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Orientation
The program begins with a two-week intensive language
session at the Alliance Française in Bordeaux. In addition to an intensive
grammar review, classes at the Alliance Française emphasize spoken French
and contemporary culture. Students participate in morning language classes
and two afternoon workshops: an Atelier expressions orales in which students
learn the art of reading various types of texts, and an Atelier conversation
that develops students’ communication skills and enhances their ability to
use French in daily activities and exchanges. Bordeaux offers students the
opportunity to discover a lively provincial city (pop. 250,000) before going
to Paris. Students will be housed with local families and will have the
opportunity to participate in visits to the French Basque country, the
Dordogne region, nearby Atlantic coast beaches, and vineyards.
The orientation process continues for a third week in
Paris, with visits to major historical monuments and museums, and a series
of meetings devoted to matters like getting around Paris, discovering the
various “arrondissements” by bus and on foot with French students, French
customs and intercultural interactions, the organization of the French
university system, the French press, and so on. We also will challenge
students to think about why they have gone to France and what they want to
accomplish during their time there. During this week, students lodge in an
international youth hostel.
The Academic Program
Our academic program is designed to achieve three
objectives. First, because we want students from all disciplines, whether
they are majors in biology, history, literature, or any other field, to be
able to spend a year or a semester in Paris, we have devised a broad
academic program offering courses in a variety of fields. Students should
discuss their projected program with their advisor before they leave the
United States, but they probably can take at least one course in Paris that
will count towards their major(s).
Second, because we think students can learn a great
deal about French people and the French educational system from taking
courses at a French university, we encourage students to take at least one
university course, and have agreements with a number of Parisian
institutions to enable our students to do so. These courses are valuable not
only for their academic content, but also for the opportunity they afford
students to participate in a different educational system. University
courses likewise offer students an opportunity to meet French people of
their age.
Third, because American students of French often prefer
seminar-size classes to some of the larger classes they might find in the
French university system, and because French universities do not offer some
of the kinds of courses on French civilization and culture that American
students want to take while in Paris, we organize seminars each semester on
French politics, history, art history, film, literature, and theater. Taught
by outstanding French professors, these seminars are conducted entirely in
French and provide students with the kind of close student-teacher contact
associated with a Vassar or Wesleyan education. Many of these seminars
include on-site lectures at museums and monuments, and visits to
governmental institutions, concerts, films, opera, and theater performances.
Students enroll in five courses during their first
semester in Paris: four regular courses (French university courses or
seminars organized by the program) and the Writing Workshop, a semester-long
continuation of the language program begun in Bordeaux. The workshop
consists of a weekly class and a weekly tutorial.
Students staying in Paris for a second semester take
four regular courses. With the resident director’s approval, they also may
apply for a part-time internship related to their academic interests through
an agreement with Internships in Francophone Europe. These internships
typically require a commitment of two and a half days per week, and students
are required to complete a research paper in connection with them. Students
who complete the internship and the research paper successfully are awarded
two course credits.
Students plan their academic program in consultation
with the resident director, who is a member of the Vassar or Wesleyan
faculty and serves as the academic advisor for all students during their
time in Paris.
Grades and Credit
All program seminars and most courses at the
universities of Paris and Sciences Po are the equivalent of a full-semester
course at Vassar or Wesleyan. Grades from French university courses will be
translated into American equivalents by the program. The program will
provide transcripts of grades and evaluations to the registrar at the
student’s home institution. Students who wish courses to be counted as part
of the requirements for their major should consult with the relevant
department before leaving for France.
Courses
French University Courses
Up until 1968, there was a single Parisian university,
commonly known as the Sorbonne. After 1968, in response to student demands,
the university of Paris was split up into a number of separate universities,
of which there are currently twelve, each with its own set of programs.
Paris II, for example, is the law school; Paris V is the medical school. In
order to provide students with a comprehensive set of course choices, the
VWPP has agreements with three of these twelve universities—Paris IV (La
Sorbonne), Paris VII (Jussieu-Denis-Diderot), and Paris XII (Créteil-Val de
Marne)—and with the Institut d’Études Politiques de Paris (IEP or Sciences
Po), all of which permit full-year and second-semester students to take
courses there.
