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French Course Atlas

Fall 2008 Course Atlas

Summer 2008 Course Atlas

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French Spring 2008

FREN 101: Elementary French I, Faculty
FREN 102: Elementary French II, Faculty
FREN 201: Intermediate French, Faculty
FREN 202: Advanced Conversation, Faculty
FREN 203: Grammar and Composition, Coropceanu, Faculty
FREN 209:  French for Business, York
FREN 210:  French for Reading Comprehension, Pyle
FREN 310WR: Writing Skills, Coropceanu, Seay
FREN 313: La France Contemporaine, Terni
FREN 314: What is Interpretation?, Judovitz, Wall
FREN 331: Studies in the Early Period, Nouvet
FREN 385SWR:  Individual and Society: Down and Out in Paris, Lang
FREN 488SWR: Topics in French: Le Poème en prose: Baudelaire, Cendrars, Michaux et Ponge, Bonnefis
FREN 488SWR: Topics in French: Les Fourberies de Scapin, du texte à la scène, Harrington

FREN 101 Elementary French I

Max: 18
Faculty MWF 8:30 / T 8:30

Content: This beginning level course gives you the advantage of an immersion method by presenting native French speakers in real-life settings. The basis of the curriculum is a video/audio program, French in Action, with an unfolding mystery story. You will follow the characters as they move through France. You will learn living French that has not been simplified. At the same time, the program is structured so that you will acquire the new language efficiently. French 101 meets FOUR TIMES a week to maximize the development of communicative proficiency in French.

Texts: Pierre Capretz, French in Action, Text and Workbook, Part I. Software: Système D (French writing program).

Particulars: 40% of the final grade is based on weekly quizzes; 20% of final grade is based on compositions; 20% of the final grade is based on daily class work; and 20% on two oral examinations. This is the most basic course and is designed for students with no previous knowledge of French or with only one year of French.

FREN 102 Elementary French II

Max:18
Faculty MWF 8:30-9:20 / Th 8:30
Faculty MWF 9:35-10:25 / Th 8:30
Faculty MWF 10:40-11:30   / Th 10:00
Faculty MWF 11:45-12:35 / Th 11:30

Content: French 102 uses the same video/audio program as French 101, French in Action. Building on material in French 101 or an equivalent first year course at the high school level, French 102 broadens the fundamental skills of listening comprehension, speaking, reading and writing. As in French 101, classes are conducted entirely in French. French 102 meets FOUR TIMES a week to maximize the development of communicative proficiency in the second language.

Texts: Pierre Capretz, French in Action, Text and Workbook, Parts I and II. Software: Système-D (French Writing Program).

Particulars: 40% of the final grade is based on weekly quizzes; 20% of the final grade is based on compositions; 20% of the final grade is based on daily class work; and 20% on two oral examinations. In the departmental sequence, French 102 follows French 101. The course is also open to students who have had some French (two years in high school).

FREN 201 Intermediate French

Max:18
Faculty MWF 9:35-10:25 / T 8:30

Content: In the context of a new feature-length film, Le Chemin du retour, and its fully-integrated accompanying grammar text Bien vu, bien dit, students get an in-depth review of the basic patterns and structures of French.  They follow the travels of a young French television journalist investigating her grandfather’s hidden past.  During this journey to different parts of the French-speaking world, students have the opportunity to reactivate their previous knowledge of the language and to expand upon that base so that they can communicate with confidence.

Texts: William, Grace, Roche, Bien vu, bien dit, Student text and workbook/laboratory manual.  Software:  Software: Système-D (French Writing Program).

Particulars: 50% of the final grade is based on written unit tests; 20% on compositions; 20% on oral presentations; 10% on daily classwork including homework and laboratory assignments.  Prerequisites:  French 102 or equivalent.  Students with three years of high school French should enroll in French 201.

FREN 202 Advanced Conversation

Max:12
Faculty TT 11:30

Content: This course stresses improving comprehension and oral production skills in French.  Authentic French television, films, videos, radio, Internet sites and written passages from magazines and books stimulate discussion of contemporary topics. All course materials are unscripted and culturally authentic to enhance proficiency in all aspects of the spoken language.

Texts: Oukada, Bertrand and Solberg, Controverses.

