The French and Italian language and literature collections at Tulane support the instructional and research needs of undergraduate and graduate students, and the faculty in French and Italian. The Department offers B.A, M.A., and Ph.D. degrees in French, the B.A. in Italian, a minor in Arabic Studies, and is staffed by 13 professors with occasional adjunct appointments. The goals of the Department include a commitment to teaching language, literature, and linguistics through the periodized study of texts, the integrative approach to literature as area studies, particularly Francophone, and the theoretical and diachronic study of languages. Faculty teaching and research incorporates Creole, Cajun and Francophone (especially North African, Sub-Saharan, and Caribbean) literature and linguistics, and involves extensive participation in allied programs such as Africa and African Diaspora, Cultural Studies, Linguistics, Medieval Studies, and Women's Studies. The Junior Year Abroad and Semester Abroad programs are integral parts of the Department's mission of teaching the languages, literatures, cultures, and thought of France and Italy.
