FREN 6719
Laugh/Smile w/Rabalais, Mont
Rire avec Rabelais - Sourire avec Montaigne / Laugh with Rabelais, Smile with Montaigne
(Section A – Methodology ; Section B – Literature)
“When you do not know where you are going, remember where you came from.” This saying, thought to be Chinese by some, and by others, an example of African wisdom, will be our point of departure in a journey through two major texts of 16th century French prose: Rabelais’ Gargantua (1534) and Montaigne ‘s Les Essais (1580-1588).
François Rabelais (1494-1553) belonged to the early Renaissance generation: this was the era of faith in Man, the passionate rediscovery of the works of Antiquity, and interest in new religious expression. Gargantua addresses all the big questions that grip humanists: education, war, politics and religion. This work still surprises with its combination of seriousness and buffoonery. In the preface to his book, Rabelais reminds his readers that “to laugh is human”; We will attempt to understand laugher and analyze its different forms to appreciate its liberating functions.
From Rabelaisian laughter, we will proceed to Montaigne’s smile-inducing humour. While Rabelais expressed the optimism of early Renaissance, Montaigne is a man of the mature Renaissance, a period of religious wars. The confidence and optimism of the first humanists was superseded by anxiety and doubt. The Essais were born of a France ravaged by violence. Concentrating our attention on a few of Les Essais, we will study the book’s essential themes: the intimate self –portrait, discovery of others, the role of books, education, politics, travel, doubt, the art of living…Montaigne’s knowledge and reflexion cannot be separated from the flavour of his writing- his taste for simple and unadorned speech, irony, and humour make his book a unique work that continues to fascinate readers..
Texts:
Rabelais: Pantagruel, Gargantua: textes choisis par Madeleine Lazard,classiques Hachette : ISBN :2-01-017876-9.
Montaigne sans commencement et sans fin -Extraits des Essais, présentation par Françoise Joukovsky, GF-Flammarion : ISBN : 978-2-0807-0980-6
N.B Students who choose section A can validate their credits in methodology (equivalent to 6525).
(Section A – Methodology ; Section B – Literature)
“When you do not know where you are going, remember where you came from.” This saying, thought to be Chinese by some, and by others, an example of African wisdom, will be our point of departure in a journey through two major texts of 16th century French prose: Rabelais’ Gargantua (1534) and Montaigne ‘s Les Essais (1580-1588).
François Rabelais (1494-1553) belonged to the early Renaissance generation: this was the era of faith in Man, the passionate rediscovery of the works of Antiquity, and interest in new religious expression. Gargantua addresses all the big questions that grip humanists: education, war, politics and religion. This work still surprises with its combination of seriousness and buffoonery. In the preface to his book, Rabelais reminds his readers that “to laugh is human”; We will attempt to understand laugher and analyze its different forms to appreciate its liberating functions.
From Rabelaisian laughter, we will proceed to Montaigne’s smile-inducing humour. While Rabelais expressed the optimism of early Renaissance, Montaigne is a man of the mature Renaissance, a period of religious wars. The confidence and optimism of the first humanists was superseded by anxiety and doubt. The Essais were born of a France ravaged by violence. Concentrating our attention on a few of Les Essais, we will study the book’s essential themes: the intimate self –portrait, discovery of others, the role of books, education, politics, travel, doubt, the art of living…Montaigne’s knowledge and reflexion cannot be separated from the flavour of his writing- his taste for simple and unadorned speech, irony, and humour make his book a unique work that continues to fascinate readers..
Texts:
Rabelais: Pantagruel, Gargantua: textes choisis par Madeleine Lazard,classiques Hachette : ISBN :2-01-017876-9.
Montaigne sans commencement et sans fin -Extraits des Essais, présentation par Françoise Joukovsky, GF-Flammarion : ISBN : 978-2-0807-0980-6
N.B Students who choose section A can validate their credits in methodology (equivalent to 6525).
- Subject:
- French
- Department:
- French
- Division:
- Language School
- Requirements Fulfilled:
- Literature Pedagogy