Students who are interested in taking courses at
Sciences Po must apply to do so during the semester before they plan to
study in France through the Office of International Studies at Wesleyan or
the Office of International Programs at Vassar.
The European Community member countries have agreed to
streamline their higher educational systems’ diploma equivalencies, degree
requirements, and university calendars in order to achieve a cohesive
European educational environment, facilitate and encourage student mobility,
and, ultimately, increase employment opportunities for citizens of European
countries. This “réforme” will be implemented in the Parisian universities
in 2005–2006, bringing with it some new types of courses, and more semester
(rather than year-long) courses, as well as calendar and schedule changes
that will take effect over the next few years.
Each French university can decide independently how to
implement the “réforme” and determine its academic calendar. Information on
the new French university calendar, and its repercussions for the VWPP, will
be made available as soon as possible.
As of this writing, students who are in Paris for the
fall semester only and need to return to the United States before early- to
mid-January will not be able to complete first-semester courses at French
universities in the regular way. In order to provide students who are in
Paris for only the fall semester the opportunity to experience French
university courses, the VWPP organizes several “cours mixtes.” Students who
register for one of these courses are enrolled in it as regular students and
attend all meetings of the course at the French university until they leave
Paris. They also are required to attend four to six supplementary sessions
for just the VWPP students enrolled in the course. These extra sessions are
taught by the professor of the course.
French universities issue a new curriculum every year;
an exact listing will be available to students when they arrive in Paris.
Sample Fall Cours Mixtes
History: Issues, Problems and Methods
Université Paris VII - Denis Diderot
What
is History? What are the tools and the methodologies employed in studying
History? What are the purposes, the ambitions and the limits of historical
investigation? We explore these questions by retracing the evolution of the
various ways History has been conceived and written about from Antiquity to
the present. In particular, the course considers major historiographical
changes (including the Annales School approach), the relationship between
History and other human sciences, and the innovative trends of present
historical research (history of representations, history of the present,
history of women, etc.). This historiographical exploration will allow us to
reflect on the role and function of the historian and on the problems
inherent in historical knowledge : What is historical truth? Is History
objective ? Is it scientific ? What is the relationship between History and
Memory ? Why study History?
The Short Story: a Narration of Ordinary Life
Université Paris VII - Denis Diderot
Numerous short stories anchored in everyday life in fact present a paradox :
how can the short story be a vehicle for bringing ordinary things,
occurrences and people to the height of what matters ; how does it transform
ordinary subjects into objects of poetic and ethical importance ? The
following works are studied in this perspective:
Le Duel et autres nouvelles,
Anton Tchekhov, « Folio » nº 1433;
La
Ronde et autres faits divers,
J.-M.-G. Le Clézio, « Folio » nº 2148;
Les Trois roses jaunes,
Raymond Carver, Rivages, 1994.
History of European Migrations (19th-20th Centuries)
Université Paris VII - Denis Diderot
This course studies the main elements associated with the rapid increase in
the geographic mobility of populations within and outside of Europe. We
begin by examining global patterns of immigration and migration of different
populations and their destinations to, from and within Europe from the
second half of the nineteenth to the end of the twentieth century. We also
analyze from an institutional point of view the historical roots of national
differences with respect to citizenship, immigration and migratory policy in
Europe. France, as one of the earliest host countries, provides a model
that will be compared to those of Germany and Great Britain.
Literature and History: the Physical Sciences at the
Crossroads between Philosophy and History
Université Paris VII - Denis Diderot
What consequences did the 17th-century scientific debate on the nature of
the universe, sparked by the works of Descartes and Newton, have for the
Enlightenment ? We examine this question in the following works :
Fontenelle, Entretiens sur la pluralité des mondes (Garnier-Flammarion)
and Voltaire, Micromégas (any edition).
