GRADUATE SCHOOL OF TRANSLATION, INTERPRETATION and LANGUAGE EDUCATION French and Francophone Studies Program - Automne 2018 Persuasion in Politics Prof. Clarissa Eagle FRLA 8211 – 4 credits Mardi et jeudi, 10h – 11h50 Salle – B208 Heure de bureau : Mardi 12h10-13h10 – M102A Vendredi, 10h – 12h Salle – B209
Course description
In FRLA 8211, we question the conventional understanding of political persuasion as a process in which communicators try to convince other people to change their attitudes or behavior in an atmosphere of free choice. We will grapple with the idea that persuasion may not always function as a simple, neutral vehicle by which to convey one’s political beliefs, and so may not always serve a good faith and open exchange of ideas. When, during an interview on France’s BFM TV, Marine Le Pen “alerte les Français sur l’autorisation du regroupement familial pour les migrants” (alerts the French about the authorization of family reunification for migrants), is she performing a simple transfer of information or appealing to and affirming values she knows are central to her base? What is the impact of “alerting”? Of recalling national identity (“les Français”, as if all French people shared a single objective identity) in the context of “migrants”? Of referencing authority (that of the State) and family (the blood that unites the migrants as Others)? Her statement could be mistaken for an innocent news headline, but behind her words lies a complex web of cultural distinctions and hierarchies that, without careful attention, we may remain mostly unaware of (Ochs & Schieffelin, 1986). Second language learners in particular risk “missing the point” because of the implicit nature of embedded meanings (Tanaka, 1988). FRLA 8211 Eagle
Research in pragmatics tells us that shared cultural assumptions are deeply embedded in our language, and this embeddedness is instrumental in both the intersubjective affirmation and active construction of worldviews (Bourdieu, 1990; Duranti, 1997; McConachy, 2013). The primary objective of FRLA 8211 is to guide learners to see and question this web of cultural assumptions and values in language use, and in persuasive political discourse in particular. Once students begin to have an awareness of the processes that both reaffirm and alter their cultural, social, and political realities, they have a chance to take agency over those processes. In other words, this course encourages language learners to step out of the mold of passive language imitator to foreground language learners as language users and intercultural mediators who can piece apart the layers making up contemporary political discourse and proactively weave their own stories into the complex web of French language use today.
Required Language Proficiency
This course will be conducted entirely in French, and all readings will be in French. Required base language proficiency is Intermediate-low (per the 2012 ACTFL proficiency guidelines, available here).
Texts While we will make use of several different texts throughout the semester, students are not required to purchase a textbook for this class. Please see “Les texts” module on Canvas for electronic versions of all extracts of texts used in class.
Learning Outcomes Knowledge
Upon successful completion of FRLA 8211, students will be able to:
1. Speak and write in an informed and relatively nuanced manner about standard conventions and practices of persuasion in French;
2. Speak and write in an informed and relatively nuanced manner about values commonly associated with conservative and liberal moral decision-making, noting individual and context-dependent variations as appropriate; and
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3. Speak and write in an informed and relatively nuanced manner about the rhetorical uses of and risks associated with essentializing in our language use, drawing on Fred Dervin’s account of cultural posturing.
Students should be able to speak and write on the above in both presentational and interpersonal modes (ACTFL 2012). For more on language-specific learning outcomes, see Language Learning Outcomes on the syllabus.
Skills
Upon successful completion of FRLA 8211, students will be able to:
1. Differentiate the cultural and linguistic nuances in the speech or writing of another person or group of people;
2. Conduct analyses of political discourse in an array of mediums (social media, blogs, speeches, interviews), including the recognition of patterns, embedded meanings, and cultural and historical contexts;
3. Switch cultural frames of reference as appropriate as they explore the web of meanings in political discourse and everyday conversation.
4. Critically examine and deepen awareness of their own cultural assumptions; and
5. Address their own misunderstandings and prejudices vis-à-vis other cultures, and help others examine their own misunderstandings and prejudices.
Attitudes This course is designed to inspire in students a desire to: 1. Seek out future cross-cultural experiences; 2. Continue to learn about language and culture; 3. Remain open to new ideas and interpretations of cultural practices and paradoxes, recognizing a multitude of “realities”; and 4. Practice flexibility and adaptability in face of cultural differences about what constitutes goodness, honesty, “a good life”.
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To meet curricular goals (Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes), specific French language proficiency-oriented outcomes for the course include: 1. Parsing, imparting, and requesting information of moderate complexity on a variety of topics; 2. Communicating personal meaning in connected thoughts; 3. Expressing agreement and disagreement with an interlocutor, and developing arguments and counter-arguments of moderate complexity; 4. Describing complex events in most major time frames with some use of aspect. Language proficiency-oriented outcomes adapted for our class from the 2012 ACTFL Can-Do Statements for Intermediate-mid foreign language learning, available at https://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/Can- Do_Statements.pdf.
