29088 - Language and Translation - French Language (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, students perfect their knowledge of written and oral French through translation exercises and literary dissertations, with particular reference to idiomatic expressions, proverbs, the argot, spelling reform and the general issue of francophony.

Course contents

This 30-hour course will focus on the notion of linguistic imaginary (Houdebine), analysing it in depth from an individual point of view (through the instrument of linguistic autobiography) and from a collective point of view. The reading of literary pages will underline the cultural centrality of language in French and French-speaking culture, leading to the notion of surconscience linguistique.

Readings/Bibliography

Françoise Gadet, La variation sociale en Français, Ophrys, 2007

Marina Yaguello, Le grand livre de la langue française (ch. 1 Christiane Marchello Nizia, Le français dans l'histoire et ch. 2 Françoise Gadet, La variation: le français dans l'espace social, régional et international)

Marie-Anne Paveau, Laurence Rosier, La langue française. Passions et polémiques, Paris, Vuibert, 2008.

Anne Marie Houdebine, L'imaginaire Linguistique, L'Harmattan, 2005.

WALTER, Henriette, Le français dans tous les sens, Paris, Points.

Michèle Perret, Introduction à l'histoire de la langue française, Paris, Colin, 2020.

Claude Hagège, Le Français, histoire d'un combat, Paris, Michel Hagège, 86.

Claude Hagège, Le Français et les siècles, Paris, Odile Jacob, 1987.

Teaching methods

Attendance and participation are highly encouraged. Some initial lectures will be followed by class discussion. You are required to read the assigned readings in advance.

All students are required to enroll in the course on the e-learning page.

Assessment methods

The examination consists of an oral interview in French, which can be taken only after having passed the test related to the language exercises. The oral interview aims at assessing the critical and methodological skills acquired by the student, who will be invited to compare himself with the texts dealt with during the course (20 points). The student will have to demonstrate that he/she is able to move through the programme, understanding the relationships between the themes addressed (5 points). The student will also have to demonstrate that he/she has the ability to express him/herself orally in French (5 points). 

Non-attending students must pass an oral examination on the text :

Marie-Anne Paveau, Laurence Rosier, La langue française. Passions et polémiques, Paris, Vuibert, 2008.

which will be assessed according to the criteria indicated above.

Teaching tools

The analysis tools presented range from discourse analysis to representation analysis. The approach used is interdisciplinary, in particular concepts developed by sociology and cultural anthropology will be analysed.

Office hours

See the website of Licia Reggiani