Professors: Bethany Ladimer, Nancy O'Connor, (chair), Carol Rifelj (on leave fall), Paula Schwartz; Associate Professors: Armelle Crouzières-Ingenthron, Brigitte Humbert, Charles Nunley; Assistant Professor: William Poulin-Deltour; Visiting Assistant Professor: Mireille Barbaud-McWilliams; Department Coordinator: Nicole Patterson
Language and culture are inseparable; the study of other cultures also offers new perspectives on one's own. The French department aims both to help our students acquire an active command of written and spoken French and to discover and appreciate French and francophone cultures. In addition to building linguistic and cultural competence in all our students, we seek to provide more advanced students with the analytical skills necessary to understanding the expressions and manifestations of these cultures through the study, in French, of literature, cinema, history, the arts, and the social sciences. Finally, since we believe that direct contact and experience with the French-speaking world in and beyond the classroom are inseparable from these goals, we also encourage students to take advantage of the opportunities afforded them for study in French-speaking countries.
Major Programs:
Required for the Major in French: Total of no fewer than 10 courses, no more than 16.
I. Two introductions to French literature: FREN 0210, FREN 0221, or specified courses in Paris, Poitiers, or Bordeaux; or equivalent in the Middlebury summer French School when offered.
II. One course in contemporary French or francophone civilization: FREN 0230, courses on contemporary France, or French or francophone civilization in Paris, Poitiers, or Bordeaux; or equivalent in the Middlebury summer French School when offered.
III. One course in French history: In Paris, FREN 2333 (Histoire de la France), FREN 2350 (Architecture et urbanisme), or other equivalent.
IV. Three advanced courses in French or francophone literature or civilization.
V. One unit of senior work: senior seminar FREN 0400 level (literature or civilization) or senior project (FREN 0500, FREN 0700).
Other courses counting for the major include: (1) At the Vermont campus: FREN 0205, FREN 0255, among others; certain advanced courses offered during the winter term (with permission of the chair); certain summer courses at the 0300 (intermediate) or 0400 (advanced) level; and,
(2) In France: language and linguistics courses; comparative literature (with a major French component); French arts, theatre, cinema, television, or politics.
Students with a College Board AP score of 4 or 5 will receive one unit of credit toward graduation if the first course successfully completed at Middlebury is FREN 0210 or above in accordance with placement and departmental advising. AP credits may not be counted toward the major.
We expect majors to spend their junior year at the Middlebury College School in France. The year program carries nine units of credit; the semester program carries four or five units of credit. In order to ensure that students are exposed to a variety of disciplines, no more than five units (full-year program) or three units (semester program) may be counted toward a Middlebury French major. Most courses in France will be at the advanced level.
During the senior year, majors must take at least two advanced literature or civilization courses in French at Middlebury, including one senior seminar or unit of independent work.
Required for a Joint Major: A minimum of seven courses, including two from category I above, one from categories II or III above, two advanced literature or civilization courses, and senior work to be determined individually, combining the two fields of the joint major. In addition, at least one advanced course in French must be taken during the senior year. The joint major may include courses taken at the School in France (maximum of three from the semester, five from the full-year program, may count toward French).
Required for a Minor in French: Minimum of five courses, FREN 0205 and above, including at least two introductory courses (FREN 0210, FREN 0221, FREN 0230) and at least one course in literature or civilization at the advanced level. The minor may include French courses taken at the School in France (maximum of two from the semester program, three from the full-year program).
Senior Independent Work: Upon completing at least two 0300-level courses in the department, majors who are well prepared and who have an average in French of B+ or better may receive permission to do independent work during their senior year. They may consider various formats: an essay or project (FREN 0500, one semester) or a thesis (FREN 0700, semester and winter term). Independent work may also be undertaken in the context of a course or be linked to a teaching internship.
To undertake a FREN 0500 or FREN 0700 project, students should consult the departmental guidelines and present their proposals well in advance of registration for the term when the work is to be started.
Honors: The department will award honors, high honors, or highest honors on the basis of a student's work in the department and performance in senior independent work approved in advance by the department.
International Studies Major with French: Along with other required courses and senior work as described in the international studies major section, completion of the French language component requires: (1) proficiency in French (a minimum of one of FREN 0210, 0221, 0230, or work in the French summer school at the 300 level or above); (2) at least one semester, and preferably a year, at the Middlebury College School in France; and (3) one or more courses at the advanced level, or senior independent work in French, upon return from France.
European Studies Track, International Studies Major: French courses fulfilling components of this track are: (1) Language proficiency (see above); (2) regional specialization: choose from FREN 0230, 0341, 0345, 0346, 0347, 0384, or others (Vermont campus); courses in French or francophone civilization at (Middlebury in France); (3) disciplinary specialization: two courses from FREN 0210, 0221, 0230; three literature or civilization courses at the advanced level at Middlebury or in France; (4) at least one semester, preferably a year at the Middlebury College School in France; and (5) one or more courses at the 0300 or 0400 level, or senior independent work in French, upon return from France.
