Seminar : Arabic Literature [ LGLOR2932 ]

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A course in Arabic literature (Islamic or Christian) and at least one year of classical or modern Arabic.

This course concentrates on the critical analysis of recent studies (monographs, articles), with special attention to training in the necessary skills for such scholarly activity. It is in this light that original texts will be considered. The seminar highlights studies on Arabic literature, mostly of the Classical period. Texts to be studied derive from Muslim, Christian, Jewish and confessionally neutral environments. The great variety of genres will be taken into account: travel literature, historiography, scientific and religious texts, poetry, texts for entertainment, etc. Studies on such texts and their historical, religious and cultural settings will be analyzed according to topics to be defined in consultation with the students. Students are required to orally present their findings and to write a research paper. This process of presenting and writing will be enhanced by group discussions. Please note: the texts in question may (partly) coincide with texts studied in other courses, notably Classical Arabic II (GLOR 2661-2662) and Middle Arabic (GLOR 2721-2722).

At the end of the course, the student should have acquired :

- thorough familiarity with Arabic literature, particularly of the Classical period, and its historical, religious and cultural settings;

- basic knowledge of modern scholarly approaches to various aspects of Arabic literature;

- the heuristic skill of using the main instruments for the study of Arabic literature: dictionaries, encyclopaedias, bibliographies, monographs and articles, web-based resources;

- the know-how to carry out individual research within the field of Arabic literature;

- the communication skills required to orally present the findings of a small-scale research project on a relevant Arabic literary text;

- the communication required to actively contribute to a discussion on a relevant topic

- the ability to write a short paper on an aspect of Arabic literature and to process feedback given by the tutor and by fellow students.

Continuous assessment, based on oral presentations, participation in group discussions, and the research paper. No exam at the end of term.

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 Support: printed texts, photocopies, documents presented in digital format, sound recordings.

The course provides E-learning activities, with compulsory registration on the I-campus platform.

Please note: while French is the language of instruction, other contact languages (Arabic, English, German) may be used occasionally as well, in the case of contributions by visiting lecturers from abroad.