Avoir 20 ans au temps du COVID

French 490.01 – Special Topics in French Literature and Culture

Fall 2021, MW 3:25pm-4:40pm, RSS 105
(21h25 à 22h40 heure française)

Professor: Dr. J. Bourdier

Office: 414 JC Long, 843.953.6529 – Email: Bourdier@cofc.edu
Office Hours: by appointment on Zoom, WhatsApp, Messenger, or Skype.

“Globally Connected”

This course has been designated “Globally Connected,” by the School of Languages, Cultures, and World Affairs, as part of its global education initiative. As such it will incorporate the following into its objectives:

▪ Engagement through dialogue and shared activities with persons, especially peers, of one or more target cultures. This engagement can involve collaborative on-line international learning.

▪ Participatory activities with international partners to develop an understanding and respect for other cultural perspectives and/or points of view.

▪ Development of skills and attitudes that lead to behavior and communication that are both effective and appropriate in intercultural interactions.

For administrative purposes this syllabus is in English, but the course will be conducted entirely in French.

This course explores topics in French literature and culture. Students will study works of various genres and examine the social, historical, and cultural issues surrounding these works.
Prerequisite(s): FREN 313, FREN 314, and two of the following: FREN 334, FREN 335, FREN 336, FREN 337, FREN 362, FREN 363, or permission of the chair.
Course Frequency: Occasional
Repeatable: May be repeated for credit when course content varies.

French 490 “Avoir 20 ans au temps du COVID”.

This course presents and analyzes current French social and political life. Our thematic thread is “what life is like for a 20-year old in France today”, a society profoundly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. We focus on topics such as environmental and societal sustainability, the French impulse toward questioning and debate, and the contradictory need for a perpetual revolution in a society deeply attached to its traditions.

By way of an examination of popular media such as news, movies, and graphic novels which address fascinating current event topics, we navigate French society through the eyes of the 20-year-old students, professionals, artists, politicians, blue-collar workers, and unemployed people who will vote for the first time in their lives to elect their next president.

During the semester, students meet with French people and connect with them on the thematic of our course so that they can interact and better grasp French mentalities and ways of living.  Students will also follow the Presidential Campaign by visio-talks with people in bars, city hall, or newspapers kiosks to get immediate feedback from the press readers.