Courses
Courses offered in the past four years.
▲ indicates offered in the current term
▹ indicates offered in the upcoming term[s]
FREN 0101 - Beginning French Part One ▲
Intensive Beginning French
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.
Fall 2009, Fall 2010, Fall 2011, Fall 2012, Fall 2013
FREN 0102 - Beginning French Part Two
Beginning French
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)
Winter 2010, Winter 2011, Winter 2012, Winter 2013
FREN 0103 - Beginning French Part Three ▹
Beginning French
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.
Spring 2009, Spring 2010, Spring 2011, Spring 2012, Spring 2013, Spring 2014
FREN 0105 - Accelerated Beginning French ▹
Accelerated Beginning French
This intensive course is a condensation of FREN 0101 and 0102 for students who have never before studied French. We will focus on the development of all four communicative skills in an immersion-style environment. Primary emphasis will be placed on increased oral proficiency through audiovisual, conversational, and drill methods. Upon successful completion of this course students will be prepared for second-year French in the fall. Weekly attendance at the French language table will be required. 6 hrs. lect./disc./1 hr. drill
Spring 2013, Spring 2014
FREN 0203 - Intensive Intermediate French ▲
Intensive Intermediate French
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.
Spring 2009, Fall 2009, Fall 2010, Fall 2011, Fall 2012, Fall 2013
FREN 0205 - Toward Liberated Expression ▲ ▹
Toward Liberated Expression
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.
Spring 2009, Fall 2009, Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Spring 2011, Fall 2011, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014
FREN 0210 - Identity in French Literature ▲ ▹
Identity in French Literature
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.
Spring 2009, Fall 2009, Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Spring 2011, Fall 2011, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014
FREN 0221 - From Romanticism to Modernism ▲ ▹
From Romanticism to Modernism
The 19th and 20th 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 placement) 3 hrs. lect./disc. (1 additional hour for CW, Fall).
Spring 2009, Fall 2009, Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Spring 2011, Fall 2011, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014
FREN 0230 - Introduction to Contemp France ▲ ▹
Introduction to Contemporary France
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.
Spring 2009, Fall 2009, Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Spring 2011, Fall 2011, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014
FREN 0255 - Improving Writing in French
Improving Writing in French
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. (At least one course from among FREN 0210, 0221, or 0230) 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Spring 2009, Spring 2010, Spring 2011
FREN 0306 - Study/Production of a Play ▹
Study and Production of a Play
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).
Spring 2009, Spring 2011, Spring 2014
FREN 0316 - Animal Encounters-French Lit. ▲
Animal Encounters in French Literature
In this course we will explore representations of animals in French literature. Animals have played an important role in literature, yet, in post-Darwinian modernity their depiction became increasingly tied to a questioning of the human/animal divide. What are the recurrent motifs and concerns that shape depictions of animals in 19th century French literature? What ethical and social questions do they raise? We will study fictional works of animal metamorphosis, and literary accounts of zoos and animal spectacles, as well as ways in which animals have been used as a rhetorical device to de-humanize "Others"—women and foreigners, in particular. We will read texts by Baudelaire, Balzac, Maupassant, Flaubert, Zola, Lautréamont, and Rachilde. (FREN 0221 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Fall 2013
FREN 0341 - French Cinema ▹
French Cinema
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.
Fall 2010, Spring 2014
FREN 0342 - French Films vs Amer Remakes
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/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.
Fall 2009
FREN 0344 - Women in FR Historical Films
Women in French Historical Films: Looking at the Past through a Modern Lens
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 20th 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.
Spring 2009, Spring 2012
FREN 0346 - Food And Culture
"I eat - therefore I am", Food and Culture in France*
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.
Spring 2009, Spring 2013
FREN 0348 - France: Multicultural Society
France: A Multicultural Society?
The debates over "national identity" and the "niqab affair" (2009-2010) 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. We will explore France's colonial past and immigration; different forms of socio-political mobilization around ethnic, religious, and sexual "identities"; measures adopted by the French to combat ethno-racial discrimination. Sources will include sociological texts, articles from French press, websites, and films. (FREN 0221 or FREN 0230 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Fall 2012
FREN 0349 - Sex and Gender in France
Sex and Gender: The French Paradox
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.
Spring 2011
FREN 0350 - Franco-American Relations
Franco-American Relations
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. 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Fall 2010
FREN 0351 - Presidents of Fifth Republic ▹
Presidents of the Fifth Republic
In this course we will examine presidential power in France's Fifth Republic, introduced in 1958. We will study the six presidents of the Fifth Republic - Charles de Gaulle, Georges Pompidou, Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, François Mitterrand, Jacques Chirac, and the current president Nicolas Sarkozy - through memoirs, speeches, research monographs, journal articles, and biographies. We will focus on the content of their domestic and foreign policies as well as their leadership strategies and visions for France in a comparative perspective. (This course will be taught in French; FREN 0230 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc. and film screenings.
