ML 3800 - Modern French Culture: France and the Francophone World

Credits: 4

Taught in English. This course will provide students with an introduction to French culture and civilization. We will analyze the pivotal role played by France in modern European history and culture and the contributions the French and Francophone nations have made in such domains as architecture, fine arts, philosophy, literature and cinema. Starting from the French classical age, in the 17th century, and continuing through the Enlightenment, the age of revolutions, colonialism and post-colonialism, the course aims to give students an understanding of the aesthetic and intellectual currents that have shaped French thought and creative expressions. Readings will include letters, fiction and essays. Modules of discussion and research may include: the emergence of modern subjects; the culture of sensuality; feminism and gender definitions; stories of love and desire; the image of human experience in the French novel; immigration, racism and the multicultural society; the concept of “creoleness”; modernism and the “avant-gardes”; French-American interactions.

Prerequisites
EMS

When Offered:
Periodically.