Reading Lyric Language ("W")

103A :  Language and Culture
Fall 2013
C. Davis

Readings:

See Description

Course Description:

This course introduces students to lyric poetry in French, focusing on Medieval and Early Modern traditions. How is the language of poetry different from other kinds of language? What are the grammatical and rhetorical conventions that make language lyrical? What kinds of emotional or subjective experiences is lyric language used to express? The goal of our class is to develop strategies for literary and linguistic analysis through close reading and interpretation of individual poems in French, from the lyrics of the medieval troubadours and trouvères to the 16th century poets of the Pléiade, Pierre de Ronsard and Joachim du Bellay. Readings for the course will be in modern French.

Prerequisites:

Students must have either previously completed French 102 or its equivalent, or be concurrently enrolled in French 102. For additional placement information please see Placement Guidelines.

Additional information:

Satisfies College of Letters and Science breadth in Arts and Literature. This course is designated as “W” (writing intensive) in the French major.

Section times and locations in the Schedule of Classes