| Unit name | French Thought |
|---|---|
| Unit code | FREN20068 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | I/5 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Paul Earlie |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | Department of French |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
The meteoric rise of ‘French Theory’ in the 1970s and 1980s had a profound and lasting impact on disciplines as diverse as literary criticism, philosophy, history, sociology, and politics. This unit will introduce you to some of the most compelling and controversial texts in late twentieth- and twenty-first century French thought. Examining how ideas have served to understand and in some cases shape the turbulence of the postwar period and its aftermath today, you will explore diverse ways of thinking about the world both as it is and as it could one day be. Approaches studied might include the following: Marxist approaches to ideology, exploitation, and mass culture; psychoanalytic interpretations of unconscious desire; postcolonial and decolonial theories of language and racism; the ongoing relevance of gender, sexuality, queer and trans studies.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
This unit builds on content and skills developed in the Year 1 core units, French Cultures in Context and Representations of Francophone Cultures, while providing you with a solid grounding in some of the most influential trends in contemporary French and Francophone thought (including philosophy, literary theory, psychoanalysis, gender studies, and more). You will learn to apply your understanding of these methodological approaches to cultural objects of your choosing (Francophone or otherwise), allowing you to develop a conceptual vocabulary of use in many other areas of your programme. In the formative and summative assessments, you will work collaboratively with others to solve problems and expand knowledge and skills acquired on the unit, preparing you for independent research here and in future studies.
An overview of content
You will be introduced to a range of ideas and theories derived from some of the most influential currents of postwar thought. The term ‘French thought’ is to be understood in its widest possible sense, to include thinkers from a wide range of disciplinary backgrounds (philosophy, literary theory, psychoanalysis, history, sociology, gender studies, and more) who write from within, or in some cases, against – a distinctively French intellectual tradition. You will be encouraged to apply the theoretical approaches studied to cultural objects of your own choosing (e,g., literature, visual arts, television, film, advertising). You will learn to evaluate the merits of competing approaches and, where appropriate, to synthesise different theoretical frameworks. Particular attention will be paid to the close relationship between a thinker’s writing style and their thought, and you will be provided with tools to conduct close rhetorical analysis of the primary texts and to reflect critically on popular perceptions of French thought as ‘impenetrable’ or ‘jargonistic’.
How will students, personally, be difficult as a result of the unit?
By the end of this unit, you will have a concrete understanding of key intellectual movements that have shaped, and continue to shape, debates in the humanities and social sciences, in France and globally. You will have developed and refined a theoretical vocabulary that will allow you not only to make sense of these debates, but to contribute to them by critically evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches to the study of culture. You will develop skills in working collaboratively with others while the essay will allow you to develop an independent approach to researching a topic of your choosing.
Learning outcomes
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
1. Demonstrate an understanding of the key currents in twentieth-century French and/or Francophone thought, doing so clearly and rigorously in your academic writing;
2. Illustrate how the theories studied relate to broader cultural, historical, political, or intellectual contexts;
3. Select and synthesise the theories and methodologies studied for application to a variety of cultural objects;
4. Analyse passages from the texts in the target language in a way that exhibits sensitivity to their rhetorical and formal structure, as appropriate to level 5/I.
5. Demonstrate collaborative skills by working in a group on a joint project.
Teaching will be delivered through a combination of synchronous sessions and asynchronous activities, including problem-based seminar discussion, lectures (synchronous or prerecorded), and learning opportunities that are both collaborative and self-directed, with ample opportunities for tutor and peer feedback throughout.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Mini-presentation with feedback delivered in class (0%, not required for credit)
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Group commentary presentation, 15 minutes (25%) [ILOs 4 and 5]
Essay, 2500 words (75%) [ILOs 1, 2, and 3]
When assessment does not go to plan
When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the form or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are normally confirmed by the School shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the academic year.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. FREN20068).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