Study Abroad in France and other French-Speaking Countries: Middlebury offers both year and semester programs in Paris, Poitiers, and Bordeaux. Students may count three courses from the semester program, five from the full-year program, towards a major in French, two courses from the semester program and three from the full-year program toward a minor in French. They should, in any event, contact the Office of Off-Campus Study before registering for their sophomore year.
It should be noted that while students wishing to attend one of our programs in France must demonstrate a level of proficiency in the language that will allow them to function successfully in the French university setting they need not be French majors: the C.V. Starr-Middlebury School in France (Paris, Poitiers, Bordeaux) offers students the opportunity to take courses in history, history of art, economics, political science, psychology, sociology, the natural sciences, and the environment, among other disciplines, in addition to courses in languages and literature.
Students planning to study in France or other French-speaking countries must have completed two full years of college credit by the time they undertake their study abroad; they must have successfully completed at least one course beyond FREN 0205 by the time they arrive abroad; and they must have an average in French of at least B. We expect all applicants to demonstrate their commitment to French and maintain their fluency by continuous study of French from the time of their enrollment at Middlebury, and to maintain their academic level if they are accepted to study abroad. They are required to take a French course in the semester before study abroad. Students applying for one semester only are required to take FREN 0221 or 0230 before study abroad.
Students interested in studying abroad should speak to someone in the Office of Off-Campus Study, Sunderland 129, well in advance of applying. They will need to seek prior approval of School in France courses from the appropriate department chair, according to the discipline of the course material. The Office of Off-Campus Study will provide information about the program and application forms.
COURSES IN ENGLISH
The courses listed below are offered in English; they may not be counted toward a major in French.
INTL/SOAN 0460 Global Consumptions: Food, Eating, and Power in Comparative Perspective (Not offered 2008-09)
See Program of International Studies for course description. This course is equivalent to INTL 0460 and SOAN 0460. Register for this course under INTL 0460. (Approval required). 3 hrs. lect./disc. CMP
INTL/WAGS 0464 Rethinking the East-West Divide: Connections Across Feminisms (Not offered 2008-2009)
See Program of International Studies for course description. This course is equivalent to INTL 0464 and WAGS 0464. Register for this course under INTL 0464. (Approval required). 3 hrs. lect./disc. CMP
COURSES IN FRENCH
LANGUAGE COURSES
FREN 0101 Intensive Beginning French (Fall)
For students who have not previously studied French, an introduction to listening, speaking, reading, and writing in French, providing the syntactic and semantic foundation of the French language in a concentrated program of grammar presentation, drills, laboratory work, and discussion. Primary emphasis will be placed on the student's active use of the language, and weekly attendance at the French language table will be required. This course does not fulfill the foreign language distribution requirement. Students are expected to continue with FREN 0102 in the winter term after successfully completing FREN 0101, and with FREN 0103 in the spring. 6 hrs. lect./disc. (C. Nunley, W. Poulin-Deltour)
FREN 0102 Beginning French (Winter)
This course is a continuation of FREN 0101, dealing with more complex French. Oral skills are stressed and students participate in the French language table at lunch. This course does not fulfill the foreign language distribution requirement. (FREN 0101) 10-15 hrs. lect./disc. (Staff)
FREN 0103 Beginning French (Spring)
Emphasis on increased control and proficiency in the language through audiovisual, conversational, and drill methods. Readings and film enlarge the student's view of French life and culture. (FREN 0101 and FREN 0102) 5 hrs. lect./disc. LNG (A. Crouzières-Ingenthron, N. O'Connor)
FREN 0203 Intensive Intermediate French (Fall, Spring)
An active and intensive review of French grammar for students having had good beginning-level training in French. We will work not only to perfect mastery of the structures of the language with practice of writing and reading, but also to develop oral comprehension and production skills. (FREN 0103 or placement) 5 hrs. lect./disc. LNG (B. Humbert, B. Ladimer, C. Nunley)
FREN 0205 Toward Liberated Expression (Fall, Spring)
A course designed to increase and perfect the ability to express oneself in spoken and written French. Emphasis on precision, variety, and vocabulary acquisition. Sections limited to 15 students. (FREN 0203 or placement) This requirement for the major and the minor may be satisfied by placement at a higher level. 3 hrs. lect./disc. LNG (M. Barbaud-McWilliams, A. Crouzières-Ingenthron, B. Humbert, C. Rifelj, P. Schwartz)
INTRODUCTION TO LITERATURE AND CIVILIZATION
FREN 0210 Identity in French Literature (Fall, Spring)
Exploration of differing views of the self, society, and the world in major works of French poetry, drama, and prose. This course is designed to develop students' ability to read and critique literature in French, as a transition from FREN 0205 to more advanced literature courses. (FREN 0205 or by placement) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LNG LIT EUR (M. Barbaud-McWilliams, B. Ladimer, N. O'Connor)
