French and Francophone Studies
The French and Francophone Studies program at Bryn Mawr is recognized as one of the top undergraduate French programs in the country. The purpose of the major in French and Francophone Studies is to develop sophisticated critical and analytical skills through the analysis of, among other things, French and Francophone literature, history, art, film, material culture, and/or institutions. Transdisciplinary approaches are strongly encouraged in all our courses.
100-level courses introduce students to the study of the French language, French and Francophone literatures and cultures, as well as exposing them to critical materials related to textual and documentary analysis conceived broadly. Courses at the 200-level treat French and Francophone literature and cultures across the historical spectrum and most are topic-based. Advanced (300-level) courses offer in-depth study either of genres and movements or of particular periods, themes and problems in French and Francophone culture. Students are admitted to advanced courses after satisfactory completion of two semesters of 200-level courses in French. Courses at the 200- and the 300-level are either taught in French, or taught in English with an extra hour in French. This extra hour is mandatory for students taking the course as part of their minor or major work plan.
All students who wish to pursue their study of French, regardless of level, must take a departmental placement examination prior to arriving at Bryn Mawr. Those students who enter beginning French have two options: intensive study of the language in the intensive track (001-002 Intensive Elementary and 005 Intensive Intermediate) or non-intensive study of the language in the non-intensive track (001-002 Elementary; 003-004 Intermediate). Although it is possible to major in French using either of the two tracks, students who are considering doing so and have been placed at the 001 level are strongly encouraged to take the intensive track.
College Foreign Language Requirement
Before the start of the senior year, each student must complete, with a grade of 2.0 or higher, two units of foreign language. Students may fulfill the requirement by completing two sequential semester-long courses in one language, beginning at the level determined by their language placement. A student who is prepared for advanced work may complete the requirement instead with two advanced free-standing semester-long courses in the foreign language(s) in which she is proficient.
Academic Opportunities
Teacher Certification
The Department of French and Francophone Studies offers a certification program in secondary teacher education. For more information, see the description of the Education Program.
A.B./M.A. Program
Particularly well-qualified students may undertake work toward the joint A.B./M.A. degree in French. Such a program may be completed in four, four and a half or five years and is undertaken with the approval of the department, the Special Cases Committee and the Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
Study Abroad
Students majoring in French may, by a joint recommendation of the deans of the Colleges and the Departments of French, be allowed to spend a semester of their junior year in France and/or a Francophone country under one of the junior-year plans approved by Bryn Mawr.
Students wishing to enroll in a summer program may apply for admission to the Institut d’Avignon, held under the auspices of Bryn Mawr. The Institut is designed for selected undergraduates with a serious interest in French and Francophone literatures and cultures; it will be particularly attractive for those who anticipate professional or graduate-school careers requiring knowledge of the language and cultures of France and French-speaking countries. The curriculum includes general and advanced courses in French language, literature, history, performance and art. The program is open to students of high academic achievement who have completed a course in French at the third-year level or the equivalent.
Major Requirements
- FREN B005 Intensive Intermediate French and FREN B102 Textes, Voix, Images, II or FREN B005 Intensive Intermediate French and FREN B105 Directions de la France contemporaine or FREN B101 Textes, Images, Voix I and FREN B102 Textes, Voix, Images, II or FREN B101 Textes, Images, Voix I and FREN B105 Directions de la France contemporaine.
- 200-level sequence: three courses, two of which (maximum) may be taken outside the department, and the Junior Seminar (JSEM). Courses taken outside of the department should contribute to your independent program of study and have to be pre-approved by your major advisor and entered in your major work plan.
- 300-level sequence: two courses, one of which may be taken outside the department, pending pre-approval of your major advisor.
- Senior Experience consists of a thesis development workshop (FREN B398 Senior Seminar) in the fall semester and either a Senior Thesis (FREN B400 Thesis Advising) or a third 300-level course culminating in the Senior Essay during the spring semester. In either case, the work of the spring semester is capped by an oral defense.
- All French majors are expected to have acquired fluency in the French language, both written and oral. Students placed at the 200-level by departmental examinations are exempted from the 100-level requirements. Occasionally, students may be admitted to seminars in the graduate school.
- The Major Writing Intensive requirement may be met by any one of the following courses: FREN B101 Textes, Images, Voix I, FREN B102 Textes, Voix, Images, II, JSEM, Senior Essay (in a 300-level. course).
Honors and the Senior Experience
After taking Senior Conference in semester I of the senior year, students have the choice in semester II of writing a thesis in French (40-50 pp.) under the direction of a faculty member or taking a 300-level course in which they write a Senior Essay in French (15-25 pp.) The first choice offers self-selected students who already have developed a clearly defined subject in semester I the opportunity to pursue independent research and writing of the thesis with a faculty mentor. The second choice allows students, often double majors with another thesis or pre-medical students, the opportunity to produce a substantial, but shorter, piece of work within the structure of their 300-level course in semester II.
