Paris: United Frances

“La France” evokes what is beautiful, timelessly romantique, and “praiseworthy,” with some perplexities in between. Thinking in terms of “United Frances” is not about imitating a younger nation; this study abroad program intends rather to take students to see this fact: "La France," singular, does not exist outside of the many regions and territories added up over the centuries, through alliances or colonial conquests, and consolidated into one indivisible nation. That is, "indivisible" with a few revolutions and independences, like the one from which Haiti emerged in 1804 that was eventually headed by an ex-slave who became general and governor, who died in a dungeon in France. Sounds epic, like the movie Gladiator, but it's true! Is it a fairy tale? You’ll see when you’re in the dungeon.

Students will see that not all French territories are the same: New Caledonia has the same status as Tahiti but not Brittany. All French citizens carry a French passport and have a social security number, but they are not all "French" in the same way. From Reims, where the idea of France traditionally began with the baptism of Clovis, to Lourdes in the Pyrenees, where a young woman saw the Virgin Mary, the country is traditionally Christian Catholic. But students will learn that there are more active Catholics in places like Vendée and Martinique than in Paris and its surrounding region, despite Victor Hugo’s Notre Dame cathedral. And there are a few Latter-day Saints throughout the country among the faithful Christians: Bordeaux is not only the wine country, it's also where a special witness of Jesus Christ was born and grew up. And what should we say about gastronomy—pastries, regional dishes, and more? You’ll taste and burn the calories!

Much of this program is about understanding La France in its plurality, as far as the Caribbean. But it will not be a sightseeing tour. It will be a once-in-a-lifetime learning experience with a Franco-Haitian professor of French and his French family as guides and language coaches. Sign up now! You won’t regret it—you’ll see!

Click here to apply today!