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 2 FRLA 8211 Eagle 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”. 3 FRLA 8211 Eagle 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 4 FRLA 8211 Eagle 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 5 FRLA 8211 Eagle « 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