French

This course considers destruction and the life and destiny of works of art. It investigates how we understand and describe the gestures or modes of destruction of works of art, a question that seems to arise from the more general problem of iconoclasm, defined as the refusal and destruction of images. It also considers other means of destruction: the effect of time and ruin, of a natural disaster, or the consequence of a voluntary gesture on the part of an artist, whether they are the producer or not. The course discusses how we can distinguish iconoclasm from “vandalism,” “attack” from artistic gesture by offering a philosophical history of the arts and an investigation into the different modes of existence of works of art.

This course is a chronological presentation of French literature from the Middle Ages to 1600.  It connects genres and literary texts with the history of ideas and mentalities.

This course explores how literature shapes our perspective on the past and identity. By studying Patrick Chamoiseau's LE DIMANCHE AU CACHOT and Josephy Boyden's DANS LE GRAND CERCLE DU MONDE, this course considers how authors can use fiction to reconquer a painful past to better reconstruct an identity and a perspective that has been hidden.

The extensive independent study field research paper produced by the student is both the centerpiece of the intern's professional engagement and the culmination of the academic achievements of the semester. During the preparatory session, IFE teaches the methodological guidelines and principles to which students are expected to adhere in the development of their written research. Students work individually with a research advisor from their field. The first task is to identify a topic, following guidelines established by IFE for research topic choice. The subject must be tied in a useful and complementary way to the student-intern's responsibilities, as well as to the core concerns of the host organization. The research question should be designed to draw as much as possible on resources available to the intern via the internship (data, documents, interviews, observations, seminars and the like). Students begin to focus on this project after the first 2-3 weeks on the internship. Each internship agreement signed with an organization makes explicit mention of this program requirement, and this is the culminating element of their semester. Once the topic is identified, students meet individually, as regularly as they wish, with their IFE research advisor to generate a research question from the topic, develop an outline, identify sources and research methods, and discuss drafts submitted by the student. The research advisor also helps students prepare for the oral defense of their work which takes place a month before the end of the program and the due date of the paper. The purpose of this exercise is to help students evaluate their progress and diagnose the weak points in their outline and arguments. Rather than an extraneous burden added to the intern's other duties, the field research project grows out of the internship through a useful and rewarding synergy of internship and research. The Field Study and Internship model results in well-trained student-interns fully engaged in mission-driven internships in their field, while exploring a critical problem guided by an experienced research advisor.

This French language course is level A2 of the Common European Reference Framework for Languages (CEFR), or the second semester of beginning French. It focuses on practical French through listening and writing comprehension, oral expression, and writing. The course prepares students to achieve tasks in various sectors of social life through the acquisition of communicative, linguistic, and cultural knowledge. The course uses learning strategies aligned to the contents of the CEFR: work on defined tasks, formative evaluation, self-evaluation, and overture to the plurality of languages and cultures.

This course explores the architectural and pictorial inheritance of France, including urban and countryside architecture, sculpture, painting, and decorative arts. It focuses on the architecture of Bordeaux and the region of Aquitaine during the 19th century. It presents the remarkable sites of the New Aquitaine region listed as World Heritage by UNESCO by analyzing some works to better understand them. The course discovers the region and its rich heritage through the ages, from prehistory with the parietal caves of the Dordogne to the contemporary era with the city of Fruges by Le Corbusier, passing through the Middle Age and modern times. Various arts are analyzed, including visual art, painting, sculpture, and the art of space which concerns architecture and heritage. Similarly, the course studies several styles, in particular Romanesque art, Gothic art, and classical art to acquire an artistic culture.

This course is comprised of three components: oral comprehension, oral expression, and phonetics. The comprehension part focuses on enhancing student's oral comprehension though radio, video, note-taking, and oral or written reproduction. The expression part of the course provides an opportunity to give oral presentations alone or in groups, with structured argumentation and role-playing. The phonetics part examines basic concepts of articulatory phonetics and French phonology, including perceptual phenomena, segmental and supra-segmental features, linking, neutralization, assimilation, germination, individual and dialectal variations, written and oral systems, and discourse analysis. Emphasis is placed on the acquisition of French pronunciation, as well as oral and gestural expression.

The course focuses on the study of the non-Western European artistic and political scene from the second half of the 19th to the beginning of the 20th century. It analyzes and discusses the notions of national and artistic identity through specific examples. At the same time, the course also studies the challenges of globalization.

This thematic course provides an opportunity to explore Geneva's iconic sites, historical and contemporary, urban and countryside. It enriches cultural knowledge of the city of Geneva as well as the linguistic knowledge of the urban landscape and expressing impressions and feelings. The course includes six walks, each alternating with an in-class session. It provides an opportunity to photograph and create a Geneva photo album containing 30 photos, each with a small commentary, as well as an introductory text. 

This course consists of three segments. The first part focuses on grammar, covering logical analysis, tenses, modes, style, and spelling, accompanied by regular dictation and vocabulary building. The second part focuses on writing skills to develop competence in French written expression. The third part on written comprehension focuses on understanding different type of texts: informative, argumentative, and authoritative.