Yale Summer Session in Paris: France On Screen and Off: Advanced French Conversation Through Film

Description

Through the medium of cinema, the students will be exposed to contemporary French society in all of its complexity. The films at the core of this program have been chosen for their cultural and linguistic value. Each film will serve as a catalyst for a particular topic which will also be explored in articles from the French press and video clips created for French television. Students will develop their capacity for defending their ideas in French both orally and in writing.

Courses & Credits

FREN S164: Advanced French (2 credits)

Yale Summer Session Programs Abroad are intensive, highly structured academic programs led by Yale instructors. 

Instructors

Constance Sherak, Senior Lector in French, Yale University

Constance Sherak teaches and coordinates the intensive language series and teaches the advanced language practice course. Her interests include writing and cinema pedagogy, the poetics of collecting, and literature and other arts. At Yale and elsewhere, she has taught all levels of language, phonetics, stylistics, as well as special topics courses on narratives of the museum, French literature on film, love and war in literature and film, and Paris in the literary imagination. She has published on the rhetoric of violence under the Restoration, museums on film in the works of Duras, the semiotics of Christo’s environmental works, and on staging modernity at Paris-Las Vegas. Constance Sherak received her PhD from Stanford University.

Class Times 

The class will meet each week on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. 

Students should expect, at minimum,15 hours of work outside the classroom per week, as well excursions and other program activities.

Class times may be subject to change with notice from the instructors.

Classroom Location

Classes will be held at the Ecole L’Etoile (Language School).

Address: 18 rue de Varenne – Paris 7ème

Money & Budgeting

Many participants find a combination of credit and debit cards to be the most convenient way of accessing money while abroad. It’s important to have a backup option as well in case of emergency.

Participants should bring a moderate amount (equivalent to $100 or so) of the host country currency in cash when leaving the U.S. to cover initial expenses like bus/taxi fares, snacks, and phone calls for the first couple of days. Please note that participants likely will need more than $100 for out-of-pocket expenses throughout the entire duration of the program.

France uses the euro, which is currently almost the same price as the dollar. Paris is an expensive city in general, but participants are advised to take advantage of the city's many inexpensive restaurants and food stands, as well as the city's potable tap water, which is available upon request at all bars and restaurants. There is also a local supermarket near the program residences where students are able to buy groceries.

Tipping is not required and service is always included in the bill. However, it is common to leave a few euros as a gesture of appreciation for good service at restaurants and cafes.

Participants should expect out-of-pocket costs not billed by Yale, including but not limited to class materials, coffee, snacks, and transportation to and from the classroom.

Program Cost & Funding

Yale Summer Session Programs Abroad costs are updated annually and include the administrative fee and program deposit, program fee, tuition, and international housing charge.  

Budget

Yale Summer Session Programs Abroad updates program budgets in late January. Please note the year listed on the button below.

Summer 2024 Budget

Trips and Activities

On every Yale Summer Session Program Abroad, learning extends outside of the classroom. Participants can expect a variety of integrated activities and excursions that enhance the academic goals of the program. Trips and activities listed below are included as examples only and are subject to change. 

All required activities and excursion include transportation (when outside of the host city), entrance fees, and most meals. 

Past activities in Paris on this program have included walking tours of medieval Paris and of its nineteenth-century covered passageways, a guided tour of the National Museum of Modern Art at the Pompidou Center (Beaubourg), the Museé d’Orsay, a boat cruise, two plays, including a Comédie Française performance, dinners, ice cream tastings, and café outings.

Trips outside of Paris may include a three-day visit to Southern France (Provence) and Van Gogh country. During this trip, the program will be based in Arles and will likely visit its Roman ruins as well as the sites where Van Gogh painted, including the café that inspired his painting Night Café, which is housed at the Yale University Art Gallery. While in Provence, past program groups have also spent time exploring the wild marshes of the Camargue and the beach of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, and have visited Provençal hill towns and the city of Avignon, with its charming narrow streets and the Papal Palace. Additionally, past participants spent two days in Normandy on the trail of Monet, visiting his gardens at Giverny and the dramatic cliffs at Étretat that he painted. Typically, the Normandy trip has included an overnight stay in the medieval city of Rouen with its half-timbered houses and important cathedral, as well as a stop at a cider factory on the return to Paris.

During their stay, students will be given a free pass to the Louvre Museum.

Housing

All participants are required to live in program-provided housing while abroad and are not permitted to arrange housing independently. International housing is guaranteed from the first day of the program until the official end date.

Students will be housed with French host families. Homestays are an integral part of the program. This living arrangement provides participants with the opportunity to learn more about the host culture, increase language proficiency, and form meaningful connections in the community. Participants are expected to spend time getting to know their homestay family and be mindful of the need to balance time spent at home with time spent traveling or going out with friends.

