Essential Critical Works

General Studies

- Barthes, Le Degré zéro de l'écriture - Genette, Figures I-V - Kristeva, Desire in Language - Compagnon, Literature, Theory, and Common Sense

Period-Specific

- Auerbach, Mimesis (Medieval-Renaissance) - Starobinski, The Invention of Liberty (Enlightenment) - Benjamin, The Arcades Project (19th century) - Sartre, What is Literature? (Modern)

Theoretical Approaches

- Feminist: Cixous, The Laugh of the Medusa - Postcolonial: Fanon, Black Skin, White Masks - Psychoanalytic: Lacan, Écrits - Sociological: Bourdieu, The Rules of Art

This resource guide provides starting points for deeper exploration. French literature's richness requires lifetime study, but these tools enable meaningful engagement at any level. Remember that literature lives not in academic study alone but in cafés, bookstores, and conversations. Immerse yourself in the living culture while using these resources to deepen understanding.# Discussion Questions