French 262 - AFTER ALGERIA: REV,RPBLC, RACE

For the last two centuries, one could argue that it is the Franco-Algerian relationship that has been decisive in the construction of modern France. From the colonial conquest in the early 19th century through independence in 1962, Algeria has evoked passions on both sides of the Mediterranean Sea, passions frequently resulting in violence that has not entirely subsided. Memory of a conflictual present and past has required continual mediation among involved actors. In the 50-plus years that have passed since Algerian independence, France and the French have increasingly confronted echoes of their colonial past as a result of pervasive debates around immigration, multiculturalism and national identity. Through a variety of perspectives and readings, we explore a post-Algerian French society that appears to be permanently marked by its Algerian experience. Can a late-20th-century discourse of socioeconomic, cultural, ethnic and religious diversity, all shaped by the Algerian episode, be reconciled with Republican norms? To what extent has the experience in and of Algeria transformed contemporary French culture? In what ways can one speak of the Algerian experience in revolutionary terms? Prerequisite: 230 or permission of the instructor.