Spring 2010, Spring 2014
FREN 0352 - French Public Education
From Citizenship to Social Mobility: The Shifting Role of Public Education in France
Since the establishment of a free, compulsory, and secular school system in the early 1880s, the position of public education in French society has evolved significantly. Designed originally to create an "educated" citizenry, its function has increasingly been interpreted as one of promoting social mobility and "equal opportunity" within that citizenry. Over the course of this shift, education has become a site of fierce debate in France. We will take a historical and sociological approach to explore the contours of this debate, covering such topics as: primary school teachers' role in forging national identity during the Third Republic; efforts after World War II to democratize the system; and current attempts to diversify elite institutions of higher education. Authors will include Baudelot, Bourdieu, Dubet, Ozouf, and Prost. (FREN 0230 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Fall 2011
FREN 0353 - French Foreign Policy
French Foreign Policy
In this course we will focus on the foreign policy of Fifth Republic France (1958-Present). In the first part, we will study the role of Charles de Gaulle in defining the place of France in the world after the liberation and in establishing the major tenets of French foreign policy. In the second part, we will examine the evolution of French foreign policy by focusing on three main themes: (1) the relationship of France with its former colonies; (2) transatlantic relations; and (3) European integration. (FREN 0230 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Spring 2012
FREN 0363 - Bodily Narratives: French Lit
Bodily Narratives in 17th and 18th Century French Literature
In early modern France,the body is at the center of emerging ideas within particular fields of knowledge (philosophy, aesthetics, anthropology, medicine, law). In this course, we will consider the ways in which various discourses construct the body as an object of knowledge, and to what ends. We will focus on the notions of maîtrise de soi, sympathy, and sensibilité, and the relation(s) between self and other. We will reflect upon ways in which bodies are hidden or exposed, marked as other, pathologized, gendered, disciplined and punished, in order to challenge the discursive construction of the body in 17th and 18th century French literature. Readings will include works by Racine, Lafayette, Montesquieu, Saint-Simon, Diderot, Rousseau, and Laclos. (FREN 0221 or by waiver). 3hrs. lect.dic.
Fall 2010
FREN 0366 - Parisian Promeneur
Walking the City Streets: The Parisian Promeneur
Mention of the social and literary activities of walking the city streets usually conjures up images of the 19th century Baudelairian flâneur. This figure, however, has very visible traces in the social and literary practices of Ancien Régime France. While the function of the promenade was initially one of aristocratic display (promenades publiques), throughout the 18th century this social practice became individualized, reappropriated as a practice of discovering the city and one's place within it. Through a study of varied narratives generated by ambulatory observers we will consider the relationship these Parisian promeneurs maintain to the urban space they describe, the knowledge they aim to produce, and the bodily relationship between the acts of walking, of observing, and of writing. We will take inventory of the strategies - discursive, literary, and social - devised by these promeneurs as they navigate the streets of Paris. Authors studied will include Rousseau, Diderot, Mercier, Restif de la Bretonne, Certeau, Foucault, and Stierle. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect/disc.
Fall 2011
FREN 0368 - French Sexual Politics ▲
French Sexual Politics
Reaction to the recent Dominic Strauss-Kahn scandal and deliberations over same-sex marriage are but two illustrations of the important role sex and gender differences continue to play in contemporary French society. In this course we will examine the political responses such phenomena have elicited. Topics will include: the evolution of gender roles within French family structure, including homoparentalité; attempts to increase women's participation in French national politics, especially via the parité initiative; the question of Muslim women's integration in-or exclusion from-French society; and the attention given to sex and gender differences in anti-discrimination policies. We will critically assess French media and writings from sociology and political philosophy. (This course will be taught in French; FREN 0230 or by waiver) 3 hrs.lect./disc.
Fall 2013
FREN 0370 - Otherness and Romanticism
Figures of Otherness in Romantic Imagination
One of the responses of 19th century Romantic writers to the expansion of the French Empire was a fascination with exotic lands and people. The objective of this course is to study the ideological and aesthetic stakes of exoticism. What do literary representations of exotic lands and people tell us about fantasies and anxieties haunting the metropolis? Did exotic writings serve to perpetuate or undermine the imperial project? Did aesthetic innovations help to challenge racial archetypes or did they reinforce them? Starting with a discussion of female and feminized figures in orientalist writings, Balzac's Passion dans le desert and Nerval's Voyage en Orient, we will turn then to the Caribbean context and the way the Haitian revolution and interracial relations are imagined in Hugo's Bug-Jargal and Lamartine's drama Toussaint Louverture. In the last part of the course, with Ourika, by Claire de Duras, and Indiana, by George Sand, we will discuss the representation of exiled black and creole women in post-revolutionary France. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect/disc.