Participants are expected to contribute to the cleanliness of the home. Participants also are advised to discuss any personal conditions or considerations (including allergies, preferred foods, and the like) with their host family at the beginning of the program and at any point such issues emerge. It is important to make an effort to fit into the patterns and assumptions of the host family. This might include expectations regarding mealtime, laundry, returning home late, travel, etc. 

All host families live in Paris in a safe neighborhood and are within a five to fifteen-minute walk to the nearest metro. However, some participants may live close enough to walk to the school where classes are held, while others will have to take the metro for a 15-40-minute ride. Participants should be aware that such a commute is a normal part of Parisian life and should be taken in stride.

Participants will live in their own rooms or share a room with another Yale student, and will most likely share a bathroom. All host families will provide linens and towels as well as access to a washer (not necessarily a dryer, as this is uncommon in France). 

Meals  

Host families will provide participants with breakfast and dinner during the week (Monday through Friday) and breakfast on the weekends (Saturday and Sunday). Participants will be responsible for their own lunches every day and dinner on Saturdays and Sundays, except for special group meals. It is important (and polite) for participants to let their host family know if they are not going to be home for a meal.

Meals are typically smaller than in the United States, especially breakfast, and rules governing table etiquette are much stricter than in the U.S. For example, it is considered impolite to help oneself to seconds at the dinner table without being invited to do so. Participants should take their cues from their host families. Because the dinner hour in France is usually later than in the United States, participants should be prepared to dine as late as 8pm when with their host families. Meals can last for two hours or longer.

Gift Custom

A small gift makes a good impression on arrival. An inexpensive token from the participant's university or hometown, such as a magnet or a mug, is a nice gesture for the hosts.
 

Notes

Climate

Summer in Paris is warm, but very hot weather is uncommon. The average June temperature is around 73˚ F. July is not much hotter, with an average temperature of 76˚ F. However, heat waves are becoming more common, and most buildings are not air conditioned. There can also be periods of time when the weather becomes quite chilly and rainy, so participants are encouraged to pack accordingly.

Packing Considerations

1. Pack light! Participants will be able to do laundry and will likely return home with new items from the host country. Participants should expect the possibility of carrying their bags on several modes of transportation and up several flights of stairs alone.

2. Keep all essential items in a carry-on bag (e.g., passport and medications). 

Clothing

Participants should pack at least one dressier outfit for evenings out. Parisians dress more formally in general than Americans, especially when going out at night.
Students should also pack a pair of comfortable walking shoes, as they will be walking much more than is typical in much of the United States. Although it is summer, the French wear flip-flops or slide sandals only at the beach and they are not considered appropriate footwear for the city.

Yale Study Abroad also encourages participants to bring a backpack or small, carry-on or "weekender" sized suitcase, for day and overnight trips.

Electricity Adapters

Students should bring a “Europe” (Type C or E) plug adapter (the UK adapter will not work in France). Computers, phones, and other electronics do not require a current converter, although smaller electronics such as hair dryers or electric razors may need both a plug adapter and a current convertor to avoid shorting out when plugged in and turned on.

Social Interactions and Cultural Considerations

French Attitudes Towards Drinking and Drug Use

In France drinking is a social act. If participants choose to drink alcohol, they should do so in reasonable amounts and indoors in restaurants and cafés, but not in the streets or on public transportation. This includes drinking in public parks and on the banks of the Seine or the Canal Saint Martin, where rowdy behavior is neither customary nor tolerated.
Unlike some states in the U.S., drugs, even recreational drugs, are considered not only strictly forbidden, but illegal in France. If a student is caught with drugs, there is nothing the program director or anyone at Yale can do to help and chances are high that they will be prosecuted by French law.

Questions

For general program questions, contact studyabroad@yale.edu.

Important Information Before Applying

• All YSS Programs Abroad are intensive, highly structured academic programs for Yale credit and grades.
• Students may only apply to one YSS Program Abroad per summer.
• Admission is not guaranteed. Applicants should anticipate that more students will apply than there are spots available, and Yale College students should apply to a backup Non-Yale Summer Abroad opportunity.
• Ensure that your transcript reflects how you have met the pre-requisite, if applicable, prior to applying.
• Participants must commit to the full program dates. Late arrivals and early departures are not permitted.
• Participants are required to be enrolled in all program courses.
• Participants should expect evening and weekend requirements. Students who have questions about religious observance during a YSS Program Abroad are encouraged to Meet with an Adviser.
• Program-arranged housing is required for all YSS Programs Abroad. Students are not permitted to secure independent housing. Students who have housing-related questions about placements, allergies, religious observance, or disability-related access are encouraged to Meet with an Adviser.

Apply to a YSS Program Abroad