French and Francophone Studies 251: What's in a monument?

As a nation, the French have a long tradition of self-definition and commemoration through large piles of stone. The Pantheon, the Arc de triomphe… but also the Louvre, the Académie française, and the Sorbonne all blend the institutional and the monumental. Public spaces are furthermore adorned with innumerable statues and busts commemorating historical figures, some of whom, like Confederate statues in the United States, are being challenged and sometimes removed for their colonial or slave trade activities. But who gets to decide what is collected, remembered, or ignored? How is France dealing with its colonial collections and heritage, and how are new works redefining what it means to build a monument? In this course we will examine symbolic objects, institutions, and individuals as cultural products. Coursework will include readings, media analysis, short writing assignments, and a collaborative project. Two course meetings per week plus one half-hour conversation session with a French Language Assistant. Conducted in French.