Spring 2023 French courses

[CRN 20473]

The course is designed to develop students’ writing and reading skills through texts that represent different genres of writing. The course will help students think more clearly and creatively about how to organize and present their thoughts, both syntactically and stylistically. It will also encourage them to adopt techniques of different genres of writing into their own. Taught in French.

Required for all 3 French major concentrations; elective for minor; does not count for LBC major.

Virtual Exchange with Université Bordeaux Montaigne. We will study a social justice topic relevant to French and American society via the translation of pertinent documents and articles. You will work closely with counterpart students at UBM. Also a continuation of theory and practice of translation as begun in FREN 350 (French Translation I).

Classes will meet throughout the semester either in-person or online according to a schedule determined with our French partner, the Université Bordeaux Montaigne.

Required for French Translation concentration. Elective for French Civilization and Education concentrations. Elective for LBC major and French minor. Also satisfies the Graduation Writing Requirement.

The history of ideas in France since World War II. Emphasizes the interrelationship of political, social, and philosophic thinking as well as the various political and cultural transformations that saw France transition from the status of a colonial empire in the 1950s-1960s to the France of the “Gilets Jaunes,” black rappers and the anti-immigrant far-right.

Taught in French.

Required for French Civilization concentration. Elective for French Civilization and Education concentrations. Elective for LBC major and French minor.

In this course we explore the culture, and civilization of the Maghreb (North Africa). We also examine the diversity of Maghrebian societies, and discuss historical, social, political, and cultural issues through the study of literary works by some of prominent Maghrebian francophone women writers. Taught in French

Elective for all 3 French major concentrations and minor; does not count for LBC major.

Co-sat with FREN 549.

This course is for students in the World Language, Business and Culture major, a joint BA between CHSS and the Feliciano School of Business. Students in each of the language tracks will meet together, subsequent to their required International Experience (internship, study abroad, etc.). Students will critically examine each of their international experiences, comparing and contrasting the linguistic and cultural challenges they encountered, thereby developing strategies to strengthen their inter- and intra-cultural competence and agility. Course taught in English. Meets Graduation Writing Requirements for majors in Language, Business and Culture.

Required for LBC students. Does not count for any other program.

Contact Dr. Antenos for advising.

[CRN 25621]

This course is an introduction to translation in the fields of editorial journalism, contemporary culture, and tourism. Students will be able to not only explore multicultural and multinational phenomena as they express themselves at the intersection of politics, culture, journalism and tourism, but also to translate, among others, such texts as news headlines, editorials, newspaper and tourism magazine articles from local, national, and international media outlets. The goal is to help students develop skills translating material found online on reputable websites from French to English, and vice versa, while at the same time developing the type of cultural awareness that will help them become good translators of news and tourism magazine articles across cultures. Students will also become familiar with common French and English translation terminologies in the areas of editorial journalism and the media.

In this course we explore the fascinating world of legal language in French and English with a view toward translating it professionally. To practice the types of assignments that professional translators receive from immigration lawyers, we translate personal documents (relating to birth, adoption, marriage or divorce) into English from countries around the French-speaking world, such as Haiti, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali and Quebec. Then we translate these kinds of documents belonging to celebrities like President Obama and Marilyn Monroe into French. This foray into marriage and divorce law takes us to the heart of the course: the study of the civil law system in French-speaking countries and the common law system in English-speaking countries. We’ll learn how a case makes its way through the court system in France and the United States. All along the focus is on learning legal concepts in both languages and the finer points of grammar and stylistics in legal language. Your instructor is a francophone American lawyer and a 30-year veteran of the translation business.

[CRN 45167]

This course is designed to offer students an insight into the culture, civilization, and literature of the Maghreb (North Africa). Specifically, it examines the diversity of Maghrebian societies, and discusses historical, social, political, and cultural issues through the study of literary works by some of prominent Maghrebian francophone women writers. Ways in which female Maghrebian writers engage with and respond to socio-cultural issues such as experiences of exile, separation, discrimination, linguistic divide, political repression, gender, violence, to name few will be examined and studied in-depth.

For students who have completed at  least 20 credits of the MA in Professional French Translation. By permission only. Contact Dr. Mengara.

Please contact Dr. Mengara for advisement.

[CRN 22707] for Spring 2023

Please contact Dr. Mengara for advisement.