Politics and Delusion in Francophone Literature
How does politics shape identity? What roles have politics played in shaping the French Caribbean culture and imagination, and how have they impacted people and landscapes? Are these policies challenged? By whom? In this seminar we’ll explore such questions by reading, writing about, and discussing several francophone novels. We will focus on the significance of historical experiences such as colonization, departmentalization, and dictatorship through themes of alienation, assimilation, and emancipation. The analysis of these imagined or experienced accounts by Césaire, Chamoiseau, Chauvet and Juminer will help us further understand notions of power, privilege, and justice. No knowledge of French is required.