CAS LF 342 Paris Aujourd`hui Summer 2014

CAS LF 342, Summer 2014
Elisabeth Montfort-Siewert, Hanadi Sobh
CAS LF 342 Paris Aujourd’hui
Summer 2014
Instructors: Elisabeth Montfort-Siewert ([email protected]) & Hanadi Sobh ([email protected])
Office hours: Wednesday 3:00-4:00 (Elisabeth), Monday 3:00-3:30 (Hanadi)
I. Course objectives and methodology
The performing arts form a window to a culture, a civilization, a mentality. They help us penetrate
the cultural intimacy of a people, making us discover not only the essential subjects of a society, but
also the unique ways to address, to express and to contemplate these subjects. This course combines
several elements: diverse forms of expression (theater, film, song), diverse time periods (from the
1920s to today), and diverse aspects of a work (style, themes, sociocultural context).
Amongst all of this diversity, students will surely find common approaches. Students are thus
encouraged to surpass the formal separations between various components of the course to identify
the similarities between the past, the present, between the plays, films and songs, both in the
themes addressed and the ways of thinking. Beyond thinking whether or not they like a work,
students should ask themselves how it is typically French. They should use this course as a cultural
experience that will enable them to discover that which really concerns the French people today.
The course is structurally divided into two sections: theater, and music and film. Classes will alternate
between these two sections with additional outings to view films, attend theatrical performances,
and visit sites in the city related to its theatrical, musical, and cinematic history. The study of the
works themselves (plays, movies, song lyrics) will be supplemented by the reading of critical articles.
This course of study will help students live in present-day Paris, understand current issues, and live
more like real Parisians.
The course, including additional seminars and visits, is conducted entirely in French.
Course text: Required readings and worksheets are included in a course pack to be purchased by the
student. All required films are available on DVD at the BU Paris Center; students may also watch films
online with their personal Netflix or Amazon Prime subscriptions.
Required films:
- Casse-tête chinois (Cédric Klapisch, 2013)
- Les Yeux jaunes des crocodiles (Cécile Telerman, 2014)
Plays studied in class:
- Un Air de famille (Agnès Jaoui and Jean-Pierre Bacri)
- Suzanne, une femme remarquable (Laurence Février)
Additional required readings:
-
Michel Viegnes, Le théâtre, problématiques essentielles, Hatier, 1992 (excerpts)
L’âme du vieux Lyon, article de Gualbert, Pèlerin, déc 2008
La famille vient en mangeant.Art.de Bernard Merigaud déc 2011, Télérama.
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CAS LF 342, Summer 2014
Elisabeth Montfort-Siewert, Hanadi Sobh
-
Papa, maman, tout un roman. Art. de Nathalie Crom, déc 2011, Télérama.
La famille, le grand chambardement. Eclairage de l’anthropologue Godelier et points de vue d’artistes.
Télérama fév 2014 (5 pages)
Dossier de presse Suzanne, une femme remarquable
Katherine Pancol, Les Yeux jaunes des crocodiles, Albin Michel, 2006 (excerpts)
Amaury Da Cunha, Dans l’œil de Cédric Klapisch, les couleurs du chaos, août 2013, Le Monde
Arnaud Viviant, Détournement d’art Mineur, mars 2010, Télérama hors série
Laurent Mereu-Boulch, Sacré Français !, article de, mars 2010, Télérama hors série
Course schedule:
- First intensive week : Monday through Friday 11:00-2:00 & 3:00-5:00
- Following weeks : Tuesday 5:00-7:30
Additional required activities:
- Two group film viewings, either in Parisian cinemas or at the BU center
- Three theater outings
- One optional outing to the Comédie Française
II. Grading
Exams (3): 40%
There will be a final exam (15%) covering the song texts and films studied throughout the semester.
In addition, the theater midterm exam (12.5%) will cover the first half of the theater component,
while the theater final exam (12.5%) will cover the latter half of the theater component.
Theater presentation: 10%
Working in groups, students will prepare a presentation of about 15 minutes on a given subject
related to contemporary French theater and its public reception: the administration of the Comédie
Française and its treatment in the press, Ionesco and the Théâtre de la Huchette, Ariane Mnouchkine
and the Théâtre du Soleil, etc.
Music presentation: 15%
Working in groups, students will present a French song and their reaction to and analysis of it,
treating as both a lyric text and a historical and cultural moment. The 10-12 minute presentation will
be followed by a class discussion led by the presenting students.
Participation, effort, and progress: 35%
Included in this grade is weekly homework, which involves reading texts (song lyrics and plays) and
completing worksheets to ensure comprehension and prepare class discussion. This grade also takes
into account the quality of a student’s presence in class, their energy, relevance of their comments in
class, effort and progress in language proficiency, and attendance and punctuality.
Attendance Policy
1 absence (class session or activity) = -1 point on the overall grade
4 or more unexcused absences = grade of F for the course
Missed assignment or test = grade of 0 for the assignment
Plagiarism on an assignment = grade of 0 for the assignment
NB: Excused absences must be justified by a doctor’s note or a scheduled internship interview.
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CAS LF 342, Summer 2014
Elisabeth Montfort-Siewert, Hanadi Sobh
Plagiarism (BU Policy)
All students are responsible for having read the Boston University statement on plagiarism, which is
available in the Academic Conduct Code. Students are advised that the penalty against students on a
Boston University program for cheating on the examinations or for plagiarism may be ‘expulsion
from the program or the University or such other penalty as may be recommended by the
Committee on Student Academic Conduct, subject to approval by the dean.’ Read the full Academic
Conduct Code online at http://www.bu.edu/academics/policies/academic-conduct-code/.
