French grammar notes available here.

Really useful and a nice, straightforward layout.

Merci beaucoup

Thanks for this, really helpful!. May I ask what uni you're at (I'm thinking of applying for French)?

I know, I am not that precise here(no great idea of grammar, as I learned French not only out of books) but of course you can use c'est for a profession, it is would just mean:
- That is a journalist. (C'est un journaliste. Il faut dire un, parceque si non la phrase n'avait pas de sense. -> You would naver say in English: That is journalist, either. )
- He is a journalist. (Il est journaliste/Il travaille comme journaliste.)
It has a lot to do with the right translation/meaning of il and ce, than with a strict application of the grammar rules. When you mean "He", you can simply say "Il", in that case "C'est" could be only used by a snob from the nobility in the middle age.

My French and English are both not perfect, definitely not and at the end of your studies you will speak much better than me and grammar rules are allways developing and underly also a certain pedadogy, but don't take them allways 1:1 to not learning false things and neglect the meaning (which will make it easier for you with the time).

I hope I created no confusion.

No problem!

I'm going into my second year (!) at Oxford this October. If you have any questions about applying for languages I'd be happy to talk about how I found the whole process.


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Perfect- I'm currently doing English Literature and as much as I enjoy it I do sometimes find it quite hard. As part of the French degree, I was just wondering how challenging the literature is at Oxford at and also whether the workload is stressful and too much to handle?

...

The workload is intense, but manageable - last year I had an essay and a few translations a week as well as a summary exercise every fortnight. I also had collections at the start of the second and third terms (two 3 hour exams - one in the morning, one in the afternoon) which test your knowledge of the previous term's work. It sounds horrible but it's actually very beneficial to get exam practice and you get one to one feedback - it's all very personal. ...

Sounds great, as it is very difficult to learn a language in short time to a very high level, when you would not practise that lot. (At least you don't have to do it by yourself, but you are doing it all together.)

What is a summary exercise? At what level do you start with the language?

A summary exercise is just when you get a 800 word passage in French about some topic (normally quite a weird one with long words!) and you have to write a summary in French but in your own words. For second years you then have to write about the passage and analyse the arguments being made.

Everyone studying French has done A level and most got an A*. It's good because most people have a solid grasp of the language and the tutors don't have to focus on the basics all the time. It also means we can read French literature and philosophy and study French films at quite a fast pace.

Are you French and studying in England?

These are really great, the subjunctive ones will be particularly useful.
Just on a side note, how are you finding Trinity as a college?