Particulars: Grading will be based on class participation, oral presentations, and some written work, including a class journal.  Prerequisites: French 201. French 202 is open to intermediate-level students who have studied French for at least three semesters or the equivalent.  French 202 does not count for the major or the minor in French.  Upon successful completion of French 202, students cannot enroll in French 201. Since this is a conversation class, there is a very strict attendance policy.

 FREN 203 Grammar and Composition

Max:12
Faculty MWF 8:30 -9:20 / Th 8:30
Faculty MWF 9:35-10:25 / Th 8:30
Faculty MWF 10:40-11:30 / Th 10:00
Faculty MWF 11:45-12:35 / Th 11:30

Content: In French 203, students develop interpretive strategies and review and practice grammatical forms in the context of authentic literary and cultural texts.  Class activities are designed to improve students' abilities in the communicative and presentational modes. There will be frequent written reactions to authentic materials.   Viewing of French films will provide the opportunity for extended oral analysis and discussion.  French 203 is a required course for all French majors and minors.

Texts: Morris, Herron and Estin, Identité, modernité, texte and Stillman and Gordon, Reprise, workbook.

Film: Capretz, Jules et Jim Interactif

Particulars: Prerequisites: Four years of high school French or French 201.

 FREN 209 French for Business

(cross-listed with BUS 371)
Max: 15
York: TT 2:30 – 3:45

Content: Conducted in French, this course will help students to improve their communication skills in the context of the business world.  Authentic videos, newspaper and magazine articles, and case studies will provide the basis for discussion and vocabulary building.  Cross-cultural awareness will be developed through a variety of role-plays including job interviews, telephone techniques and negotiating sessions.

Texts:,Penfornis:  Français.com; Current issues of Le Monde, L'Express and L'Entreprise;  Internet and film media.

Particulars: There will be frequent short oral and written presentations and much emphasis on class- and small group discussion. Grading:  oral presentations and class participation= 50%; written presentations and periodic quizzes= 50%. Prerequisites: French 201 or the equivalent required, 203 suggested.
French 209 does not count toward the major or the minor in French.

FREN 210 French for Reading Comprehension

Max: 15
Pyle  TT 11:30-12:45

Content: Designed to develop the reading skill to enable students to read French from journals and specialized work in their field. Instruction is in English. No previous knowledge of French is required. Recommended for graduate students who need French as a research tool. In some departments, this course can be substituted for the GSFLT or a departmental reading exam in French. Students should consult the appropriate departmental representative for details.

Texts: Sandberg and Tatham, French for Reading.

Particulars: Grading: Translation exercises, and two exams (mid-term and final) based on the format of the GSFLT. No papers. This course is primarily for graduate students and has no connection with the undergraduate French language sequence. French 210 does not count towards the College language requirement.

FREN 310WR Writing Skills

Max: 15
Coropceanu  MWF 8:30-9:20
Coropceanu  MWF 9:35-10:25
Seay  MWF 10:40-11:30
Seay MWF 11:45-12:35

Content:  Through the reading of a variety of literary, political, cultural and critical essays, this course will explore the ways in which words and images structure thought, communication and the interaction of the subject with society. Great attention will be paid, both through reading and extensive written work, to the logical and coherent elaboration of an argument. The goal of this course is the development of reading and writing skills leading to correct and effective expression in French.

Text:  Siskin, Tâches d’encre

Particulars: Short paper (2-3 pages) once a week. Prerequisite: French 203, or a score of 4 or 5 on the French AP exam.

FREN 313 La France Contemporaine

Max: 15
Terni  TT 10:00-11:15
Terni  TT 11:30-12:45

Content: This course explores the history, politics, and cultural environments that shape personal assumptions and worldviews in contemporary France.  As we shall see, while French people often understand things differently from the way we do, they are far from agreeing with one another.  As we become more familiar with the major strands of French history, the organization of French political and cultural life, and contemporary issues (everything from the best books to the welfare state and TV), we will be paying close attention to differences.  We will uses sources including Youtube, film, contemporary newspaper and magazine articles, comic books, and short stories and essays to explore subjects like sexual politics, regional movements, the divide between Paris and the rest of France, class politics, and the clashes between immigrant communities and the “Français de souche”.  

Text: La Civilisation française en évolution II.  Steele, St. Onge, plus reserve readings and the odd movie.

