FRENCH DIFFERENCE

Are cultures and thought in French distinctive in any way? This freshman seminar will debate this question by investigating 3 key ideas that characterize the arts de vivre across Francophone communities.

  • A Universal Language? Une Langue de partage?  We’ll explore the dream to unite people through le français, the myths it spawns, and the creative writing it generates world-wide.
  • Free Love A social art? A personal declaration of desire? We’ll study several experimental works that shape the idea of love as the ultimate test—and expression—of freedom.
  • Combat In the streets, on line or in print, thousands choose to occupy public space, strike, demonstrate. We’ll examine protest in all its forms: student movements, song, film, journalism.

The syllabus is here:

https://sites.duke.edu/solterer/files/2019/08/FR-89s2019final.pdf