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The Language and Culture Program:
Minor in French and Courses

Minor in French
The minor in French is designed to provide the student with basic fluency in spoken and written French and to provide a general introduction to the culture and literature of France and the Francophone nations. Students interested in the minor should submit a completed Application for a Program of Minor Study to the School of Humanities main office (Durst Family Humanities Building, Room 2020). The student is assigned a minor advisor in French after consultation with the coordinator of the Language and Culture Board of Study.

Academic Requirements for the Minor in French
Five courses in French (20 credits), as follows:

1. Two courses must be chosen from advanced-level French courses.
2. One course must be in cultural studies.
3. The remaining two courses must be chosen from various courses in French and in translation.

French Courses
Lower level (freshman): FRE 1000–1999
Lower level (sophomore): FRE 2000–2999
Upper level (junior): FRE 3000–3999
Upper level (senior): FRE 4000–4999

FRE 1000–1999:

Beginning French I
FRE 1010 / 4 credits / Fall
For students who have had little or no previous exposure to the language. Presents the essential structures of spoken and written French by involving the student in situations that concretely represent the concepts of the language. Class meets three times a week, including language lab. Credit for this course is awarded only after successful completion of FRE 1020.

Beginning French II
FRE 1020 / 4 credits / Spring
A continuation of FRE 1010. Increased time is devoted to reading and writing. The development of oral skills remains the primary objective of the course. Class meets three times a week, including language lab.

Intensive Beginning French
FRE 1070 / 4 credits / Summer (offered in France)
For students who have had little or no previous exposure to the language. Designed to help students quickly acquire the ability to negotiate their immediate surroundings using the French language. Elements of grammar and syntax are introduced, reviewed, and complemented by readings from newspapers and other sources relevant to everyday life. Taught in French, with emphasis on the spoken language.

FRE 2000–2999:

Intermediate French I
FRE 2010 / 4 credits / Fall
For students who are already familiar with the fundamentals of spoken and written French. Through a variety of written and oral assignments and exercises, students acquire a wider range of vocabulary, review basic structures, and become more comfortable interacting in spoken French. Students are encouraged to take risks and enjoy the adventure of language acquisition in an open and relaxed atmosphere.

Intermediate French II
FRE 2020 / 4 credits / Spring
A continuation of FRE 2010. Concentrated work to help students acquire more nuanced vocabulary, with an introduction to slang. Students gain greater ease in reading through a variety of texts of increasing difficulty. The readings also serve as a basis for discussion, composition, and grammar review.

Intensive Intermediate French
FRE 2070 / 4 credits / Summer (offered in France)
For students who are already familiar with the fundamentals of French; placement in FRE 2070 or 3070 is determined by a brief exam. Designed to help students quickly acquire the ability to negotiate their immediate surroundings using the French language. Elements of grammar and syntax are introduced, reviewed, and complemented by readings from newspapers and other sources relevant to everyday life. Taught in French, with emphasis on the spoken language.

FRE 3000–3999:

New Advanced French I
FRE 3015 / 4 credits / Fall
Offers a stress-free learning atmosphere to help students of French move toward fluency. Starting with a brief refresher on the basics through interactive situations in the classroom, students go on to invent situations, then perform, write about, and discuss them, increasing their command of the language and their comfort level in using it.
Prerequisite: FRE 2020 or permission of instructor

New Advanced French II
FRE 3025 / 4 credits / Spring
In this continuation of FRE 3015, readings, writing, and conversational exercises are used to improve fluency in the French language. A variety of media are used to stimulate discussions. To increase their comfort level and command of French, students invent dramatic situations in the classroom that they perform, analyze, discuss, and debate.
Prerequisite: FRE 3015 or permission of instructor

Intensive Advanced French
FRE 3070 / 4 credits / Summer (offered in France)
For students who are already familiar with the fundamentals of French; placement in FRE 2070 or 3070 is determined by a brief exam. Uses material like television, magazines, newspapers, and literature to help students increase their knowledge of the language while introducing the various aspects of French life. Students also review and refine their knowledge of grammatical structures and work toward becoming familiar with idiomatic language and slang. Taught in French, with emphasis on the spoken language.

