Francophone Migrations and Nations

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

"Francophone Migrations and Nations" examines transnational travel in a contemporary global context affected by factors ranging from climate change to genocide. We will focus on migrant movements in different Francophone settings (ranging from France to Rwanda), providing perspectives on the myriad motivations to leave one's homeland and take up residence elsewhere, and studying the subsequent challenges that migrants face in the places where they end up. Novels, short stories, articles, and a number of films will shed light on the current dynamics and profound questions that are created by migration. We will focus on issues related to language and identity in relation to larger inquiries into human rights and peace studies in a world where a sense of society and a commitment to community are uprooted and unsettled more and more by migrations that put into question the nature of the nation. The course will be taught in French.