Department of French and Italian

Prerequisite: F300

This new course offers a critical introduction to twentieth‑ and twenty-first century France in a global and comparative perspective, with special attention given to France and the United States. After an introduction to basic notions of history, geography, cultural values, and traditional French identity, we will cover key contemporary institutions (the social security network, the structure of French government) and a series of social and political issues including race, ethnicity, and the civil rights of minorities; gender equality and LGBTQ rights; policing and the malaise des banlieues; the Macron presidency; the Yellow Vests protest movement; secularism and the predicament of Muslims in French society. Assignments will include reading response papers, longer analytical essays, in-class exams, and active participation in discussions. This course will be taught entirely in French. Readings will be in French and English. Films will be in French with English subtitles.