Masano Yamashita's current research is centered on accidents, chance, and inequality in eighteenth-century France. Her research interrogates the roles played by gender, migration, and social class in shaping early modern conceptions of human agency. Yamashita's main research areas include the the literature and culture of the French Enlightenment and the Revolutionary period. She has published on women's lives, Rousseau and the philosophes, the relationship between rhetoric and democracy during the Revolutionary period, poverty, fortune, and chance in the age of Enlightenment.
keywords
Eighteenth-century literature and social thought, women's studies, Enlightenment studies, French Revolution
FREN 3110 - Main Currents of French Literature 1
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Fall 2021
An exploration of principal themes and texts from Medieval times to the Revolution. Students will become familiar with key moments of intellectual and cultural history.
FREN 3200 - Introduction to Literary Theory and Advanced Critical Analysis
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Fall 2020
Introduces important aspects of both classical and modern literary theory as an aid to reading and understanding literary texts. Covers theoretical works by figures ranging from Plato and Aristotle to modern French critics such as Barthes, Foucault, and Derrida in conjunction with selected literary works. Offers students more sophisticated means of understanding issues like gender, ethnicity, the roles of both author and reader in constructing meaning, the nature and functions of signs, and the relationship between literature and the larger society. Conducted in English, though French majors are required to read the texts in the original language. Required for students taking honors in French or Italian.
FREN 3300 - French Culture Through Fashion
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Fall 2022 / Fall 2023
Studies fashion as a means of identity construction as well as a means of resistance in France from 1789 until present day. Through an analysis of clothing trends, students will study the cultural significance of certain fads in French history that allowed marginalized demographics to define and assert their individuality.
FREN 3700 - French-American Cultural Differences
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Fall 2021
Students will identify and consider key differences between French and American cultural, political and civic values through the analysis of film, literature, journalism, and personal observations.
FREN 4110 - French Special Topics
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Spring 2019 / Spring 2023
Topics vary each semester. Consult the online Schedule Planner for specific topics. See also FREN 4120.
FREN 4600 - Topics in French Film
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Spring 2020 / Fall 2023
Covers various topics in the French and some other Francophone cinemas (Belgian, Swiss, Quebecois) from 1895 to the present. Focuses on periods, schools, themes, and directors from Melies to Duras, and the critical approaches by which they are studied. Varies from year to year. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours on different topics.
FREN 4990 - Senior Seminar
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Spring 2019 / Summer 2019 / Spring 2022 / Spring 2023 / Fall 2023
Preparation of a 15-page research paper in French presented to two members of the department faculty and defended orally in class. Recommended prerequisite: at least one course numbered FREN 4100 or above and all third-year requirements and advisor consent.
FREN 5110 - French Special Topics
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Spring 2023
Different topics are offered and, in a number of cases, cross-listed with other departments. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours on different topics.
FREN 5120 - French Special Topics
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Fall 2018
Different topics are offered and, in a number of cases, cross-listed with other departments. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours on different topics.
FREN 5350 - French Enlightenment
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Spring 2020 / Spring 2022
Focuses on the uses of literature to address the revolutionary philosophical, scientific, religious, and/or sociopolitical questions of the day. Explores Diderot and d'alembert's Encyclopedie, Voltaire and Diderot's philosophical tales and dialogues, Rousseau's Discours, and other writings. Discusses the development of specific literary forms to promote the ideas and goals of the philosophers to reach a changing and diverse readership and to fight censorship.
FREN 5360 - 18th Century French Literature
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Spring 2021
Focuses on the study of a specific literary genre (e.g., theatre, the novel) or on the global production of a major author (e.g., Voltaire, Diderot, Rousseau). Discussion stresses both the uniqueness of the genre/writer and their significance as representatives of the century's changing society and culture. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours during a student's graduate career.
FYSM 1000 - First Year Seminar
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Fall 2018 / Fall 2019 / Fall 2020
Provide first year students with an immersive experience in an interdisciplinary topic that addresses current issues including social, technical and global topics. Taught by faculty from across campus, the course provides students with an opportunity to interact in small classes, have project based learning experiences and gain valuable communication skills. Seminar style classes focused on discussion and projects.
