In The Death of French Culture, Donald Morrison suggests that French writers today have "largely shunned the real world of politics, globalization, poverty, terrorism, ecological peril, financial crisis, and other pressing concerns [and have] retreated into a realm of intimacy and anecdote." Arguing that French literature has become "esoteric, detached from the real world, and maddeningly difficult to export," Morrison furthermore claims that very little contemporary French literature interests anybody outside the Hexagon -- especially Anglo-Saxons (28-31).

With Morrison's concerns in mind, we will (re)read French novels published since the 1930s. To what degree are they unexportable? Did things "start to go off the rails" in the mid-twentieth century? Has this been been due to the "confusingly experimental, self-occupied, claustrophobic" and "nombriliste (navel gazing)" novelists criticized by Morrison?

In other words, what is -- or might be -- the form/s of the contemporary French novel? To what degree is the French novel shaped -- or should it be shaped -- by political, philosophical, moral, or artistic concerns? And is the French novel really in decline?

After reading, analyzing, interpreting, and comparing translated novels by six key contemporary French authors in order to grapple with these and other questions, successful students should better be able to: think critically and creatively; communicate effectively (both orally and in written form); work productively as individuals and in groups; use their knowledge and skills to make a positive contribution to society; and make reasoned decisions based on an understanding of ethics and a respect for diversity.

Required Texts

Camus, Albert. The Stranger

Céline, Louis-Ferdinand. Journey to the End of the Night

Duras, Marguerite. Four Novels

Gibaldi, Joseph. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (on reserve at Robert E. Kennedy Library)

Le Clézio, Jean-Marie Gustave. The Interrogation

NDiaye, Marie. Rosie Carpe

Robbe-Grillet, Alain. The Voyeur

 

Suggested Resource

University Writing and Rhetoric Center