Writing Workshop in French
FRE 3110 / 4 credits / Alternate years
Focuses on developing a nuanced grasp of French structures and idioms through the student’s own writing. Students are introduced to a variety of writing styles in French, including descriptive narrative, journalistic prose, fiction, and the short essay.
Prerequisite: FRE 3015 or permission of instructor

Literature of the High Middle Ages
LIT 3160 Refer to Literature Courses: 3000–3999 for description.

The Renaissance in Europe
LIT 3220 Refer to Literature Courses: 3000–3999 for description.

Psychoanalysis, French Film, and Literature
FRE 3285 Refer to CIN 3285 in Cinema Studies Courses for description.

Women in French Film
FRE 3330 / 4 credits / Special topic (offered irregularly)
Using films by a variety of male and female directors, this course explores the shifting image of women, how they are viewed, and how they view themselves. The role of film in constructing and altering the place of women in society is examined, with particular attention to the work of women directors. The films are paired with appropriate readings, both fiction and nonfiction. Also offered as GND 3330.

Modern and Postcolonial France
FRE 3424 Refer to HIS 3424 in History Courses for description.

France on Stage
DRA 3530 Refer to Drama Studies Courses for description.

Francophone Literature
FRE 3620 / 4 credits / Alternate years
Examines literature of the (ex-) French colonies in the Caribbean, sub-Saharan Africa, and North Africa, emphasizing the problems raised by the colonial dialectic. Readings include authors like Senghor, Césaire, Sembene, Memmi, Kateb, Fares, and Djebar. Taught in English. Also offered as LIT 3621.

Contemporary French Theatre
DRA 3670 Refer to Drama Studies Courses for description.

Surrealism and Its Legacy
FRE 3681 Refer to LIT 3680 in Literature Courses: 3000–3999 for description.

Short Fiction in French
FRE 3705 / 4 credits / Alternate years
An examination of the short fiction form, including novellas and stories, from tales of adventure to modern psychological fiction. The course begins with the realists, then moves through the surrealists, existentialists, and “nouveau roman” authors. Texts include works by Balzac, Nerval, Flaubert, Desnos, Camus, Sarraute, Colette, and Duras.
Prerequisite: FRE 3015 or equivalent

Classics of French Literature on Film
FRE 3710 / 4 credits / Alternate years
How does the cinema adapt a text, and what are the questions underlying these semiological, ideological, or technical choices? Students read the literature (i.e., Cyrano de Bergerac, Madame Bovary) and view the films. Although this course is taught in English, the films are in French, and students who can read the literature in French are encouraged to do so. Also offered as LIT 3711.

Approaching French Literature I
FRE 3810 / 4 credits / Alternate years
In this introduction to selected great texts in the French literary canon, the textualization of “Frenchness” is explored through close readings of such authors as Marie de France, Chrétien de Troyes, Rabelais, Montaigne, Molière, Racine, and Pascal. Requirements include oral reports and written explications de texte as exercises in literary analysis. Taught in French.
Prerequisite: FRE 3015 or equivalent

Approaching French Literature II
FRE 3820 / 4 credits / Alternate years
A chronological continuation of FRE 3810, with emphasis on close readings of the modernists: Rousseau, Diderot, Voltaire, Sand, Flaubert, Stendhal, Rimbaud, Baudelaire, Proust, Sartre, de Beauvoir, and LeClezio. Taught in French.
Prerequisite: FRE 3015 or equivalent

Contemporary French Cinema
FRE 3857 Refer to CIN 3857 in Cinema Studies Courses for description.

FRE 4000–4999:

Workshop in Translation: French
FRE 4110 / 4 credits / Alternate years
Begins with a brief presentation of the theoretical aspects of translation, after which students become directly involved in translating both from English to French and from French to English. Literary texts representing a wide variety of styles are selected. Particular attention is given to idiomatic aspects of each language. Discussion in English and French.
Prerequisite: FRE 3015 or equivalent

Added Spring 2009:
Marcel Proust
FRE 4201 Refer to LIT 4200 in Literature Courses: 4000–4999 for description.

Updated July 18, 2008