Fall 2015 Courses

French 110
Elementary French I
Staff
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French 110 is the first semester of the elementary level sequence designed to develop functional proficiency in the four skills and gain familiarity with French and Francophone culture. The primary emphasis is on the development of the oral-aural skills, speaking and listening. Readings on topics in French culture as well as frequent writing practice are also included in the course.

As in other French courses, class will be conducted entirely in French. You will be guided through a variety of communicative activities in class which will expose you to a rich input of spoken French and lead you from structured practice to free expression. You will be given frequent opportunity to practice your newly acquired vocabulary and grammatical structures in small group and pair work which simulate real-life situations. The course will introduce you to French and Francophone culture through authentic materials including written documents, simple articles, songs, films, videos, and taped conversations between native speakers. Out-of-class homework will require practice with CDs as well as regular writing practice. The course will also invite you to explore the Francophone world on the Internet.


French 112
Elementary French: Accelerated
Staff
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French 112 is an intensive elementary language course covering the equivalent of French 110 and 120 in one semester. Students must have departmental permit to register. The course is normally open only to students who have no previous knowledge of French, and who have already fulfilled the language requirement in another language.


French 120 Elementary French II
Staff
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French 120 is the second semester continuation of the elementary level sequence designed to develop functional proficiency in the four skills and gain familiarity with French and Francophone culture. The primary emphasis is on the development of the oral-aural skills, speaking and listening. Readings on topics in French culture as well as frequent writing practice are also included in the course.

As in other French courses, class will be conducted entirely in French. You will be guided through a variety of communicative activities in class which will expose you to rich input of spoken French and lead you from structured practice to free expression. You will be given frequent opportunity to practice your newly acquired vocabulary and grammatical structures in small group and pair work which simulate real-life situations. The course will introduce you to French and Francophone culture through authentic materials including written documents, simple articles, songs, films, videos, and taped conversations between native speakers. Out-of-class homework will require practice with CDs as well as regular writing practice. The course will also invite you to explore the Francophone world on the Internet.


French 121
Elementary French
Staff
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French 121 is an intensive one-semester language course for students who have had some French before but who can benefit from a complete review of elementary French. Students with an SATII score between 380 - 440 or a placement score between 18 - 29 should enroll in French 121. This course will provide a re-introduction of the basic structures of French with intensive work on speaking and listening designed to prepare students to take Intermediate French. Due to the nature of the course, the first half will progress rapidly with much more difficult material being presented after the midterm period.

As in other French courses, class will be conducted entirely in French. You will be guided through a variety of communicative activities in class which will expose you to rich input of spoken French and lead you from structured practice to free expression. You will be given frequent opportunity to practice your newly acquired vocabulary and grammatical structures in small group and pair work activities which simulate real-life situations. The course will introduce you to French and Francophone culture through authentic materials including written documents, simple articles, songs, films, videos, and taped conversations between native speakers. Out-of-class homework will require frequent practice with audio and video material, and will include daily written assignments. The course will also invite you to explore the Francophone world on the Internet.


French 130
Intermediate French I
Staff
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French 130 is the first half of a two-semester intermediate sequence designed to help you attain a level of proficiency that should allow you to function comfortably in a French-speaking environment. You are expected to have already learned the most basic grammatical structures in elementary French and you will review these on your own in the course workbook. This course will build on your existing skills in French, increase your confidence and ability to read, write, speak, and understand French, and introduce you to more refined lexical items, more complex grammatical structures, and more challenging cultural material.

As in other French courses at Penn, class will be conducted entirely in French. In addition to structured oral practice, work in class will include frequent communicative activities such as role-plays, problem-solving tasks, discussions, and debates, often carried out in pairs or small groups. Through the study of authentic materials such as articles, poems, songs, films, videos, you will deepen your knowledge of the French-speaking world. Daily homework will require listening practice with audio and video material, in addition to regular written exercises in the workbook and frequent composition practice.

Students having completed French 120, or with an SATII score of 450 - 540 or a placement score between 30 and 35 should enroll in this course.