Ideally, students intending to write a Senior Thesis define their subject, identify their advisors and start discussing the project with them by the end of the Junior Seminar. Discussion continues in the fall of senior year with the expectation that the student submit a thesis proposal in the context of the Senior Seminar. Depending on the transdisciplinary nature of the subject, the student may be advised to select a second reader in another department. The choice of the language (French or English) is made in consultation with the primary thesis advisor.
Departmental honors are awarded for excellence in the Senior Experience after the oral defense of either the Senior Thesis or the Senior Essay.
Minor Requirements
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Select one of the following: | 2-2.5 | |
| Intensive Intermediate French and Textes, Voix, Images, II | ||
| Intensive Intermediate French and Directions de la France contemporaine | ||
| Textes, Images, Voix I and Textes, Voix, Images, II | ||
| Textes, Images, Voix I and Directions de la France contemporaine | ||
| Select four 200-level or 300-level courses. At least one course must be 300-level | 4 | |
| Total Units | 6-6.5 | |
FREN B001 Elementary French (1 Unit)
The speaking and understanding of French are emphasized particularly during the first semester, and written competence is stressed as well in semester II. The work includes intensive oral practice sessions. The course meets five hours a week in non-intensive sections. This is a year-long course and students must register for both semesters.
College Requirement(s): Course does not meet an Approach
Typically Offered: Every Fall
FREN B001IN Intensive Elementary French (1.5 Unit)
French 001 Intensive Elementary is the first half of a two-semester beginning sequence designed to help students attain a level of proficiency to function comfortably in a French-speaking environment. This course allows students to: major, minor, and be able to do their JYA in a French-speaking country. It is both speaking-intensive (through pair work, group work, and drills) and writing-intensive (through blogs and essays). In TA sessions, students develop the ability to speak and understand increasingly well through songs, skits, debates, and a variety of activities. The course meets nine hours per week.
College Requirement(s): Course does not meet an Approach
Typically Offered: Every Fall
FREN B002 Elementary French (1 Unit)
Prerequisite(s): FREN B001 or placement required.
The speaking and understanding of French are emphasized particularly during the first semester, and written competence is stressed as well in semester II. The work includes intensive oral practice sessions. The course meets in non-intensive (five hours a week) sections. This is a year-long course.
College Requirement(s): Course does not meet an Approach
Typically Offered: Every Spring
FREN B002IN Intensive Elementary French (1.5 Unit)
Prerequisite(s): FREN B001IN
The second half of a two-semester beginning sequence designed to help students attain a level of proficiency to function comfortably in a French-speaking environment. It is both speaking-intensive (through pair work, group work and drills) and writing-intensive (through blogs and essays). In drill sessions, students develop the ability to speak and understand increasingly well through songs, skits, debates, and a variety of activities. Class meets nine hours per week.
College Requirement(s): Course does not meet an Approach
Typically Offered: Every Spring
FREN B003 Intermediate French (1 Unit)
Prerequisite(s): FREN B002 or placement required.
The emphasis on speaking, understanding, and writing French is continued; texts from French literature and cultural media are read; and short papers are written in French. Students regularly attend supplementary oral practice sessions. The course meets in non-intensive (three hours a week) sections that are supplemented by an extra hour per week with an assistant. This is a year-long course. Prerequisite: FREN B002 or placement required.
College Requirement(s): Course does not meet an Approach
Typically Offered: Every Fall
FREN B004 Intermediate French (1 Unit)
Prerequisite(s): FREN B003 or placement required.
The emphasis on speaking, understanding, and writing French is continued; texts from French literature and cultural media are read; and short papers are written in French. Students regularly attend supplementary oral practice sessions. The course meets in non-intensive (three hours a week) sections that are supplemented by an extra hour per week with an assistant. This is a year-long course.
College Requirement(s): Course does not meet an Approach
Typically Offered: Every Spring
FREN B005 Intensive Intermediate French (1.5 Unit)
Prerequisite(s): FREN B002IN required.
