FREN 186 - Meeting Places: Bars, Streets, Cafés

Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)

“Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine.” This bitter observation, made by the owner of “Rick’s Café” in the 1942 American-made film Casablanca, is often misquoted as, “she had to walk into mine.” Indeed, the unexpected encounter with a past acquaintance or stranger is a necessary catalyst that sets in motion the plot of many a novel or film. This course looks at literary or cinematic chance meetings that occur in three kinds of locales: the bar, the street, and the café. While studying bars, streets, or cafés as narrative meeting places, we simultaneously consider France’s relation to the larger “place,” or geographical region, in which each story of a chance meeting unfolds. After viewing Michael Curtiz’s film Casablanca, set in French-occupied Morocco, our explorations take us to the city of Paris in André Breton’s Nadja, to Amsterdam in Albert Camus’ The Fall, to French Indochina in Marguerite Duras’ The Lover, and then back to France with Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s The Fabulous Destiny of Amélie Poulain. Finally, we return to the film Casablanca, better equipped to understand why, if all roads lead to Casablanca, then all roads in Casablanca “must” lead to Rick’s Café. The course is taught in English. All works are read in translation. Ms. Hart.

Open only to Freshmen. Satisfies the college requirement for a Freshman Writing Seminar.

Two 75-minute periods.