French Courses - Description
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+101. LEVEL I BEGINNING FRENCH An introduction to understanding, speaking, reading, and writing French. Acquisition of basic structure, conversational practice, short readings, and compositions. Cultural content. Extensive use of authentic video and audio materials.

+102. LEVEL II BEGINNING FRENCH Continuation of 101 with increased emphasis on conversational, reading, and writing skills. Prerequisite: 101 or placement.

+201. INTERMEDIATE FRENCH FOR SPOKEN COMPREHENSION AND COMMUNICATION Practice in conversation and comprehension based in part on appropriate reading. Attention to reading strategies. For students after necessary preparatory study of language and for other qualified students who wish to improve their speaking proficiency and their understanding of the spoken language. Prerequisite: 102 or equivalent.

202. INTERMEDIATE FRENCH FOR READING Development of reading ability by way of vocabulary building, recognition of cognates and grammatical structures, and determining meaning from context. Recommended for students who need to include French-language sources in their independent study research. For students after necessary preparatory study of language and for otherwise advanced students who wish to improve their reading proficiency. Prerequisite: 102 or equivalent.

+203. INTERMEDIATE FRENCH FOR WRITTEN COMPREHENSION AND COMMUNICATION Practice in composition based in part on appropriate reading with review and extension of structural patterns of French language. Attention to reading strategies. For students after necessary preparatory study of language and for other qualified students who wish to improve their writing proficiency. Prerequisite: 102 or equivalent.

+216. ADVANCED FRENCH Practice in listening, speaking, reading, and writing at an advanced level. Review of linguistic structure focusing on questions of usage and style. Extensive use of audio-visual resources. Intensive and extensive reading on multiple topics. Prerequisite: 203 or equivalent.

218. FRENCH PHONOLOGY Introduction to phonetics and phonology of the French language. Analysis of spoken French including phonetic transcription. Extensive use of audio materials. Oral drill to improve pronunciation and diction. Prerequisite: 201 or equivalent.

+*220. INTRODUCTION TO FRANCOPHONE TEXTS Introduction to textual analysis through readings in genres representative of seventeenth to twentieth centuries. Intensive study of selected passages to develop a critical approach. Practice in speaking and writing on literature. Prerequisite: 216 or permission of the instructor.

+224. STUDIES IN FRANCOPHONE CULTURE Yearly focus on a significant aspect of Francophone society and history: e.g., the role of women, the changing family, the political or economic structure of modern France, the educational system. May be repeated once for credit. Prerequisite: 216 or permission of the instructor.

226. THEATRE PRODUCTION A practically-oriented course focusing on the study and presentation of a play. Course is graded S/Nc. Prerequisite: French 201 or permission of the instructor.

*230. TOPICS IN FRANCOPHONE LITERATURE AND SOCIETY A special topics course. Can be taught, for example, as Biblical Studies, Francophone poetry, or Francophone film. Prerequisite: 203 or equivalent.

+*235. FRANCOPHONE LITERATURE OF AFRICA AND THE CARIBBEAN (See Black Studies and Comparative Literature) Focus on African and Caribbean cultures through their literature written in French. Writers studied include Mariama Ba, Aime Cesaire, Camara Laye, Sembene Ousmane, and L.L.Senghor. Taught simultaneously in French and English with separate discussion groups for those reading in French and those reading in English. Prerequisite for French credit: 216. Alternate years. 1997-98.

*253. TOPICS IN FRANCOPHONE LITERATURE AND SOCIETY (in translation) (See Comparative Literature)

316. TRANSLATION AND STYLISTICS An advanced language course which studies linguistic and cultural differences between France and the United States by translating passages from contemporary American authors into French. Strongly recommended for majors in preparation for independent study. Prerequisite: 216 or equivalent.

*320. STUDIES IN THE MIDDLE AGES AND THE RENAISSANCE An examination of works that reflect the evolution of values and institutions from the twelfth century through the sixteenth. Includes an introduction to Old French. Authors studied include Rabelais, DuBellay, Ronsard, and Montaigne. Prerequisite: 220.

*322. STUDIES IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY An examination of works that reflect the crisis of values in the Age of Louis XlV. Authors studied include Mme. de Lafayette, Corneille, Racine, and Moliere. Prerequisite: 220.

+*324. STUDIES IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY An examination of works that reflect the conflict between the individual and the community in the Age of Enlightenment. Often taught with a focus on women in eighteenth-century literature and society. Prerequisite: 220.

*328. STUDIES IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY An examination of works which portray bourgeois society and its materialistic values and the ways in which these values alienate the developing romantic hero. Narrative and descriptive techniques also studied. Authors studied include Balzac, Flaubert, Sand, Stendhal, and Zola.

*329. STUDIES IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY An examination of works that reflect the cultural psychological and literary dislocation of the twentieth century. Authors studied include Camus, Colette, Beauvoir, Sartre, Gide, and Robbe-Grillet. Prerequisite: 216.


319. APPLIED LINGUISTICS (in English) Linguistic theory and its application in the teaching of foreign languages. Offered jointly by the departments of French, German, and Spanish. Individual practice for the students of each language. Required for certification of prospective teachers of French. Prerequisite: 216.


401. INDEPENDENT STUDY Includes an introduction to the resources useful in research in Francophone language, civilization, and literature and the completion of an independent project, often a major paper on a cultural or literary topic or a translation. Majors who plan to spend their junior year in a French-speaking country usually take this course in the Spring semester of their sophomore year.

451,452. INDEPENDENT STUDY THESIS Independent study culminating in a thesis or an equivalent project.