The emphasis on speaking and understanding French is continued; literary and cultural texts are read and increasingly longer papers are written in French. In addition to three class meetings a week, students develop their skills in group sessions with the professors and in oral practice hours with assistants. Students use internet resources regularly. This course prepares students to take 102 or 105 in semester II. Open only to graduates of Intensive Elementary French or to students placed by the department or recommended by their instructor from 002 regular. Two additional hours of instruction outside class time required. Additional meeting hours on Tuesday and Thursday will be scheduled according to students availability. Prerequisite: FREN B002IN (intensive) or Placement exam. Approach: Course does not meet an Approach
Tagged with: French and French Studies
College Requirement(s): Course does not meet an Approach
Typically Offered: Every Fall
FREN B101 Textes, Images, Voix I (1 Unit)
Presentation of essential problems in literary and cultural analysis by close reading of works selected from various periods and genres and by analysis of voice and image in French writing and film from female and male authors in Metropolitan France, Africa, and other Francophone regions. Participation in discussion and practice in written and oral expression are emphasized, as are grammar review and exercises. This is a writing intensive course. Prerequisites: FREN B004, placement, or permission of instructor.
Tagged with:
- French at Haverford
- Romance Languages
College Requirement(s):
- Critical Interpretation (CI)
- Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)
- Power, Inequity, and Justice (PIJ)
Typically Offered: Every Fall
FREN B102 Textes, Voix, Images, II (1 Unit)
Continued development of students’ expertise in literary and cultural analysis by emphasizing close reading as well as oral and written analyses of increasingly complex works chosen from various genres and periods of French and Francophone works in their written and visual modes. Readings include theater of the 17th or 18th centuries and build to increasingly complex nouvelles, poetry and novels of the 19th and 20th centuries. Participation in guided discussion and practice in oral/written expression continue to be emphasized, as is grammar review. Prerequisite: FREN 005 or 101.
Tagged with:
- French at Haverford
- International Studies
- Romance Languages
College Requirement(s):
- Critical Interpretation (CI)
- Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)
Typically Offered: Every Spring
FREN B105 Directions de la France contemporaine (1 Unit)
Ce cours se donne pour but de vous faire goûter à la culture française actuelle, mais aussi de vous donner une idée claire de la société où elle naît. Nous en aborderons des aspects très variés en nous concentrant sur ces institutions dont le fonctionnement la distingue d’autres pays (école, hôpital, etc.). Les films que nous allons voir nous permettront d'analyser ces particularités françaises. Il s’agit également de vous encourager à vous exprimer aisément en français : les discussions seront privilégiées et nous réviserons régulièrement des points de grammaire afin d’améliorer votre expression tant écrite qu’orale. Au terme de ce cours, vous pourrez vivre en France sans vous sentir sur une planète étrangère. Prerequisite: FREN 005 or 101.
Tagged with:
- French at Haverford
- Gender and Sexuality Studies
- Museum Studies
- Visual Studies
College Requirement(s): Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)
Typically Offered: Every Spring
FREN B204 Le Siècle des lumières (1 Unit)
Representative texts of the Enlightenment with emphasis on the development of liberal thought as illustrated in the Encyclopédie and the works of Montesquieu, Voltaire, Diderot, and Rousseau. Prerequisites: FREN 102 or 105 or French Placement Exam (200-leverl or higher).
Tagged with: French at Haverford
College Requirement(s):
- Critical Interpretation (CI)
- Inquiry into the Past (IP)
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B207 Ouvrir la voix: Introduction aux études francophones (1 Unit)
This course provides students with an overview of foundational concepts, methods and texts relevant to Francophone Studies. We will engage with past and present debates relating to identity, diversity, nation and empire in the colonial and postcolonial contexts and explore the specificity of Francophone Studies with regards to the field of postcolonial studies. While focused on literature, the course will also explore other forms of cultural production (movies, graphic novels, political speeches, etc.) from sub-Saharan Africa, the Maghreb, the Caribbean and Vietnam. The course will train students in literary analysis and develop their ability to speak and write critically in French. Prerequisites: FREN 102 or 105.
Tagged with:
- Comparative Literature at Bryn Mawr
- French at Haverford
College Requirement(s):
- Critical Interpretation (CI)
- Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)
- Power, Inequity, and Justice (PIJ)
Typically Offered: Every Spring
FREN B208 La diversité dans le cinéma français contemporain (1 Unit)
Until the closing years of the 20th century, ethnic diversity was virtually absent from French cinema. While Francophone directors from Northern and Sub-Saharan Africa debunked colonialism and neocolonialism in their films, minorities hardly appeared on French screens. Movies were made by white filmmakers for a white audience. Since the 1980's and the 1990's, minorities have become more visible in French films. Are French Blacks and Arabs portrayed in French cinema beyond stereotypes, or are they still objects of a euro-centric gaze? Have minorities gained agency in storytelling, not just as actors, but as directors? What is the national narrative at play in the recent French films that focus on diversity? Is it still "us against them", or has the new generation of French filmmakers found a way to include the different components of French identity into a collective subject? From Bouchareb to Gomis, from Kechiche to Benyamina and Jean-Baptiste, this course will map out the visual fault lines of the French self and examine the prospects for a post-republican sense of community. This course will be taught in French. Open to non-majors. There will be a weekly screening on Sunday, 7:00pm-9:00pm.
