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Module Content and Indicative Topics

This module will examine four French texts from the twentieth century — two plays, a novel, and a piece of ‘life-writing’. The focus of the module will be on how these texts engage with modern forms of alienation. In so doing, it will explore the implications of their innovation at the level of form for the representation of the self.

Teaching Delivery

The module will be taught in a seminar format. Students should read the primary texts, secondary reading as suggested, and should prepare questions and discussion points as posted on the moodle site for each seminar. Students will have the opportunity to write a practice essay in preparation for the exam. In the exam, students will answer one question on one of the texts, and another question on two of the texts together (comparative).

Enrolment on this module is restricted to second-year students following the post-A-level French route. You will not be able to join the module if you do not meet these criteria.

By the end of the module, you should be able to:

1. Show familiarity with some key twentieth-century authors;

2. Be able to analyse different texts with an awareness of their varying forms and contexts;

3. Write convincingly in essay form about these texts;

4. Draw comparisons between different texts;

5. Consider the expression of different forms of subjectivity;

6. Make appropriate use of secondary criticism.

Recommended Reading

In preparation for the module, we advise reading the following core texts. These can be found in the UCL Library:

• Samuel Beckett, En attendant Godot (Minuit, 1952)
• Jean Genet, Les Bonnes (Folio)
• Annie Ernaux, La Place (Gallimard Folio, 1983)
• Marie Darrieussecq, Truismes (P.O.L., 1996)