French 6 (FREN30004)

This subject offers high-level French students a course in advanced conversation structure and analysis. It will build on the linguistic and cultural competences acquired in previous levels to develop greater awareness of how the historical, intercultural, political and social aspects of language impact on oral communication in French.

The program will focus on two main areas of conversation: the refinement of conversation as an expression of elegance, intelligence and “esprit” during the Ancien Régime and the political dimensions of contemporary conversation and debate. It will include material on significant cultural taboos and the historical underpinnings of sensitive topics, as well as politeness and registers. Current affairs and contemporary debates will be analysed with an emphasis on situational contexts to consider factors such as goals, intentions, situational constraints and contextual expectancies.

The aims of this subject are to understand the historical significance of the value placed on conversational skills in French society. It will build on the introduction to argumentation in French 5 in oral communication, while strengthening aural comprehension competences. Reading and writing will be maintained, and students will refine their understanding of the differences between the written and the spoken language and of how to move from one to the other.