Tagged with:
- Africana Studies
- Film Studies
- French at Haverford
College Requirement(s):
- Critical Interpretation (CI)
- Power, Inequity, and Justice (PIJ)
Typically Offered: Every Spring
FREN B214 Atelier théâtre (1 Unit)
How do we best learn a language? By speaking it and by being completely immersed in it. We also learn best when we play. When we have fun and are creative. This workshop will immerse the students in a French only speaking class and they will practice French on their feet. Students will be invited to improvise in French, to create little scenes in French and finally to work on a scene or a monologue from the French repertoire. The class will start with teaching very specific theatrical skills to push the students not only in their ability to speak French but also to act! This will enhance their confidence in speaking, thinking and performing in French, which will lead them to a better mastery of the language.
Tagged with: French at Haverford
College Requirement(s): Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B215 Etudes théâtrales (1 Unit)
Ce cours est destiné à l'étude du théâtre français et francophone. Le sujet est variable. Prerequistie: FREN 102 or FREN 105
Tagged with: French at Haverford
College Requirement(s): Critical Interpretation (CI)
FREN B221 Femme sujet/Femme objet (1 Unit)
An in-depth examination of how women authors from selected periods conceive of their art, construct authority for themselves, and, where appropriate, distinguish themselves from male colleagues, of whom several who have assumed female voices/perspective will be examined as points of comparison. It introduces students to the techniques and topics of selected women writers (as well as theoretical approaches to them) from the most recent (Djebar and M. Duras) to late Medieval authors. This course is taught in French. Prerequisite: FREN 102 or 105
Tagged with:
- French at Haverford
- Gender and Sexuality Studies
College Requirement(s):
- Critical Interpretation (CI)
- Inquiry into the Past (IP)
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B225 Hidden Trajectories: a Global Simulation from Old World to New (1 Unit)
Borrowing from Francis Debyser’s Global Simulation (GS) approach, this course aims to create a framework immersing students in historical moments, allowing them to create stories based on culture and context of the time period studied. The course will incorporate the theoretical content of the other 2 courses (dealing with narratology and biology) to recreate and unearth those hidden or lesser known stories. Global Simulation is a protocol that allows a group of learners (a whole class here) to create a universe of reference: a town in this case. In this world, participants create characters and simulate all of the cultural, socio-political and historical context that this made-up world may need. They will describe the world they live in, tell their life-story, describe their profession, live a daily life made of human interactions and issues relevant to the period. In preparation for the trip, students will be introduced to relevant French vocabulary and will be paired with French speakers to work on basic grammar and vocabulary. They will also learn relevant terminology and create a French-English lexicon for plants. With this pedagogical hypothesis, the universe invented by students of all levels is one of the best ways to learn and “GS accommodates the variety of interests, personality types, and learning styles in any given group of learners.” (Levine 2004). Students will start working on the various stories at the beginning of the semester and discover more stories on the ground when we travel to the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. We will focus on the connections between the Old and the New World with stories dealing with: port-city life, the story of Marguerite de Navarre, the Acadian Line, Claire de Duras and her travels to Philadelphia, the story of when New York was called Angoulême to name of few places, people and time frames.
Tagged with: French and French Studies
College Requirement(s): Inquiry into the Past (IP)
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B229 Monstres et Merveilles (1 Unit)
Sous leurs dehors simples, les contes merveilleux ont fasciné les critiques littéraires comme les spécialistes du folklore. Ces derniers ont tenté de définir leur structure primordiale et de les classer selon des motifs universels. Nous nous inspirerons à la fois de l'analyse structurale et de l'analyse symbolique pour réenchanter des contes devenus parfois trop familiers. Pour y voir plus clair, nous lirons plusieurs versions d'un même conte. A la fin du cours, vous pourrez répondre à ces questions : quel est le rapport entre Cendrillon et les cendres ? Pourquoi le chaperon du Petit Chaperon Rouge est-il rouge ? Le devoir final sera un conte que vous écrirez vous-même.
