F328 French Diction and Pronunciation spring 1999
Course Goals:
1. Fluent diction. To acquire accurate, if not near-native, pronunciation of standard
International French, including individual sounds, stress, rhythm, liaison and linking,
phrasing, and intonation.
2. Aural comprehension. To develop a high degree of aural comprehension for spoken
passages delivered in French at native rate of speech, but devoid of unknown lexical items
and syntactic constructions. This implies a heightened sensitivity to differences among
various sounds, which, superficially or initially, may seem nearly indistinguishable.
3. Conceptual and working knowledge of rules which govern bringing sounds together
into more or less continuous and extended utterances: liaison, linking, pronunciation of the
so-called mute e (for rhythm), and the like.
4. Reading aloud written texts. To become familiar with the relationship which obtains
between the French sound system or phonology and French spelling or orthography.
5. Identification of individual sounds. To acquire facility in representing sounds by means
of the International Phonetic Alphabet.
6. Ability to generalize knowledge of the above, so as to be able to anticipate accurately the
pronunciation of unknown words and phrases and to become versed in consulting phonetic
resources for troublesome or exceptional items.
7. Conceptual knowledge concerning interference from English. To acquire the ability to
anticipate and correct difficulties likely to beset the Anglophone learner of spoken French.
8. Levels and registers of language. To become able to differentiate and distinguish
characteristics peculiar to formal, colloquial, uneducated, and poetic dictions.
Grading Scale:
100%-90%= A | 89%-80%=B | 79%-70%= C | 69%-60% = D | 59%-0% = F
It is assumed that A means excellent, B good, C fair/average, D poor, F failing.
Course Grade Sources:
1. Quizzes.................................................................
2. Participation & Collected Assignments.................
3. Final Exam............................................................
4. Progress................................................................
50%
10%
30%
10%
Course Guidelines, Policies and Tips:
F328 French Diction and Pronunciation is a course intended for those who have had
some previous study of French, either two or more years in high school or F120. It is intended to
provide students who wish to take advanced courses in French with systematic, comprehensive
review and enhancement of French pronunciation, to elevate aural comprehension, to enable
prospective non-native teachers of French to anticipate difficulties likely to beset the Anglophone
learner of spoken French. This course is a college course; it is not intended as validation of
pronunciation acquired previously. In this spirit, the course will assume no true knowledge or
skills on the part of enrollees at the outset.
Grades are intended to reflect how convincingly the course goals are being met. All
students surely want to receive an A. The grade of A or B should be a relative challenge to earn.
Grades are important to students for various reasons. As your French instructor, I am more
concerned that you have the opportunity to learn and progress toward the course goals than with
your course grade per se, which is your affair. Grading starts from zero. No one begins the course
with any credit towards a grade. It is up to the student to make the case for a positive grade or an
improvement in grades. This is the inverse of the policy, which begins with the maximum credit
from which the student must demonstrably detract by an inadequate performance. Group study
and review are encouraged. Cheating or misrepresentation of what constitutes one's own work,
however, are serious matters which will be dealt with severely.
The final exam and quizzes are meant to determine how well you are meeting the
goals of the course, not merely whether you are conversant with the textbooks, tapes and what
goes on in class. The textbooks and tapes are tools for accomplishing the goals. Class sessions
provide an opportunity for questions, presentations by the instructor, and practice. A casual
attitude toward quizzes would be unwise. Without repeated practice with the cassette tapes, the
quizzes will prove demanding for non-native speakers of French.
Each of the ten quizzes will have written work to do with phonetic transcription and a
script to be recorded on a cassette tape. The written portion will be given out in class at quiz
time. The portion to be recorded will be due on that same day. Each student should have at least
two cassette tapes and regular access to a tape recorder. The final two tapes of our syllabus, tapes
10 and 11 will be quizzed as part of the final examination and the recorded portions due by the
time of the final examination. I will ask you to leave generous blank space between utterances so
that I can make corrections for each individual. Even before the first quiz has been drawn up, I
will promise to critique the tape of each person. Do not think that you have not done well since,
as you see, I intend to make corrections and suggestions before having heard you.
To gain the most from class sessions, come to class prepared. It is better to come
unprepared than not to come at all. To make a productive class session, however, come regularly,
having prepared beforehand, and volunteer answers.
Work frequently for short periods of intense concentration for the best results. Do not
take for granted that there are sounds or principles of articulation that stand in no need of
improvement. Keep an open mind concerning all. Do not believe that listening without practice
aloud is a wise method of work.
The tapes available in the language laboratory are available for practice in the laboratory
and as masters for duplication. The tapes are, in a sense, the most important course materials at
your disposal. There are also other tapes in the laboratory, those to accompany D’accord, another
set of tapes for a textbook for the same course. They are also excellent and may provide
additional practice.
There are other resources available in our library, at least print resources. You may also
use me as a resource, in a sense, without wishing to sound immodest. My office hours are in the
morning. If these are not satisfactory, we can set aside other times at our mutual convenience.
Immediately before and immediately after this 1:00 class, however, will not be the best times for
me.