The table below includes the weekly readings, screenings, and facts covered in each class session. The following books are general reading to help prepare speeches, historical notes, and debates.
- Forbes, Jill, and Michael Kelly, eds. French Cultural Studies: An Introduction. Oxford University Press, 1996. ISBN: 9780198715016.
- Brouard, Sylvain, Andrew Appleton, and Amy G. Mazur, eds. The French Fifth Republic at Fifty: Beyond Stereotypes. Palgrave Macmillan, 2009. ISBN: 9780230221246.
- Chafer, Tony, and Emmanuel Godin, eds. The End of the French Exception? Decline and Revival of the "French Model". Palgrave Macmillan, 2010. ISBN: 9780230220782.
- Drake, Helen. Contemporary France. Palgrave Macmillan, 2011. ISBN: 9780333792445.
| SES # | TOPICS | READINGS, SCREENINGS, AND FACTS |
|---|---|---|
The Settlement of the Fifth Republic (1958–1974) | ||
| 1 | Introduction. The Algerian War |
Screening:The Battle of Algiers. Directed by Gillo Pontecorvo. Black and White, 121 min, 1966. Reading:Malraux, André. Speech on the Transfer of Jean Moulin's ashes to the Panthéon (PDF), 1964. |
| 2 | The Imperial Presidency |
Readings:Charles de Gaulle, Discourse at Bayeux (1946) Translation in Debré, Michel. Speech to the Council of State (PDF), 1958. Facts:The Majoritarian System |
| 3 | May 1968: A Moral Revolution? |
Readings:Ross, Kristen. "The Police Conception of History." Chapter 1 in May '68 and Its Afterlives. University of Chicago Press, 2004, pp. 19–25. ISBN: 9780226727998. [Preview with Google Books] Constitutional Council. Freedom of Association Decision (PDF), 1971. Facts:The Constitutional Domain |
| The Liberalization of the Regime (1974–1988) | ||
| 4 | A New Generation |
Screening:Going Places. Directed by Bertrand Blier. Color, 150 min, 1974. |
| 5 | The Socialist Era |
Readings:Mitterrand, François. Speech at Epinay (PDF), 1971. CSA. Deliberation Relative to the Evaluation of the Respect of Political Pluralism in the Media (PDF), 2000. Facts:Decentralization |
| 6 | The Liberal Turning Point and the Cohabitation |
Readings:D'Estaing, Valéry Giscard. Speech at Verdun sur le Doubs (PDF), 1978. Smith, Timothy. "The Misunderstood French Welfare State." Chapter 1 in France in Crisis: Welfare, Inequality, and Globalization since 1980. Cambridge University Press, 2004, pp. 1–15. ISBN: 9780521605205. [Preview with Google Books] Facts:Cohabitation |
| The Times of Crises (1988–Present) | ||
| 7 | Revisiting France's Past |
Screening:The Last Mitterrand. Directed by Robert Guédiguian. Color, 116 min, 2005. |
| 8 | European Doubts |
Readings:Schuman, Robert. Declaration on the ECSC (PDF), 1950. Chirac, Jacques. Cochin Appeal (PDF), 1978. France and the Euro. "The Time-Bomb at the Heart of Europe. Why France could become the Biggest Danger to Europe's Single Currency." The Economist, November, 2012. |
| 9 | Identities and the Nation |
Reading:Scott, Joan W. "Sexuality." Chapter 5 in The Politics of the Veil. Princeton University Press, 2007, pp. 151–74. ISBN: 9780691125435. [Preview with Google Books] |
| Are You The Future French President? | ||
| 10 | A New Political System? |
Screening:The Conquest. Directed by Xavier Durringer. Color, 105 min, 2011. |
| 11 | Final Statement | No readings. |
| 12 | "Presidential Debate" | No readings. |