French 140
Intermediate French II
Staff
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French 140 is the second half of a two-semester intermediate sequence designed to help you attain a level of proficiency that should allow you to function comfortably in a French-speaking environment. You are expected to have already learned the most basic grammatical structures in elementary French and will review these on your own in the course workbook. This course will build on your existing skills in French, increase your confidence and ability to read, write, speak, and understand French, and introduce you to more refined lexical items, more complex grammatical structures, and more challenging cultural material.

This course focuses on the culture of French-speaking countries beyond the borders of France. Along with your classmates, you will explore the cities of Dakar, Fort-de-France and Marrakesh, investigating the diversity of the francophone world through film, literature and music. As in other French courses at Penn, class is conducted entirely in French. In addition to structured oral practice, work in class will include frequent communicative activities such as problem-solving tasks, discussions, and debates, often carried out in pairs or small groups. Daily homework will require researching in the library and on the Internet, listening practice with video-clips, in addition to regular written exercises in the workbook.

French 180
Advanced French in Residence
Staff

Open only to residents in La Maison Francaise

French 200
Representing Africa
Prof. Moudileno
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French 202
Advanced French
Staff
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French 202 is a one-semester third-year level French course. It is designed to prepare students for subsequent study in upper level courses in French and francophone literature, linguistics, civilization, cinema, etc. It is required for students who have completed 140 and recommended for those with an equivalent level, wishing to continue in more advanced French courses or preparing for study abroad. Exceptions can be made with permission of undergraduate chair.

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 - speaking, listening, reading and writing. Students’ work will be evaluated both in terms of progress in language skills and of ability to handle and engage in the content areas.

This course does not include a systematic review of French grammar (that is done in French 212). Nevertheless, through the diverse writing assessments (e.g. creative writing; essays), the various textual and visual references (e.g. novels; articles; films; clips), the communicative approach, the students will play an active role in their learning process and consequently will be led to consolidate and deepen their grammatical competence.

The class studies two thematic units dealing with a wide variety of magazine articles, literary texts, historical documents, movies, songs, etc. In the first dossier, students get a chance to expand their knowledge of French history, with one major focus on World War II and the German occupation of France. In the second dossier, students study contemporary France focusing on issues such as the modern family, education, pop culture. While touching upon issues of identity in France, the class engages the students into an intercultural dialogue which enables them to be more aware of the differences and similarities between the two countries.


French 211
French for Professions I
Prof. Ciesco
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This content-based language course, taught in French, introduces economic, business, and professional terminology through the study of the following topics: financial institutions (banking, stock market and insurance); business practices (business letters and resumes); trade and advertising; the internal structure and legal forms of French companies.

The course also emphasizes verbal communication through three components:

  • In-class activities such as problem-solving tasks, discussions and debates.
  • The study of authentic materials such as newspapers and magazines’ articles, video clips, and radio shows.
  • A series of students’ presentations.

Finally, in order to use and practice the new economic and business terminology studied in this course, and to also further explore the structure, the management, and the operations of the French companies, students will work in pairs on a research project about a major French company of their choice.

One of the other goals of this course is to also prepare the students to take one of the exams offered by the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry: the Diplôme de Français Professionnel, Affaires, C1. This exam will be held on campus in April.

Prerequisite: FREN 202 highly recommended. No business background necessary.


French 212
Advanced French Grammar & Composition
Staff
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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.

Articles from French newspapers and magazines, literary excerpts, and a novel or short stories will be used as supplementary materials in order to prepare students to take content courses in French in disciplines other than French.


French 214
Prof. Philippon-Daniel
Advanced French Composition and Conversation
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Entitled Contemporary French society through its media, this course is intended to improve speaking and writing skills by offering extensive practice in a variety of styles and forms. It will also help students better understand contemporary French culture, thought and modes of expression. The content is organized around current events and the themes of identity and art. Activities include the study, analysis and emulation of model texts as well as discussion and debates about events and social issues as covered by the French news media (television, print, internet sources).  Students will practice oral skills in a variety of ways, including video blogs and group presentations on selected current events. Written practice will comprise reflective journals, essays and collaborative work on Web projects.

