Passions and Fortunes in 19th-Century Paris
Readings:
Balzac’s Père Goriot in the Norton Edition, ISBN 039397166X
Flaubert’s Sentimental Education in Penguin Classics, ISBN 0140447970
Zola’s Nana in Oxford World Classics, ISBN 0192836706
Rachilde’s Monsieur Vénus in the Modern Languages Association English translation edition ISBN 0873529308
Recommended: David Harvey, Paris: Capital of Modernity
Course Description:
This course explores the experience and expression of urban modernity in 19th century Paris. Drawing on works by Balzac, Baudelaire, Zola and Rachilde along with readings in cultural criticism, literary theory and art history, we will focus on the novel as a laboratory for new forms of knowledge and representation. In these classic tales of the city, ambitious young men and women embark on a perilous journey of passion, fortune and education. Their trajectories shed light on key aspects of nineteenth-century urban life: the social possibilities opened up by revolution; the emergence of consumer culture; the shocks of industrialization; the texture of everyday life; shifting configurations of class struggle; gender and the demarcation of public and private space; the body as commodity and spectacle; new forms of visual culture. In the course of our readings we will also address the salient historical transitions and aesthetic movements of the period.
Prerequisites:
No language prerequisites. Course open to all students.
Additional Information:
No knowledge of French is required. All lectures and discussions in English. This course can satisfy 1 “Outside Elective” course requirement in the French major, with prior approval of French Undergraduate Major Adviser.
Satisfies College of Letters and Science breadth in Arts and Literature.