Courses Taken at the Universities of Paris in Recent
Years
Histoire de l’Art: Art de l’Inde et de la Chine,
L’Art du Moyen-Age, Art d’extrême orient, Archéologie du monde islamique
Film: La nouvelle vague, Le cinéma de science
fiction, Hitchcock, Jean Renoir, Analyse de films et poétique du cinéma : le
“jeune cinéma français” existe-t-il?, Analyse de film : étude des figures
cinématographiques, Ecritures cinématographiques: l’oeuvre de Truffaut
Littérature: Littérature et philosophie,
Littérature et psychanalyse, Théâtre et illusion, Lecture du roman, Lecture
de la poésie, Marivaux, Littérature médiévale:”La démesure,” Immigration et
récit familial, Littérature comparée
Traduction: Thème (français-anglais)
Philosophie: Lecture de textes philosophiques
Photographie: Nouvelles images, Histoire et
analyse de la photographie
Sciences Sociales et Humaines: Histoire
réligieuse de Moyen Age, Analyse de monde contemporain, Histoire, société et
culture de la France contemporaine: La France des Trentes Glorieuses
1945–1974—cultures, modes de vie et consommation, Introduction à l’Afrique
Noire, Ethnologie et Histoire, Histoire de la Péninsule Indochinoise,
Ethnologie et Histoire, Histoire du XXe siècle, Comportements et attitudes
et forces politiques en France et en Europe, Ville et espaces sociaux,
Villes et campagnes, Thèmes et hypothèses en psychanalyse, Théorie de la
monnaie, Economie publique
Seminars
Like most French university courses, the seminars
organized by the program meet once a week for two hours. Attendance is
required at all classes, and assigned work must be handed in at the time
designated. Students who are absent without a valid reason from any course
will not receive credit for it. Incompletes will be allowed only for medical
reasons. Since it is program policy to limit class size, students may not be
able to take all the seminars in which they would like to enroll. We will,
however, make every effort to arrange a challenging and rewarding program
for each participant.
The following are the Program's seminars offered in the
2005-06 academic year. Seminars may vary from year to year and will be
updated each semester on this website.
Sample Fall Seminars
Paris Through the Centuries
The
aim of this course is to provide an in-depth geographical, historical and
cultural perpective of the city of Paris. Each seminar/visit focuses on a
neighborhood whose origins and unique aspects we learn about through an
analysis of historical, artistic and literary references. Students explore
numerous Parisian sites from the Middle Ages through the present, including
remains of medieval walls, medieval churches and cathedrals, the Louvre
palace, the Palais Royal and Luxembourg gardens, the Bibliothèque nationale,
Comédie française, and monuments from the great nineteenth- and
twentieth-century Worlds Fairs. Readings include texts by Balzac, Hugo, Zola
and Corneille.
Love and Tragedy in French Theater
This course first studies the nature of seventeenth-century tragedy as
transformed by Corneille and Racine, who grafted a love story onto the core
of myth. We then move to the twentieth century's reshaping of the notion of
the tragic through the influence of various philosophical currents.
Questions of style (baroque and classical) and philosophy (existentialism
and the absurd) are foregrounded, with emphasis both on the continuity of
tragic literature and on formal variations from the seventeenth century to
the present. Plays are chosen in light of the Paris theatrical season, so as
to allow the analysis of a number of live performances.
Art and Scandal
Baudelaire’s Fleurs du mal, Michelangelo’s David and Manet’s
Olympia all were considered scandalous in their day. The history of
art is in fact punctuated by scandals that were often associated with
technical innovations, new ideas or major transgressions of social norms.
Twentieth-century art, in particular, is closely related to the notions of
scandal and censure. In this course, we study a number of works of art that,
at different moments and at different times, have provoked shock and scandal
and given rise to public outcry. We also look at the mutual incomprehension
that can exist between the artists and mass media, and the problematic
relationship between art and society. Artists studied include : Artemisia,
Schiele, Manzoni, Herman Nitsch, Serrano, and the Gutaüi group.
Franco-African Relations
Beginning with a survey of precolonial kingdoms in Africa and the
implantation of Islam, the course proceeds to an analysis of European
intervention and of the structure of European colonial administrations.
Various phases of the African independence movement are highlighted : the
formation of an African elite, the spread of African nationalisms,
Panafricanism, and ‘Négritude’. Finally, we examine French policies in the
post-colonial period and the U.S.’s emerging role in African affairs.
Writing about France Today
The aim of this class is to help students improve their writing skills,
using their experience in France as material upon which to reflect and
write. Through various activities in and out of class, students will also
develop greater proficiency in the other language skills (speaking as well
as listening and reading comprehension). For example, students will be
asked to narrate a significant event, conduct and report on an interview,
keep a journal, express their opinion on current events, write a film
review, and present, both orally and in writing, an aspect of their current
experience. The course allows students to broaden their vocabulary in
different areas and registers, using materials such as videos, recordings,
and excerpts from the press and literature. Students focus throughout the
semester on developing their writing style by refining their choice of words
and sentence structure.