Course Site and Other Online Platforms
The course is supported by a Canvas site, which you can access via Course Hub (http://www.courses.miis.edu). Consult this site to access the current week’s plan détaillé and assignment descriptions, PDFs of readings, PowerPoint presentations used during class, and other organizational documents of this sort.
For informative presentations on other Middlebury-affiliated online resources, students can access go.miis.edu/Lynda with their Middlebury credentials. More information on online interaction platforms and resources will be provided during the first week of classes.
Structure of Class
Unit Themes Language Important dates
I. How do we persuade? Presenting personal opinions (“je” + Week 3: present indicative) to an interlocutor 1st debate Weeks Conventions and (“vous” + present indicative); (recorded) 1-3 practice Asking rhetorical questions (interrogative pronouns); Week 3: Speaking in generalizations (“on” + Vocab 1
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present indicative), la voix passive
Content Méthodologie de l’argumentation, Français Facile Les formes de l’argumentation, Le Monde Comment persuader quelqu’un, WikiHow.fr Convaincre par les émotions, YouTube 7 techniques de persuasion du Loup de Wall Street, YouTube Lisa Friedmann, « L’art de convaincre en politique », Le circle psy (2016) Phil A. Wyatt, « Manipulation et persuasion politique » (blog) (2012) Emmanuel Paris, « Les couloirs de la persuasion : Usage de la communication, tissu associatif et lobbies du changement climatique », Les modèles du future (2007) « Kerry use des arguments économiques pour persuader Trump », Le Parisien (2016) Test de fondations morales, MoralFoundations.org Michel Sauquet & Martin Vielajus, Culturoscope (2016)
II. Who and why do we Expressing cause, consequence Week 4: persuade? (connector words); Blog 1 v.1 Weeks Recognizing the use of register to (on debate 1) 4-8 What do we not say, convey subtle messages (“tu” vs when we persuade? “vous”, irony and satire) and explicit Week 5: direction in discourse; Blog 1 v.2 Persuasion and division: Giving and requesting information objectification, (interrogative pronouns); By week 7: prescription, alignment 1st meeting Qualifying and linking persons and with contact things; recognizing amplifications, simplifications, imagery (adjectives and Week 7: accords, comparatives and superlatives) Vocab 2
Content Week 8: 1 Rokhaya Diallo, « Rokhaya Diallo VS Eric Zemmour 2nd debate (interview) », Youtube Black M, « Je suis chez moi » (chanson), Vevo Week 8: Blog 2 v. 1 « On est chez nous », discours de Le Pen, YouTube (on 1st mtg
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« Elections en Italie : la révolte des peuples s’accentue », with contact) FrontNational.com La lettre de Jean-Marie Le Pen, 15 mars 1992 Discours de Jean-Marie Le Pen à Saint-Franc, Présent, 21 et 22 octobre 1991
Discours de Benoît Hamon après le 1er tour, YouTube Patrick Charadeau, « Réflexions pour l’analyse du discours populiste », Mots (2011) Didier Tirard, « Donald Trump, Brexit, Marine Le Pen : le regain populiste », The Conversation (2016) Alexandre Dorna, « Pistes pour une étude contextuelle du discours politique populiste », Bulletin de psychologie (2007) Fr.wikipédia.org (immigration en France) Michel Sauquet & Martin Vielajus, Culturoscope (2016)
III. How can we persuade Hypothesizing (si + present indicative, By week 9: for a more just and futur proche; si + imparfait, 2nd meeting Weeks equitable world? conditionnel); with contact 9-13 Recognizing implicit assumptions (“il Persuasion and positive paraît que…” + indirect discourse); Week 9: Blog 2 v. 2 change Asking and giving information in open-
ended way (interrogative structures) Week 11:
Content In-class écrit
Student individual research on political topic of their choosing Week 12: Charlie Hebdo (select political cartoons) Vocab 3 Deep Green Resistance.fr Week 12: Le Climat Sous Surveillance Value prop Fred Dervin, Impostures interculturelles, L’Hamarttan (interview) Fred Dervin, « Au-delà du nationalisme méthodologique: L’interculturel sans essentialisme », Raisons Politiques (2014) (extracts) Bénédicte Goussault, “L’identité: Une illusion?”, Espaces temps: Les cahiers (1997) (extracts) J. Blanchet-Gravel, “Laurence et la société xenophile”, Huffposte.fr (2015)
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Michel Sauquet & Martin Vielajus, Culturoscope (2016)
IV. When do we use Avoiding unsupported generalizations By week 13: strategies of and distinctions in writing and speech; 3rd meeting Weeks persuasion? Recognizing implicit “commonsense” in with contact 14-16 conversational routines, speech acts, AF conversations and politeness phenomena; Week 13: blog reports : Communicating with heightened Student associations and awareness of the ways in which presentations modalisations interactional practices are informed by on cultural assumptions individual research
Content Week 14: Blog 3 v.1 Student individual research (on second Conversation recordings and transcripts and 2nd and Cultura questionnaires 3rd mtgs with Michel Sauquet & Martin Vielajus, Culturoscope (2016) contact)
Week 15: Blog 3 v.2
Synthesis and presentations Week 16: Website published
Language functions addressed in class are intended to help students engage in course content matter rather than drill grammar points abstracted from context. The category of “Language” is thus subject to change depending on the language demands of the content currently being studied.
