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Undergraduate Courses in French
Fall 2001
**Course information subject to change**
**Cross-reference with Department Roster**
French-110 Elementary French
Staff
See Course Offerings for times
A first-semester elementary language course for students who have never
studied French before or who have taken the placement test and received
a score that places them in the 110 level. All students who have previously
studied French are required to take the placement test. Class work emphasizes
the development of speaking and listening comprehension with training
in reading and writing. Work outside of class with audio and video cassettes
required for additional practice and preparation.
French-112 Elementary French: Accelerated
Staff
Permission Needed From Department
MWF 9-10; TR 9-10:30
An intensive two credit course in which two semesters of elementary
French are completed in one. See description of 110 and 120. Restricted
to students admitted by the course supervisor.
French-120 Elementary French
Staff
T 6:30-9, R 6:30-9
The continuation of the elementary level sequence (French 110) designed
to develop functional proficiency in the four skills. The primary emphasis
is on the development of the oral-aural skills, speaking and listening.
Reading on topics in French culture as well as frequent writing practive
are also included in the course.
French-121 Elementary French
Staff
See Course Offerings for times
An elementary language course for students who have had some French
before but are not ready to go into the intermediate level. Students
with a placement score between 380 and 450 should enroll in French 121.
A re-introduction of the basic structures of French with intensive work
on speaking and listening designed to prepare students to take Intermediate
French.
French-130 Intermediate French
Staff
See Course Offerings for times
The first part of intermediate level sequence designed to develop functional
proficiency in the four skills. For students who have completed French
120 or 121 or have a placement score within the range set for the 130
level. The primary emphasis is on the development of the oral-aural
skills, speaking and listening. Review of the basic structures learned
in elementary French. Regular readings on topics in French culture as
well as frequent practice in writing are also included in the course.
French-140 Intermediate French
Staff
See Course Offerings for times
The continuation of French 130. Designed to enable students to attain
a functional level of proficiency in French. Considerable emphasis is
placed on developing listening and speaking skills. There will be a
review of the basic grammatical structures learned in elementary French;
other structures will be introduced systematically. Regular readings
on topics in French culture as well as frequent writing practice are
also included in the course.
French-180 Advanced French in Residence
Staff
Open only to residents in Moden Language College House
French-202 Advanced French
Staff
See Course Offerings for times
This course is a one-semester third-year level French course designed
to prepare students for subsequent study in upper-level courses in literature,
language or civilization. It is also the appropriate course for those
students who have time for only one more French course and wish to solidify
their knowledge of the language by continuing to work on all four skills.
Includes a selective review of grammar integrated into oral/aural and
written exercises based on film, poetry, short fiction as well as an
introduction to contemporary cultural forms such as bande dessinee songs
and sample new articles. NB. This course should be taken before
French 211, 212, 214, etc.
French-211 French for Professions I
MW 3-4:30 Slowinski
TR 3-4:30 Slowinski
This content-based language course will introduce economic,
business and professional terminology through the study of:
- France's particular brand of capitalism (role of the state),
and the French economy with its accompanying specters of high labor
costs, high unemployment, and growing social exclusion:
- France's economic position on world markets, its key industrial
sectors (such as technology and nuclear energy) and key companies
(including monopoles d' Etat);
- French monetary policy (transition to the Euro), financial institutions
(banking and postal services, stock market and insurance), and specificity
of the French fiscal system;
- Business practices (business letters, resumes, marketing and
advertising, internal structure and legal forms of French companies...);
- France's atypical system of industrial relations: Role of the
social partners as exemplified by the implementation of the 35-hour
workweek;
- Cultural differences and their impact on the business world;
Prerequisite: An intermediate-high to advanced level of French.
(The class is conducted entirely in French). No business background necessary.
Requirements: Mid-term and final examinations. Oral report based
on a research topic of the student's choice (including a lexicon of the
technical terms used in the report to be distributed to the class). Students
will have access to the instructor's research library.
On completion of the course, students will have the opportunity to
take the Certificat Pratique de Francais Commercial et Economique,
administered by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Paris (CCIP).
