Course Summary
A unique course run by Oxford University academics in partnership with academics from esteemed French institutions such as the Sorbonne, offering the opportunity to study with experts in the gorgeous surrounds of one of the University of Oxford’s constituent colleges.
What's Included?
Accommodation
During your course you will stay in College in high-quality, comfortable rooms, in our sensitively-restored Victorian villas – formerly home to members of the Arts and Crafts Circle and frequented by John Ruskin.
The following types of accommodation are available:
- Single ensuite room
- Double or twin ensuite room
- Facilities
- Linen, towels and bedding provided
- Flat-screen television
- Ensuite bathroom facilities (shower, washbasin, and toilet).
- WIFI provision
- Desk and chair
- Shared kitchenette for the preparation of light meals only
- Large social space
- Tea- and coffee-making facilities
Tuition
Teaching & Timetable:
Course Structure
- Mornings: 3-hour teaching session (including a break for refreshments)
- Lunch
- Afternoons (Day 1, 2 and 3): 2-hour guided independent study
- Morning (Day 4): Plenary discussions across the three-subject areas
- Morning (Day 5): Cross-disciplinary analysis in groups to review convergences and explore symbiotic relationships between subject areas and periods
- Afternoons (Day 4 and Day 5): participants will be able to enjoy guided tours by Fellows to the Cotswolds, an area of outstanding natural beauty in Britain, and Blenheim Palace, the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill and the seat of the Dukes of Marlborough
- Dinner (a drinks reception and formal dinner at the close of the week)
- Evenings: Free for individual study, to participate in College’s social programme, and for exploration of Oxford
Timetable
Day 1 - Subject: Architecture Tutors: Dr Geoffrey Tyack (Oxford) and Dr Olga Medvedkova (CNRS)
Tyack and Medvedkova will address English and French architecture, teasing out areas of fruitful cultural crossover. Anglo-French cultural interaction stretches back at least to the Middle Ages, and this session will focus on the architectural links between the two cultures from the Renaissance to the 20th century and will point out the French influence on some of the most important buildings both in Oxford and elsewhere in England. In the afternoon, students will explore architecture in Oxford, accompanied and orientated briefly in relation to relevant edifices by their tutors; students will then work independently to produce a short account. This would form the basis for participants’ presentations on Day 4, and the ensuing discussions.
Day 2 - Subject: Arts Tutors: Dr Leah Clark (Oxford) and Dr Ada Ackerman (Université de la Sorbonne Nouvelle)
The tutors will look at the history of museums and will take the Ashmolean Museum as a case study, exploring how the current display speaks to cross-cultural dialogues and the long history of collecting. Art collecting emerged in fifteenth-century Italy as a pastime for the elite, but it soon became a fashionable practice across Europe and the British Isles, incorporating contemporary paintings, antiquities, and objects from around the world. While often seen as a male pursuit, there is evidence that women also collected, providing them with a ‘room of their own’ and sessions will consider the gendered dimension of collecting and the museum experience, today as well as in the past. In the afternoon, an independent study session will involve students visiting the Ashmolean and exploring its collections in relation to prompts provided by the academics. A short-written piece on their findings would be the expected outcome. This would form the basis for participants’ presentations on Day 4, and the ensuing discussions.
Day 3 - Subject: Literature and Creative Writing Tutors: Dr Clare Morgan (Oxford) and Professor Alexandre Gefen (Université de la Sorbonne Nouvelle)
Day three focuses on Literature and Creative Writing, exploring two published literary prose fiction works from the twentieth century (one in English and one in French, explored in translation) and situating them in the literary and cultural context from which they emerged. Writerly strategies employed in both pieces will be examined, and participants write their own brief for a short, creative piece of prose fiction. Independent study in the afternoon will be to produce a short creative piece of fiction to participant’s own brief, and a short reflective piece on the process of writing it. The two outputs would form the basis for participants’ presentations on Day 4, and the ensuing discussions.
Day 4 - Subject: All three subject areas Tutors: All of the Tutors will be present on this day. Day four focuses on plenary discussions across the three subject areas. Each student will present one topic, chosen from their independent, afternoon work. In the afternoon, students will enjoy an exclusive tour of a couple of quintessential English villages in the Cotswolds, led by Kellogg Fellows. Nestled in the heart of England, the Cotswolds beckons with its timeless charm and picturesque landscapes, making it a truly captivating destination.
Day 5 - Subject: All three subject areas Tutors: All of the Tutors will be present on this day.
On day five, cross-disciplinary analysis in groups will be undertaken to review convergences and explore symbiotic relationships between subject areas and periods discussed. Working initially in small groups students will consider topics set by the tutors and based on the Day 4 presentations. Key questions will be set by the tutors to guide these explorations, and each group will present their findings, which will form the basis of the final plenary discussion. In the afternoon, students will enjoy a guided tour of Blenheim Palace. Often deemed as ‘Britain’s greatest palace’ Blenheim Palace, along with its surrounding properties, is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Spanning a vast 2,100 acres, this historic estate holds the distinction of being the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill. Presently, it opens its doors to the public, inviting visitors to explore its grandeur and delve into the rich history encapsulated within its stately walls. Students will enjoy a guided tour of the Palace interiors as well as the grounds.
Extracurricular Activities
The programme will include:
- Welcome drinks reception
- Guided walking tour of some of Oxford’s colleges and museums
- Chauffeured punting in College’s punt, leaving from Cherwell Boathouse
- Half-day excursions to local places of interest: picturesque Cotswolds villages and Blenheim Palace
- Black-tie College Formal in Dining Hall
- Farewell drinks reception and presentation of Certificates of Participation
- Access to college facilities and social programme, the same as any other Member of College.
A historic and beautiful college of the University of Oxford with its own intellectually challenging summer school.
