David Franco Arabia
Assistant Professor of French and Francophone Studies
- Office
- Le Chateau 113
- dfrancoarabia@middlebury.edu
- Office Hours
- Fall 2026: Mon & Wed 4:00-5:00 pm; Fridays 11:00 am- 12:00 pm and by appointment
David Franco Arabia holds a Ph.D in French from Rutgers University and a Masters in Hispanic Studies from Villanova University.
His work examines drama from the French-speaking world through the lens of rhetorical analysis, with a dual focus on early modern tragedies (particularly around the notion of heroism in the works of Pierre Corneille) and on contemporary theater associated with the Theater of the Absurd. He is also interested in cinematic representations of heroism in French and Francophone traditions.
Courses Taught
FREN 0205
Current
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
FREN 0209
Upcoming
Self&Society Writing in French
Course Description
Self and Society: Effective Writing in French
In this course, students will deepen their knowledge of the French language and French-speaking cultures while developing their reading and writing skills through examination of a variety of texts and media. This course facilitates the transition from language-oriented courses (FREN 0205) to content-oriented courses (such as FREN 0220 and FREN 0230) by introducing students to strategies for interpretation and discussion, with a focus on effective writing. Course materials may include essays/articles, theater, fiction, poetry, videos, and films. (FREN 0205 or by placement) 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Terms Taught
Requirements
FREN 0229
Current
Coming-of-Age FrancophoneWorld
Course Description
Coming-of-Age Narratives in the French-Speaking World
What does it mean to become an adult? What are the forces and experiences that shape our sense of identity as we exit adolescence? How do family, geography, ideology, fiction, and traumatic events influence this process? Through a set of French & Francophone texts from the 17th-20th centuries, we will explore diverse and often conflicting understandings of what it means to grow up. We will examine different coming-of-age trajectories and observe how historical and geographical contexts uniquely frame the age-old struggle between the individual and society. Students will gain cultural insight into the French-speaking world and strengthen their literary analysis, oral, and written skills.
Terms Taught
Requirements
FREN 0322
Upcoming
Absurd Theatre
Course Description
Absurd Theatre: Laughter and Liberation
In this course we will study a series of French plays that confront the uncertainty of existence and, through the power of laughter, attempt to liberate spectators and readers from delusional modes of living. Alongside canonical playwrights of the so-called Theatre of the Absurd, which emerged in Paris after WWII, we will also read French dramatists—both contemporary and from earlier centuries—whose theater interrogates notions of identity, logic, power and language. Authors will include Samuel Beckett, Eugène Ionesco, Yasmina Reza, Marie Ndiaye and Molière. Reading aloud and performing will be an integral part of this class.
Terms Taught
Requirements
Publications
ARTICLES
“Effondrement de l’ethos héroïque dans Horace de Corneille : étude de l’effacement de l’homme par l’image.” European Drama and Performance Studies, Éd. Sabine Chaouche, Classiques Garnier, ‘’Varia,’’ 2026, doi.org/10.48611/isbn.978-2-406-20370-4.p.0153
“L’héroïsme déplacé : Une analyse des espaces scéniques et politiques dans Othon de Corneille.“ Early Modern French Studies, 2025, doi.org/10.1080/20563035.2025.2524672
“Obéir pour se libérer: stratégies d’héroïsation dans le film Indigènes de Rachid Bouchareb (2006)”, Nottingham French Studies, volume 62.1, Spring 2023. doi.org/10.3366/nfs.2023.0369.
“Agir pour se faire aimer et aimer pour empêcher d’agir: effets et fonctions de l’amour dans la logique héroïque cornélienne”, L’Amour et l’amitié au Grand Siècle, Éd. Delphine Calle et AstridVan Assche, Classiques Garnier, “Rencontres,’’ October 2022. 10.48611/isbn.978-2-406-13334-6.p.0205
“Monstruosité de l’héroïne: récriture de Médée dans Chanson Douce de Leïla Slimani”, French Studies, Volume 76, Issue 3, July 2022. https://doi.org/10.1093/fs/knac163
“Suréna : l’héroïsme est-il possible en dehors de la représentation ?”. The French Review,Vol. 92.4. 2019. doi.org/10.1353/tfr.2019.0279
BOOK CHAPTERS
“Foreign language learning in the age of Google Translate,” Rocking Higher Education: Innovative Pedagogies and Practices for 21st Century Liberal Arts and Sciences, Green Fire Press, 2027, forthcoming.
BOOK REVIEWS
“Dans les coulisses des Enfants du paradis”, Acta fabula, vol. 24, n° 9, Notes de lecture, October 2023. https://doi.org/10.58282/acta.17122