Honors Projects

Voice and Resistance in Maryse Condé's Le Cœur à rire et à pleurer: Dynamics of Race, Gender, and Écriture Féminine

Maria M. Klingele — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 08:00:40 PDT

As a collection of autobiographical short stories or vignettes, Le cœur à rire et à pleurer (Tales From the Heart: True Stories From my Childhood, 1999) represents Guadeloupean author Maryse Condé's (1937 - ) interaction with and dismissal of multiple forms of oppression. As Condé makes use of storytelling and her childhood memories to explore issues of her identity and societal role, her writing transforms into a self-declaration of social change and equality. This paper aims to identify and examine Conde's denial of constructs of Otherness, in her persistent effort to resist the cycle of oppression and to dismiss the generational pressures to conform to patriarchal and colonial values. Informed by psychoanalytic theory and feminist criticism, Condé adapts her own écriture féminine (women’s writing) to assert the significance of women’s voices as tools in breaking the silence of abjection and dismantling hierarchical notions of power.

Reality and Representation of Algerian Women: The Complex Dynamic of Heroines and Repressed Women

Caroline Rohloff — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 08:48:35 PDT

Since the Algerian war for independence against the French in the 1950s, the roles of Algerian women have been shifting over the past five decades. During the war for independence, women found themselves in positions of power, where their military assistance was necessary to win the war. However, once independence was gained in 1962, women were once again forced into the predetermined roles of wives and mothers. Over the next four decades, the situation in Algeria began to improve as the educational and work opportunities for women increased. After a setback in the 1990s, during Algeria's civil war, Algerian women have continued to make advances in society and are embracing the liberties that accompany a modernizing state. This study examines the development of women's societal positions in Algeria and the different roles that women have played during important events in Algeria's history. Through the application of feminist theory and through the use of film, this study assesses the obstacles that Algerian women have faced in their efforts to gain liberation and respect.

The French Identity Crisis: Fending Off the Franglais Invasion

Laura Cohen — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 14:18:27 PDT

In a nation that derives so much of its identity from a longstanding cultural heritage, rather than from an economic or political tradition, France finds itself facing an identity crisis. In recent decades, France has been unable to avoid the ever-expanding reach of globalization, and perhaps even more threatening, the grasp of Americanization. Consequently, as English has begun to permeate seemingly every aspect of French society, France's first line of defense against such a cultural intrusion is its language policy. This paper first examines the longstanding history between the creation of a French nation and the promotion of the French language, and then uses this foundation to explore why the recent influence of outside cultures and languages has been framed as a crisis, or a threat to French identity. The paper then addresses the evolution of French language policy throughout history, ending with an evaluation of the most recent and blatantly protectionist laws of the late 20^th century. After looking at the current realities of the French linguistic strategy and highlighting its inadequacies, the final sections of the paper examine the different strategies that could lead to a more effective or reasonable language policy in France.

Entre Etre et Devenir La recherche de l'identité dans trois romans Maghrébins

Ariana Giles '05 — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 14:13:22 PDT

Les Maghrébins sont toujours en train de négocier leur identité à cause des lésions laissées par l'ère coloniale. Pour les occidentaux, l'expérience d'un choc culturel et d'une crise d'identité sont amenés par un voyage. La plupart les occidentaux ont le choix (c'est-à-dire ils peuvent voyager ou non) et risquer le choc culturel et la crise d'identité qui les accompagnent. Par contre, le choc culturel et la crise d'identité sont imposées aux maghrébins. La colonialisation et la pression de l'assimilation produisent un choc culturel et une crise d'identité impossibles à éviter. Au moins pour les maghrébins qui avait plus de contact avec les français, il le fallait subir. Les conséquences de ce choc existent toujours. Je me propose d'expliquer ce choc culturel et la continuationjusqu'au présent dans les analyses à suivre.

Second Language Acquisition and its Practical Application: Evaluating French Textbooks at the Secondary School Level

Jacelyn O'Roark '01 — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 14:13:21 PDT

A textbook is an essential starting point for education in a foreign language classroom. That is why it is so crucial that teachers take the time to consider a text extensively. There are multiple textbooks on the market for secondary French teachers from which to choose. What makes a textbook more appropriate for one teacher or one class of students than another? I believe that we must start by looking at some of the information that is available that explains how students learn a second language. Then, it is important to consider some of the ways that the teaching of foreign languages has changed over the years and how these relate to how students learn. I will next look at the Standards for Foreign Language Learning and how these can be brought into the classroom. After this, I will offer an evaluation tool that I propose will aid teachers in considering textbooks for classroom use. A student will not have successfully mastered a second language until he or she can use that language to communicate with other speakers of this language. It is important to use a textbook that will most effectively allow a student to become interested in and comfortable with their second language.

Direct and Indirect Effects of Feminist Actions on Women's Rights in France

Kirsten Keeley '97 — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 14:13:21 PDT

This study is divided into several parts, the first of which deals with the successes and weaknesses of the French women's movement. The second part will focus on the progress and shortcomings of governmental policies which concern women's rights. This will be followed by an analysis of women's participation in national government. Finally I will show that, overall, the advances in women's rights in France since the 1960s outweigh the setbacks. If we consider their achievements within their cultural context, French women have been successful in overcoming enormous social, legal and political obstacles

L'INDUSTIE DU VIN FRANÇAIS ET SES CONCURRENTS

Lecia Gordner '97 — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 14:13:16 PDT

D'où vient le meilleur Yin du monde? La plupart des connaisseurs répondraient "de France, bien sûr!" Cette association du bon Yin avec la France n'est qu'un simple stéréotype? La France produit du Yin depuis des siècles, mais son Yin est-elle vraiment Ie meilleur du monde? Un certain nombre d'autres pays ont récemment commencé à produire du Yin. Ces pays n'ont pas l'expérience de la France, mais ils ont cependant séduit de nombreux consommateurs. Comment sait-on qu 'un bon Yin fait réellement partie des meilleurs vins? Il n'y a pas de réponse exacte parce que chaque individu a son goût personnel. Il est donc nécessaire d'étudier les vins que la majorité des connaisseurs préfèrent et les qualités que cette majorité estime essentielles pour décréter qu 'un Yin fait partie des meilleurs. Jusqu'à maintenant, ces connaisseurs sont formels, cette catégorie est dominée par les vins français.