Fall 2011
FREN 0371 - French Orientalism
French Orientalism
In this course we will examine different ways in which writers have described cultural encounters between France and the Orient, specifically the Islamic cultures of North Africa and the Middle East. These encounters have been the source of many enduring myths fabricated by the French about the Orient and in the process, about themselves. Starting with Montesquieu's Lettres persanes, we will discuss the role played by the Orient in his critique of socio-political practices in the Old Regime. We will then examine various strategies for apprehending and appropriating North African cultures in orientalist travel narratives, short stories, and paintings from the 19th century. Questions of representation, otherness, identity, and gender will inform our discussions. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Fall 2012
FREN 0373 - The Nineteenth-Century Novel
The Nineteenth-Century Novel
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.
Spring 2009
FREN 0374 - The "Belle Epoque"
The Belle Époque
In this course we will explore French literature and society of 1890-1914 through novels, plays, poems, images, and historical documents. One of our goals will be to study the historical and cultural context of the works as well as the evolution of French society. We will analyze the complexity and paradoxes of the Belle Époque, which is a period of cultural and artistic blossoming as well as of rapid transformation of French society and of the urban landscape (The Eiffel Tower, the métro), but also of conflicts and inequalities (strikes, the Dreyfus affair, colonialism). We will examine photographs, caricatures, post cards, and paintings of the Belle Époque, and read works by Zola, Jarry, Auclert, Feydeau, Proust, Apollinaire, and Valéry. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Fall 2009
FREN 0377 - Madness & Reason in Fren Lit
Madness and Reason: Short Stories and Novellas in the Nineteenth Century
This course will offer a different view of 19th 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.
Spring 2013
FREN 0379 - French Poetry and Painting
Poetry and Painting in France: 1850-1950
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.
Spring 2011
FREN 0380 - The 20th Century Novel
The Twentieth-Century Novel
The early years of the 21st-century offer us a new perspective on the major French literary events of the 20th, enabling us to see which works remain in sharp focus over time. In this course we will examine the aesthetic response of French prose writers to the main currents and key moments of French social and political history since World War II, offering both a sociological interpretation and close literary readings. Works studied may include Les Belles Images (Beauvoir), Les Choses (Pérec), Les Petits Enfants du siècle (Rochefort), La Modification (Butor), La Place de l’Etoile (Modiano), and Acide sulfurique (Nothomb). (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Fall 2009
FREN 0385 - French Depictions of Self
Representing the Self in Modern French Culture
In this course we will explore the art and artifice of self-representation and how it has been used by writers, artists, and others in modern France. Our readings will include works of literary self-fashioning (e.g., Proust, Duras) as well as autobiographical narrative in French cinema, self-portraiture by French painters and photographers, and new avenues of digital self-representation online. Throughout, we will consider the works in context to uncover their relevance to historical and cultural circumstance. Assignments will consist of three papers and one longer creative essay in which students write on a personal experience using narrative strategies discussed in class. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Spring 2010
FREN 0388 - Love & Death French Revolution ▲
Dangerous Liaisons: Love and Death before the French Revolution
Laclos's famous book Les Liaisons dangereuses highlights the dangerous collusion between love and death, but this unexpected association is not exclusive to 18th-century libertinism. Since the Middle Ages, the Tristan myth has defined love as a fatal passion. Is a sense of fatality necessarily associated with love? How did the conception of love evolve, and what does it say about power relations and gender tensions? In this course we will study texts that are critical to understanding the mentalities and sensibilities of French society. Readings include texts by Béroul, Labé, Guilleragues, Racine, Cazotte, and Laclos. We will also watch three films, L'Éternel retour by Jean Delannoy, La Religieuse portugaise by Eugène Green, and Cruel Intentions by Roger Kumble. (FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs.lect./disc.
Fall 2013
FREN 0394 - New French Identities
New French Identities: Black and Beur Expression
This course will focus on second-generation children of immigrants from the Caribbean, North and Sub-Saharan Africa, and 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. 3 hrs lect./disc. (FREN 0221 or by waiver)
Spring 2012
FREN 0396 - Francophone Fiction
(Re)Constructing Identities: Francophone Colonial and Postcolonial Fiction*
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.
