Module manager: Prof Sarah Waters
Email: s.a.waters@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable
Year running 2026/27
French language skills equivalent to B2/C1 of the CEFR (eg successful completion of Level 2 French)
FREN3641 The Algerian War FREN3865 Paris in Revolt
This module is not approved as a discovery module
This module explores major episodes of conflict in post-1945 Francophone history examining the changes, continuities and patterns that characterise them. Students focus on protest from below, considering how ordinary people, acting outside of formal structures, mobilising collectively, were able to bring about profound changes in politics, society and culture. Students explore how movements which started off as relatively small-scale initiatives subsequently involved millions of people, and how their initiators explicitly placed themselves within wider global political movements. Attention is also given to the ongoing political legacies of events which, as well as forging solidarities, produced new and lasting political faultlines. Please note this is an optional module and runs subject to enrolments. If a low number of students choose this module, then the module may not run and you may be asked to choose another module.
Drawing on primary documentation including tracts, manifestos, newspaper articles and cultural artefacts, we will seek to understand the lives, experiences and perspectives of those who took part in key post-war movements, and in particular, their ideals of social transformation. Drawing on multidisciplinary approaches based on history, political science and sociology, this module combines a chronological and thematic approach, engaging with themes including colonialism and post-colonialism, economic and social modernisation, anti-capitalism, social protest and political violence, ideology and idealism.
· Analyse and understand the nature of selected major developments in France and its former colonies since 1945.
· Develop an in-depth historical knowledge of the events under consideration as key historical moments ('tournants') in the evolution of contemporary French politics, culture and society.
· Evaluate how these events impacted different aspects of the affected societies, and across the lines of social group, political affiliation, gender, generation, and ethnicity.
· Examine the events under consideration from the perspective of those who took part: students, workers, communists, feminists and revolutionaries.
On successful completion of the module students will be able to:
LO1. analyse major developments since 1945 in one or more French-speaking countries.
LO2. evaluate current debates by identifying, analysing and interpreting primary texts and secondary sources in French
LO3. Communicate in French on complex topics in an academic register
LO4. Evaluate and critically synthesise complex historical material and debates and develop structured and nuanced arguments in writing
LO5. Demonstrate the ability to work effectively and creatively as part of a team
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supervision | 2 | 0.3 | 0.6 |
| Practicals | 1 | 1.5 | 1.5 |
| Lecture | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Seminar | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Private study hours | 177.9 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 22.1 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
Students will receive written feedback on the essay outline (with summary bibliography). Seminar presentations will help students prepare for the summative assessed presentation at the end of the module. Students will be given written feedback on formative presentations.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Essay | 70 |
| Coursework | Group Presentation | 30 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated
Check the module area in Minerva for your reading list
Last updated: 30/04/2026
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team