Tagged with:
- Comparative Literature at Bryn Mawr
- Comparative Literature at Haverford
- French at Haverford
College Requirement(s):
- Critical Interpretation (CI)
- Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)
Writing in the Major: Writing Attentive
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B230 Les Monstres (1 Unit)
Nous examinerons comment la peinture de la monstruosité physique et morale a peu à peu constitué une nouvelle esthétique littéraire en France, du XVIIème au XXIème siècle. Pourquoi préférer la peinture de la difformité physique et morale à l’idéal classique de la beauté ? Quels sont les effets affectifs et esthétiques recherchés : horreur, indignation, sentiment du sublime ? Comment les écrivains s’emparent-ils de l’histoire (Néron, Révolution Française) et de certains « faits divers » pour dépeindre des figures monstrueuses ? Il s’agira aussi de se demander si, en retour, la littérature accroît notre compréhension de l’histoire et de la violence (extra)ordinaire. Auteurs étudiés : Racine, France, Barbey d’Aurevilly, Slimani, Genet, Baudelaire. Prerequisite: FREN B102 or B105 or French Placement (200 level or higher) or course at 200 level
Tagged with: French at Haverford
College Requirement(s):
- Critical Interpretation (CI)
- Inquiry into the Past (IP)
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B233 Les métamorphoses du regard féminin dans le cinéma français (1 Unit)
The male gaze is, in many ways, consubstantial to film as a language and as a cultural medium. Although French cinema is not an exception, female French filmmakers have, for decades, sought to disrupt the codes and the power structure of a traditionally male-dominated industry, both by moving away from conventional narratives and by inventing a female gaze that would be organic to their films and to the characters that they portray. How has the representation of women and womanhood in French film evolved since the New Wave? Have women gained agency in storytelling, not just as actresses, but also behind-the-scenes, as directors, screenwriters, producers? To what extent has their work affected the stories told by male filmmakers? From Agnès Varda to Alice Diop, from Laurence Ferreira-Barbosa to Céline Sciamma and Justine Triet, this course will be paired with the Women in Trouble French and Francophone Film Festival at Bryn Mawr Film Institute and VCAM. This course will be taught in French. Open to non-majors. There will be a weekly screening on Sunday, 7:00pm-9:00pm. Prerequisite: Completion of 100-level sequence.
Tagged with:
- Film Studies
- French at Haverford
College Requirement(s): Critical Interpretation (CI)
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B262 Débat, discussion, dialogue (1 Unit)
Prerequisite(s): Has to have taken a 100 level course
Despite their differences, all countries face similar problems. Examples of challenges include humanitarian aid international justice, the environment, economic inequalities, invisibility and access to health and food. What can we learn from each other in order to find solutions to shared problems? In this course, students will develop the skills necessary to debate and deal with international/global issues. Everyone will expand their vocabulary in areas such as: politics, commerce, human rights, cultural diplomacy to name only a few key areas. We will gain in-depth knowledge of a particular region of the Francophone world as we explore shared themes. Each student will choose a francophone country and speak from that region, using the local press as reference. This will require independent research; including developing a bibliography pertaining to your country for each of the themes we study. Students will regularly share your expertise with others in formats ranging from reports to debates.
Tagged with:
- African Studies at Bryn Mawr
- Africana Studies
- French at Haverford
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B265 Memory, Traces and Afterlives in Africa (1 Unit)
In The Belly of the Congo, Blaise Ndala’s character Princess Tshala’s dad, dealing with the memory of his daughter, states: “Memory is not a tribunal: It is an antidote for the future, but an antidote which only operates as long as the one who claims that memory is willing to bet on the aforementioned future (my translation)” This cluster aims to bet on the future by looking at the past, studying places, and traces of memory as well as do field work in a highly connotated place of memory, Benin. Students will examine the question of memory from a theoretical perspective, and examine representations of that memory through films, texts, music, photographs; discussing borders, religion to name only a few traces, to see what the postcolonial afterlives look like. We will work on the following areas, known today as: Senegal, Benin, DR Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon and South Africa. Students willing to take the course for French credit will have to write their papers in French, read the texts in the target language and do their presentation to their professor in French. They also have to be willing to help as translators on the ground once in Benin. This course will be taught in English.
Tagged with:
- Africana Studies
- French at Haverford
College Requirement(s):
- Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)
- Inquiry into the Past (IP)
- Power, Inequity, and Justice (PIJ)
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B298 Junior Seminar (1 Unit)
Junior Seminar is designed to introduce the knowledge and skill-set expected of our rising seniors: a certain familiarity with the more broadly used critical references of our discipline; a capacity to read and interpret critically a “text” (whether literary, cinematographic, historical, social, etc.) in detail and in a sustained fashion; knowing how to formulate an argument and present it coherently to peers and professors (whether orally or in written form); knowing how to conduct research efficiently in a pre-determined amount of time; and knowing how to cite this research effectively in an argument and in a manner that follows the rules of the discipline. Prerequisites:: 2 (200-level) courses, with exceptions for students who have had fewer courses.
