Heroes and Humanists
A recurring question in world literature is how and why we make the life choices we do: what absolute values, what hope of a positive outcome, inform those choices? What higher purpose do we see ourselves as serving, if any? We will consider these questions as they have been addressed in a wide range of French literary texts, and try to determine how the conceptions of heroism and man's potential have evolved since the seventeenth century. Readings may include: Corneille, Horace; Molière, Dom Juan; Voltaire, Candide; Anouilh, Antigone; Malraux, La Condition humaine; Sartre, La Nausée; Camus, La Peste, La Chute; Beckett, Fin de partie.(FREN 0221 or by waiver) 3 hrs. lect./disc.