France in the 17th Century (le grand siècle): Culture and Society

The 17th century French was described by posterity as "Grand Siècle". We immediately think of the influence of the monarchy of Louis XIV, its ambitions, its projects and its achievements. However, to reduce interest in this century to the political grandeur of the Sun King alone would be to ignore it: through sessions illustrated with iconographic and textual documents, drawn from the works of great memorialists and writers, painters, we will gradually become aware that many of the socio-cultural reflexes of today's French are heirs to the Grand Siècle: the conception of family order, the education of children, the perception of the poor, the taste for great patronage and even the theater. This course cycle is not exclusively designed for historians. Built around autonomous and easily accessible themes, it aims to be varied, open to the plurality of courses and projects of Middlebury students. His project is to sharpen the critical spirit, the sense of analysis, to help everyone with their skills and sensitivity, to progress, to better understand the specificity of French civilization today.



Required texts :

• Joël Cornette, Histoire de la France, Absolutisme et Lumières (1652-1783), Paris, Hachette, 1996 (rééd.) ISBN-13: 978-2011459688

• Robert Descimon, Christian Jouhad; La France du premier XVII siècle, 1594 – 1661, Paris, Belin, 1996. ISBN : 9782701114996



Ces livres seront disponibles en consultation sur place à la bibliothèque du Centre Madeleine à Paris.