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Panorama of French Culture and Literature

Code: 106673
Credits: 6
2026/2027
Degree programme Type Course
English and French Studies FB 1

Contact lecturer

Name :
Maria del Mar Garcia Lopez
Email :
mariamar.garcia@uab.cat

Group languages

You can consult this information at the end of the document.

Prerequisites

To have a sufficiently high level of French to follow classes taught in this language effectively, to understand and analyse texts in the humanities and audiovisual materials, and to communicate proficiently in French both orally and in writing.

Objectives

  • Knowledge of major periods and cultural trends in the Francophone world in relation to other European traditions.
  • Identification of key figures, works, and movements in diverse cultural contexts.
  • Understanding the relationship between cultural productions and their historical, social, and linguistic contexts.
  • Analysis of texts and other cultural manifestations (literary, audiovisual, and artistic) from a comparative perspective.
  • Acquisition of basic concepts of cultural and literary studies applied to different cultural spaces.
  • Expression and discussion of ideas about cultural phenomena in French in a clear, coherent, and appropriate manner.
  • Application of the concept of situated discourse and development of a critical perspective on the production and interpretation of cultural phenomena.

Learning outcomes

  1. Identifying main and supporting ideas and expressing them with linguistic correctness.
  2. Maintain an attitude of respect for the opinions, values, behaviors and practices of others.
  3. Synthesise information obtained from distinct sources, problematise a topic, and structure the information in a relevant way in oral and written presentations adapted to the audience.
  4. Produce an essay (or similar) respecting the ethical aspects related to the authorship of ideas and the diversity of opinions.
  5. Identify relationships between literature and history, art and other cultural movements.
  6. Identify relationships between literature and history, art and other cultural movements.
  7. Identify and explain the basic features of literary texts
  8. Identify and explain the basic features of the interpretation process.
  9. Demonstrate knowledge of topics related to the study of literature and its methods of analysis.
  10. Apply different instruments of analysis to different types of literary work.
  11. Comment on literary texts, applying the instruments acquired and considering the historical and sociocultural context.
  12. Critically interpreting literary works taking into account the relationships between the different areas of literature and its relationships with human, artistic and social areas.
  13. Evaluar los resultados relacionados con la argumentación sobre varios temas y problemas literarios a propósito de obras distintas.
  14. Use suitable terminology when drawing up an academic text.
  15. Arguing about several issues and literary problems for the purpose of different works and the assessment of the results.
  16. Discern the sex/gender factor in the configuration of the literary canon.
  17. Write text commentaries from the view of comparative criticism.
  18. Distinctiate and assemble the basic critical bibliography that makes up the field of study of a work or author of French-language literature.
  19. Present arguments and evaluate the relevance of the analysis of a linguistic, literary or cultural phenomenon.
  20. Write text commentaries from a critical standpoint.
  21. Locate and organise relevant English-language information available on the Internet, through databases and in libraries.
  22. Produce works in which the fundamental digital and bibliographic tools for the field of study are applied.

Contents

  • Study of the main stages in the cultural and literary history of the Francophone world, from the Middle Ages to the present: major historical processes and key intellectual, literary, and artistic figures in their context.
  • Critical analysis of the construction of the “myth” of France as a universal cultural space: discourses of exceptionalism and the formation of a national canon.
  • Introduction to the concept of Francophonie from a historical, linguistic, and political perspective: power relations and cultural hierarchies.
  • Study of colonial legacies and contemporary Francophone cultures.
  • Analysis of Francophone postcolonial societies: hybrid identities, memory, and migration.
  • Reading and interpretation of texts and cultural manifestations from the Francophone world.

Learning activities and methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning outcomes
Supervised oral and written tests and exercises 70 2.8 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22
Lectures 20 0.8 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21
Self-study and readings 50 2 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19
  • The students’ workload is divided between class attendance, research and information analysis, and the completion of exercises.
  • The main working tools will be the course teaching materials, supplementary readings, and the course schedule.
  • All activities have a submission deadline that must be strictly respected according to the established schedule.
  • Practical assignments will be returned to students with comments and feedback intended to help them improve.
  • This course allows the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies exclusively as support tools for bibliographic or information search tasks, and under no circumstances for the translation of texts. Lack of transparency in the use of AI in any assessed activity will be considered academic misconduct and will result in a mark of 0 for that activity, with no possibility of resubmission, without prejudice to any additional disciplinary measures in serious cases.


Note: 15 minutes of a class will be reserved, within the schedule established by the faculty/degree programme, for students to complete the teaching performance and course evaluation questionnaires.


Annotation: within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.

Assessment

Continuous assessment activities

Title Weight Hours ECTS Learning outcomes
Course Portfolio 20% 6 0.24 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 21, 22
Oral Class Participation 20% 1 0.04 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18, 19, 21, 22
Two written assessments, one mid-semester and one at the end of the semester 60% 3 0.12 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20

Assessment is continuous and consists of the following components:

  1. Completion of a personal course portfolio (20%)
  2. Two written exams, one mid-semester and one at the end of the semester (60%)
  3. Oral class participation (20%)


Important: each of the three components of the assessment must be passed separately.


  • At the beginning of the course, detailed instructions on each assessment component, as well as teaching resources to prepare them, will be provided.
  • At the time of each assessment activity, the instructor will inform students, via Moodle, of the procedure and the date for grade review.
  • Any irregularity that may lead to a significant alteration of the grade of an assessment task will result in a mark of 0 for that task, regardless of any disciplinary proceedings that may be initiated. If multiple irregularities occur in the assessment tasks of the same course, the final grade for the course will be 0. Assessment tasks in which irregularities have been detected are not eligible for resubmission.


RESIT ASSESSMENT: In order to be eligible for resit assessment, students must have obtained a minimum average grade of 3.5 in continuous assessment. The resit of the “oral class participation” component will consist of an oral exam on the course content.



Bibliography

The reading list will be provided at the start of the course.

Software

Basic software.

Course groups and languages

The information provided is provisional until November 30. After this date, you will be able to consult the language of each group through this link. To access the information, you will need to enter the course CODE

Type of teaching Group Language Semester Shift
(TE) Theory 1 French second semester morning-mixed
(PAUL) Classroom practices 1 French second semester morning-mixed