Proust, Camus and Sartre: how to understand French literature - course 4950 rub. from Level One, training 8 lectures for 2 hours, Date: December 3, 2023.
Miscellaneous / / December 03, 2023
A course of 8 lectures about the bizarre world of Proust, Camus and Sartre. After the course, you will learn to savor French literature and experience the story with the author - leisurely and with pleasure. It is not necessary to read the books in advance: we will select the most interesting and revealing passages from the main works.
Candidate of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of History of Foreign Literatures at St. Petersburg State University. She has taught at the universities of Zurich, Innsbruck, Halle, Freiburg and Trier. Laureate of the international competition “European Lecturer 2012”. Author of more than 100 literary works in Russian and German.
“The literature of German-speaking countries formed the basis of the European artistic heritage. Writers from Germany, Austria and Switzerland represent different cultures that are interesting to compare. The classical German tradition that unites them turns into a fireworks display of artistic experiments and big names in the 20th century. Thomas Mann and Hermann Hesse, Kafka and Brecht - without them it is impossible to imagine either modern prose or modern theater. We will examine this fireworks display in detail, expanding knowledge with new names, as well as information about little-known, but extremely important events and phenomena. We will find reliable reference points in the works of a variety of authors who have given the world amazing combinations philosophical depth and beauty of verbal images, we will share the experiences of the smartest people of our time."
Lectures last 2 hours - watch at your own pace. Access to the course will remain forever.
20th Century Art and the Impressionism of Marcel Proust
Let's take a closer look at history to understand the features of twentieth-century literature, which is so different from previous traditions. Looking into the sphere of painting, we see the connection between the phenomena of different arts. Let's deepen our understanding of artistic experiments characteristic of the turn of the century. Against this background we will see the central figure of our course - Marcel Proust. Let's discuss the creative path of the writer.
Cycle of novels by Marcel Proust “In Search of Lost Time”
Let's form fundamental ideas about innovations in literature by considering Proust's grandiose epic “In Search of Lost Time.” Let us focus special attention on the first and key novel of the cycle, “Towards Swann.” Let's look at the features of the story. Let's talk about fleeting impressions, long memories and eternal problems of love.
Existentialism in France: Jean-Paul Sartre
Let us take a closer look at the variety of connections between philosophy and literature. Let's think about the key phenomenon of philosophy of the 20th century - existentialism, comparing its achievements in different countries. Let us understand why it was in France that tragic reflections about oneself and the world reached the level of the highest achievements. Let's look into Sartre's philosophical works and his literary works, paying special attention to the plays.
Philosophical prose of France: Albert Camus
Let's consider how the philosophy of existentialism manifested itself in the artistic work of Albert Camus. Let's get acquainted with his views on the possibilities of literature, as well as their reflection in the story “The Outsider” and the novel “The Plague”. Let us understand why Camus’s works have been causing the most mixed feelings and the most heated debate for so many decades.
Philosophy in the Theater: Samuel Beckett
Let's consider the creative path of the famous French and Irish writer, Nobel Prize winner. Let us see behind his radical innovation a rich and long tradition that connects our time with Shakespeare and antiquity. Let's find out what the “theater of stopped clocks” is. Let's take a closer look at the plays, paying special attention to the masterpiece "Waiting for Godot."
Theater of the Absurd: Eugene Ionesco
Let's think about the phenomenon of absurdity in everyday life and on the theatrical stage. Let's look at the variety of plays by the French playwright of Romanian origin, who became a key figure in the history of 20th century theater. Let's talk about the role pauses and emptiness on stage play in performing arts. Let's take a closer look at the plays "The Bald Singer", "Chairs" and "Rhinoceros". Let's find out how they relate to us personally.
French "new novel": Alain Robbe-Grillet
Let's find out exactly how a hero differs from an anti-hero, and also who the “omniscient narrator” is, and why he is no longer needed in French literature of the second half of the 20th century. We will see the threads of tradition connecting “The Sorrows of Young Werther” with Oblomov’s melancholy, Proust’s impressions and the experiences of “In the Labyrinth” by neo-naturalist Alain Robbe-Grillet. Let's find out why a free look is the best organizer of the universe.
Nathalie Sarraute - classic of French literature from Russia
Let's take a closer look at the subtlest movements of the soul that determine the development of human relationships and the essence of our life. We learn how the fickle and restless Don Juan hourly turns into a statue of the Commander. Let's get carried away by thinking about human speech and its capabilities. Let us understand why the novel “Golden Fruits” can be considered an encyclopedia of ideas about literature and our inner world.