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2020/2021

French Literature: Middle Ages and Renaissance

Code: 103379 ECTS Credits: 6
Degree Type Year Semester
2501913 English and French OB 3 1
The proposed teaching and assessment methodology that appear in the guide may be subject to changes as a result of the restrictions to face-to-face class attendance imposed by the health authorities.

Contact

Name:
Xavier Blanco Escoda
Email:
Xavier.Blanco@uab.cat

Use of Languages

Principal working language:
(fre)
Some groups entirely in English:
No
Some groups entirely in Catalan:
No
Some groups entirely in Spanish:
No

Prerequisites

This course has no pre-requisites.

Objectives and Contextualisation

- To know the most relevant authors and currents of Medieval an Renaissance french literature.

- To form a bagage of readings in Medieval an Renaissance french literature and to be able to reflect critically on the readings made.

- To be able to perform, from a given literary text, a detailed reading form.

- To be able to make, from a given piece of a literary text, a text commentary.

Competences

  • Apply the techniques of French oral and written expression corresponding to different levels of competence.
  • Demonstrate knowledge of the history and culture of France and French-speaking countries.
  • Develop critical thinking and reasoning and knowing how to communicate effectively both in your mother tongue and in other languages.
  • Respect the diversity and plurality of ideas, people and situations.
  • Students can apply the knowledge to their own work or vocation in a professional manner and have the powers generally demonstrated by preparing and defending arguments and solving problems within their area of study.
  • Students have the ability to gather and interpret relevant data (normally within their study area) to issue judgments that include reflection on important issues of social, scientific or ethical.
  • Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  • Students must demonstrate they know French literature from its origins until the 20th century.
  • Students must develop the necessary learning skills in order to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
  • Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Analysing a contemporary fact and relating it to its historical background.
  2. Correctly pronounce in French language.
  3. Develop and achieve the necessary critical maturity and sensitivity to the literary French text as communicative, ethical and aesthetic product.
  4. Drawing up a summary and making a text commentary in French.
  5. Effectively communicating and applying the argumentative and textual processes to formal and scientific texts.
  6. Effectively working in teams and respecting different opinions.
  7. Explaining and analysing the historical foundations and culture of French-speaking countries, its geographic and socioeconomic framework and cultural diversity.
  8. Explaining and analysing the historical foundations of French culture, the geographical and socioeconomic framework of France and its cultural diversity.
  9. Explaining the specific concepts of the French language, linguistics and literature.
  10. Identifying the main and secondary ideas and expressing them with linguistic correctness.
  11. Knowing and analysing the main movements and thematic elements of literature in French, and placing its main authors and their more representative works.
  12. Knowing the several approaches of literary criticism and assessing, from literary texts in French language, the various cultural contexts from a critical perspective.
  13. Produce an individual work that specifies the work plan and timing of activities.
  14. Solving problems autonomously.
  15. Summarising acquired knowledge about the origin and transformations experienced in its several fields of study.
  16. Using the appropriate and specific terminology of the literary studies.
  17. Using the specific expressive resources of the essay genre and the techniques and methods of textual criticism.

Content

1.      The first texts

2.      The chanson de geste

3.      The roman

4.      The trouvères

5.      Tristan et Yseut

6.      The Lais of Marie de France

7.      Chrétien de Troyes

8.      The romans in prose: the cycle del Lancelot-Graal

9.      The Roman de Renart

10.    Fabliaux and nouvelles

11.    Rutebeuf

12.    Adam de la Halle

13.    The Roman de la Rose

14.    Christine de Pizan

15.    The theater

16.    Charles d'Orléans and François Villon

17.    The historical chronicles

18.    Rabelais

19.    The poets of la Pléiade

20.    Montaigne

Methodology

The teaching methodology is based mainly on:

- Master classes with ICT support and collective discussion.

- Reading and commentary of key texts of medieval French and Renaissance literature.

- Viewing and commenting audiovisual documents.

- Presentation, by students, of reading cards and proposed activities as part of the continuous evaluation.

Activities

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Master classes with ICT support and collective discussion 47 1.88 11, 3, 9, 5, 10, 15, 16
Type: Supervised      
Tutoring and exercises 12 0.48 11, 3, 9, 5, 10, 13, 4, 14, 15, 6, 16
Type: Autonomous      
Study and proposed readings 85 3.4 11, 3, 10, 13, 14, 16

Assessment

The evaluation of the course will be continuous and will include tests, exercises and papers delivered throughout the semester, and active participation during classes. It will include two exams, one of them partial and one of synthesis.

To participate in the reexamination process (that will consist in a global remedial exam), the students must have been previously evaluated in a set of activities whose weight equals a minimum of 2/3 of the total grade. Only students who, having failed, have at least a final average grade of 3.5 out of 10 will have the right to reexamination. Oral presentations and tasks related to daily teaching activities are non-recoverable.

Students who have completed less than 2/3 of the evaluation activities will be considered 'NOT EVALUABLE'.

At the time of the completion of each evaluation activity, students will be informed of the procedure and date of review of the evaluation.

Plagiarism: The total or partial plagiarism of any exercise, examination or paper will automatically be considered FAILURE (0). PLAGIARISM is to copy from unidentified sources, either a single phrase or more, presenting it as your own production. It constitutes a serious offense.

In the event of a student committing any irregularity that may lead to a significant variation in the grade awarded to an assessment activity, the student will be given a zero for this activity, regardless of any disciplinary process that may take place. In the event of several irregularities in assessment activities of the same subject, the student will be given a zero as the final grade for this subject.

In the event that tests or exams cannot be taken onsite, they will be adapted to an online format made available through the UAB’s virtual tools (original weighting will be maintained). Homework, activities and class participation will be carried out through forums, wikis and/or discussion on Teams, etc. Lecturers will ensure that students are able to access these virtual tools, or will offer them feasible alternatives.

 

Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Active participation during the classes that will include the realization and presentation of proposed activities 30% 0 0 1, 11, 3, 9, 5, 2, 13, 4, 14, 6, 16
Delivery and oral presentation of two detailed reading cards 30% 3 0.12 1, 11, 3, 9, 5, 10, 2, 4, 14, 16
Two formative assessment tests 40% 3 0.12 12, 11, 3, 8, 7, 9, 5, 10, 15, 16, 17

Bibliography

Boutet, Dominique (2003): Histoire de la littérature française du Moyen Âge, Paris: Honoré Champion.

Ducos, Joëlle ; Soutet, Olivier ; Valette, Jean-René (2016): Le français médiéval par les textes. Anthologie commentée, Paris: Honoré Champion.

Labère, Nelly (2009): Littératures du Moyen Âge, Paris: PUF.

Soutet, Olivier (1980): La littérature française de la Renaissance, Paris: PUF.

Viala, Alain (2014): Une histoire brève de la littérature française : Le Moyen Âge et la Rennaisance, Paris: PUF.

Zink, Michel (1992): Littérature français du Moyen Âge, Paris: PUF.

N.B.: The readings corresponding to literary texts will be indicated during the course.