Topics I: In-Perspective: Human Rights

France considers itself to be the homeland of human rights because the Revolutionaries of 1789 infused the rights of the individual-irrespective of nationality or social status-with a universal dimension. In this course we will analyze how the writings of Enlightenment philosophers (Olympe de Gouges, Voltaire, Rousseau, Condorcet) informed this ideal, and how they argued in favor of tolerance and against torture. Their heritage is evident in the ideals of organizations such as Doctors without Borders. Yet France's colonial past and foreign policies have not always been exemplary, and France is not yet a refuge for all migrants, as the current crisis demonstrates. Through case studies (the Dreyfus Affair, the Algerian War, the "right to choose," and "le mariage pour tous"), literary texts, artworks, and films, we will investigate what has contributed to-and compromised-France's reputation in the world. Prereq: Fr 307D.