The course includes lectures and seminars on French literature from the 17th century to the present day. A variety of genres and epochs are covered, for example the drama of the Baroque and Classical periods, the dialog of the Enlightenment, the novel of Realism-Naturalism or the poetry of Symbolism. Particular attention is paid to the avant-gardes of the 20th century (Surrealism, Nouveau Roman, Oulipo) and contemporary narrative prose. Basic techniques of interpretation and central concepts of narrative theory and genre poetics are taught to enable students to engage intensively with literary texts. In addition, the texts covered are placed in their literary-historical context, whereby literary history is understood as part of a broader cultural and media history. Last but not least, the aim is to have fun reading literary texts!