Spring 2013
FREN 0398 - Children&War in FR Africa Lit
Children and Civil War in Francophone African Literature
In this course we will study the repercussions of civil war on child soldiers and children as depicted in contemporary Francophone African literatures. How does one become a child soldier and murderer? How do orphans survive war? Authors use literary fiction written from a child’s perspective to reflect upon and to denounce a tragic historical reality as well as to defy censorship. We will analyze their writing strategies and techniques, and assess both the literary and humanistic impact of the novels. Readings will include novels by Ivorian Ahmadou Kourouma, Congolese Emmanuel Dongala, Guinean Tierno Monémembo, and by Djiboutian Abdourahman Waberi. (FREN 0221 or by waiver). 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Spring 2010
FREN 0448 - France: Multicultural Society?
Senior Seminar: France: A Multicultural Society?
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.
Fall 2010
FREN 0450 - Franco-American Relations
Senior Seminar: Franco-American Relations
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.
Fall 2009
FREN 0460 - Resistance & Memory ▲
Resistance and Memory: France in the Second World War *
The Second World War has cast a long shadow over France's postwar history and politics. Contemporary events are still refracted through the prism of a past that, as one historian has noted, does not seem to go away. We will focus on a critical aspect of that past, the French Resistance, a politically and socially diverse underground movement that took root in a divided nation under the collaborationist Vichy regime and German occupation. What forms did refusal take, how did resistance function, and what motivated resisters to risk their lives? We will examine the myths, realities, and legacy of the Resistance through original documents and period artifacts, memoirs and testimony, film and fiction, and seminal works of postwar historiography. Students will produce a significant piece of independent research to present to the class. (Open to French Senior Majors). 3 hrs. lect/disc.
Fall 2011, Fall 2012, Fall 2013
FREN 0478 - Hugo: Man of His Century ▹
Hugo: Man of His Century
In this senior seminar we will explore the 19th century through the work of Victor Hugo. His identification with his time is a natural starting point to study the interface of society, literature, and art. We will read two novels, two plays, numerous poems, 19th century newspapers, and Hugo's theoretical essays. Students will choose to research one of Hugo's many dimensions (poetry, novels, plays, drawings), or deepen their knowledge of a specific period of the century through Hugo's political commitment. This seminar will include a significant research component. (Open to French Senior Majors). 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Spring 2010, Spring 2012, Spring 2014
FREN 0484 - Culture in Interwar France
The Cultural Front in Interwar France
In this senior seminar we will explore creative works produced in France in the 1920s and 1930s. In close readings of novels, screen plays, songs, comics, and essays, we will examine how conflicting notions of popular and elitist culture evolved in the years leading up to World War II. We will pay close attention to technological innovation (for example, the advent of sound in film and photography in the daily press) and how it changed patterns of culture, production, and consumption. Students will undertake a significant piece of independent research to present to the class. (Open to French Senior Majors). 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Spring 2013
FREN 0492 - Maghreb:Denunciation & Lit.
Senior Seminar: Literature and Denunciation: The Awakening of the Maghreb
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.
Spring 2011
FREN 0500 - Independent Projects ▲ ▹
Independent Project
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 advisor 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.)
Spring 2009, Fall 2009, Winter 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Winter 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2011, Winter 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Winter 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014
FREN 0700 - Senior Research ▲ ▹
For senior majors who are candidates for departmental honors. Students should seek an advisor 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.)
Spring 2009, Fall 2009, Winter 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Winter 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2011, Winter 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Winter 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014
FREN 1004 - French & American Encounters
Close Encounters of the French and American Kind
The relationship between France and the United States is sometimes satirized in the imaginary dialogue of a couple. To one’s declaration of love (“I love you”), the other responds: “Me neither.” Misunderstandings, resentments, and tensions have come to characterize each people’s notion of the other, but that has not stood in the way of genuine, mutual admiration and even love. In this course we will explore manifestations of this cross-cultural phenomenon in politics, society, and daily life to uncover the assumptions and values that inform a passionate transnational story of love and hate. Readings will be interdisciplinary in nature. Students will do substantial research projects to present to the class. This course counts as elective credit towards the French major.
Winter 2012
FREN 1005 - Literature of Montreal
Beyond the Two Solitudes: The Literature of Montréal
In this course, we will use a chronological approach and a sociological lens to examine four classic texts written in and about Montréal: Bonheur d’occasion; Les Belles-soeurs; Comment faire l’amour avec un nègre sans se fatiguer; and Le bonheur à queue glissante. While the first two works present the traditional image of Montréal as a city of “two solitudes,” one French and one English, the last two novels interrupt this trope, giving voice to ever-growing immigrant populations that do not fit neatly inside it. This course counts as elective credit towards the major in French. (FREN 0210 or 0221 or 0230)
Winter 2013