FREN 0221 From Romanticism to Modernism (CW) (Fall, Spring)
The nineteenth and twentieth centuries were marked by social and political revolutions and by literary and artistic movements that changed our attitudes to art and to ourselves, including romanticism, realism, symbolism, surrealism, and existentialism. We will study literary texts, artistic and philosophical movements, and the social circumstances that conditioned them. Close readings of the texts (including prose, drama, and poetry) will develop critical vocabulary and writing skills. Authors may include Hugo, Balzac, Flaubert, Baudelaire, Gide, Camus, Sartre, and francophone writers. (FREN 0210 or 0230, or placement; FREN 0205 by approval only) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LNG LIT EUR (A. Crouzières-Ingenthron, B. Humbert)
FREN 0230 Introduction to Contemporary France (Fall, Spring)
An introduction to several major sectors and themes: the family, the school system, social structures, the economy, the political structures and parties. Emphasis on the vocabulary of these sectors, language appropriate to situating them in context, and the ability to analyze documents involving such themes. (FREN 0210, or FREN 0221; FREN 0205 by approval only; ordinarily this course is closed to first-semester first year students) This requirement for the major may also be met by certain courses in France, or by an equivalent in the summer French School. 3 hrs. lect./disc. LNG SOC EUR (W. Poulin-Deltour, P. Schwartz)
LANGUAGE ENRICHMENT
FREN 0255 Improving Writing in French (CW) (Spring)
This course will be devoted to developing the student's ability to write clear, nuanced, and well-articulated French in a variety of modes and formats. Recommended for students who wish more language practice or whose instructors recommend such work before courses at the 0300 level. This course satisfies the College writing requirement. Class limited to 15 students. (At least one course from among FREN 0210, 0221, or 0230) 3 hrs. lect./disc. (M. Barbaud-McWilliams)
ADVANCED COURSES
FREN 0306 Study and Production of a Play (Spring)
French through theatre: this course is a semester-long workshop that will culminate in the production of a play by a French or francophone playwright. Students will participate in all aspects of the production process, from costuming and music to prompting and publicity. Two performances will be held at the end of the semester. All activity will be conducted in French. In addition to regularly scheduled classes, this course will involve additional time each week in rehearsal. (FREN 0221 or by waiver). ART LNG (C. Nunley)
FREN 0315 Beyond Versailles: Encounters with Nature in French Literature (Not offered 2008-09)
This course will focus on significant works by French authors who examine the natural world and our place within it. We will read novels that rework the Crusoe story in ways that endorse or question Europe's imperial goals as it extends beyond itself. Particular attention will be paid to works in which homesteading on islands or in isolated natural settings plays an important role. Authors may include Rousseau, Bernardin de Saint-Pierre, Chateaubriand, Sand, Verne, Gide, Giono, Hémon, Tournier, Césaire, Le Clézio. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT LNG EUR
FREN 0341 French Cinema (Not offered 2008-2009)
In this course we will study two aspects of French cinema: French history through films and French filmmaking through history. We will examine films dealing with specific eras or events of French history or culture, as well as the major trends of French film history and the evolution of French filmmaking. Directors studied may include: Renoir, Truffaut, Godard, Rohmer, Kurys, Besson. (FREN 0221 or FREN 0230 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. 2 hrs. screening. ART EUR
FREN 0342 French Films and Their American Remakes (Not offered 2008-09)
By reading reviews and articles, by examining variations in structure, techniques, plot, and audience expectations, we will pinpoint the cultural differences that shape French and American versions of the same story. In some cases, we may extend our comparison to the novel/story that inspired the original French film. We will cover different genres such as comedy, historical film, drama, etc. our study may include the following films and their counterparts: Trois hommes et un couffin (Three Men and a Baby), Le Retour de Martin Guerre (Sommersby), Les Diaboliques (Diabolique). (FREN 0221 or 0230 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc., 2 hrs. screening. ART
FREN 0343 La Nouvelle Vague (Not offered 2008-09)
In this course we will examine the major films of the cinematic movement known as La Nouvelle Vague. The principal directors of this movement will be studied in depth (Truffaut, Godard, Resnais, Varda, Rivette) along with the films of some of their precursors (Becker's Touchez pas au Grisbi, Dassin's Rififi, and Melville's Bob le flambeur). We will study the following concepts and techniques: auteurism, documentary style, film noir, mise-en-scène, montage. Films will be analyzed both in terms of their technical features and with reference to the social transformations of the 1960s. (FREN 0221 or FREN 0230 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc. 3 hrs. screening. ART EUR
FREN/WAGS 0344 Women in French Historical Films: Looking at the Past through a Modern Lens (Spring)