III. Calendar
Additional readings and homework may be assigned in class each day.
Session 1: Monday, May 19 morning (Music and cinema)
• Presentation of the course
• The evolution of the chanson française from 1920 to today, part I
• How do we analyze the chanson française? Practical tools and discussion of the current musical
phenomena in France
→ For Session 3:
 Listen to songs by Olivia Ruiz and Grand Corps Malade and answer the questions on p. 911
 Read excerpts from the novel Les Yeux jaunes des crocodiles by Katherine Pancol
Session 2: Monday, May 19 afternoon (Theater)
• Presentation of the course
• Vocabulary of the theater, essential themes and topics
• Un Air de famille, Act I: presentation and analysis
Session 3: Tuesday, May 20 morning (Music and cinema)
• Introduction to Les Yeux jaunes des crocodiles
• The evolution of the chanson française from 1920 to today, part II
• Music presentation 1: Intersecting visions of the everyday, Olivia Ruiz & Grand Corps Malade
→ For Session 5:
 Listen to the selected songs by Thomas Dutronce and Oxmo Puccino and answer the
questions on p. 15-17
 Complete the worksheet handed out on Les Yeux jaunes des crocodiles
Session 4: Tuesday, May 20 afternoon (Theater)
• Pariscope and contemporary theater in Paris
• Un Air de famille, Act II: presentation and analysis
Tuesday, May 20 evening
Cinema outing : Les Yeux jaunes des crocodiles
Session 5: Wednesday, May 21 morning (Music and cinema)
• Les Yeux jaunes des crocodiles: Group discussion and debate
• The evolution of Paris as a musical theme: from guinguette to rap
• Music presentation 2: Scenes of Parisian life, Thomas Dutronc & Oxmo Puccino
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CAS LF 342, Summer 2014
Elisabeth Montfort-Siewert, Hanadi Sobh
→ For Session 7:
 Listen to the selected songs by Serge Gainsbourg and answer the questions on p. 21-23
 Read « Détournement d’art Mineur », article d’Arnaud Viviant, mars 2010, Télérama
hors série
Session 6: Wednesday, May 21 afternoon (Theater)
• Guignol: presentation of this symbolic character and of his impact on French culture and
mentality.
• Reading: « L’âme du vieux Lyon », article de Gualbert, Pèlerin, déc 2008
Wednesday, May 21 – 4pm
Theater outing : Guignol at the Théâtre du Champ de Mars
Session 7: Thursday, May 22 morning (Music and cinema)
• The world of Serge Gainsbourg: from Gainsbourg to Gainsbarre
• Music presentation 3: The style of Serge Gainsbourg (“La javanaise”, “Les sucettes”)
• The cinema of Cédric Klapisch: recurrence and symbolism
→ For Session 9:
 Read « Dans l’œil de Cédric Klapisch, les couleurs du chaos », article d’Amaury Da Cunha,
23 août 2013, Le Monde
Session 8: Thursday, May 22 afternoon (Theater)
• Un Air de Famille: conclusion and review for midterm exam.
• Reading: La famille vient en mangeant.Art.de Bernard Merigaud déc 2011, Télérama
• Reading: Papa, maman, tout un roman. Art. de Nathalie Crom, déc 2011, Télérama
• Reading: La famille, le grand chambardement. Eclairage de l’anthropologue Godelier et points
de vue d’artistes. Télérama fév 2014
Thursday, May 22 – evening
Theater outing: Un Air de famille
Session 9: Friday, May 23 morning (Music and cinema)
• Introduction to Casse-tête chinois (Cédric Klapisch, 2013)
• Casse-tête chinois: Group discussion and debate
→ For Session 11:
 Listed to the selected songs by MC Solaar and Benjamin Biolay and answer the questions
on p. 27-30
 Read « Sacré Français ! », article de Laurent Mereu-Boulch, mars 2010, Télérama hors
série
Session 10: Friday, May 23 afternoon (Theater)
• THEATER MIDTERM EXAM
Session 11: Tuesday, May 27 (Music and cinema)
• Music presentation 4: Gainsbourg’s influences on contemporary music, Benjamin Biolay & MC
Solaar
• Review for exam
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CAS LF 342, Summer 2014
Elisabeth Montfort-Siewert, Hanadi Sobh
Session 12: Tuesday, June 3 (Music and cinema)
• MUSIC AND CINEMA EXAM
Session 13: Tuesday, June 10 (Theater)
• Theater presentations
• Reading: Le théâtre, problématiques essentielles pp 6-17 : le théâtre occidental du Moyen-Age
au XXème siècle
Session 14: Tuesday, June 17 (Theater)
• Suzanne, une femme remarquable, Part I: presentation, analysis and debate
• Reading: Le théâtre, problématiques essentielles pp 44-56 : le metteur en scène.
Session 15: Tuesday, June 24 (Theater)
• Suzanne, une femme remarquable, Part II: presentation, analysis and debate
• Reading: Le théâtre, problématiques essentielles pp 68-94: tragédie, comédie, rire
Tuesday, June 24 – evening
Theater outing: Suzanne, une femme remarquable
Session 16: Tuesday, July 1 (Theater)
• Review for final exam
• Guests: Meeting with Laurence Février, the author of Suzanne, une femme remarquable, and
Livia, manager of the Théâtre Le Lucernaire.
• Reading: Le théâtre, problématiques essentielles pp 95-104 : théâtre et cinéma
Session 17: Tuesday, July 8 (Theater)
• THEATER FINAL EXAM
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