Tagged with: French at Haverford
College Requirement(s):
- Critical Interpretation (CI)
- Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)
Writing in the Major: Writing Intensive
Typically Offered: Every Semester
FREN B302 Le printemps de la parole féminine: femmes écrivains des débuts (1 Unit)
Prerequisite(s): Two 200-level courses
This study of selected women authors from Latin CE-Carolingian period through the Middle Ages, Renaissance and 17th century—among them, Perpetua, Hrotswitha, Marie de France, the trobairitz, Christine de Pisan, Louise Labé, Marguerite de Navarre, and Madame de Lafayette—examines the way in which they appropriate and transform the male writing tradition and define themselves as self-conscious artists within or outside it. Particular attention will be paid to identifying recurring concerns and structures in their works, and to assessing their importance to women’s writing in general: among them, the poetics of silence, reproduction as a metaphor for artistic creation, and sociopolitical engagement. Prerequisite: two 200-level courses or permission of instructor.
Tagged with:
- Comparative Literature at Bryn Mawr
- French at Haverford
- Gender and Sexuality Studies
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B306 Libertinage et subversion (1 Unit)
Prerequisite(s): Two 200-level courses
The libertine movement of the 18th century has long been condemned for moral reasons or considered of minor importance when compared to the Enlightenment. Yet, the right to happiness (‘droit au bonheur’) celebrated by the so-called ‘Philosophes’ implies a duty to experience pleasure (‘devoir de jouir’). This is what the libertine writers promoted. The libertine movement thus does not confine itself to literature, but also involves a dimension of social subversion. This course will allow you to understand Charles Baudelaire’s enigmatic comment: “the Revolution was made by voluptuaries.” Prerequisite: two 200-level courses or permission of instructor.
Tagged with: French at Haverford
Typically Offered: Every Year
FREN B312 Advanced Topics in Literature (1 Unit)
This is a topics course. Course content varies. Prerequisites: two 200-level courses.
Tagged with:
- Comparative Literature at Bryn Mawr
- French at Haverford
FREN B325 Topics: Etudes avancées (1 Unit)
Prerequisite(s): Two 200-level courses
An in-depth study of a particular topic, event or historical figure in French civilization. This is a topics course. Course content varies. The seminar topic rotates among many subjects: La Révolution française: Histoire, littérature et culture; L’environnement naturel dans la culture française; Mal et valeurs éthiques; Le Cinéma et la politique, 1940-1968; Le Nationalisme en France et dans les pays francophones; Étude socio-culturelle des arts du manger en France du Moyen Age à nos jours; Crimes et criminalité; Ecrire la Grande Guerre: 1914-10; Le "Rentrée Littéraire”; Proust/Baudelaire; L’Humain et l’environnement.
Tagged with: Comparative Literature at Bryn Mawr
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B326 Etudes avancées (1 Unit)
An in-depth study of a particular topic, event or historical figure in French civilization. This is a topics course. Course content varies.
Tagged with: Comparative Literature at Bryn Mawr
Typically Offered: Every Year
FREN B333 Nature and Freedom (1 Unit)
When referring to Rousseau’s political theory, the conjectural state of nature first described in his Discourse on the Origin of Inequality (1755) has frequently been identified with native societies as observed in America since 1492. Many scholars have been opposing this primitivist interpretation of his second discourse and showed that Rousseau might instead be considered the father of all ‘social construct’ theories. But in spite of this scholarly consensus, Graeber and Wengrow still tend to assume Rousseau’s state of nature is mostly inspired by the encounter of Europeans with native people. Why is this confusion still informing the way we read Rousseau? How did considerations on the so-called ‘noble savage’ taint his political theory? How can we assess the role an ‘indigenous critique’ played in defining Rousseau’s state of nature? And incidentally: how ‘indigenous’ is this ‘indigenous critique’? Answering to Graeber and Wengrow’s (mis)reading of Rousseau will allow us to cast a new light not only on Rousseau’s ‘unnatural’ anthropology, but also on Graeber & Wengrow’s broader claims on human nature and political freedom. Our end goal is not to offer a scholarly take on either Rousseau’s discourse of Graeber and Wengrow’s book, but to answer this pressing question: should/could we discard the very notion of nature to regain political agency here and now? Authors include: Léry, Montaigne, Hobbes, Rousseau, Lévi-Strauss, Serres, Graeber and Wengrow.
Tagged with:
- French at Haverford
- Philosophy
- Philosophy at Haverford
- Political Science
- Political Science at Haverford
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B350 Voix médiévales et échos modernes (1 Unit)
A study of selected 19th- and 20th-century works inspired by medieval subjects, such as the Grail and Arthurian legends and the Tristan and Yseut stories, and by medieval genres, such as the roman, saints’ lives, or the miracle play. Among the texts and films studied are works by Bonnefoy, Cocteau, Flaubert, Genevoix, Giono, and Gracq.
