Master's Seminar II – Individual Track: Women Through the Ages in French Literature and Culture 3304-2D2W-SMI-025
The aim of the seminar is to provide an in-depth analysis of representations of women and constructions of femininity in French literature and culture from the seventeenth to the twenty-first century. The course focuses on historical and cultural transformations in the ways women are depicted, as well as on the evolution of discourses concerning gender, power, education, embodiment, sexuality, and female agency. Particular attention is given to how literary and cultural texts both reflect and actively shape social norms, gendered imaginaries, and strategies of their contestation.
The seminar has a diachronic and problem-oriented structure, covering texts from the early modern period to the present day. This allows for an examination of both continuity and change in the representation of femininity within French culture. The corpus includes literary works as well as essays, theoretical writings, and scholarly studies drawn from literary studies, gender studies, and cultural theory.
Among the primary sources are classical and Enlightenment texts such as Le diable amoureux by Jacques Cazotte, Lettres de Mistriss Henley by Isabelle de Charrière, Louise Dupin’s treatise Des femmes. Observations du préjugé commun sur la différence des sexes, as well as selected feminist fairy tales from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries by Mme d’Aulnoy, Mlle L’Héritier, Catherine Bernard, La Comtesse de Murat, and Mlle de la Force. These texts make it possible to analyse literary models of femininity as well as early forms of critique of patriarchal social structures and proto-feminist thought.
A key component of the seminar is the confrontation between historical representations of women and modern and contemporary feminist discourses. In this context, works such as Virginie Despentes’s King Kong Théorie, Judith Butler’s Uwikłani w płeć, Camille Kouchner’s La familia grande, as well as writings by Azélie Fayolle and Iris Brey are discussed. These texts enable an analysis of contemporary redefinitions of gender and identity, as well as the role of language and narrative in shaping female experience and subjectivity.
An important part of the syllabus consists of scholarly studies and cultural-historical works that situate the analysed texts within broader intellectual contexts: from the history of women and feminism (Auffret), through salon culture and conversational practices (Craveri), to the history of female readers and representations of reading women (Aragon), as well as studies of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century religious and social life (Bernos). The seminar also incorporates selected issues of Cahiers du dix-septième, dedicated to feminisms in early modern France, allowing students to engage with current academic research.
The seminar is discussion-based and research-oriented, with a strong emphasis on students’ independent analytical work. Particular attention is given to the development of critical reading skills, the ability to formulate research questions, and the use of methodological approaches drawn from literary studies and gender studies.
The aim of the seminar is not only to reconstruct historical models of femininity in French culture, but also to reflect on their contemporary reinterpretations and on the ways in which literature and culture continuously participate in the negotiation of gender and identity.
With regard to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools in classes and when preparing a dissertation, the rules set out in Resolution No. 42 of the Teaching Council for the Roman Philology degree programme, dated 15 April 2024, apply.
Resolution: https://romanistyka.wn.uw.edu.pl/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/RD_uchwala_42_15-kwietnia-2024_wytyczne_SI_.pdf
Appendix: https://romanistyka.wn.uw.edu.pl/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/RD_uchwala_42_15-kwietnia-2024_wytyczne_SI_ZALACZNIK_1.pdf
Course coordinators
Type of course
Mode
Prerequisites (description)
Learning outcomes
KNOWLEDGE – the graduate knows and understands
at an advanced level, the place and significance of the humanities, in particular literary studies, within the system of academic disciplines, as well as their subject-specific and methodological characteristics
at an advanced level, terminology in the field of French literary studies
at an advanced level, the main processes occurring in language and literature within the Francophone cultural area
at an advanced level, the principles of analysis and interpretation of texts belonging to various functional styles of the French language
basic concepts and principles related to intellectual property protection and copyright law
SKILLS – the graduate is able to
use basic research skills in academic work, including analysing research problems, formulating hypotheses, selecting research methods and tools, as well as processing and presenting results in the preparation of their own literary studies work
identify, analyse, and interpret various types of cultural products (language, literature), using appropriate terminology and relevant research methods and tools
present their own views, referring to various sources and basic theoretical approaches, and argue for a chosen standpoint
plan and prepare oral presentations in French and Polish, referring to basic theoretical approaches relevant to literary studies
prepare written academic work in French and Polish, referring to basic theoretical approaches relevant to literary studies
SOCIAL COMPETENCES – the graduate is ready to
care for cultural heritage, especially in relation to French and Francophone culture
actively participate in French and Francophone culture, using various forms and media
comply with basic principles of professional ethics and with principles of intellectual property protection and copyright law
Assessment criteria
The final grade is based on active participation in class discussions, ongoing textual analyses prepared for each session, and progress in research related to the MA thesis. Throughout the semester, students complete short interpretative tasks, oral presentations, and engage in problem-based discussions on the assigned readings.
Assessment also takes into account the ability to independently analyse literary and critical texts, formulate research questions, and develop them within seminar discussions. A key component is the systematic work on the MA thesis project (or selected parts of it) and the ability to incorporate methodological feedback and suggestions.
Requirements for passing the seminar include regular attendance, active participation in discussions, and timely completion of assigned tasks.
The completion of the seminar and the awarding of a pass enabling the student to take the MA examination is conditional upon the submission of the final version of the MA thesis.
Practical placement
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Bibliography
Aragon Sandrine, Des liseuses en péril. Les images de lectrices dans les textes de fiction de La Prétieuse de l’abbé de Pure à Madame Bovary de Flaubert (1656-1856), Paris, Honoré Champion, 2003.
Auffret Séverine, Une histoire du féminisme. De l’Antiquité à nos jours, Paris, Alpha, 2023.
Bernos Marcel, Femmes et gens d’Église dans la France classique XVIIe–XVVIIIe siècle, Paris, Cerf, 2003. (BWN)
Brey Iris, Le regard féminin. Une révolution à l’écran, Paris, Éditions de l’Olivier, 2020 (BWN).
Butler Judith, Uwikłani w płeć. Feminizm i polityka tożsamości, trad. K. Krasuska, Warszawa, Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej, 2008.
Cahiers du dix-septième (1987-2023) Vol. 21, Feminisms and Early Modern France /Féminismes et première modernité, ed. Hélène Bilis/Sylvaine Guyot : link: https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/cahiers17e/index
Cazenobe Colette, Au malheur des dames. Le roman féminin au XVIIIe siècle, Paris, Honoré Champion, 2006.
Craveri Benedetta, L’âge de la conversation, trad. Éliane Deschamps-Pria, Paris, Gallimard, 2013.
Despentes Virginie, King Kong Théorie, Paris, Grasset, 2006 (BWN).
Fayolle Azélie, Des femmes et du style pour féminist gaze, Paris, éditions divergeances, 2023.