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French Civilization & Culture
Engineering Program
Paris, France
Dates: 5/12/25 - 6/25/25
French Civilization & Culture
OVERVIEW
CEA CAPA Partner Institution: CEA CAPA Paris Center
Location: Paris, France
Primary Subject Area: Cultural Studies
Other Subject Area: Anthropology, History, Sociology
Instruction in: English
Course Code: CUL350CDG
Transcript Source: University of New Haven
Course Details: Level 300
Recommended Semester Credits: 3
Contact Hours: 45
Prerequisites: None
DESCRIPTION
A historical and sociological analysis of French civilization and culture from Roman to contemporary times, this course engages you in the life and culture of France's capital city, Paris, in order to encounter, analyze and appreciate French society, culture and behavioral patterns.
In this process, you will acquire knowledge of the main events, personalities and periods of the history of France and, importantly, of their ongoing influence over current French life and contemporary ideas. You will also survey the major institutions and power structures of French society and assess how they have changed over the last century. These you will investigate both in class and out in order to better identify and understand the principal ideological, political, social and cultural fault lines in France today. At the conclusion of this course, you will be able to evaluate the role history plays in shaping French culture and identity.
In order to ease your integration into French life and culture, this course also guides you in a critically analysis of French culture: of what it is constituted, how to recognize it, and with which means for evaluating it. Upon this foundation you will build intercultural strategies for understanding, adapting to, and sharing in local customs and values. The course therefore includes an intercultural component that aids you in making discerning and meaningful comparisons between home and host social customs and realities. You will critically reflect on cultural differences between U.S and France as a means towards both analyzing the host culture more intelligently and navigating it more successfully. At the end of the course, you will understand that a nation's customs, attitudes and behaviors are intimately linked to its particular historical, social and economic evolution.
In this process, you will acquire knowledge of the main events, personalities and periods of the history of France and, importantly, of their ongoing influence over current French life and contemporary ideas. You will also survey the major institutions and power structures of French society and assess how they have changed over the last century. These you will investigate both in class and out in order to better identify and understand the principal ideological, political, social and cultural fault lines in France today. At the conclusion of this course, you will be able to evaluate the role history plays in shaping French culture and identity.
In order to ease your integration into French life and culture, this course also guides you in a critically analysis of French culture: of what it is constituted, how to recognize it, and with which means for evaluating it. Upon this foundation you will build intercultural strategies for understanding, adapting to, and sharing in local customs and values. The course therefore includes an intercultural component that aids you in making discerning and meaningful comparisons between home and host social customs and realities. You will critically reflect on cultural differences between U.S and France as a means towards both analyzing the host culture more intelligently and navigating it more successfully. At the end of the course, you will understand that a nation's customs, attitudes and behaviors are intimately linked to its particular historical, social and economic evolution.