Particulars: This course will require extensive discussions on the part of the students in class, plus short writing assignments and a blog diary (all in French).  One midterm and one final exam.  Prerequisite or corequesite: French 310.

FREN 314 What is interpretation?

Max: 18
Wall  MWF 9:35-10:25
Judovitz  TT 1:00-2:15

Content: This course is designed to teach students the vocabulary and analytical techniques necessary for the study of cultural artifacts (verbal and visual) ranging from poetry to prose, to painting and cinema.

Texts: A reader with selected texts. Poèmes, Pièces, Prose. Introduction à l'analyse de textes littéraires français. Schofer, Rice, Berg.

Particulars: A mid-term and final exam. Regularly scheduled class responses and an oral presentation in class. Prerequisite or corequisite: French 310.

FREN 331            Studies in the Early Period

Max: 18
Nouvet  Tu 4:00-6:30PM

Content: We will study Medieval and Renaissance literature as a site of invention where the French language progressively asserts its authority, its literary dignity and its cultural originality by appropriating, translating and modifying other languages and cultures.  We will also examine the constitution in and through literature of different identities such as the Christian definition of the self, the epic definition of the warrior, the emergence of female author, the constitution of a national community.  Special attention will be paid to conflictual self-definitions:  Christians versus Muslims and Jews, Catholics versus Protestants, male versus female, saints versus demons.

Texts: TBA

Particulars: Prerequisites: French 314

FREN 385SWR  Individual and Society:  Down and Out in Paris

Max: 18
Lang TT 11:30-12:45
    
Content: In this course, we will study the relation of the individual and society in three French novels about being an underdog, a marginal, or an outsider in Paris: an ambitious but poor aristocrat struggling during the Restoration to make his way out of a sordid rooming house and across Paris into a high society where money rules; the misery and brutality of working-class life in the late 19th century in the “goutte d’or” district; the alienation of a young Algerian in the “goutte d’or” neighborhood of the late 20th century, now a ghetto for North African immigrants.

Texts: Balzac, Le Père Goriot; Zola, L’Assommoir; Tournier, La Goutte d’or; secondary materials TBA.

Particulars: Three short (3-page) papers; one class presentation; final paper (5-6 pages).

FREN 488SWR Le poème en prose:  Baudelaire, Cendrars, Michaux et Ponge.

Max: 18
Bonnefis TT 10:00-11:15

Content:  Comment la prose soudain entre dans la poésie, et pourquoi ?  C'est la question que ce cours voudrait poser et à laquelle il aimerait répondre. Une question importante parce qu'elle est inséparable de l'idée que nous nous faisons de la littérature, depuis que nous nous en faisons une idée, c'est-à-dire il n'y a pas très longtemps. La littérature, au sens que nous donnons aujourd'hui à ce mot, date... d'hier ! De Baudelaire, disons.

C'est pourquoi notre étude commencera par Baudelaire.  L'autre Baudelaire.  Non pas celui des "Fleurs du mal" (le poète), mais celui du "Spleen de Paris" (le prosateur), qui, plus que l'autre, est le Baudelaire dont, avec Blaise Cendrars, avec Henri Michaux, avec Francis Ponge, nous pouvons nous dire les filles et les fils.

Les textes de Baudelaire, de Cendrars, de Michaux et de Ponge que nous lirons ensemble seront distribués en classe.

Prerequisites: at least 2 classes from the following list: French 331, French 341, French 351, French 385; the third course to be concurrently from the following sequence: French 331, French 341, French 351, French 361, or French 385

FREN 488SWR  Les Fourberies de Scapin, du texte à la scène
(cross-listed with Theater 389)

Max:18
Harrington  MWF 10:40-11:30 with Tues. Workshops/Labs on April 1, 8, 15, and 22 ONLY (6:00-8:30PM)           

Content:   Moliere's Les Fourberis de Scapin. A greater understanding of the text will be made through an exploration of Moliere's works, that of his contemporaries, French classical theater, an analysis of past and present productions (costumes, sets etc...). This research will take place alongside practical work on the play leading to a performance at the end of the semester.

Texts: Les Fourberies de Scapin by Moliere and other individual plays by Pierre Corneille and Jean Racine.

Particulars: This class will be taught in French. Class participation involving personal and group research, learning lines and rehearsing the play. There will be 2-3 short papers on specific areas of exploration and one final reflective essay.