Paris in the Movies
This course focuses on Paris as a living theater of French cinema from the
1950s to the present day. Throughout this period, a growing number of
Parisian neighborhoods have served as studios, and bear witness to the
transformations of the city, to vast architectural projects, urban
renovations and scenes of social cohesion or exclusion. Moving beyond
clichéd background images of Pigalle, Montmartre, the Eiffel Tower, and
Parisian bistros and rooftops, the cinema has made Paris into a source of
inspiration and an instrument of reflection on the nature of cinema.
Five films
will be studied in depth : Guitry’s « Si Paris nous était conté » (1955),
Rohmer’s « Le Signe du lion » (1959), Tavernier’s Des enfants gâtés »
(1977), Polanski’s « Frantic » (1988) and Kassowitz’ « La Haine » (1995).
Are the French Exceptional ? A Cultural History of
Modern France
An historical study of French cultural practices, productions and models in
the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The course follows the emergence of
cultural « modernity » from the Revolution to the Republic and examines the
gradual decline of religious and rural life, the challenges encountered by
an academic and cultural elite, the cultural experiments of the avant-garde
and the democratization of culture through the rapid rise of consumerism and
mass production. Major authors include Walter Benjamin, Pierre Bourdieu,
Roger Chartier and Michel Foucault.
The Idea of the Monster in French Literature
The monster is an important figure in French literature and represents what
is abnormal, outside of the law, « against Nature » ; the monster goes
beyond and often breaks the rules of the society in which he lives.
However, these social norms—whether physical, theological, legal,
scientific, esthetic or moral—can in turn become monstrous, as can those who
adhere to them. From this paradox emerge the following questions: Where
is the monster found? Who is he? How does he manifest himself? Why
does he exist? The course examines these questions in a variety of media
(literary works, press clippings, scientific texts, films), exploring the
enduring fascination aroused by the phenomenon of monstrosity as well as its
social functions and the evolution of certain themes connected with it.
Major works include Diderot’s Le Neveu de Rameau, Mérimée’s Vénus
d’Ille and Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac.
B. Half-unit Courses
Independent Research Project
Projects can range widely in focus and can be primarily academic or
primarily experiential. They are carried out under the supervision of an
individual tutor, with a written final report. Art projects (a
semester-long themed photography or film “reportage”, for instance,
culminating in an exhibit and a film) will be considered.
Academic Internship
Students serve as language teaching assistants in Parisian primary or
secondary schools, or at Paris IX-Dauphine, working with teachers,
conducting small conversation groups, or participating in the university
language class. Internship involves a final written report. The Academic
Internship can also be pursued on a non-credit basis if the student chooses
not to do the written report.
Other Internships
A few internships are available outside of the school system depending on
availability; volunteering through the Centre du Bénévolat de Paris
(meeting with the aged in French hospitals, after-school tutoring in
community centers), working with a dance school, a publisher, an anglophone
Paris publication; consult with Lisa Fleury for possibilities this
semester. Internship involves a final written report.
Sample Spring Seminars
20th-Century French Theater
This course studies contemporary French plays and theoretical texts on
theater, combined with attendance at plays currently on the French stage.
Sartre’s Huis Clos, as an example of existentialist and absurd theater, and
Arthaud’s Théâtre et son double will be read and studied in depth. Three or
four plays will be chosen from among those running during the current season
to provide a panorama of contemporary trends in French theater. Students
will read and study plays, attend productions, and discuss and critique them
through written work and exposés.
Franco-African Relations
Beginning with a survey of precolonial kingdoms in Africa and the
implantation of Islam, the course proceeds to an analysis of European
intervention and of the structure of European colonial administration.
Various phases of the African independence movement are highlighted: the
formation of an African elite, the spread of African nationalisms,
Panafricanism, and “Négritude.” Finally, we examine French policies in the
postcolonial period and the United States’ emerging role in African affairs.
