OVERVIEW

L'Ancien Régime et la naissance de la France moderne.

The history of culture and literature of the Ancien Régime (1600-1789) constitutes a fundamental basis for understanding contemporary France. The birth and the codification of literary genres, the consolidation of the unitary language, the advent of absolute monarchy are the foundations on which the French identity was built.

AIMS AND CONTENT

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

Attendance and active participation in the proposed training activities (lectures and online activities) and individual study will enable the student to:

- know the general lines of the development of the French culture of the Ancien Régime;

- know the general lines of the history of the Ancien Régime literature;

- be able to read and understand short texts in French;

- use basic analytical methods and tools to interpret the works of the main authors;

- contextualize literary productions in culture and in the historical period of reference.

PREREQUISITES

Being able to read and understand a French literary text.

TEACHING METHODS

Teaching will take place online with a weekly meeting in synchronous mode (lessons on Teams), and with the provision of content and materials on the Aulaweb platform. Group and flipped classroom activities are planned.

Students who participate in the lessons, online activities and group work may receive a bonus of up to two points on their final exam grade.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

PROGRAM A FOR ATTENDING STUDENTS (frequency monitored: 75% of attendance)

The course will focus on the presentation of some aspects of the development of the French culture and civilization of the Ancien Régime. The most important cultural elements that constituted the specificity of French culture will be presented: the centralization of power and public life, the expansion of overseas France, the control of cultural production. Constant reference will be made to the reading of theoretical texts and literary texts.

Works that will be studied in detail:

Mme de Lafayette, La Princesse de Clèves 

Molière, Le Bourgeois gentilhomme  

Marivaux, L'île des esclaves

Voltaire, Candide

PROGRAM B FOR NON ATTENDING STUDENTS
History of the French Literature and culture during the Ancien Régime (1600-1789) on one of the manuals listed in the bibliography. Reading of 6 integral works.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

All slides used during lessons and other teaching materials will be available on aulaweb. In general, the notes taken during the lessons and the material on aulaweb are sufficient for the preparation of the exam.

The books listed below are suggested as supporting texts for attending students, the manual is mandatory for other students.

Manuals in Italian:

• G. Macchia e altri, La letteratura francese, ed. BUR, 5 volumi.
• Brunel Pierre, Bellenger Yvonne, Couty Daniel, Storia della letteratura francese, vol.1+2, Cideb ed.
• Storia europea della letteratura francese, Torino, Einaudi, 2013, volume 1 (Dalle origini al Seicento) e volume 2 (Dal Settecento all'età contemporanea)
• Antologia cronologica della letteratura francese, Milano, LED-CEA, (5 vol.)
• Letteratura francese, a cura di M. Landi, vol. 1. Dalle origini al Settecento, Mondadori, 2021.

Manuals in French:

• X. Darcos, Histoire de la littérature française, Hachette, 2019
• Histoire de la France littéraire, Paris, PUF, 2006
• D. Bergez, Précis de littérature française, Paris, A. Colin, 2010.
• Histoire de la littérature française, GF Flammarion, 1996

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

Exam Board

CHIARA ROLLA (President)

IDA MERELLO

ELISA BRICCO (Substitute)

LESSONS

LESSONS START

February 2022

Class schedule

FRENCH LITERATURE AND CULTURE I

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

FOR ATTENDING STUDENTS (frequency monitored: 75% of attendance) Written exam in Italian, consisting of a test with closed and open questions starting from the analysis of a literary text. The test is used (A) to evaluate the learning of the concepts and basic information transmitted during the course or through the educational material made available on Aulaweb or through the study of the manual, and (B) the ability to set simple applications of these concepts and information basic, correctly interpreting literary examples, applying the concepts and information presented during the lessons.

FOR NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS: oral test : The candidate must demonstrate the knowledge of the history of the French literature and culture of the Ancien Régime (1600-1789), that he has read the 6 complete works and be able to explain its contents, the literary and generic characteristics, the authorial and stylistic specificities in relation to the period and to the author's literary movement / school. In the assessment of the exam will be taken into account, as well as the knowledge of the program to be carried out, also the capacity and accuracy in the use of the specific language of the discipline.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The written exam for attending students will verify the effective acquisition of basic knowledge on the French culture and literature of the Ancien Régime and their identification in a text. The open questions will allow to evaluate the ability to apply the acquired knowledge for the analysis of a text.

The oral examination for non-attending students will verify the effective acquisition of basic knowledge on the French culture and literature of the Ancien Régime, will focus mainly on the reading of complete texts carried out by the candidates and will have the purpose to evaluate not only if the student has reached an adequate level of knowledge, but if he has acquired the ability to situate the texts in the historical period in which they were written. The exhibition capacity and accuracy in the use of the specific language of the discipline will also be evaluated.

Exam schedule