Tagged with:
- Comparative Literature at Bryn Mawr
- French at Haverford
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B398 Senior Seminar (1 Unit)
Prerequisite(s): BMUG: French Majors
This weekly thesis development workshop examines French and Francophone literary texts and cultural documents from all periods, and the interpretive problems they raise. Close reading, complemented by extensive secondary readings from different schools of interpretation, prepare students to analyze other critical stances and to develop their own.
Tagged with: French at Haverford
Typically Offered: Every Fall
FREN B400 Thesis Advising (1 Unit)
Weekly or bi-weekly meetings with your thesis advisor will allow you to write your senior thesis efficiently and to prepare for a successful defense.
Tagged with: French at Haverford
Typically Offered: Every Spring
FREN B403 Supervised Work (1 Unit)
Tagged with: French at Haverford
Typically Offered: Every Semester
FREN B600 Graduate Seminar (1 Unit)
This is a topic course. Course content varies.
Tagged with: French and French Studies
FREN B614 Modalité de la narration: L'ecrit et lo'oral (1 Unit)
Tagged with: French and French Studies
FREN B625 Topics: Etudes avancées (1 Unit)
An in-depth study of a particular topic, event or historical figure in French civilization. This is a topics course. Course content varies. The seminar topic rotates among many subjects: La Révolution française: Histoire, littérature et culture; L’environnement naturel dans la culture française; Mal et valeurs éthiques; Le Cinéma et la politique, 1940-1968; Le Nationalisme en France et dans les pays francophones; Étude socio-culturelle des arts du manger en France du Moyen Age à nos jours; Crimes et criminalité; Ecrire la Grande Guerre: 1914-10; Le "Rentrée Littéraire”; Proust/Baudelaire; L’Humain et l’environnement.
Tagged with: French and French Studies
FREN B650 Voix médiévales et échos modernes (1 Unit)
A study of selected 19th- and 20th-century works inspired by medieval subjects, such as the Grail and Arthurian legends and the Tristan and Yseut stories, and by medieval genres, such as the roman, saints’ lives, or the miracle play. Among the texts and films studied are works by Bonnefoy, Cocteau, Flaubert, Genevoix, Giono, and Gracq.
Tagged with: French at Haverford
FREN B654 Nostalgie, ou la maladie du retour (1 Unit)
This seminar will enquire on the origins and the development of the discourse on nostalgia in the 18th and 19th centuries. Nostalgia was first conceived as a real disease by physicians, who hesitated between a physical and a moral interpretation, and between a spatial and a temporal perspective. Rousseau and other prominent writers played a crucial role in defining and shaping an affection that became more and more fashionable. We shall discuss the (ab)use of nostalgia in medicine, politics, and literature.
Tagged with: French and French Studies
FREN B655 Rousseau polémiste (1 Unit)
Jean-Jacques Rousseau n'a cessé de susciter des polémiques. Aucun | écrivain n'a suscité autant de débats dans des domaines aussi variés, de l'esthétique théâtrale à la pédagogie, en passant par la théorie politique et l'écriture romanesque. Ses sectateurs ont vu en lui un grand peintre de la sensibilité humaine, un partisan sincère de la justice républicaine, un pédagogue révolutionnaire. A l'inverse, ses ennemis l'ont dépeint comme un paranoïaque idéaliste, un brillant plagiaire, ou encore comme le promoteur d'un régime totalitaire.
Tagged with: French and French Studies
Typically Offered: Occasionally
FREN B670 Hysterics, Saints, Mystics and Criminals in France’s Secular Republic (1 Unit)
This course will approach the debate between science and religion which flared up as France became more secularized in the second part of the 19th century through such figures as hysterics, mystics, saints and criminals. The reading of medical treatises, court case reports, media and other cultural artifacts, along with literary works, will allow us to discuss the relevance of these figures in the imaginary cultural unconscious of the time, how their designation and diagnosis can also be read as symptoms of a broader culture malaise concerning gender and sexuality, power and agency, and the establisment of a special brand of secularism or « laïcité » in the late 19th century. We will start with Michel Foucault’s examination of a criminal case, that of Pierre Rivière, and will discuss medical treaties by Charcot, Freud, Moreau de Tours, reports on « miracles » at pilgrimage sites such as Lourdes, popular religious literature, as well as canonical and popular texts such as Eugène Sue’s Mystères de Paris, Flaubert’s Un cœur simple, Barbey d’Aurevilly’s Les Diaboliques, Zola’s Lourdes, Thérèse Martin’s Histoire de ma vie, and Bernanos’s Histoire de Mouchette.