In this course we will focus on the representation of powerful women in French historical films produced since the early 1990s. At a time when the notion of gender parity was becoming prevalent in French political life, one would expect contemporary filmmakers to adopt a positive perspective on women in power. Yet, by studying such films as La Reine Margot, Ridicule, Indochine, and Lucie Aubrac and comparing them to various written accounts and/or literary texts, we will see that this is rarely the case. Historical films often offer as much information about the period when they were produced as they do about the period they depict, if not more. Could representations of powerful women in modern heritage films point to a general cultural tendency in late twentieth-century France to depreciate the notion of emancipation as a reaction to the very emergence of women in the political sphere? (Two courses among FREN 0210, FREN 0221, FREN 0230, or by waiver). 3 hrs lect/disc +2 hrs. screenings. EUR (B. Humbert)
FREN 0345 The Reciprocal Gaze: French and American Perspectives of Each Other (Not offered 2008-09)
For centuries the French and the Americans have gazed at each other with curiosity, fondness, or mutual antagonism across the oceanic reflecting mirror. Here we will examine archetypes, stereotypes, and other by-products of their respective collective and creative imaginations. Do the French love to hate Americans? Do Americans persist in revering the French? How do representations of the other reflect crises of national and personal identity? We will explore Franco-American encounters and rendez-vous manqués in historical writings, essays, autobiography, and film. Readings will include works by De Beauvoir, Baudrillard, Labro, and others. (FREN 0230 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. CMP
FREN 0346 "I eat - therefore I am", Food and Culture in France (Spring)
What's in a meal? Historians and anthropologists have long shown food and eating practices to be a function of culture. In France in particular, food and cuisine are fundamental elements of national heritage and cultural identity. What does the organization of the eating ritual say about the French? What do food and eating have to do with class and gender, time and space? How are eating and drinking unique forms of political expression? Works from a range of interdisciplinary perspectives will inform our study of French society through its singular approach to the culture of the table. Readings will include works by Brillat-Savarin, Barthes, Zola, and others. (FREN 0221 or FREN 0230 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. SOC EUR (P. Schwartz)
FREN 0347 French Ambitions for the European Union (Not offered 2008-09)
While postwar France has been a major force behind the construction of the European Union, French ambitions for Europe have been the result of its own national history and internal debates. After a brief history of the EU and its institutions, we will examine how social and political issues in contemporary France have helped shape French attitudes towards the Union. Specific topics will include: the debate over national sovereignty and France's rank as a "world power", the positioning of French political parties, French public opinion, and the impact of EU social measures on French domestic policies. (FREN 0221 or FREN 0230 or by waiver) 3 hrs lect./disc. SOC EUR
FREN/WAGS 0349 Sex and Gender: The French Paradox (Not offered 2008-09)
While French intellectuals have made fundamental contributions to the study of gender and sexuality, social movements around these issues in France have traditionally been of lesser importance. In this course we will examine the history of gender and sexuality over the twentieth century in France in an attempt to uncover the reasons behind this apparent paradox. Specific topics will include abortion rights, the decriminalization of homosexuality, AIDS, and the movement for gender parity in politics, with readings by de Beauvoir, Delphy, Wittig, Fassin, Hocquenghem, Foucault, Fraisse. (FREN 0221 or 0230 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc. SOC EUR
FREN 0363 Love, Society, and the Novel in the Ancien Régime (Not offered 2008-09)
In this course we will examine the relations between the sexes in an age when marriage, especially in the upper classes, was an alliance between families. What was the role of passion, desire, and power in this historical and cultural context? How do they intersect with philosophical issues? And how are they represented in literary works? We will examine these questions in fairy tales, passages from a memoir, short stories, and novels, including works by Mme de Lafayette, Voltaire, Laclos, and Sade. (FREN 0221 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT EUR
FREN 0364 The Pursuit of Happiness in Ancien Régime France (Not offered 2008-09)
We will consider the evolution of the notion of happiness in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century France, and trace how that notion, initially based on the idea of a civic or social aspiration to a greater common good, gradually became a more individual conception, closely linked to that of personal autonomy. This evolution coincided with a gradual emancipation from the dominion of outside intellectual and moral authority and the growing reliance on individual judgment that marked the Age of Enlightenment. We will read works by authors who defined the intellectual and social climate of their time, possibly including Corneille, Molière, Mme de Lafayette, Marivaux, Voltaire, Graffigny, Rousseau, Charrière, and Beaumarchais. (FREN 0221 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT LNG EUR
FREN 0372 Revolution and Romanticism (Not offered 2008-09)
