Department of Romance Languages & Literatures

RLL's Dr. Marco Faini on “Marvelous Monsters: Crime, Cheap Print, and the Construction of Otherness in Early Modern Italy (XVI-XVIII centuries)” tomorrow, October 17 at 4pm! (Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center and streaming)

🎤 Join us for Scholars@Hallwalls! Complimentary wine and light fare are served for a brief, pre-talk mingling session. Free and public.

Fri., Oct. 17 at 4 p.m.
Hallwalls Cinema
Free!

Scholars@Hallwalls: Marco Faini on “Marvelous Monsters: Crime, Cheap Print, and the Construction of Otherness in Early Modern Italy (XVI-XVIII centuries)”

Marco Faini will explore some of the ‘atrocious,’ ‘horrendous,’ and ‘unfortunate’ stories of crime disseminated through ephemeral print in early modern Italy. Moving beyond their alleged documentary value, he will shed light on the intricate dynamics at play in these narratives.

Marco Faini is Assistant Professor of Italian at the University at Buffalo (SUNY). His research interests include early modern crime and its narratives, sexuality and theology, biblical epic, macaronic and mock-heroic poetry, devotional literature, cheap-print and popular culture. A former Marie Skłodowska Curie fellow at the Universities of Toronto and Venice, he has worked at the Universities of Cambridge, Urbino, and Bergamo; he has held fellowships at the Herzog August Bibliothek, Wolfenbüttel, at the Research Center of the University of Bucharest, Villa I Tatti, and Harvard University’s Center for Italian Renaissance Studies.

The Department of Romance Languages and Literatures at the University at Buffalo (SUNY) is currently accepting applications for its M.A. and Ph.D. programs in French and Spanish, to begin in Fall 2026.

We prepare graduate candidates in the scholarship of the discipline and support them in the development of new knowledge about the languages, literatures and cultures of the Romance world, as well as the languages and cultures of the diasporic communities with which they have remained in sustained contact.

Our areas of particular strength include, Border Studies; Catalan Studies; Contact linguistics with specialization in Creoles, Pidgins and mixed languages; Contemporary Iberian Studies; Contemporary Latin American Studies; Early Modern Studies; Ecocriticism; Experimental Literature and Arts; Gender Studies; Intellectual History and Philosophy; Material Culture and Print Culture; Modern and Contemporary French and Francophone Studies, and Psychoanalysis.

The PhD program is one of progressive specialization that will culminate in a dissertation. Students are not required to hold an MA prior to their admission to the PhD program. An MA is normally awarded after completing the Qualifying Examinations. Proficiency in the language of study is expected, and opportunities to work in other language areas are provided by the possibility of choosing a minor. Full funding is available for select PhD candidates, who will benefit from training in language pedagogy and the opportunity to teach at various levels.
UB’s Department of Romance Languages and Literatures is a diverse community located in the global city of Buffalo, NY. We welcome candidates from diverse backgrounds and with diverse viewpoints.

The priority deadline for funding for the Ph.D. is November 15, 2025.

Visit our website for Master’s programs (including a link to the application) here:
https://arts-sciences.buffalo.edu/romance-languages-literatures/graduate/graduate-overview/masters-french-spanish.html

And visit our website for doctoral programs (including a link to the application) here:
https://arts-sciences.buffalo.edu/romance-languages-literatures/graduate/graduate-overview/phd-french-spanish.html

Doctoral Programs: French and Spanish The PhD prepares students for careers in academia, and the department has an excellent placement record for its alumni at colleges and universities both locally and across the nation.

2025 Latin American Film Festival Sep16 - Sep18 Department of Romance Languages & Literatures
University at Buffalo Squeaky Wheel Film & Media Art Center

The 2025 Latin American Film Festival opens today! Free and open to the public.

CAS to host Latin American Film Festival The three-day festival emphasizes UB’s commitment to celebrating diversity and promoting cross-cultural understanding.

Please enjoy Issue #3 of Farol: Journal of Literature and other Arts!

Farol: Journal of literature and other arts

An outstanding achievement. Congratulations to Dr Adrián R. Riccelli!