Module description
This course examines post-war French politics and society through the study of objects. It explores issues such as race, class, gender and sexuality in the context of modernisation and urbanisation, colonisation and globalisation, social movements and revolt. The course assesses the rebuilding of France in the aftermath of collaboration and occupation, looking at the expansion of the French state, the emergence of new social groups and categories, and the way in which conflicts emerge over social, political and cultural questions. It charts these processes by focusing on the study of objects, drawing on a range of perspectives developed by historians, sociologists and critical theorists.
Assessment details
500-word Project summary (20%), 2500-word Coursework essay (80%)
Educational aims & objectives
To provide students with an understanding of key events and processes in modern French history, as well as the broader socio-economic, political, and cultural developments of the period. To develop students' ability to marshal information from a variety of sources, particularly those in French. To assess key theoretical debates and developments in modern French history, politics and culture in a clear and concise manner. To present their own arguments in a well-structured form, both in class and in their written submissions.
Learning outcomes
This programme aims to enable students to develop key transferable analytical and organisational skills, notably with regard to research and writing. More specifically, they will be able to:
- develop an understanding of key critical perspectives on the relationship between everyday objects and wider social, political and cultural processes in modern France
- explore the relationship between civil society, the state and the market in modern France, with a particular focus on questions of race, class, gender and sexuality
- develop an understanding of key political debates in modern France, notably those relating to questions of Republicanism and the French national myth and their impact on the perception and production of notions of 'Frenchness'
- examine relevant material and communicate their thoughts and findings with others through presentations, debates and group discussion
- research and critically reflect on the issues covered on the course and develop coherent written arguments and analyses as a result of this reflection.
Teaching pattern
Two classes per week (1 lecture, 1 seminar).
Suggested reading list
Core texts
In French
- Roland Barthes, Mythologies (Paris, 1957)
- Luc Boltanski et Eve Chiapello, Le Nouvel Esprit du Capitalisme (Paris, 1999)
- Pierre Bourdieu, La Distinction. Critique Sociale Du Jugement (Paris, 1982)
- Guy Debord, La Société du spectacle (Paris, 1967)
- Henri Lefebvre, Critique de la vie quotidienne (Paris, 1947, 1961, 1981)
- Georges Perec, Les Choses. Une histoire des années soixante (Paris, 1965)
In English
- Kristin Ross, Fast Cars, Clean Bodies, Decolonization and the Reordering of French Culture (MIT, 1995)
In Translation
- Roland Barthes, Mythologies (Vintage, 2009)
- Luc Boltanski and Eve Chiapello, The New Spririt of Capitalism (Verso, 2018)
- Pierre Bourdieu, Distinction (Harvard, 1987)
- Guy Debord, The Society of the Spectacle (Critial Editions, 2021)
- Henri Lefebvre, Critique of Everyday Life (Verso, 2014)
- Georges Perec, Things: A Story of the Sixties (Collins, 1990)
- Kristin Ross, Fast Cars, Clean Bodies, Decolonization and the Reordering of French Culture (MIT, 1995)