France

This course examines the question of ethics, particularly integrity, in the exercise of power by elected officials. It raises the central question of whether it is ever right to do wrong in politics; and if so, to what end. The course is divided into three parts. Drawing on selected texts of political philosophy and political science, it first explores the broad confines of morality, ethics, and integrity in politics; and subsequently focuses on the question of lying. The final part of the course examines integrity through empirical cases in contemporary politics. Overall, the course reflects on what conduct is realistically expected from those in government, and on the seemingly inevitable tension and thin line between using power to serve oneself and using power to serve the common good.

This course, the first in our intensive summer language program sequences, with its contiguous course FR12A, is roughly equivalent to the first two quarters or to the first semester of beginning French language instruction on students' home campuses. FR12A and FR12B introduce basic speaking, listening, reading and writing skills to the complete beginner and the beginner with limited previous knowledge of elementary French within a French-immersion context. Placement in this course is determined by students' previous experience and the results of a language assessment taken prior to arrival. Course material includes: K. Jansma, MOTIFS: AN INRODUCTION TO FRENCH, Heinle, 6th Edition, 2014. Through the FR12AB sequence, students gain the ability to communicate in spoken and written French and develop a foundation in French grammar, basic working vocabulary organized, and information on French and Francophone culture including greetings, leisure activities and sports, vacation time, family structures, schooling and values of the French Republic, the distribution of household chores, environmental protection, cuisine, grocery shopping and eating habits, the workplace, café life, multiethnic society, youth culture, and the geography, and music and cuisine of the francophone world. Students engage in short conversations using simple sentences and basic vocabulary with occasional use of past and near future tenses. Covered in this course are the present, past, and near future tenses, along with high-frequency regular and irregular verbs, reflexive verbs, and the imperative and polite conditional moods, as well as subject and object pronouns, articles, prepositions, possessive and demonstrative adjectives, interrogative expressions, expressions of quantity, and time and weather expressions. Course grading is composed of class participation, small group and pair work, role play, written exercises, dictation, presentations of cultural products such as songs, films, audio texts, a variety of short, simple texts on cultural perspectives, and writing activities.

This course consists of intensive instruction in written and oral French, taught through audio-visual method and group work with an instructor. The course strengthens comprehension and expression skills through exercises. Oral French focuses on difficult cases of spelling, vocabulary of selected fields, and sentence structure. Written work includes advanced grammar, syntax, and spelling, with a focus on academic writing for French universities. Materials used in class present contemporary regional topics.

This course focuses on major characteristics of each literary movement (Romanticism, Contemporary, and Avante-Garde) throughout the 19th and 20th centuries in France. Methodology for analyzing literary works is done mainly in a commentary format and dissertation. Furthermore, students present personal research (whether as a presentation or in writing) related to the literary movements. Discussion sections consist of analyzing works of famous French authors during the mentioned literary movements, differing depending on which discussion section is chosen, with complementary, academic readings. 

This course examines the most salient aspects of Occitan and observes how the same linguistic diasystem is realized in the form of dialects with marked tonalities and musicality. This approach makes it possible to implement and extend the phonetic skills acquired for French in the first year as well as some syntax points. This course constitutes a practical introduction to Romantic studies, as Occitan is the autochthonous Romance language covering most of Southern France and the vehicle of an abundant literature.