French

Doug Leonard '12
After taking a course in Spring 2011 on 20th century France, I began to think a lot about the depiction of behavior and social mores in literature. Is it okay for an author to reveal the details about a friend's private life in his autobiographical novel? What is an author really saying when she writes about the behavior expected of her at school and at church? Questions like these inspired my current honors project: "L’Ecriture activiste: la représentation de la révolte dans la littérature d’Annie Ernaux, d’Hervé Guibert et de Christiane Rochefort" a study of countercultural revolt in 20th century France and its representation in literature. Focusing on the works of Hervé Guibert, Annie Ernaux, and Christiane Rochefort, I'm looking for ways in which these authors attacked the prevailing thought and customs of their time. I'm working primarily with Professor VanderWolk, but I'm also receiving guidance from Professors Dauge-Roth and Daniels. All three have been great, and the department is a really encouraging environment in which to conduct research.

Daniel Chin '12
My honor’s thesis "L'Ecriture de la diaspora franco-chinoise: l'identité et la capacité transformative de la langue" is on migrant Chinese writers in French literature. Before taking a class when I was abroad in Paris called “Francophone Chinese Writers”, I had never before thought these two groups would intersect. My professor had us read two books in a very structured way, which is how the French universities like to teach. What excites me most about this project is that I can bring it to Bowdoin and really personalize it as an independent work to finish my French major. I’m really enjoying the process of exploring a unique topic and finding help from a number of professors with different research areas. As I consider graduate studies, this is also a really valuable experience to do research and practice presenting, and most of all, to improve my French skills. Returning to the actual content of the project, I am looking at four writers and their diverse works on identity formation. These writers negotiate cultural differences between China and different western societies, which they have found through French language and literature. Overall, my project explores the transformative power of language and literature, so I feel like it really reinforces a lot of what I have learned during my time at Bowdoin.