MDL214 Realities and Falsehoods: The French Occupation in Literature and Film

Aims/Description: The course aims to enable students to critically interrogate how historical 'truths' were perpetuated and distorted to serve ideological purposes through censored and clandestine cultural production during the Nazi Occupation of France. Student will critically examine and evaluate the historical reliability of a range of texts written both by the general public and by cultural and political figures over the period. These contemporary testimonies found in diaries, letters, newspapers and newsreels of the time are then set against cultural production distributed both openly (under censorship) and clandestinely in order to assess how these 'realities' were processed and the purposes to which they were set during the conflict. In particular, students will pay close attention to any conspicuous divergence into propaganda and myth. Students will be introduced to specialist critical material in the field of life writing, film and literature and historiography as well as to a range of novels and films produced during the Occupation.

Staff Contact: MICHALLAT WENDY T

Teaching Methods: Lectures, Seminars, Independent Study

Assessment: Course work

Information on the department responsible for this unit (Languages and Cultures):

Departmental Home Page

Teaching timetable

NOTE The content of our courses is reviewed annually to make sure it's up-to-date and relevant. Individual modules are occasionally updated or withdrawn. This is in response to discoveries through our world-leading research; funding changes; professional accreditation requirements; student or employer feedback; outcomes of reviews; and variations in staff or student numbers. In the event of any change we'll consult and inform students in good time and take reasonable steps to minimise disruption.

URLs used in these pages are subject to year-on-year change. For this reason we recommend that you do not bookmark these pages or set them as favourites.

Teaching methods and assessment displayed on this page are indicative for 2021-22. Students will be informed by the academic department of any changes made necessary by the ongoing pandemic.