Victor Hugo said famously that Romanticism was "liberalism in literature." Taking this pronouncement as point of departure, we will consider how literature and politics intertwine during an era of great social transformation. Starting with the period of the French Revolution, and continuing through the Empire, the Restoration, and the bourgeois monarchy, we will discuss the following concepts and problems: the relation between theatrical representation and the political system; the emergence of a public space; how artworks figure or prefigure historical events; the relation between political and artistic freedom. Readings may include: Rousseau, Beaumarchais, Chateaubriand, Stendhal, Staël, Musset, Vigny, Constant. (FREN 0221 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT EUR
FREN 0373 The Nineteenth-Century Novel (Not offered 2008-09)
In this course we will examine the development of realism in the major French novels of the nineteenth century. Through the study of representative works such as Balzac's Le Père Goriot, Stendhal's La Chartreuse de Parme, and Flaubert's Madame Bovary, we will analyze the evolution of novelistic techniques as well as the social and historical context in which the authors wrote. Concepts explored include: realism, naturalism, representation, mimesis, narration, style, and feminism. Authors studied may include: Sand, Balzac, Stendhal, Flaubert, and Zola. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT EUR
FREN 0375 Heroes and Humanists (Fall)
A recurring question in world literature is how and why we make the life choices we do: what absolute values, what hope of a positive outcome, inform those choices? What higher purpose do we see ourselves as serving, if any? We will consider these questions as they have been addressed in a wide range of French literary texts, and try to determine how the conceptions of heroism and man's potential have evolved since the seventeenth century. Readings may include: Corneille, Horace; Molière, Dom Juan; Voltaire, Candide; Anouilh, Antigone; Malraux, La Condition humaine; Sartre, La Nausée; Camus, La Peste, La Chute; Beckett, Fin de partie.(FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT EUR (N. O’Connor)
FREN 0376 The Spectacle of Culture: Modern French Theater (Not offered 2008-09)
As public spectacle, theater has always had a special relation to social life which is why it is often called upon to mediate in moments of cultural crisis. Thus the stage of Hugo's Hernani and the controversy it provoked marked the rise of the Romantic school and the definitive break with the aesthetic norms of the Ancient Régime. The trauma of the Second World War found its most immediate expression in the absurdist and existentialist plays of Anouilh, Sartre, Beckett, and Genet. This survey of modern French drama will allow us to explore how paradigm shifts in the theater respond to dynamic periods of cultural transformation. Readings will include the works of such authors as Hugo, Musset, Dumas fils, Rostand, Anouilh, Sartre, Beckett, Genet, Ionesco. Films of various plays will be screened. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT LNG EUR
FREN 0377 Madness and Reason: Short Stories and Novellas in the Nineteenth Century (Fall)
This course will offer a different view of nineteenth century literature. Instead of studying the famous "big novels" of the period, we will choose to uncover contradictions present in nineteenth century ideology. The social malaise, a product of conflicts between progress, civilization and passion, will emerge in texts telling stories of happiness, anxiety, hermaphrodites, murder, isolation and social conformity. Readings will include: Chateaubriand, René; Balzac, Sarrasine; Mérimée, Lotkis; Zola, Thérèse Raquin; Maupassant, Le Horla (FREN 0221 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT LNG EUR (M. Barbaud-McWilliams)
FREN 0378 A Man, A Century – Victor Hugo's 19th Century (Not offered 2008-09)
The purpose of this course is to examine how Hugo's body of work mirrors the changing literary and political concerns of a turbulent and complex century. Victor Hugo's identification with his time is a natural starting point to study the interface of society and literature. All genres will be represented, including Hugo's rich collection of drawings. We will read two novels, two plays, numerous poems, nineteenth century newspapers, and Hugo's theoretical essays. We will watch a play (Hernani) and study a film rendition of a novel. (FREN 0221 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT EUR
FREN 0379 Poetry and Painting in France: 1850-1950 (Not offered 2008-09)
In this course we will study the relationship between poetry and painting from about 1850 to 1950. Romanticism brings the arts together in redefining the role of the artist and of the creative process. We will examine poets who paint (Hugo, Gautier) and see how their art influences their poetry, before focusing on Baudelaire (his fascination with Delacroix, the visual aspect of his poetry, Manet's resemblance to him). Surrealism will introduce us to poets and painters working together toward a complementary creative expression (for example, Eluard and Man Ray) in which the metaphor is experienced similarly in poetry and in painting. (FREN 0221 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. ART LIT EUR
FREN 0380 The Twentieth-Century Novel from Proust to Duras (Not offered 2008-09)
The early years of the twenty-first century offer us a new perspective on the major French literary events of the twentieth, enabling us to see which works remain in sharp focus over time. In this course we will examine the esthetic response of French prose writers to the main currents and key moments of French social and political history, offering both a sociological interpretation and also close literary readings. Works studied will include Du Côté de chez Swann (Proust), La Condition humaine (Malraux), Le Mur (Sartre), Les Petits Enfants du siècle (Rochefort), La Modification (Butor), L'Amant (Duras), and La Goutte d'or (Tournier) (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT EUR
