FRN 412 - Wit & Reason: A Breeding Ground for Revolution

1 course unit

This course examines the themes of wit and reason in literary works from seventeenth and eighteenth century France. Through the study of theatrical, philosophical, scientific, and fictional texts, we will investigate the roles of comedy and satire in conjunction and in contrast with the growth of enlightenment, “le siècle des lumières,” in pre- and post-revolutionary France. In particular, we will examine the ways in which authors such as Molière, Corneille, Racine, Beaumarchais, Voltaire, and Rousseau employ both wit and reason to stimulate social and political change within a tumultuous society. Taught in French.
Prerequisite(s): FRN 304 Advanced French Conversation & Composition .
Meets general academic requirement L and effective Fall 2013 HU.