French 82: Staging Critique

How has theater in France, from the 17th-century to the present, served as a site of political, social, and philosophical reflection? In this course, we will attempt to answer that question by studying a selection of plays representing the major trends, movements, and writers of French theater from Jean Racine to Marie NDiaye. We will look in particular at how theater privileges the body and the language of emotion to reformulate and respond to questions regarding the relationship between public and private selves, violence, and the intersections of race, class, gender, and sexuality. Readings may include works by Jean Racine, Molière, Marivaux, Jean Genet, Yasmina Reza, and Marie NDiaye.