Every Friday before 5pm, a detailed schedule for the coming week will be made available to you on Canvas (see the final page of this document for an example). The weekly schedule will reference materials to be covered (texts, video, audio, etc.) in class, language functions addressed in each class, essential question for the week, and homework.
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Assessment
1. Regular creative participation in class and online 30% 2. Exploratory blog posts (3) 20% 3. Cahier + self-evaluations (2) 15% 4. Vocabulary quizzes (4) 15% 5. Value proposition 10% 6. Website 10%
Participation Participation is vital to your success in this class. The participation grade evaluates: (a) General preparedness for class each day (completion of daily assignments such as readings, meetings with cultural contact, questionnaires, blog reflections, discussion forum responses on Canvas or MIT’s Cultura interface, and so on). (b) Each student’s continuous and spontaneous participation, including comments made and questions asked, during group activities and class discussions.
Exploratory blog posts Over the course of the semester you will be required to write three short blog posts in French, from 300 (min.) to 450 (max.) words. Though these are exploratory free-writes to encourage honest introspection, suggestions for subjects will be provided to you, as will specific parameters concerning relevant language functions and related forms. You will be required to revise each text once, with each version receiving a grade. The first version will be evaluated on (1) content (relevancy, accuracy), (2) language (spelling, grammar, and communicability) and (3) evidence of intercultural positioning (a demonstration of informed choices regarding the use or avoidance of objectification, alignment, prescription). The second version will be evaluated based solely on spelling, grammar, and communicability.
Student cahier + self-evaluation You will be required to keep one cahier in which all work done over the course of the semester is to be saved: first versions of blog posts, all notes from class discussion, all vocabulary quizzes, and so on. You will submit your cahier to me
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for review at the end of the semester, along with your self-evaluation (discussed below).
Your cahier should also include a section for new vocabulary items culled from (a) weekly class discussion and (b) class readings and viewings of videos. As we explore the text(s) for each day in class, we will collectively agree on the relevant vocabulary items to be recorded. It is your responsibility to add the relevant vocabulary items to your cahier as they arise in class discussion. Please note that the material covered on vocabulary tests will be taken from this section of your cahier.
Regarding vocabulary from texts: for each homework reading or viewing, students should note three new vocabulary items (words or expressions) in their cahier. Each new vocabulary entry should include the following: radical + suffix / prefix, collocations, definition(s) in French, and one original sentence. In the sentences, you will use the relevant vocabulary item in an original way, but also in a way such that its meaning is evident. Do not simply imitate or copy any of the sentences found in the primary text. You may copy definitions directly from Larousse.fr, but not original sentences. (Please do refer to Larousse.fr for example sentences, however!)
If your item is a verb, also include the past participle + conjugations in present in singular - plural contrastive pairs.
For example: Prétendre (past participle: prétendu) Radical: tend Je prétends -> Nous prétendons Préfixe: pré- Tu prétends -> Vous prétendez Suffixe: -re Il/elle/on prétend -> Ils/elles prétendent
Collocations : Prétendre + que, prétendre + infinitive Définition(s) : Avoir l’intention de, affirmer quelque chose, affirmer être capable de faire quelque chose Ex, Je n’ai pas encore gagné la présidence mais je prétends le faire!
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The cahier is not intended to create extra work for you. It should rather serve to record and assess your progress in French, which helps you keep a critical eye on your own learning. I will ask only that you write a short self-evaluation at the end of the semester (in French or English) on the basis of your cahier. In one or two short paragraphs, the self-evaluation should summarize (a) the improvements you can see in your French after reflecting on your cahier, and then (b) some realistic goals for your French that you envision yourself being able to meet in the future.
