YFS celebrated 75 years

The French Department hosted a celebration to mark the 75^th anniversary of Yale French Studies, the country’s oldest English-language journal devoted to French and Francophone literature, language, and culture on November 2, 2023.

The evening’s festivities opened with remarks from department chair, Maurice Samuels, followed by an introduction from YFS managing editor, Nichole Gleisner. A talented troupe of student actors, Kieron Cindric, Nour Darragi, Claire Donnellan and Karoline Vielemeyer, brilliantly performed two dramatic readings in French that represented the past and present of the publication. An excerpt from Jean-Paul Sartre’s existential drama Les Mains sales from the first volume of Yale French Studies was paired with a selection of scenes from Monique Wittig’s avant-garde Le Voyage sans fin to highlight the publication of #143, “Lesbian Materialism: The Life and Work of Monique Wittig” (see below.)

The volume’s editors, Morgane Cadieu (Yale) and Annabel L. Kim (Harvard) attended this special evening as well as many friends, faculty, students, and staff of the French department and the larger university community.