Contemporary Francophone Cinema and Social Issues
| Code | School | Level | Credits | Semesters |
| MLAC2151 | Modern Languages and Cultures | 2 | 10 | Spring UK |
- Code
- MLAC2151
- School
- Modern Languages and Cultures
- Level
- 2
- Credits
- 10
- Semesters
- Spring UK
Summary
The module will engage in a detailed analysis of four recent Francophone films that deal with contemporary social issues and institutions: Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne, Rosetta (1999); Laurent Cantet, Ressources Humaines (2000); Stéphane Brizé, La loi du marché (2015); Xavier Legrand, Jusqu’à la garde (2017). Thematic analysis will focus on the way in which the films present characters in a social context. The module will look at the ways in which these characters are subject to economic forces, interact with institutions, and function as members of social groups. The films will also be analysed from a formal perspective, considering the ways in which they all draw on the resources of cinematic realism in order to provide a representation of contemporary life that is both compelling and challenging for viewers.
Target Students
Available to SH and JH UG students taking French as part of their plan, including post-beginners taking MLAC2145. Available to Liberal Arts and subsidiary students who have taken MLAC1150
Co-requisites
Modules you must take in the same academic year, or have taken in a previous year, to enrol in this module:
Classes
- One 2-hour lecture each week for 11 weeks
The School of Cultures, Languages and Area Studies operates an attendance policy. The details of this policy can be found in the student handbook on Workspace and in module handbooks.
Assessment
- 100% Coursework 1: 1 x 2000 word essay
Assessed by end of spring semester
Educational Aims
There are two main aims of the module. First to consider the ways in which the films studied seek highlight and raise questions about contemporary social issues. The second aim is to provide students with tools for analysing the formal techniques that the films deploy in order to function as broadly realist representations of contemporary life.Learning Outcomes
Knowledge and Understanding. On successful completion of the module, students will have acquired an in-depth knowledge of:
- A3. The main formal characteristics and thematic preoccupations of contemporary realist Francophone cinema.
- A4. Principles of the analysis of realist cinematic texts in thematic terms.
- A4. Principles of the analysis of realist cinematic texts in formal terms.
- A4. Critical approaches to realist cinematic texts.
Intellectual Skills
- B1. Undertake close textual analysis.
- B4. Engage in independent study and research.
- B5. Engage in critical and analytic reflection.
- B7. Engage in exchanges of ideas with others, giving due weight to their opinions.
- B8. Make a practical and effective use of both English and the target language.
Professional and transferable skills
- D1: Effective communication of information and ideas in appropriate registers of both oral and written English.
- D2: Gathering, processing and critically evaluating material from a variety of sources, written, oral or audio-visual.
- D3: Definition of problems and construction of strategies for their solution.
- D4: Working productively independently.
- D7: Organising time and work programmes effectively and meeting deadlines.
- D8: Effective use of IT as a means of communication, presentation and learning.
- D9: Ability to reflect on his/her own performance and recognise strengths and weaknesses.
- D10: General personal skills: self-reliance, flexibility, initiative, self-confidence.
- D6: Working productively under pressure.