Ellen Di Giovanni

This class is designed primarily for students who haven’t had any exposure to French and will allow them to develop, over the course of the year, an active command of the fundamentals of spoken and written French. We will use grammar lessons to learn how to speak, read, and write in French. In-class dialogue will center on the study of theatre, cinema, and short texts, including poems, newspaper articles, and short stories from French and francophone cultures. During the spring semester, students will be able to conduct a small-scale project in French on a topic of their choice. There are no individual conference meetings for this level. The class meets three times a week, and a weekly conversation session with a French language tutor is required. Attendance at the weekly French lunch table and French film screenings are both highly encouraged. Students who successfully complete a beginning and an intermediate-level French course are eligible to study in Paris with Sarah Lawrence College during their junior year.

This course will offer a systematic review of French grammar and is designed to strengthen and deepen students’ mastery of grammatical structures and vocabulary. Students will also begin to use linguistic concepts as tools for developing their analytic writing. We will study a series of scenes from francophone literature from its origins to today. From the 11th-century Chanson de Rolanditalic and 12th-century lais and fables of Marie de France to contemporary works by Aimé Césaire, Aminata Sow-Fall, and Annie Ernaux, we will explore what it is about literary scenes that differs from those created in other media and what happens when we encounter them as part of a class rather than on our own. Readings may also include letters by Marie de Rabutin-Chantal (Madame de Sévigné), excerpts from novels by Madame de La Fayette or Gustave Flaubert, and poetry by Léon-Gontran Damas. Where possible, our discussion will include points of comparison with scenes in visual media, such as theatre and photography. The Intermediate I and II courses in French are specially designed to help prepare students for studying in Paris with Sarah Lawrence College during their junior year.

This class is designed primarily for students who haven’t had any exposure to French and will allow them to develop an active command of the fundamentals of spoken and written French over the course of the year. In class and in group conferences, emphasis will be placed on activities relating to students’ daily lives and to French and francophone culture. The course will rely heavily on the the study of French songs, cinema, newspaper articles, poems, and short stories. During the spring semester, students will be able to conduct a small-scale project in French on a topic of their choice. There are no individual conference meetings for this level. The class meets three times a week, and a weekly conversation session with a French language assistant is required. Attendance at the weekly French lunch table and French film screenings are both highly encouraged. Students who successfully complete a beginning and an intermediate-level French course are eligible to study in Paris with Sarah Lawrence College during their junior year.

This course will offer a systematic review of French grammar and is designed to strengthen and deepen students’ mastery of grammatical structures and vocabulary. Students will also learn to begin to use linguistic concepts as tools for developing their analytic writing. Over the course of the year, we will study a series of scenes from French and francophone literature from its origins to today. From the 11th-century Chanson de Roland and 12th-century “lais” and fables of Marie de France to 20th-century works by Aimé Césaire, Aminata Sow-Fall and Annie Ernaux, we will look at scenes specific to literature. What is it about literary scenes that differs from those created in other media? And what happens when we encounter them as part of a class rather than on our own? Where possible, our discussion will include points of comparison with scenes in visual media such as theatre and photography. Readings will include excerpts from Marie de Rabutin-Chantal (Madame de Sévigné), Madame de La Fayette, Gustave Flaubert, or Léon-Gontran Damas. At regular intervals, we will also study the headlines of Libération, a major Parisian daily. In this part of the course, we will consider the way climate change, food, or secularism are discussed, as well as aesthetic and ethical choices in presenting the news. In addition to conferences, a weekly conversation session with a French language assistant(e) is required. Attendance at the weekly French lunch table and French film screenings are both highly encouraged. The Intermediate I and II courses in French are specially designed to help prepare students for studying in Paris with Sarah Lawrence College during their junior year.

This course will offer a systematic review of French grammar and is designed to strengthen and deepen students’ mastery of grammatical structures and vocabulary. Students will also learn to begin to use linguistic concepts as tools for developing their analytic writing. Over the course of the year, we will study a series of scenes from French and Francophone literature from its origins to today. From the 11th-century Chanson de Roland and lais of Marie de France to 20th-century works by writers Aminata Sow-Fall and Fatou Diome, we will look at scenes specific to literature. What is it about literary scenes that differs from those created in other media? And what happens when we encounter them as part of a class rather than on our own? Our discussion will include points of comparison with scenes in visual media such as theatre and photography. Readings will include works by Marie de Rabutin-Chantal (Madame de Sévigné), Madame de La Fayette, Aloysius Bertrand, Flaubert, Léon-Gontran Damas. We will also look at the daily press at regular intervals. Becoming familiar with today’s issues will allow us to consider our own culture(s) in light of what we read. In this part of the course, we will look at some of the questions being debated in France today, such as climate change, immigration, transportation, food politics, laïcité, etc. In addition to conferences, a weekly conversation session with a French language assistant(e) is required. Attendance at the weekly French lunch table and French film screenings are both highly encouraged.

This intermediate course will offer a systematic review of the most fundamental aspects of French grammar. The aim of this course is to give students greater fluency in French and to prepare them for possible study abroad with the SLC in Paris program. The class will emphasize developing oral proficiency by working on specific grammatical structures and conjugations, as well as idiomatic expressions. We will also focus on writing skills through in-class short essays and exercises with the primary goal of strengthening students’ grammatical agility and technical vocabulary. Students will also be introduced to modern French and francophone culture by studying short texts (articles, short stories, poems, excerpts from novels), visual media, music, and film. Recent courses for this level have focused on French and francophone identities in the 20th and 21st centuries, French film and theatre, and education and childhood in the modern age. In addition to conferences, a weekly conversation session with a French language assistant(e) is required. Attendance at the weekly French lunch table and French film screenings are both highly encouraged. The Intermediate I and II French courses are specially designed to help prepare students for studying in Paris with Sarah Lawrence College the following year.

This French course is designed for students who already have a strong understanding of the major aspects of French grammar and language but wish to develop their vocabulary and their grasp of more complex aspects of the language. We will review the fundamentals of French grammar while also stressing nuances and special cases in order for students to speak and write in a more authentic French. This course is designed to prepare students to do advanced work with the SLC study-abroad program in Paris; students will be introduced to different forms of French academic writing. Students are expected to be able to easily read more complex texts and to express themselves more abstractly. A major component of the course will be the study and discussion of literary texts in French. We will read both short texts and longer works in their entirety in order to develop skills of reading comprehension and analysis. Recent courses for this level have focused on the literature of the everyday in French, on existentialism, and on French and francophone autobiographies. In addition to conferences, a weekly conversation session with a French language assistant(e) is required. Attendance at the weekly French lunch table and French film screenings are both highly encouraged. The Intermediate French I and II courses are specially designed to help prepare students for studying in Paris with Sarah Lawrence College the following year.