FREN 0381 From Novel to Film (Not offered 2008-09)
We will study the transfer of selected French or Francophone novels to the screen. We will study each novel and then view the film(s) that it inspired. Through comparison, we will address structures, techniques and limits of the two media as well as expand our understanding of the novel. Selected works may include novels by Diderot, Laclos, Flaubert, Zola, Gide, Camus, Duras, Hémon, Robbe-Grillet, Jean, and films by Bresson, Vadim, Renoir, Chabrol, Clément, Carné, Delannoy, Resnais, Duvivier, Deville. (FREN 0221 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. and film screenings. ART
FREN 0382 The Theme of Travel and Self-Discovery in French Literature Since 1945 (Spring)
When we travel abroad to study or work, we consciously seek to learn the language and culture of others. But we often enter a larger dialectic between self and other that also leads us to find out who we are, what we value personally or as a country, and what larger quest we are embarked upon. French language writers since 1945 have traveled or imagined travel to the United States, Japan, Italy, a desert island, and elsewhere, and reading their work allows us in turn to discover ourselves. We will read novels by Beauvoir, Labro, Butor, Tournier, Poulin, and Nothomb. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) Lecture/discussion. LIT (B. Ladimer)
FREN 0383 Exiles and Expatriates in French Literature (Not offered 2008-09)
To know and embrace a given culture from within, be it that of a nation or of a social class, of an ethnic group, or of a gender, is often to ignore or forget its distinctive features; indeed, if we feel or are in fact outsiders, we use the awareness of our singularity in order, little by little, to dispel it. But conversely we can reaffirm that singularity on our own terms. We will examine some examples in French literature of characters who recognize their difference and consciously choose to abolish it, as well as of those who just as consciously refuse to be assimilated and choose to remain “other”. Readings may include: Montesquieu, Les Lettres persanes; Voltaire, L'Ingénu; Marivaux, Le Paysan parvenu; Mme de Graffigny, Lettres d'une Péruvienne; Mme de Duras, Ourika ; Camus, L'Etranger; Chraibi, La Civilisation, ma mère! (FREN 0221) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT EUR
FREN 0384 History in the Literature of Twentieth-Century France (Not offered 2008-09)
We will define and discuss the articulation of key French texts and literary movements with the major historical events and climate of twentieth-century France with emphasis on the two World Wars. What reading strategies can enable us to understand how a literary work mirrors social relations, conflicts, and attitudes? Is there a "politics of literary style," as the critic Bakhtin asserts? How have World War I, the 1920s and 1930s, World War II, the postwar period, the Algerian Crisis, May 1968, and contemporary social issues all been reflected (and sometimes refracted) in fiction? Readings will include works of fiction by Céline, Giraudoux, Colette, Malraux, Sartre, Camus, Duras, as well as selected articles and films. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT EUR
FREN 0386 Literature, Language, and Identity in Québec (Not offered 2008-09)
This course will concentrate on the evolution of Québecois identity and show how it is inseparable from the language of Québec. We will examine the origins of Québecois culture and self-awareness through a brief overview of its history and then concentrate on the twentieth century, beginning with Emile Nelligan and the École littéraire de Montréal. We will study the nationalization of Québecois literature in writings about the terroir; the gradual introduction of the city into writing; early attempts at establishing an identity separate from France (La Relève); the Révolution tranquille and the rise of Québec nationalism and separatism with attention to the mass media; the question of le joual; and finally a new recent writing "without boundaries" by the many third-world immigrants to Québec. (FREN 0221 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. NOR
FREN 0391 Imagined Communities in Modern French Fiction (Not offered 2008-09)
We will examine imagined communities as they are portrayed in a variety of modern (post-1789) French and Francophone novels in which the association of individuals of distinct social, ethnic, racial and national origins engenders innovative forms of partnership. Whether Breton peasant and Parisian revolutionary (Hugo), Caribbean slave and Salem woman accused of being a witch (Condé), Muslim boy and Jewish stepmother (Gary), Québecois adolescent and Indian lover (Lalonde), Spanish and French déportés on their way to Buchenwald (Semprun), Canadian expatriate and Algerian exile (Huston/Sebbar), each work explores how characters of diverse social and ethnic backgrounds collaborate in the creation of new cultural practices. Readings may include: Victor Hugo: Quatre-vingt-treize (excerpts); Maryse Condé: Moi, Tituba, sorcière; Jorgé Semprun: Le grand voyage; Michel Tournier: Vendredi, ou les limbes du Pacifique; Robert Lalonde: L'été indien; Leïla Sebbar et Nancy Huston: Lettres parisiennes; Romain Gary: La vie devant soi ; Sijie Dai: Balzac et la petite tailleuse chinoise. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT
FREN 0394 New French Identities: Black and Beur Expression (Not offered 2008-09)
