Meeting with Richard Anconina

On Friday, May 25th2018 we present Richard Anconina in conversation with students and members of the public. The famous French actor, whose work spans genres and decades, will be speaking about the art of cinema and his work. Richard Anconina is a winner of two César Awards (Best Supporting Actor, Most Promising Actor) and has worked with such directors as Claude Berri and Claude Lelouch.

This conversation will be convened by Dr Michael Abecassis and take place in the Auditorium of St John's College.

The event is free and open to all, and will be in French.

Francophone Seminar Keynote Lecture: Aimé Césaire and the Hermeneutical Circle, or, How We Know What We Know

On Tuesday, May 15th 2018 we invite you to the keynote lecture of the Faculty Francophone Seminar: 'Aimé Césaire and the Hermeneutical Circle, or, How We Know What We Know' by Professor A. James Arnold. The speaker will share his insight into the works of the famous Martinique author and founder of the négritude movement in Francophone literature.

The talk will be held in the Main Hall of the Taylorian Institute at 5 pm. The event is open to all and no booking is required.

La francophonie au Royaume-Uni : état, enjeux, perspectives

The Faculty of Medieval and Modern Languages and the Maison Française d’Oxford are hosting a meeting of the Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (https://www.auf.org/) and of UK universities on 6 - 7 June 2018. We warmly invite representatives of academic institutions to attend.

Modern Languages Open Day: Spaces Released

We are pleased to announce that more spaces have been opened on our Modern Languages Open Day, taking place on Saturday, April 28th at the Examination Schools. The event will run from 10.50 am to 4 pm and will offer an overview of Modern Languages at Oxford, as well as a chance for prospective students to ask our tutors any questions they might have about the degree.

Please, note that booking is required.

International Seminar: Balzac and England

On April 12th-14th, 2018 international seminar Balzac et l'Angleterre / Balzac and England will be taking place at Maison Française d’Oxford.

The seminar will be conducted in both English and French, with speakers arriving from across Britain and France, but also Morocco, Canada, Switzerland, Germany, the Czech Republic, and United States. Over the course of three days this international gathering of scholars will explore the nature of Balzac's engagement with Britain, but also of Britain's — and the world's — engagement with Balzac.

'In medieval Britain, if you wanted to get ahead, you had to speak French': A New Article by Huw Grange

A new article by Dr Huw Grange has been published by The Conversation: 'In medieval Britain, if you wanted to get ahead, you had to speak French' tells about the influence of the Normans, and of the early textbooks used to teach French to English speakers.

Dr Grange proceeds to tell about the difficulty of learning a foreign language without leaving one's home country, and about the shifts in the linguistic preferences of the British. In Oxford, French was once so popular that it was formally forbidden to neglect Latin in its favour.

Dreaming Romantic Europe - AHRC Network Grant

The Arts and Humanities Research Council has awarded a network grant to ‘Dreaming Romantic Europe’, a project led by Catriona Seth, the Marshal Foch Professor of French Literature here at Oxford, as co-investigator, and by Professor Nicola J. Watson of the Open University as Principal Investigator.

The award will make it possible to draw together individual academics, but also scholarly associations and cultural heritage institutions across Europe, which are devoted to the study and presentation of Romanticism.

Meeting with Lilian Thuram

On Thursday, March 15th we present Lilian Thuram in conversation with students and members of the public. The famous football defender, who helped France win the 1998 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2000 championships, is a UNICEF ambassador and promotes education as a way to battle racism. He will be speaking about his initiatives, which include a book My Black Stars, used in French schools.

This conversation will be convened by Dr Michael Abecassis and take place in the Holywell Music Room.

The event is free and open to all, and will be in French.

Musical and Literary Approaches to the Operas of Jean-Philippe Rameau

On Friday, March 2nd Dr Jonathan Patterson, together with Dr Jonathan Williams (Director of College Music, St Hilda's College) and the Faculty of Music, will present a unique seminar: 'Musical and Literary Approaches to the Operas of Jean-Philippe Rameau'.

Dedicated to the works of the 18th-century French composer and music theorist, the seminar will explore Rameau's legacy through the integration of literary and musical analytical techniques.

This event is free and open to all.

Our annual language competitions for schools are open for entries: choose between a French script, a short story in Spanish, or from a number of projects on the theme of ‘Freundschaft – Friendship’ in German.

The age categories are from Year 5 to Year 13, depending on the competition. Winning prizes include publication and monetary rewards.

Conversation avec Enki Bilal

On Friday, March 2nd we present renowned comic book author and film director Enki Bilal in conversation with students and members of the public. One of the most sought-after artists in the world will talk working across genres and cultures. The conversation will be convened by Dr Michael Abecassis and take place in the Main Hall, Taylor Institution.

This event is free and open to all, and will be in French.

Professor Catriona Seth Receiving an Honorary Degree from Queen's, Belfast

Professor Catriona Seth is to receive an honorary degree from Queen's University Belfast, in acknowledgement of her achievements in the field of French literature research.

Conversation avec Emmanuel Guibert

As part of the Seminar on Contemporary French Writing and Culture, author, illustrator, and graphic artist Emmanuel Guibert will be a guest in the ‘Conversations avec…’ series. The conversation will be convened by Professor Catriona Seth and Professor Seth Whidden and take place on Monday, February 19th at Queen’s College.

This event is free and open to all, and will be in French.

The Open Days for spring 2018 have now been announced! We welcome prospective applicants to meet our tutors and students, to have a look at libraries and classrooms, and to learn more about the admissions process and studying at Oxford.

The main Open Day at the Faculty of Medieval and Modern Languages is taking place on Saturday, April 28th, with additional language-specific days from February to March.

Compassion’s Edge: Fellow-Feeling and its Limits in Early Modern France

Compassion’s Edge: Fellow-Feeling and its Limits in Early Modern France is a new book by Professor Katherine Ibbett, Fellow of Trinity College, which was published last year by the University of Pennsylvania Press.

Professor Seth Whidden on 'Soft Power' (France Culture)

As part of France Culture’s focus on travel, the radio show ‘Soft Power’ devoted its last episode of 2017 to Arthur Rimbaud (1854-1891), one of the most important poets of the nineteenth century. Among the invited guests was Seth Whidden, who recently completed a biography of Rimbaud due out later this year.

Les Lumières au pluriel

A conference on Les Lumières au pluriel marks a stage of the ANR/DFG-funded EDULUM project. It is being held on 14-16 December at the Maison Française in Oxford and at All Souls College, with support from both organisations and from the Faculty of Medieval and Modern Languages at Oxford.

Dr Andrew Counter to Receive MLA Prize

Congratulations to Dr Andrew Counter of the French Sub-Faculty on winning the very prestigious MLA Prize:

The Modern Language Association of America have awarded the twenty-fifth annual Aldo and Jeanne Scaglione Prize for French and Francophone Studies to Dr Counter for his book The Amorous Restoration: Love, Sex, and Politics in Early Nineteenth-Century France, published by Oxford University Press.

Professor Catriona Seth FBA on 'In Our Time'

Germaine de Staël (1766-1817), one of the greatest writers and the most famous woman of the early nineteenth century, is the subject of Radio 4’s In Our Time, hosted by Lord Bragg on November 16 2017. He is in conversation with Catriona Seth FBA, the Marshal Foch Professor of Literature and Fellow of All Souls, who recently edited Staël’s works for Gallimard’s prestigious “Pléiade” series, and with fellow academics Professor Alison Finch and Dr Katherine Astbury.

We are delighted to announce that one of our three entrants to the 2017 R.H. Gapper Undergraduate Essay Prize, Peter Tellouche, has been voted this year's winner.