Museums and Literature

Undergraduate

What type of setting is a museum? How does French literature enrich our understanding of paintings and of the places that expose them? Can a museum be apprehended as a source of inspiration and creativity, a public room of one’s own? In this seminar, we read three different forms of texts published in the twenty-first century: novels set in museums and art centers; autobiographies focused on works of art; narratives created in the context of writing residences in museums. Through a series of literary guided tours, we examine the following topics: contemplation and daydreaming; close reading and close looking; history of art and natural history; art theft and restitution; museums as storage sites of memory, History, and versions of ourselves. In addition to actual and fictional museums set in France, the assigned texts and the film also take place in museums and memorials in Belgium, Benin, Germany, and Poland. Course entirely taught in French. Prerequisite: FREN 1700 or equivalent or higher. HU W 4pm-5:55pm