This course will focus on second-generation children of immigrants from the Caribbean, North Africa, and Sub-Saharan Africa. We will examine the problems of the (re)construction of the self, gender identity, relationship to family and country of origin, the role of the French educational system, and the challenges of social adaptation, stereotypes, and cultural ghettoes. We will analyze the historical, social, and political events that have shaped the identities of this young generation in France, as reflected in literature and film. Readings and films may include works by Allouache, Begag, Beyala, Diome, Dridi, Mabanckou, Pineau, and Sebbar. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT AAL CMP
FREN/WAGS 0395 Women's Voices from the Francophone World (Fall)
This course will study women's discourse in novels from the Francophone world: North-Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean, Vietnam, and Québec. We will examine the emergence of a literary corpus by Francophone women writers outside Europe and their writing processes. Authors may include: Mariama Bâ, Calixthe Beyala, Maryse Condé, Anne Hébert, Leïla Sebbar, and Kim Lefèvre. We will consider the ways in which gender is constructed and presented in analyzed texts. Marriage, family, polygamy, love, confinement, education, politics, social class, and cultural identity will be discussed. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT AAL CMP (A. Crouzières-Ingenthron)
FREN 0396 (Re)Constructing Identities: Francophone Colonial and Postcolonial Fiction (Not offered 2008-09)
This course will focus on major works written in French by writers from North Africa, sub-Saharan Africa, and the Caribbean. We will explore the complex (re)construction of identities through fiction writing as it evolves from traditional folktale to political criticism, and as it shifts from colonial alienation to post-colonial disillusionment. We will also examine the emergence of cultural blending or métissage. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT AAL CMP
SENIOR SEMINARS
FREN 0439 Senior Seminar: France in the Twentieth Century/ La France au XXe siècle (Not offered 2008-09)
This course is an overview of events and trends in France from the belle époque through the Mitterrand years using a case-study approach to specific topics or themes. How has the perennial struggle between left and right shaped the nation? What is the legacy of the two world wars? How have challenges to the political and social order been negotiated, neutralized, or absorbed? In tackling such questions we will pay particular attention to historigraphical developments and historical method. Sources will include documents, testimonials, fiction, film, monographs, and articles. This seminar will include an important research component. (Open to French Senior Majors, other students by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. EUR
FREN 0442 Senior Seminar: French Films and Their American Remakes (Not offered 2008-09)
This course proposes to study French films and their American remakes. By reading reviews and articles, by examining variations in structure, techniques, plot, and audience expectations, we will pinpoint the cultural differences that shape French and American versions of the same story. In some cases, we may extend our comparison to the novel that inspired the original French film. We will cover different genres such as comedy, historical film, drama, etc.; our study may include the following films and their counterparts: Trois hommes et un couffin (Three Men and a Baby), Le Retour de Martin Guerre (Sommersby), Les Diaboliques (Diabolique). This seminar will include an important research component. (Open to French Senior Majors, other students by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc., 2 hrs. screening. ART
FREN 0448 Senior Seminar: France: A Multicultural Society? (Fall)
The "headscarf" affair of 2003 demonstrated once again just how controversial the notion of cultural pluralism remains in France. Using an historical and sociological approach, we will examine the sources of French unease over such public displays of "private" difference. Topics will include: France's colonial past and immigration; different forms of socio-political mobilization around ethnic and religious "identities" in France; measures adopted by the French to combat ethnico-racial discrimination. Sources will include sociological texts, articles from French press, websites, films. This seminar will include an important research component. (Open to French Senior Majors, other students by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. SOC CMP (W. Poulin-Deltour)
FREN 0450 Senior Seminar: Franco-American Relations (Not offered 2008-09)
In this course we will examine the complexity of Franco-American relations by focusing on recent, as well as past, issues of contention between the two partners. We will examine the impact of history, political culture, and national interest in defining clashing world visions. We will also reflect on the future of Franco-American relations based on the role of France in an enlarged and more closely integrated European Union. This seminar will include an important research component. (Senior French majors only; others by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. CMP
FREN 0470 Senior Seminar: Fashion in French Literature and Culture (Spring)