The goal of this course is to help students attain the Advanced level of proficiency in speaking and writing (by ACTFL standards). The specific language functions we will work on are narration, description, offering and soliciting advice and opinions, expressing feelings, critique and analysis, argumentation.

(Recommended for students who are planning to study abroad in France)


French 217
French Phonetics

Prof. Edelstein

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French 221-401
Ideas of Love and Friendship in French Literature from the Middle Ages to the Present
Prof. Francis
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We tend to think of love when we think of France, as in the iconic 1950 photograph of the “baiser de l’Hôtel de Ville.” But when we look at how love and its corollary, friendship, are represented in French and Francophone literature, we realize that we cannot take these concepts as givens. Is love compatible with social responsibilities like marriage? How do people form ideas of perfect love, marriage, or friendship, and to what extent are their ideas shaped by stories, myths, and books? Why do poets write about love, and how do their motivations change or stay the same from the pre-modern to the modern era? What do love and sexual attraction tell us about attitudes toward religion and race? What is the difference between love and friendship, and which is stronger?

This course will answer these questions by examining a range of genres and authors, both male and female, from the Middle Ages to the twentieth century. We will see how ideas of love, marriage, and friendship evolve over time, and we will study the literary and rhetorical strategies used to communicate them in the works we study. Students will acquire the critical tools to analyze, discuss, and write about literary texts and films while perfecting their oral and written expression in French.

Authors studied include Marie de France, Marguerite de Navarre, Pierre de Ronsard, Louise Labé, Michel de Montaigne, Molière, Denis Diderot, Charles Baudelaire, Gustave Flaubert, Frantz Fanon, and Roland Barthes. We will also watch and discuss René Clair’s Sous les toits de Paris.


French 221-402
Perspectives in French Literature
Prof. Goulet
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French 221-403
Perspectives in French Literature
Prof. Richman
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French 226
French Civilization from Beginning to 1789
Prof. Peron
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Entitled La Fabrique de l’Histoire, this course anlyzes the construction of the so-called national memory through its places of memory (lieux de mémoire) , as well as its places of non-memory (lieux de non-mémoire), going from the Gauls to the Enlightenment.

Prerequisites : at least two 200-level courses beyond 202

The course is entirely conducted in French.


French 230
Masterpieces of French Cinema
Prof. Met
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Cross listed with: CINE 245

The purpose of this course is to provide an introduction to the history and scope of French cinema all the way to the present time through the analysis of key works of the French film canon. Particular attention will be paid to successive period styles (“le réalisme poétique”, “la qualité française”, “la nouvelle vague”, “le film de banlieue”, etc.) as well as various genres (war, drama, comedy, crime, etc.) and the notion of auteurism. A variety of critical lenses will be used (psychoanalysis, socio-historical and cultural context, politics, esthetics, gender…) to better understand the specificities and complexities of these films.
This course will help you enhance your analytical skills through the in-depth study of key scenes. You will learn to identify the formal techniques specific to the film medium and inscribe their relevance within both a historical and theoretical context.
The lecture is conducted in English; students seeking French credit should register for the FREN 230-401 lecture and FREN 230-402 recitation; the latter is conducted in French. The CINE lecture (CINE 245-401) and recitation (CINE 245-403) are taught in English.


French 250
Marriage and the Novel

Prof. Dejean
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Cross listed with: ENGL 260, COML 272, HIST 251

Historians have argued that early novels helped shape public opinion on many controversial issues. And no subject was more often featured in novels than marriage. In the course of the 18th and the 19th centuries, at a time when marriage as an institution was being radically redefined, almost all the best known novels explored happy as well as unhappy unions, individuals who decided not to marry as well as those whose lives were destroyed by the institution. They showcased marriage in other words in ways certain to provoke debate. We will both survey the development of the modern novel from the late 17th to the early 20th century and study the treatment of marriage in some of the greatest novels of all time.

We will begin with novels from the French and English traditions, the national literatures in which the genre first took shape, in particular Laclos’ Dangerous Liaisons, Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Brontë’s Jane Eyre, Flaubert’s Madame Bovary. We will then turn to works from other European traditions such as Goethe’s Elective Affinities and Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina.

