c.) containing analyses of works within romance epic, novelle, historiographical works, ottava rima, sonnets and tragedies.

I participate in research groups within both of two abovementioned fields:

I am a member of the collective research project Islam in European Literature (funded by Danish Research Council, PI Peter Madsen, IKK) since 2007.

I am participating with papers and publications in the ENGEROM research group on Literary Topology (PI Carsten Meiner) since 2016.

I am applying for funding to realize a research project on Migrant Children in Contemporary Italian Media and Narrative (2018).

Research related activities

Conference papers at international conferences on Contemporary Italian Literature and on Renaissance Literature; invited speaker at Ohio State University (on Tabucchi); ; main organizer of numerous national and international seminars on Italian Literature; numerous invited talks to Italian Gymnasium Teachers and ‘Folkeuniversitet’ in Copenhagen, Aarhus, Odense and Aalborg about issues within Contemporary Italian Literature; invited talks on Elena Ferrante e.g. at Informations Forlag and ‘Folkeuniversitetet’; Danish correspondent for Bibliografia generale di lingua e letteratura italiana (BIGLLI), Salerno Editrice, Roma, regarding literature.

CV

Associate Professor at ENGEROM since 2010.

Previous employment history: 

1992-3 Maternity leave; 1994-6 teaching assistant; 1997-2000 phd fellow; 2001-3 external lecturer; 2003-4 Senior Researcher at the Danish Centre for Studies in the Humanities, Copenhagen); 2004-5 external lecturer 2005-7; postdoc funded by Carlsberg Foundation; 2007 Maternity leave (January-October); 2007-2010 postdoc  funded by the Danish Research Council for Culture and Communication (FKK).   

Membership of boards and administrative positions

Member of Forum for Renaissance Studies 2010-; Referee in peer-review panel for the series Moving Texts/Testi mobili at Peter Lang (2010-); Editorial boardmember of scientific journal Revue Romane 2012-; Boardmember of Togeby Foundation 2013-; Head and founder of Centre for Renaissance Studies 2013-; Boardmember of committe of PhD evaluation, Bergen University (2013); Boardmember of evaluation committe for associate professorship, Bergen University (2014); Member of the steering group of Centre for Advanced Migration Studies (AMIS) 2013-; PhD coordinator at ENGEROM 2015-; Member of the PhD council of the Faculty of Humanities 2017-; 

Prizes, honors or awards

Grants to publish academic books: C.L. Davids Foundation and Collection, Knud V. Henders Foundation, Lilian and Dan Fink’s Foundation, Birthe and Knud Togeby’s Foundation, Hielmstierne-Rosencroneske Stiftelse, Landsdommer V. Gieses Legat.

Other grants: UBVA, ‘Udvalget til Beskyttelse af Videnskabeligt Arbejde’ (2006: in honor of the book L'uomo inquieto. Identità e alterità nell'opera di Antonio Tabucchi), Krista and Viggo Petersen’s Foundation (1993, 1997), Queen Ingrid’s Roman Foundation (1998), The silver medal of the University of Copenhagen (1992), Director Ib Henriksen’s Foundation in occasion of the Silver Medal of UCPH (1992), Knud Højgaard’s Foundation; Scholarship from the Italian State (1989), Det Danske Kriminalakademis Diplom 2011 for the book (edited with Anders Toftgaard) En verden af krimier (Aarhus: Klim 2010).

Activities outside academia

2011-2017 Boardmember and treasurer of Danish Association for Italian Teachers

1997-2004 Consultant at the publisher Aschehoug (since 2002 Athene).

1997-2000 Reviewer of Italian literature at Berlingske Tidende.

1991- Teacher at the People's University in Copenhagen, Odense, Ålborg, Helsingør, Århus, as well as The Danish Library School, The Libraries of Århus, the Association of Italian Teachers etc in seminars about Modern Italian Literature (e.g. Pirandello, Sciascia, Levi, Calvino, Celati, Vassalli, Tabucchi, Tamaro, Ferrante, Lakhous).  

1990-1996 Interpreter at ICE (Istituto Italiano di Commercio Estero).

Knowledge of languages

• Dansk: modersmål
• Italiensk: flydende i skrift og tale
• Engelsk: udmærket i skrift og tale
• Fransk: læsefærdighed og moderat i tale
• Nordiske sprog: læsefærdighed
• Tysk: læsefærdighed

Teaching

Teaching

At BA-level I teach courses on Italian Literature from all periods 14th-21th c. as well as more thematic courses on e.g. Primo Levi, Elena Ferrante, Amara Lakhous, Leonardo Sciascia applying different theoretical approaches and concepts. I also coordinate and teach specific courses on the Italian Renaissance and on European Renaissance in relation to the Islamic world.

At MA-level I teach courses on authors and themes such as Islam in Dante and Boccaccio, Giovanni Boccaccio’s Decameron, Antonio Tabucchi’s works, Sicilian Literature, Contemporary Italian Crime Fiction (e.g. Lucarelli, Carlotto, Carofiglio, Verasani), Migration Literature and Postcolonialism (e.g. Pap Khouma, Amara Lakhous, Igiaba Scego, Laila Wadia), Elena Ferrante’s L’amica geniale.

Supervision

I supervise BA theses, MA dissertations and PhD dissertations within all aspects of Italian literature including literary theories, and broader issues within Italian culture and society.

Office hours: Monday 14:30-15:30