Introduction to Medieval and Renaissance French Literature

Catalog description

This course serves as an introduction to classic French texts from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, and investigates the birth of a national literature. Students will read texts closely, examine their historical contexts from the Crusades to the Wars of Religion, and consider how these works shaped notions of love, duty, gender, otherness, and the self. Readings include major authors and genres of the period, such as texts by Chretien de Troyes, Marie de France, Marguerite de Navarre, Rabelais, Sceve, Ronsard, Louise Labe, and Montaigne. All readings, discussions, and writing in French, with emphasis on close-reading skills and constructing arguments supported by textual evidence. This course fulfills the Writing in the Major (WIM) requirement.