Academics
Faculty       Courses

Courses

Students choose two of the following courses. Each course carries four Boston University credits. Students must enroll for a total of eight credits. Courses are taught in English.

CAS LF 568 Topics in French Literature: Literature and Films from Senegal
Senegalese writers such as Ousmane Sembene, Boubacar Boris Diop, Mariama Bâ have always been at the avant-garde of African literature, and Léopold Sedar Senghor is one of the founding members of the Negritude movement. Likewise, filmmakers Ousmane Sembene, and Safi Faye, to name only two, are pioneers of African cinema. This course examines the evolution of the literary and cinematic aesthetics of these writers and filmmakers. The novels selected speak to the writer’s relationship to dominant institutions and values in twentieth-century France and the francophone world. Topics of interest included traditional values and social change, gender representations, colonial and postcolonial politics, and immigration. Discussion of films will focus on representations of the African continent and the particularities of non-Euro-American filmmaking practices. The selected novels and films will be studied within their cultural and political contexts. Syllabus

CFA MU 467 Drum and Dance in Senegal
Through West African drumming and dance, this course will introduce students to essential aspects of indigenous cultures, their collective issues and values, and the philosophies that sustain them. The course includes two parts: a seminar addressing the role of music and dance in West African societies, its symbolism and mysticism, and the role of gender, religion and social status in the performing arts. The course also includes a performance component with instruction in West African traditional dances and instrumental and vocal techniques. Syllabus

IP 400 Introductory Wolof
Beginning course in Wolof language, one of Senegal’s principal languages. The course’s emphasis is on developing oral proficiency but includes work on writing and reading skills.


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Faculty

Odile Cazenave
Odile Cazenave, Associate Professor of French at Boston University, will teach the course on Senegalese Literature and Film and serve as Program Director.