"L'habit ne fait pas le moine." But in literature as in life, clothes can go a long way to define a person. We will look at French fashions since the seventeenth century, from Louis XIV and Marie-Antoinette's extravagant styles through the development of consumer culture and the triumph of the men's suit in the nineteenth century. We will examine the ways literary texts, primarily novels and memoirs, have represented these styles. What messages does dress carry about people? How do writers use it to create characters and settings, to advance plots, to comment on their society? We will view Coppola's Marie Antoinette among other films, and readings may include: Lafayette, La Princesse de Clèves, Montesquieu, Les Lettres persanes, Flaubert, Madame Bovary, and Zola, Au Bonheur des Dames. This seminar will include an important research component. (Open to French Senior majors, other students by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT EUR (C. Rifelj)
FREN 0477 Senior Seminar: "Madness and Reason": Short Stories and Novellas in the 19th Century (Not offered 2008-09)
This senior seminar will offer a different view of nineteenth-century literature. Instead of studying the famous "big novel" of the period, we will choose to uncover contradictions present in nineteenth century ideology. The social malaise, a product of conflicts between progress, civilization and passion will emerge in texts telling stories of happiness, anxiety, hermaphrodites, murder, isolation and social conformity: Readings will include among others, Chateaubriand: René, Balzac: Sarrasine, Mérimée: Lotkis, Zola: Thérèse Raquin. This seminar will include a significant research component. (Open to French Senior Majors, other students by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. EUR
FREN 0483 Senior Seminar: Exiles and Expatriates in French Literature (Not offered 2008-09)
To know and embrace a given culture from within, be it that of a nation of a social class, of an ethnic group, or of a gender, is often to ignore or forget its distinctive features; indeed, if we feel or are in fact outsiders, we use the awareness of our singularity in order, little by little, to dispel it. But conversely we can reaffirm that singularity on our own terms. We will examine some examples in French literature of characters who recognize their difference and consciously choose to abolish it, as well as of those who just as consciously refuse to be assimilated and choose to remain other. Readings may include: Montesquieu, Les Lettres persanes; Voltaire, L'Ingénu; Marivaux, Le Paysan parvenu; Mme de Graffigny, Lettres d'une Péruvienne; Mme de Duras, Ourika; Camus, L'Etranger ; Chraibi, La Civilisation, ma mère! This seminar will include an important research component. (Open to French Senior Majors, other students by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc.
FREN 0491 Senior Seminar: Reimagining Community in Modern French Fiction (Not offered 2008-09)
We will examine imagined communities as they are portrayed in a variety of modern (post-1789) French and francophone novels in which the association of individuals of distinct social, ethnic, racial and national origins engenders innovative forms of partnership. Whether Breton peasant and Parisian revolutionary (Hugo), Caribbean slave and Salem woman accused of being a witch (Condé), Muslim boy and Jewish stepmother (Gary), Québecois adolescent and Indian lover (Lalonde), Spanish and French déportés on their way to Buchenwald (Semprun), Canadian expatriate and Algerian exile (Huston/Sebbar), each work explores how characters of diverse social and ethnic backgrounds collaborate in the creation of new cultural practices. Readings may include: Victor Hugo: Quatre-vingt-treize (excerpts); Jorgé Semprun: Le grand voyage; George Sand : Nanon ; Robert Lalonde: L'été indien; Leïla Sebbar et Nancy Huston: Lettres parisiennes; Romain Gary: La vie devant soi, Sijie Dai: Balzac et la petite tailleuse chinoise. This seminar will include an important research component. (Open to French Senior Majors, other students by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT EUR
FREN 0492 Senior Seminar: Literature and Denunciation: The Awakening of the Maghreb (Not offered 2008-09)
This course will focus on main novels by major Maghrebian authors from Algeria, Morocco, and France, which have given birth to a literature of identity and of transgression. As taboos are unveiled, sons and daughters denounce their societies by attacking fundamental Arabo-Muslim values, such as the family unit and religion, and by crititizing and opposing their fathers. We will explore the relationship between parents and children, husbands and wives, the role of sexuality and violence, gender issues, the importance of Islam among other themes. We will also examine the painful process of denunciation, the political act of writing, and the deliberate choice and use of the French language by replacing these works in a colonial, postcolonial, and post-independent historical context. This seminar will include an important research component. (Open to French Senior Majors, other students by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. LIT AAL CMP
FREN 0500 Independent Project (Fall, Winter, Spring)
Qualified students may be permitted to undertake a special project in reading and research under the direction of a member of the department. Students should seek an adviser and submit a proposal to the department well in advance of registration for the term in which the work is to be undertaken. FREN 0500 projects or essays proposed by senior majors for fall or spring may be eligible for departmental honors. (Approval required by the department as a whole. See requirements above.) (Staff)
FREN 0700 Senior Research (Fall-Winter, Winter-Spring)
For senior majors who are candidates for departmental honors. Students should seek an adviser and submit a proposal to the department well in advance of registration for the term in which the work is to be undertaken. (Approval required by the department as a whole. See requirements above.) (Staff)