We will begin the course by discussing the novel often referred to as the first modern novel, The Princess de Clèves. The Princess de Clèves was also the first novel centered on an exploration of questions central to the debate about marriage for over two centuries – everything from the question of whether one should marry for love or for social position to the question of adultery.


French 310
French Modernity/Discontents
Prof. Zhuo
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What does it mean to be in tune with and ahead of one’s time? How do technological inventions, types of consumption, fashion trends and prevailing discourses impact our experience in everyday life and worldview? This course focuses on three periods in recent French history that connote the idea of “modernity” — the Second Empire, the Belle Epoque/Années Folles, andthe postwar economic boom era (1950s and 1960s). Literature, art, film and social criticism will be combined to explore the French’s fascination with modernity on the one hand and their attachment to tradition and to an “authentic” way of life on the other. In addition to an overview of the social-cultural-political history of France from the 1860s to the 1990s, we will use these texts as springboards to reflect on our own era: our relation to time, space and personal/group identity in the age of hyper-technology and globalization. Authors include Baudelaire, Zola, Apollinaire, Breton, Barthes, Beauvoir, Perec, Varda and C. Denis. Conducted in French.


French 322
France and the European Union
Prof. Philippon-Daniel
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This course aims to provide an understanding of the European Union as a complex entity: its history, institutions, challenges and future. After reviewing the history of European integration and describing the Community’s institutions, common programs and market, we will consider a wide variety of themes important to Europe: economics, business, science, education, immigration, the environment, social issues, national and European identity, a Federal Europe vs a Europe of nations, European social/cultural models vs American liberalism, relations between the EU and the rest of the world. Students will be responsible for pursuing substantive research on these and other topics and participating actively in debates. We will also follow and discuss current events that are pertinent to the EU in general and to France in particular.

This class will be conducted entirely in French and is designed to improve cross-cultural understanding and communicative skills in the presentational, interpretive, and interpersonal modes.


French 380
Violence and the Sacred
Prof. Richman
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The purpose of this course is to understand why some of the most innovative works of the twentieth century appeared under the dual signs of violence and the sacred. Drawing from sociology and anthropology, they contend that from the foundations of social life to the appearance of art and religion, humans have instituted rituals in order to transgress their limits and confront the violence of death and desire.  Outside the norms of everyday life, most rituals fall under the purview of the sacred without implying belief in a transcendent deity.  Refusing to relegate this “left” sacred to exotic otherness, writers, intellectuals, and artists explored manifestations of trance, possession, the festival and sacrifice in their own experiences of art, writing, music, and sexuality. Ultimately, they tested the boundaries of modern individualism by seeking collective alternatives to warfare or politics.

Women figure prominently in the conjunction between violence and the sacred, both as authors and as heroines for modernity.  Whether the Old Testament figure  Judith, the Roman Lucretia, or prehistoric “Venus” figurines, these icons defy conventional assumptions regarding female victimization. The female point of view is amplified by excerpts from the re-definition of the sacred by “Laure”, as well as from the classic Histoire d’ O, whose depiction of ritualized erotic violence paradoxically contributed to the discourse by women in favor of sexual freedom.

Readings will survey the considerable literature on this subject by means of accessible essays, a documentary,  and short works of fiction. Authors include Emile Durkheim, Georges Bataille, Roger Caillois, Michel Leiris, Colette Peignot “Laure,” “Pauline Réage” [Dominique Aury], René Girard.

Requirements: at least one course above 202; 212 or 214; 221 or 222, or equivalent. Conducted entirely in French; several short response papers, a mid-term exam, and one final essay. Students are expected to participate actively in class discussions in order to qualify for at least an A-. If you are not comfortable with this format, please speak to professor.


French 384
The French Novel of the 20th Century
Prof. Prince
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A study of the twentieth-century French novel from modernism, surrealism, and existentialism to postmodernism and the "extrême contemporain" and from Proust and Gide, through Sartre and Camus, to Modiano and Houellebecq.