Non-native speakers are required to have this diploma if they wish to
work in France, or enter a French or European business school. The diploma
is also an asset for finding an internship or position with a U.S.-based
multinational company.
French-212 Advanced French Grammar and Composition
Foreign Language Across the Curriculum
TR 12-1:30 Roulin
MWF 11-12 Prince
TR 10:30-12 Samuels
Intensive review of grammar integrated into writing practice. A good
knowledge of basic French grammar is a prerequisite (French 202 or equivalent
is recommended). Conducted entirely in French, the course will study
selected grammatical difficulties of the French verbal and nominal systems
including colloquial usage. Frequent oral and written assignments with
opportunity for rewrites. There will also be a reading component (magazine
and newspaper articles as well as selections from Camus's L'Etranger).
Section 1 will be a special FLAC (Foreign Languages Across the Curriculum)
bridge course with the special area of focus being "Contemporary French
Politics". Articles from French newspapers, videos of French newscasts
and tapes of radio programs will be used as supplementary materials
in order to prepare students to take content courses in French in disciplines
other than French. Princes' course conducted in French.
French-214 Advanced French Composition and Conversation
Donaldson-Evans
MWF 10-11
This is a course aimed at improving writing and conversational skills.
It is based on the study and discussion of short extracts from a variety
of texts (literary, journalistic, advertising, etc) which are used as
models for writing and as a basis for oral discussion. Students will
write frequent short compositions based on these extracts and will be
asked to present a series of short oral reports. After the presentation
of their oral reports students will then lead a discussion on the report.
Videos of French news broadcasts and films will also be used to stimulate
discussion and to aid in improving students' comprehension of contemporary
spoken French. In order to improve reading comprehension and as a basis
for discussion, we will allso read Emile Zola's Therese Raquin.
French-217 French Phonetics
Moisset
MW 3-4:30
Designed to provide students with a solid foundation in French phonetics
and phonology. Part of the course will be devoted to learning how to
produce discourse with native-like French pronunciation, rhythm and
intonation. The second half of the course will be devoted to improving
aural comprehension by examining stylistic and dialectical differences
in spoken French.
French-221 Perspectives in French Literature
MWF 11-12 Met
MWF 12-1 Samuels
Freshman Seminar
Gen Req III: Arts & Letters
This undergraduate survey course is designed to provide students with
a thorough overview of the French literary tradition, from the twelfth
to the twentieth centuries, and at the same time to unify a broadway
variety of works under the rubric of textual eroticism and romance.
Drawing on major plays, poems and prose narratives, students will be
asked to explore such issues as: evolving conceptions of "love" in literature;
the play between sexuality, religion and socio-economic systems; the
constitution of subjectivity through desire; narcissism, incest, donjuanism
and the family romance; the rhetoric of seduction as opposed to that
of idealization, virtue and sacrifice; the relationship between the
individual, the amorous couple, and the public sphere. All readings
and class discussions will be in French.
French 223 French Youth Culture since World War II.
Distribution II: History & Tradition
TR 10:30-12 Richman
Among the many dramatic transformations that have marked French culture
and society since World War II, the emergence of la jeunesse
will be our reference point to examine the major trends of the period.
By means of films, short novels, and a basic historical text, we will
consider the shifts in lifestyle, values, and identity among youth at
critical moments in the history of the last 50 years.
Conducted entirely in French, this course requires the student to view
7 films outside of class, 1 written mid-term in class, reaction paragraphs
for each film, 3 of which will be expanded to relate the films to the
required readings of Francoise Sagan, Georges Perec and Rachid Djaidani.
Students will also present to the class their research upon some aspect
of youth culture or identity of their choice. The written part of that
presentation will be integrated into the final exam paper.
French-226 French Civilization from the Beginnings to 1789
Hill
MWF 12-1
Registration Required for Lecture & Recitation
Distribution II: History and Tradition
See Course Offerings for times An introduction to the social, political
and historical institutions of France from the Gallo-Roman period until
the Revolution of 1789. Weekly audio-visual component concerning each
period. Weekly papers and three quizzes. Required for majors in French
and also of particular interest to majors in history, international
relations, Wharton students, etc.
