Tense, aspect and narrative structure in oral narratives of students and native speakers of French: A comparative study

This study aims to comparatively examine features of tense, aspect and narrative structure in oral narratives of Turkish L1 learners of French as a foreign language and native speakers of French. The sample of the study included 93 students enrolling in first, second, third and fourth years of French Language Teaching Department at Çukurova University as well as 16 native speakers of French. Participants were first asked to watch French dubbed versions of Lion King and A Christmas Carol, both Walt Disney productions, then to orally retell these movies. Data were analyzed in terms of the aspect and discourse hypotheses. Results indicated that both students and native speakers of French highly structured their oral narratives by présent. Oral narratives with high use of présent indicate that students began to dispose of the effects of both narrative structure and inherent semantic properties of verbs. However, students did not have same levels of getting rid of the effects of narrative structure and lexical aspect. Namely, junior and senior students found to be more influenced by narrative structure and lexical aspect compared with freshman and sophomore ones.

Walt Disney Productions, June 1984

This case is set in the midst of the attempted takeover of Walt Disney Productions by the raider Saul Steinberg in June 1984. Disney's chief executive officer ponders whether to fight the takeover or to pay “greenmail”. One significant influence on the decision is the “true” value of the firm. The case offers, either directly or through analysis of it, several estimates of value. The valuation question invites a review of Disney's past performance and current competitive position. Other significant influences on the decision are the ethics and economics of paying greenmail. The rich range of issues raised in the case (strategy, valuation, performance measurement, and ethics) makes it an effective first case, review case, or final exam in a corporate-finance course. A student worksheet file is available for use with this case.

Trading Places: Das doppelte Lottchen and The Parent Trap

In 1961, Walt Disney Productions released The Parent Trap. A huge popular and commercial success for the Disney studio, it was theatrically re-issued in 1968; extended through three television sequels (1986, 1989, 1989); and remade in 1998. Perhaps less well known is that Disney’s 1961 version of The Parent Trap was itself already a remake of German, Japanese and British versions – Das doppelte Lottchen (1950), Hibari no komoriuta (1951), and Twice Upon a Time (1953) – each in turn derived from Erich Kästner’s 1949 novel Das doppelte Lottchen. While the cultural production does not end here – with subsequent versions reported in India, Iran and Korea, and animated and live action remakes in Japan and Germany – this chapter inquires into the transnational connections between Kästner’s novel and the US and German versions (originals and remakes). This chapter extends its analysis beyond Kästner’s twin figures of Lisa (from Vienna) and Lotte (from Munich) to chart not only a cartography of transnational flows – a political economy of textual production and reception – but also indicate the way in which the films’ exchange of twins is symptomatic of that between original and transnational film remake.