In the Heart of the Loire Valley

This intensive three week subject will focus on one of the most creative times of French history, albeit one of the most turbulent, the Renaissance. With a series of lectures and detailed virtual site visits, this subject will examine some of the most striking examples of French Renaissance architecture, including the famed “Chateaux de la Loire” built during the late 16th century, and learn about arts and history. This subject will use an interdisciplinary approach (linguistic, history, art history, botany, gastronomy etc.).

• 1Gain an appreciation of academic French through the confident use of sophisticated oral and written French at level B2/C1 of the Common European Framework for Languages in real life situations
• 2Build a rounded picture of Renaissance France and Europe
• 3Gain an overview of two specialised fields in at least one of the three core areas of Renaissance French literature, art, and cultural studies
• 4Reflect on their positionality as a bicultural and bilingual person and as a global citizen
• 5Establish literary, historical, philosophical, linguistic and cultural connections between the Renaissance Age and contemporary society
• 6Make wide use of learning and research technologies in French and English.