You will also be asked to complete one report of intercultural experience and one self-assessment intercultural competence. Further detail will be given during the first week of class.
Vocabulary quizzes There will be four quizzes assessing your knowledge of the vocabulary (individual words and idiomatic expressions) relevant to our class discussions. These quizzes will assess your knowledge of vocabulary in context: i.e., you will be required to demonstrate how the relevant vocabulary is used meaningfully. You will not be asked simply to translate a list of words abstracted from the contexts in which they are actually used. An example vocabulary quiz will be posted under the “Vocabulaire” module on Canvas.
Summative assessments
There will be two summative assessments:
• Value Proposition: After analyzing a variety of persuasive political discourse and two very different examples of persuasion in environmental movements – Deep Green Resistance and Climat Sous Surveillance – students will create their own value proposition on a politically relevant topic of their own choosing. A value proposition is a term typically used in marketing and refers to a positioning statement that employs concise text and pictures to show how a particular audience could benefit from a product or service (Skok, 2013). In our class, the product or service we are “selling” will be an issue or practice that students find personally compelling and relevant, and which they would want other people to find compelling and relevant as well. The value proposition will be accompanied by a short text (200-250 words) in which
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students explain their intended audience, the choices they made in “marketing” their position, and how students expect their message to be received.
• Website: The final project for FRLA 8211 will be the creation of a Middcreate website intended to draw attention to the same topic that students chose for their value proposition. This website can take a variety of forms, but must include (1) a revised version of each student’s value proposition; (2) information concerning the issue, both educational and tailored to students’ intended audience, which must be a real audience; and (3) a written statement summarizing the importance of the issue. The website will be graded on content (relevancy, accuracy, interest), language (communicability and formal accuracy), and evidence of intercultural positioning (evidence of students’ informed choices of using or avoiding objectification, alignment, prescription, and so on). A grading rubric for this project will be provided during the first week of class.
Academic Ethics and Etiquette
Please take care to arrive to class on time. You may miss up to 2 classes without penalty. Please notify me in advance, insofar as you are able to do so, in the event you will not be in class. Three or more absences without sufficient justification will result in a reduced participation grade: each unexcused absence will result in a 2% reduction of your overall participation grade. If you are absent from class, it is your responsibility to catch up on everything you might have missed. Legitimate reasons for missing class include the following: sickness/injury, MIIS- related activities, etc. If you miss class for a legitimate reason, please communicate that reason to me so that I am aware of your situation and so that, if necessary and where possible, you will be able to provide proof showing your absence is legitimate.
Please do not use your cell phone during class. Please feel free to use your laptop or tablet during class, but only for class-related purposes. Your laptop/tablet may not be used for personal reasons (checking email, Facebook, etc.). If I see that you are using it for non-class related purposes, I will penalize your participation grade for that session.
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On academic integrity: all standards outlined in the Policies and Standards Manual apply. Please consult the manual here: http://www.miis.edu/offices/records/policies
You may not seek help on any homework assignments from sources outside class (e.g., from a private tutor, French-speaking friends, etc.). Your work must always be your own. On the other hand, you are encouraged to consult your classmates as well as Caitlin (French Language Studies tutor), and to speak French as often as possible with anyone you know who happens to speak it too. Please do not hesitate to come talk to me or to Caitlin as often as you like. We are here to help you. If you find yourself struggling with particular aspects of French, or with the course as it is structured, or anything else related to your studies, please let us know!
Grading Criteria
To determine assignment and course grades, the following performance scale will be used, which aligns with the Institute’s Policies and Standards Manual (Sec. 51) and reflects normative benchmarks for graduate-level academic achievement:
Percentage Letter Grade Grade Points 94–100% A and A+ 4.00 90–93% A- 3.67 87–89% B+ 3.33 84–86% B 3.00 80–83% B- 2.67 77–79% C+ 2.33 74–76% C 2.00 70–73% C- 1.67 67–69% D+ 1.33 64–66% D 1.00 60–63% D- 0.67 Below 60% F 0 P (Pass): Credit given for course, but no grade points (GPA not affected)** NP (No Pass): No credit given for course, no grade points (GPA not affected)**
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W (Withdrawal with Permission): No grade points or credit
**Please note that for the Pass/No Pass option, 70% and above is considered Pass, while 69% and below is considered No Pass.
Accommodations
Students with documented disabilities who believe that they may need accommodations in class are encouraged to contact Assistant Dean of Student Services, Ashley Arrocha, as early in the summer as possible to ensure that such accommodations are implemented in a timely manner. Assistance is available to eligible students through the Office of Student Services. Please contact [email protected] or 831-647-4654 for more information. All discussions will remain confidential.
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