Curriculum 2013

The Institut's curriculum includes general and advanced courses in French language, literature, history and economics. The plan of study is designed to accomplish two main purposes. The first is to provide work in French language of such a nature that each student will make appreciable progress in fluency, comprehension and writing. The second is to provide courses covering material pertinent to the understanding of modern France and the appreciation of French culture. Students also attend a series of lectures given by visiting speakers and are expected to participate in supplementary discussions. Individual drill in French phonetics is available for students who need to do remedial work in French pronunciation. Students are encouraged to take advantage of the listening and recording equipment available at the Palais du Roure.

Each student must enroll in two courses, for a total of two units of academic credit. Attendance at all class meetings is required. Courses are organized so as to include student participation in classroom discussion.
 
The student who wishes transfer credits should make the necessary arrangements with the appropriate officer of his/her own college or university.

Undergraduate Courses

French S 201

COURS AVANCE DE LANGUE FRANÇAISE

A general review of grammar and style with the goal of improving written and oral skills in French.  (M. Giraud)

French S 203

ATELIER DE PHONÉTIQUE

A non-credit course open to all students wishing to feel more comfortable in expressing themselves orally in  French.  (T.A.)

French S 205

LA PLUME ET LA ROBE: FEMMES ÉCRIVAINS AU 17e SIÈCLE

This course will focus on all aspects of the strong influence that women exerted on literature and culture in France during the 17th century.  We’ll study the historical and social implications of the phenomenon of the “salon,” perceived as a space of freedom for women to redefine the literary landscape of their time.  We’ll look at how women writers challenged their male colleagues at the heart of their esthetic and ideological dominance, but also how intellectually independent women were in return perceived by society.  We’ll focus on major subversive masterpieces written by women during the period, but we’ll also explore the vast implications of the idea of a feminine form of writing among male writers.  Authors studied will notably include: Mlle de Scudery, Molière, Racine, Mme de Sablé, Pascal, La Rochefoucauld, Mme de Sévigné, Mme de Lafayette, La Bruyère, Fontenelle.  (E. Leveau)

French S 208

LE THÉÂTRE MODERNE: COURS ET ATELIER DE JEU THÉÂTRAL

A study of major visions and techniques in modern theater (theater of the absurd, new concepts in stage direction and stage design, forms of parody, contemporary Francophone drama), and a workshop with training in voice projection, diction, memorization, staging and acting.  Excerpts from plays by authors such as Cocteau, Ionesco, Genet, Koltès, Fréchette will be staged and presented to the public.  (P. Osmalin) 

French S 212

APPROCHES STYLISTIQUES DU TEXTE MODERNE

This course will examine evolving literary styles in 19^th and early 20^th century France, with particular attention to the ways in which literary movements express themselves through stylistic innovation.  We will perform close readings of representative texts by a range of authors including Mme de Staël, Balzac, Hugo, Baudelaire, Flaubert, Zola, Desnos; movements studied will include Romanticism, Naturalism, and Surrealism.

(A. Peysson-Zeiss)

French S 214

SPORT, IMMIGRATION ET VIE URBAINE DANS LA FRANCE CONTEMPORAINE

If one observes either the “Tour de France” or the exceptional repercussions of the Bleus’ victory in the 1998 Football World Cup, one will see to what a large extent sports shed light on certain traits of French society and French political culture.  By studying the history of sports, this course will aim to show how revealing it is to understand contemporary France, both in its cohesion and the rifts and contradictions it faces.  (M. Fontaine)

Economics S 201

L'ECONOMIE ET LA CIVILISATION DE L'EUROPE

A study of contemporary French economic policies in the context of political institutions of the European Union, with particular emphasis on the anthropological and philosophical motivations at work in the development of these policies.  The course will include a number of field trips to businesses in the region so that students may observe the practical results of what we will have studied in terms of the adaptation of local commerce to increasingly globalized markets.  (J.-R. Alcaras)

Graduate Courses

NOTE: Courses on the 500-level carry graduate credit. Qualified undergraduates may be admitted to these courses with the consent of the Director.

French S 505

THÉÂTRE ET RÉVOLUTION

This course will consider both revolutions in theatrical form and practice, and the role that theater played in political revolutions, from the mid-eighteenth to the mid-nineteenth centuries.  What were the political implications of Diderot’s formal theatrical innovations and Rousseau’s virulent anti-theatrical critique?  How did the stage both mirror and transform political events during the French Revolution?  What were the various configurations of aesthetics and politics in the Romantic revolution?  Authors will include Diderot, Rousseau, Beaumarchais, Sade, Gouges, Hugo, Sand, and Musset.  (J. Stalnaker)

French S 507

CAMUS

Guided by formal and existential questions, this course will consider Camus the novelist and short story writer, Camus the playwright, Camus the essayist and thinker, Camus the "Algerian," and more.  Works studied include L'Étranger, Le Mythe de Sisyphe, Le Malentendu, La Peste, and La Chute.  (G. Prince)