Eva Dessein
Visiting Assistant Professor of French & Francophone Studies
- Office
- Le Chateau 104
- Tel
- (802) 443-3618
- edessein@middlebury.edu
- Office Hours
- Spring 2022: Mondays 9:00-10:00 & by appointment
Eva Dessein has an M.A. and a Ph.D. in French and Applied Linguistics from Vanderbilt University; a Licence and Maîtrise in American Literature from the University of Aix-Marseille (AMU); a Magistère in International and Intercultural Negotiations (AMU).
Her teaching interests include French language, representations of identities, provencal literature, phonetics and pronunciation, French for the professions.
Her research is on second language learning, language and identity, intercultural competency, language learning in immersion settings and instructional technology.
Prior to coming to Middlebury, she was the French Language Program Director at Vanderbilt University, and held teaching positions at the University of Texas at Austin and Williams College. She also taught many summers at the Vanderbilt in France program in Aix-en-Provence.
Courses Taught
FREN 0101
Beginning French Part One
Course Description
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 0201in the spring. 6 hrs. lect./disc.
Terms Taught
FREN 0201
Intermediate French I
Course Description
Intermediate French I
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 0102 or by placement) 5 hrs. lect./disc.
Terms Taught
Requirements
FREN 0203
Intermediate French II
Course Description
Intermediate French II
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 FREN 0105 or placement) 5 hrs. lect./disc.
Terms Taught
Requirements
FREN 0205
Toward Liberated Expression
Course Description
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 0201, 0203 or placement) This requirement for the major and the minor may be satisfied by placement at a higher level. 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Terms Taught
Requirements
FYSE 1555
Francophone Comics and Culture
Course Description
Francophone Comics and Culture
When the cartoon The Adventures of Tintin appeared in 1929 in Belgium, French-language comics were uncommon. Today, Herge’s Tintin is famous throughout the world, and comic books and graphic novels are bestsellers. In this course we will examine the Francophone comic (la bande dessinée) as a unique narrative medium and cultural product. We will explore the position of the bande dessinée in francophone history and culture, with a particular focus on France, Belgium, Québec, and West Africa. We will examine how the bande dessinée provides a unique space for identity construction and cultural critique, involving national identity and mythology, gender and sexuality, and colonial and postcolonial discourse. No knowledge of French is required. 3 hrs. sem.
Terms Taught
Requirements