Tagged with:
- French at Haverford
- Gender and Sexuality Studies
FREN B672 Baudelaire (1 Unit)
Tagged with: French and French Studies
FREN B688 Int roman africain francophone (1 Unit)
Tagged with: French and French Studies
FREN B689 Writing Music and Differences (1 Unit)
At the most abstract level, this course hopes to propose new and unorthodox approaches to literature. That is, the course offers creative, yet rigorously critical modes of engagement with text in which music plays a significant role. On a more specific level, it hopes to demonstrate the extent to which music and language have, throughout Western history, and more specifically and radically since the beginning of the nineteenth century--that is, the rise of romanticism--been fundamentally at odds with each other. It will try to show that Western philosophy has constructed their relationship as essentially antagonistic and what the ramifications of such a conflict might be.
Tagged with: French and French Studies
COML B208 Impostures (1 Unit)
In an age defined by identity politics and narcissism (both online and “in real life”), identity theft and impersonation are perceived as crimes that threaten the very fabric of society. Fiction allows us to explore the many faces of imposture, and thus to better understand this (post)modern anguish. Why are there impostors in the first place? Is their motivation purely criminal? Why do we fall for it so easily? Is there a real distinction between fiction and lies? Authors include: Sciascia, Segalen, Molière, Cercas, Highsmith, Larsen, and Rousseau.
Tagged with:
- Comparative Literature at Haverford
- French and French Studies
- French at Haverford
College Requirement(s):
- Critical Interpretation (CI)
- Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)
Typically Offered: Occasionally
COML B213 Theory in Practice: Critical Discourses in the Humanities (1 Unit)
What is a postcolonial subject, a queer gaze, a feminist manifesto? And how can we use (as readers of texts, art, and films) contemporary studies on animals and cyborgs, object-oriented ontology, zombies, storyworlds, neuroaesthetics? By bringing together the study of major theoretical currents of the 20th century and the practice of analyzing literary works in the light of theory, this course aims at providing students with skills to use literary theory in their own scholarship. The selection of theoretical readings reflects the history of theory (psychoanalysis, structuralism, narratology), as well as the currents most relevant to the contemporary academic field: Post-structuralism, Post-colonialism, Gender Studies, and Ecocriticism. They are paired with a diverse range of short stories across multiple language traditions (Poe, Kafka, Camus, Borges, Calvino, Morrison, Djebar, Murakami, Ngozi Adichie) that we discuss along with our study of theoretical texts. We will discuss how to apply theory to the practice of interpretation and of academic writing, and how theoretical ideas shape what we are reading. The class will be conducted in English, with an additional hour taught by the instructor of record in the target language for students wishing to take the course for language credit.
Tagged with:
- African Studies at Bryn Mawr
- Africana Studies
- East Asian Languages and Cultures
- English at Haverford
- French and French Studies
- French at Haverford
- Gender & Sexuality Studies
- Gender and Sexuality Studies
- German
- History of Art
- Literatures in English
- Philosophy
- Philosophy at Haverford
- Russian
- Spanish
- Transnational Italian Studies
College Requirement(s):
- Critical Interpretation (CI)
- Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)
Typically Offered: Occasionally
COML B217 Lovesick (1 Unit)
Love has often been compared to some kind of sickness. In this class, we will explore this traditional discourse on love from different angles: how sick is love? What kind of sickness are we talking about? Is there a cure to love? Is love always delusional? Is there always a touch of sacrifice in love? In order to answer these questions, we will read books, a graphic novels, and watch movies belonging to a variety of cultures and times. Authors include: Ovid, Mme de La Fayette, Charles Burns.
Tagged with:
- French and French Studies
- French at Haverford
College Requirement(s):
- Critical Interpretation (CI)
- Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)
Typically Offered: Occasionally
HLTH B275 Global Eugenics (1 Unit)
Eugenics is usually associated with genocidal and discriminatory theories and policies elaborated in the US (before WWII) and in Nazi Germany (1933-1945). This mainstream narrative implies eugenics belongs to the past, even though some controversial writers have recently been trying to rehabilitate eugenic theories. In this seminar, we will take a closer look at the emergence of eugenics in the Western world and reframe the usual narrative by going back – not to Francis Galton’s invention of the word (1883) – but to the first treatise of modern eugenics, Vandermonde’s Essay on the manner of perfecting the human species (1756). We will also expand the scope of our inquiry by including countries beyond the “usual suspects” (UK, US, and Germany). This reframing will have huge consequences on the way we perceive and interpret the historical significance of eugenics and the current controversy around gene editing.
Tagged with:
- French and French Studies
- French at Haverford
College Requirement(s):
- Inquiry into the Past (IP)
- Power, Inequity, and Justice (PIJ)
Typically Offered: Every Semester