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French & Francophone Studies

253.879.3186

Chair

Rokiatou Soumaré
253-879-3968

Administrative Support

Theresa Williams-Chow
253.879.3186

Program Description

Parlez-vous français? Are you interested in becoming proficient in French and experiencing the culture of France or a Francophone country firsthand? The French & Francophone Studies program at Puget Sound helps students progress from the basics of language learning through senior- level critical coursework in the French language. Our curriculum focuses on the culture and civilization of France and the Francophone world, and promotes oral and written fluency in French through a variety of course offerings, cocurricular activities, and study abroad.

The French & Francophone Studies department offers interdisciplinary majors that allow students to pursue individual academic interests. While studying the French language, culture, and literature, each student can choose a French major that emphasizes or complements their academic interests. A French minor is also offered.

Who You Could Be
  • English teacher in schools in France
  • International NGO employee
  • Researcher/International policy analyst
  • Lawyer
  • Journalist
  • International program coordinator
What You'll Learn
  • Oral and written fluency in the French language
  • About the rich cultures of France and Francophone countries
  • How to read and discuss different forms of literary and nonliterary writing in French
  • How to make connections between various disciplines using international knowledge and global values
SAMPLE COURSES
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This .25 unit course offers students an opportunity to practice their French language skills as well as keep up with current events from the French perspective. The course meets once per week in a conversation hour format.

Admission to the course will be based on appropriate level of spoken and reading French. This course does not count toward a major or minor in French. This course does not contribute to satisfying the foreign language graduation requirement or the post-intermediate language requirement for study abroad in a francophone country. May be repeated once for credit (.5 units total).

Prerequisites
FREN 202 or equivalent.

This course is a critical examination of key texts and influential figures coming from, focusing on, or relevant to the Francophone world. The course emphasis is mainly on various aspects of cultures of Quebec, Francophone Africa, and the French Caribbean, and ends with an examination of the Francophone postcolonial context.

Code
Artistic and Humanistic PerspectivesKnowledge, Identity, and PowerLanguage
Prerequisites
FREN 202 or equivalent.

This course studies how popular French culture, drawing from a rich and complex tradition heavily influenced by mass media, permeates contemporary French society. It is manifest in various cultural artifacts such as gastronomy, clothing, consumption, and entertainment. This course examines the boundaries between high and low culture, the various postmodern approaches that challenge the definitions of French mass culture, and the claims that pop culture trivializes and commercializes values.

Code
Artistic and Humanistic PerspectivesLanguage
Prerequisites
FREN 202 or equivalent.

This course explores African women writers and critics, focusing on their cultural positions, theoretical priorities, and representations of women¿s experiences. It provides students with both a broad and specific understanding of African women¿s achievements, identities, and cultural contributions. The class approaches the material through an interdisciplinary framework that draws on literary studies, history, sociology, anthropology, gender studies, and postcolonial theory. Students engage with texts by authors such as Mariama Bâ, Assia Djebar, Buchi Emecheta, Tsitsi Dangarembga, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, analyzing how race, gender, class, and colonialism shape African women¿s lives as well as the production of knowledge about them. Weekly assignments combine at least two disciplinary perspectives, encouraging students to compare, reflect, and synthesize across methods. Through essays, projects, and reflective writing, students practice integrative learning and cross-disciplinary dialogue. The course fulfills the KNOW requirement and emphasizes how African women writers challenge inequality and colonial legacies while asserting their intellectual and creative presence.

Code
Connections 200-400 LevelKnowledge, Identity, and PowerLanguage

Through a contextualized exploration of Paris from historical and/or contemporary perspectives, students develop their language skills through intensive grammar review, vocabulary enhancement, written expression, and conversational fluency. The course aims to prepare students for upper-level French courses and study abroad by improving French written and oral fluency though a project-based approach, focusing on different aspects of Parisian life of interest to students, from artistic movements to fashion and food.

Code
Artistic and Humanistic PerspectivesLanguage
Prerequisites
FREN 202 or equivalent.

Applications of French in non-literary contexts. Expansion and application of French in the areas of economy, politics, media, and international issues The course may include a multimedia component and a grammar review.

Code
Artistic and Humanistic PerspectivesLanguage
Prerequisites
FREN 202 or equivalent.
1/5

Experiential Learning

Students gain experience in French in a variety of ways, including:

  • Studying abroad in France or another French-speaking country, like Leo Rain ’20, Senegal; Sydney Maysmith '24, who extended her time abroad to conduct a comparative study about organic farming in France and the U.S.; or Xavey Bzdek '24, who did research on migration during their time abroad
  • Living in the International District housing experience
  • Spend a year teaching in France after graduation through the French Government Teaching Assistantship Program, like Connor May ’19, Ashley Coyne ’19, Nicole Bouche ’19, Sarah Johnson ’19, and Molly Wampler ’19

STORIES

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Where Graduates Work

Where our graduates work: 

  • Middle school in France
  • United States Senate (deputy scheduler)
  • Export Enterprises (translator/researcher)
  • Camp Counselors USA (international program coordinator)
  • ESCP Europe, a European business school (teaching assistant)

Where Graduates Continue Studying

Where our students continue their studies:

  • University of Wisconsin, Madison
  • University of Puget Sound (Master of Arts in Teaching)
  • University of Washington
  • University of Denver
  • Pantheon-Sorbonne University Paris (master's program, archaeology)
  • NYU
MEET THE FACULTY
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Rokiatou Soumaré
Associate Professor and Chair, French Studies
Prof. Soumaré's scholarship and teaching focus on Francophone Literature and Culture, French and Francophone Cinema, as well as 20th-21st-century French literature and culture.
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Diane Kelley
Distinguished Professor, French & Francophone Studies
Prof. Kelley's research focuses on early modern French women writers.  She enjoys teaching all levels from her first-year seminar on the French Revolution, to French language classes through senior-level seminars.
Read the full bio

BEYOND THE CLASSROOM

International District housing experience
INTERNATIONAL DISTRICT

The Michel Rocchi International District in Thomas Hall is part of the university's living-learning residential environment, which includes cultural programs and activities.

Colorful boats in Dakar, Senegal. Photo by Carles Martinez on Unsplash
SENEGAL

This new course explores contemporary Senegalese pop culture through music, film, fashion, and digital media, with an optional faculty-led study abroad experience in Dakar, Senegal.

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INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS

Students often choose to study abroad in France or other French-related programs in places like Senegal, Madagascar, Switzerland, Cameroon, or Morocco.