Intimate Fictions
Certain literary works, especially epistolary novels, diaries, and
monologues, are centered around the intimate lives of their narrator or
fictional author(s). In entering into their fictional lives, the reader is
offered a kind of pleasure that borders on the illicit. The central
characters in intimate fictions are often motivated by a will to dominate
others and a desire for unlimited personal freedom. Other narratives portray
a protagonist engaged in an existential quest for truth that ends in various
forms of despair, madness, disgust, and indifference. In terms of style,
intimate fictions are often fragmentary in nature, since they both focus on
the moment of writing and borrow from the world of spoken language. Whereas
epistolary novels and fictional diaries tend to make fun of their models in
order to highlight the frontier between fiction and testimony, literary
monologues, at least those written in the 20th century, create a fictional
author who blurs the boundaries between truth and fiction. Works studied
include: Claude Crébillon fils’ Lettres de la Marquise de M*** au Comte de
R***, Maupassant’s Le Horla, Sartre’s La Nausée, and Georges Perec’s Un
Homme qui dort.
From Ideal Body to Mutilated Body
This course aims to generate a theoretical reflection on the use of the body
in art. The course material seeks to examine and analyze how the body has
long been manipulated through its relationship with cultural, religious, and
political institutions, right up to the threshold of manipulation. We will
explore the body as a construction of forms of discourse, obligations, and
instruments of control.
Gender in France
This course explores the various feminist movements that took place in
France from 1830 to the present. Beyond the historical process, the course
aims to examine the interactions between and among feminism and politics;
feminism and the queer movement; and feminism, social class, and race.
Lyric Opera
The course retraces the history of opera in France through an appreciation
of the lyric form in its musical and literary manifestations, and as a
reflection of the cultural life of France in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Emphasis is given to the relation between the dramatic and musical arts, the
collaboration between librettist and composer, and approaches to staging.
Three operas are chosen from those running during the current season and are
examined in detail; in 2004 we studied Claudio Monteverdi’s Le Couronnement
de Poppée, Giuseppe Verdi’s Otello, and Wagner’s Tristan et Isolde. Students
attend performances of these works at the Garnier and Bastille opera houses,
and are asked to attend a fourth opera on their own. Visits to museums of
music and opera also are arranged. Students are asked for a small financial
participation for the opera tickets. Prerequisites: General background in
music recommended.
Art and Nature in France
(1830–1900)
This course studies 19th-century French painting and sculpture from the
perspective of their relationship to nature, whether as a formal or thematic
inspiration. Special focus is given to landscape painting, from the school
of Michallon, to the Romantic movement, Corot, Courbet, Millet, up to
Impressionism. We study the evolution of animal sculptures from Barye to
Pompon, as well as the relationship between man and nature that underlines
the Romantic ideal and is a fundamental aspect of Rodin’s art.
“Are the French Exceptional?” A
Cultural History of Modern France, 19th and 20th Centuries
A historical study of French cultural practices, productions, and models in
the 19th and 20th centuries. The course follows the emergence of cultural
“modernity” from the Revolution to the Republic and examines the gradual
decline of religious and rural life, the challenges encountered by an
academic and cultural elite, the cultural experiments of the avant-garde,
and the democratization of culture through the rapid rise of consumerism and
mass production. Major authors include Pierre Bourdieu, Roger Chartier,
Michel Foucault, and Walter Benjamin.
Exploring the Paris Archives
Following guided visits to a number of archives and research libraries in
Paris, students will devise and conduct an individual research project and
present their findings in various stages over the course of the
semester. Institutions included are the Musée de la Mode, the Bibliotheque
de l’Arsenal, the Mediatheque of the RATP (metro), the Societé de l’Histoire
du Protestantisme francais, the Bibliotheque historique de la ville de
Paris, and the Bibliotheque Marguerite Durand, which houses the largest
collection of feminist documents in Paris.
Enlightenment Literature: Art,
Science, Politics, and Love in the 18th-Century
An introduction to the nature and spirit of the French Enlightenment through
some of the major literary and philosophical works of the period. The course
involves a historical presentation of the 18th century as well as a study of
great individual works to which we still refer today in our thinking about
art, science, politics, and love: Montesquieu’s Lettres persanes; Rousseau’s
Discours; Diderot’s Rêve de d’Alembert and Paradoxe sur le Comédien; and
Voltaire’s polemical writings.
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