France

This course offers a reflection on science and acquires cross-disciplinary analytical skills. It addresses the notions of problematization, definition, and reasoning, notably through the reading of philosophical texts.
 

This course uses economic theories such as trade specialization and investment strategy to create a foundation for international economic analysis. Primarily, the course focuses on the impacts of globalization, its roots, the current state of global trade and the concept of “de-globalization.” As well as this, it discusses the link between free-trade and growth, and why we do not see this connection in certain developing countries.

This is the second part of a two-semester course covering the period from the fifteenth to the seventeenth centuries. It focuses on the arts of the Classicism. Rather than the global and idealizing point of view, often confining to the "family novel" of the great heroic artists, it places greater emphasis on a whole series of problems, artistic and inartistic, considered as sensitive questions: problems of space, place of Antiquity, religious devotion, funerary practices, political images, mannerisms and bodily movements, and mannerism and technique. In other words, a history of forms and styles allows a deeper questioning of the profound inventiveness of the visual productions of the Renaissance and the Baroque age.

The course deals with the long nineteenth century in Britain and the twentieth century in the United States. It defines and explores the concept of "radicalism" in these two contexts, and illustrates this with reference to the main radical groups and political parties, their principal actions, and their political legacy.

This course covers French literary works from the seventeenth to twenty-first centuries, focusing on poetry and "factual" genres, a terminology encompassing a wide range of text forms and types of writing (essays, chronicles, historical accounts, reports, diaries, epistolary texts, speeches, etc.). The course is divided into two parts, one devoted to the history of poetic genres and their problematics; the other to a diachronic survey of "factual" texts, exposing their diversity and the difficulties of generic apprehension they give rise to. Each section studies different works and authors in relation with the theme.

The city and language course introduces students to French history, culture, and language through team-taught instruction. In the “City as Public Forum” sessions, students are introduced to French history and culture through a series of lectures and site visits. Students discover some of the fascinating ways the core principles of social justice were tested in theory and practice on the streets of Paris in the past and explore how they evolved into the pillars of French society today. The course focuses on just how an ideal society should be forged, where all are free individuals and members of a cohesive community at the same time. Trying to make individuals believe—as religions do—in the primacy of the collective, and in its concomitant goal of protecting human rights, is at the core of social justice in France. From 52 B.C.E to today, France has been an exemplar of how—and how not—to construct a just society. To render these values visible, and therefore legible, to all by adding a physical dimension—whether constructive or destructive—to the usual means of establishing laws or setting policies, is what distinguishes the history of France's capital city of Paris. Those who control Paris—be they monarchs, revolutionaries, or presidents, past and present—believe that erecting all kinds of physical structures will render their values concrete and immutable. The ideal French society did not always necessarily mean a democratic or inclusive one. Since the French Revolution, however, institutionalizing the concept of “liberty, equality, and fraternity” has been France's greatest universal achievement and a source of constant upheaval, eliciting a unique form of secular activism that has led to targeting buildings and monuments that no longer reflect the collective's values. Students discuss how the diverse social actors, who constitute “the French,” continue to thrust their bodies and minds into the physical spaces of the public sphere in the pursuit of social justice. In the “Unlocking French” sessions, students learn targeted language skills through situational communication, so they have the opportunity to use everything they learn as they go about their daily activities.

Between the advent of talking pictures in 1927 and the official launch of the New Hollywood in 1967, the classic Hollywood system developed and experienced a golden age, followed by a decline that was to begin in the early 1950s. This is the official story, in line with a certain reality, but one to which the work of numerous historians has added nuance and nuance. This course takes a historical approach, incorporating recent research, to revisit the Hollywood studio system, based on the power of producers and the exploitation of stars. It also studies the structuring of film production into major genres (melodrama, western, musical, biopic, war film, social film, biblical epic, film noir, etc.), which are sometimes called into question by their reception, and whose stability is open to debate. The course also looks at the history of the introduction in the early 1930s of a self-regulatory code, the famous Hays Code, whose interpretation may have changed over time, and whose influence gradually waned between 1952 and 1967. It explores the ideological tensions that divided the Hollywood community, sometimes violently and permanently: the question of American involvement in the Second World War, the inquisitorial system of the "Witch Hunt" in the context of the Cold War. The essential contribution of artists and technicians from European immigrant backgrounds is studied, including producers, directors, actors and actresses, screenwriters, cinematographers and composers. The careers of figures who forged the identity and style of classic Hollywood cinema are also explored, including: Charles Chaplin, Alfred Hitchcock, Ernst Lubitsch, Erich Von Stroheim, Joseph Von Sternberg, Fritz Lang, Billy Wilder, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Elia Kazan. The course also looks at the homogeneity of the classic Hollywood style described in Janet Staiger, Kristin Thompson, and David Bordwell's (also classic) THE CLASSICAL HOLLYWOOD CINEMA: FILM STYLE & MODE OF PRODUCTION TO 1960. The re-evaluation of the place of female directors (Dorothy Arzner, Ida Lupino), African-American directors (Oscar Micheaux), and marginal genres (horror, animation) in the Hollywood canon provides food for thought on the homogeneity of Hollywood style and the centrality of a hegemonic definition.

This course offers an immersive journey into the world of French luxury, thoughtfully designed to captivate students from various academic and social backgrounds. The course begins with a focus on the history of French fashion, exploring its evolution from the 17th century to its present role as a global leader in style and innovation. Students uncover the cultural and technical advancements that have kept French luxury at the industry’s forefront, while examining how it continues to adapt to changing consumer demands. The course also provides an expanded look at the luxury world, touching on other sectors such as high-end automobiles, watchmaking, jewelry, and hospitality to offer a well-rounded understanding of luxury’s diverse landscape. Building on this historical foundation, the course then shifts to a business perspective, exploring the strategies, management practices, and digital transformations of iconic brands like Chanel, Givenchy, Yves Saint Laurent, and Dior. Students learn how these luxury houses maintain their prestige in a fast-paced, digitally-driven world. To enrich the Paris experience, the course includes field visits to institutions like the YSL Museum and Cartier Foundation, as well as guided excursions to luxury boutiques and hotels. These experiences offer students studying in Paris a unique, hands-on look at the codes of luxury and the art of customer experience, making the most of their time in one of the world’s fashion capitals.

This course explores the intersection between food cultures and food politics, with an eye towards arguments and debates that have animated French culinary culture, and diverse interdisciplinary approaches to the scholarly study of food. How is food a portal for studying the changing dynamics of cities, global systems, and national identity? In what ways has food been employed to construct notions of community and belonging, and, inversely, exclusion? Through discussions of interdisciplinary course readings, analytic and ethnographic writing assignments, and excursions around the city of Paris, the course considers how food structures identities, everyday practices, and political lives in contemporary France.

This course offers a study of American literature through a selection of short stories related to major American cultural themes. Students acquire analytical, reading, and argumentative tools for written and oral expression, and learn the methods of literary criticism.