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This Course at MIT

This Course at MIT pages provide context for how the course materials published on OCW were used at MIT. They are part of the OCW Educator initiative, which seeks to enhance the value of OCW for educators.

Course Overview

This page focuses on the course 21F.346 Topics in Modern French Literature and Culture: North America Through French Eyes Professor Bruno Perreau in Spring 2014.

This course is a close study of history and criticism of French literature, focusing on a specific group of writers, a movement, a theme, a critical or theoretical issue, or an analytic approach.

Course Outcomes

Course Goals for Students

Gain an in-depth understanding of France’s interest in and ambivalent relationship with North American cultures since the eighteenth century using materials drawn from literature, cinema, comics, TV shows, and political debates to explore various themes.

 

Curriculum Information

Prerequisites

One intermediate subject in French.

Requirements Satisfied

HASS-H course

Offered

This course is taught during both spring and fall semesters, and can be repeated for credit with permission of the instructor.

The Classroom

  • A view of classroom 14N-217 from faculty point of view, looking towards student desks and the back of classroom.

    Room 1 of 1

    Lecture

    Flat classroom with a capacity of 25, included modern tablet arm chairs, computer, monitor, LCD projector, screen, wireless network. (Image courtesy of Shannon Larkin.)

 

Assessment

The students' grades were based on the following activities:

The color used on the preceding chart which represents the percentage of the total grade contributed by an oral presentation. 30% One oral presentation
The color used on the preceding chart which represents the percentage of the total grade contributed by weekly short-answer papers. 20% Weekly short-answer papers
The color used on the preceding chart which represents the percentage of the total grade contributed by an individual research paper. 40% Individual research paper
The color used on the preceding chart which represents the percentage of the total grade contributed by class participation. 10% Class participation
 

Student Information

On average, fewer than 10 students take this course each time it is offered.

Breakdown by Year

Demographics for this course vary depending on year and schedule.

Typical Student Background

Students who take the course usually have four main profiles:

  • Students who hope to go to France to study or for an internship and want to be prepared with a better understanding of French culture, which is particularly salient in a class that questions both French and American cultures together. In that case, they are more often freshmen, sophomores, and juniors, depending on their level of French and the number of language classes they have attended.
  • Students back from work or study in France who wish to keep a certain connection. They are more often seniors.
  • Students who have a specific intellectual interest for transatlantic questions. They are more often graduate students in international studies, political science, philosophy, etc.
  • Students who have a francophone background and want a new experience of immersion.
 

How Student Time Was Spent

During an average week, students were expected to spend 12 hours on the course, roughly divided as follows:

In Class/Lecture

3 hours per week
  • Met 2 times per week for 90 minutes per session; 22 sessions total; mandatory attendance
  • Sessions were divided between students’ presentations of weekly themes, class discussion of readings and films, and weekly analysis of topical issues
 

Out of Class

9 hours per week

Students prepared readings, oral presentations, weekly papers, and an individual research paper.

 

Semester Breakdown

WEEK M T W Th F
1 No classes throughout MIT. No session scheduled. Class session scheduled. Class session scheduled. No session scheduled.
2 No session scheduled. Assignment due date. Class session scheduled. Class session scheduled; assignment due date. No session scheduled.
3 No classes throughout MIT. Assignment due date. Class session scheduled; assignment due date. Class session scheduled. No session scheduled.
4 No session scheduled. No session scheduled. Class session scheduled. Class session scheduled. No session scheduled.
5 No session scheduled. Assignment due date. Class session scheduled; assignment due date. Class session scheduled. No session scheduled.
6 No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
7 No session scheduled. Assignment due date. Class session scheduled; assignment due date. Class session scheduled. No session scheduled.
8 No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT.
9 No session scheduled. No session scheduled. Class session scheduled. Class session scheduled. No session scheduled.
10 No session scheduled. Assignment due date. Class session scheduled; assignment due date. Class session scheduled. No session scheduled.
11 No session scheduled. No session scheduled. Class session scheduled. Class session scheduled; assignment due date. No session scheduled.
12 No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT. Assignment due date. Class session scheduled. No session scheduled.
13 No session scheduled. No session scheduled. Class session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
14 No session scheduled. No session scheduled. Class session scheduled. Class session scheduled. No session scheduled.
15 No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No classes throughout MIT.
16 No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT.
Displays the color and pattern used on the preceding table to indicate dates when classes are not held at MIT. No classes throughout MIT
Displays the color used on the preceding table to indicate dates when class sessions are held. Class session
Displays the color used on the preceding table to indicate dates when no class session is scheduled. No class session scheduled
Displays the symbol used on the preceding table to indicate dates when assignments are due. Assignment due date
 

Instructor Insights

Below, Prof. Perreau describes some aspects of the course.

The main challenge for the students and for the instructor in this course is the apparent easiness of the materials. Contrary to other classes where texts are mostly about France, most texts in this class analyze American history and cultural norms. Students thus feel immediately comfortable. However, this requires even more critical thinking for deconstructing categories which seems in the first instance so familiar. The course thus implies a high level of reflexivity. If not, students risk seeing only cultural stereotypes in the transatlantic looking-glass.