Nishat Mhamud

FRE 410: Senior Thesis Proposal

Dr. Phillip Ojo
Topic:
Multiculturalism of France through Film
Course Description:
I will investigate important cultural and historical moments in
contemporary France that have shaped the identity of French and
Francophone communities with a special emphasis on how it is
depicted in film. A central concern will be the continual formation of
these identities within the complex times of the 20th century and postcolonial decades. This includes defining the ideal French identity and
which groups were included and which groups were excluded from the
ideal French identity, and how did cinema capture this process.
Objective:
Demonstrate knowledge of major events in the contemporary
history of France and the Francophone world
Analyze and interpret cinematic form and film
Design a well-organized analytical project or paper that
summarizes knowledge from the course material
Preliminary Reading:
Corrigan, Timothy. A Short Guide to Writing about Film (2005).
New York: Pearson/Longman
Williams, Alan. Republic of Images: A History of French
Filmmaking. Cambridge: Harvard UP, 1992
Fuga, Artan. Multiculturalism in France: Evolutions and
Challenges. Working paper no. 12. Paris. Fondation Maison des
Sciences de lHomme. 2008.
Films

List:
InchAllah Dimanche (2001)
Paris, Je TAime (2006)
Indochine (1992)
Monsieur Ibrahim (2003)
The Class (2008)
La Haine (1995)
Persepolis (2007)
Amelie (2000)

Assignments:
*Each film viewing will be followed with a writing assignment (2pgs)
summarizing and analyzing the film
Week
Week
Week
Week
Week
Week
Week
Week
Week
Week

1: Amelie
2: The Class
3: Paris, Je TAime
4: Monsieur Ibrahim
5: La Haine
6: Persopolis
7: InchAllah Dimanche
8: Persopolis
9: Paper/Project Rough Draft
10: Paper/Project Submission

Evaluation:
The writing assignments will constitute for 20% of the grade whereas
the final paper/project will account for 80% of the grade
Meetings:
Meetings will be conducted at least in a bi-weekly manner either
through person or through phone they will entail updates and
submission of written assignments.
Pre-Course Preparation:
This course will be an in-depth extension of my global awareness
experience in Paris and ToulouseContemporary France: A Cultural
Mosaic, my coursework in FRE 230: French/Francophone Cultures, as
well as my study abroad experience in Dakar, Senegal. This course will
afford an opportunity to expand on my developed knowledge on the
multiculturalism of France by applying that knowledge to film and
cinema representation. This course will satisfy my second French
elective requirement for my major, which is otherwise not offered
during the Spring 2015 semester,