French 229 Le Francais dans le monde II
McMahon
MW 3-4:30
Le Français dans le monde
II will provide a survey of the sociolinguistics of the French language
in the contemporary world. It will begin with a brief introduction to
basic notions of sociolinguistics and a recapitulation of the development
of the French language within France (covered in Le Français
dans le monde I). The main focus of the course will be on the role of
French as a world language, both in Europe and in other parts of the
world. Special attention will be given to French in the New World (Canada,
New England, Louisiana, the Caribbean) and in Africa. It will conclude
with the future role of French as an international language, particularly
within the context of Europe. Throughout the course, the focus will
be on the intersections between language and political, social, and
economic power, between language and ethnic and national identity.
French-250 French Literature in Translation
Hill
MWF 11-12
Gen Req III: Arts & Letters
Cross Listed: COML-272
In the context of the French Enlightenment, libertinage is commonly
understood as a challenge not only to traditional sexual mores (e.g.,
modesty, virtue, and true love), but also to the dominant social, political,
and religious precepts of the ancient regime. In this course, students
will be encouraged to identify the presence, and gauge the extent, of
such oppositional philosophy, presented in a selection of eighteenth-century
French libertine texts. Other topics of discussion may include: the
relationship between the individual lover and society; constructions
of gender, otherness, and exoticism; the erotics of reading and writing;
theatricality and voyeurism; and the rhetoric of sexual initiation,
virtue and vice. All works will be read and discussed in English. Secondary
readings from Sigmund Freud and Michel Foucault.
NOTE: NUMERICAL SEQUENCE WITHIN THE 300 RANGE DOES NOT REFLECT INCREASING
LEVEL OF DIFFICULTY.
French 340 French Renaissance Literature
Donaldson-Evans
MWF 11-12
Description: TBA
French 376 Jewish Identity and French Culture
Samuels
TR 3-4:30
This class interrogates notions of Jewish identity in French culture
from the Revolution to the present. Focusing on significant historical
moments (the Revolution, the Dreyfus Affair, WWII), we will explore
representations of Jews and Jewishness in a variety of media, including
novels, film, art, memoirs, propaganda, political discourse, and journalism.
How have Jews in France negotiated the relation between the particular
and the universal? Towhat extent did the position of Jews influence
or determine French notions of alterity and minority? Topics to be addressed
include: emancipation, anti-Semitism, images of Jews, Jewish self-imaging,
representing the Shoah, de-colonization, and sephardic identity. All
readings and discussion will be in French.
French-382 Horror Cinema
Met
TR 1:30-3
W 4-7
Cross Listed: COML-381 Film 306
The purpose of this course is to provide an introduction to the history
and main themes of the supernatural/horror film from a comparative perspective.
Films considered will include: the German expressionist masterworks
of the silent era, the Universal classics of the 30s and the low-budget
horror films produced by Val Lewton in the 40s for RKO in the US, the
1950s color films of sex and violence by Hammer studios in England,
Italian Gothic horror or giallo (Mario Bava) and French lyrical
macabre (Georges Franju) in the 60s, and on to contemporary gore. In
an effort to better understand how the horror film makes us confront
our worst fears and our most secret desires alike, we will look at the
genre'' main iconic figures (Frankenstein, Dracula, dr. Jekyll and Mr.
Hyde, etc.) as well as issues of ethics, gender, sexuality, violence,
spectatorship through a variety of critical lenses (psychoanalysis,
socio-historical and cultural context, aesthetics, ...).
French 390 Survey Francophone Lit
Moudileno
MWF 2-3
Cross Listed: LTAM-390
The course will introduce student to majors contemporary (1980;S-90's)
Francophone novelists from Haiti and the Antilles (Gaudeloupe and Martinique).
Particular attention will be given to: History and the collective memory;
past and contemporary representations of the Caribbean island; migration
and exile; the process of creolization; the complexities of race, class
and gender issues.
Authors will include: Dany Lafferierre, Lionel Trouillot; Edwige Danticat
(Haiti); Raphael Confiant, Patrick Chamoiseau (Martinique); Maryse Conde,
Gisele Pineau (Guadeloupe)
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