Resistance and Memory: France in the Second World War *

The Second World War has cast a long shadow over France's postwar history and politics. Contemporary events are still refracted through the prism of a past that, as one historian has noted, does not seem to go away. We will focus on a critical aspect of that past, the French Resistance, a politically and socially diverse underground movement that took root in a divided nation under the collaborationist Vichy regime and German occupation. What forms did refusal take, how did resistance function, and what motivated resisters to risk their lives? We will examine the myths, realities, and legacy of the Resistance through original documents and period artifacts, memoirs and testimony, film and fiction, and seminal works of postwar historiography. Students will produce a significant piece of independent research to present to the class. (Open to French Senior Majors). 3 hrs. lect/disc.