Violence et effondrement dans la fiction insulaire francophone contemporaine : l’île comme dystopie ? (Alfred Alexandre, Les Villes assassines ; Nathacha Appanah, Tropique de la violence)
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Date
2021
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Katolicki Uniwersytet Lubelski Jana Pawła II, Wydawnictwo Werset
Abstract
L’imaginaire occidental a souvent dépeint les îles comme des endroits paradisiaques, voire des utopies. Or, on constate que les récits contemporains des îles, c’est-à-dire écrits par des auteurs eux-mêmes habitants des îles, placent la violence, les inégalités sociales, les enjeux climatiques et les problématiques de l’exil au cœur de leurs dispositifs narratifs. Les quartiers d’« Eden Ouest » et de « Gaza » dans le roman du Martiniquais Alfred Alexandre (Les Villes assassines, 2011), et dans celui de la Mauricienne Nathacha Appanah (Tropique de la violence, 2015) inscrivent ces thématiques au cœur de représentation spatiale. De l’utopie, serions-nous passés à la dystopie ? Cet article examine la pertinence de ces catégories conceptuelles pour aborder certains tropes de la littérature insulaire francophone, en l’associant notamment à la notion en vogue d’« effondrement » et de contre-exotisme, s’attachant en particulier à la représentation du quartier insalubre et au thème de l’immigration clandestine.
Western imagination has often portrayed islands as heavenly places, or even utopias. However, contemporary island narratives often put violence, social inequalities, as well as climate issues and topics of exile at the heart of their narrative. The districts of “Gaza” and “West Eden” in Alfred Alexandre's novel Les Villes assassines (2011) and in Nathacha Appanah's Tropique de la violence (2015) are indeed depict-ed as zones of extreme precarity. This article examines the relevance of the conceptual category of “dystopia” for addressing certain tropes of French-speaking island literature. The link between dystopia and the popular notion of “collapse” shall lead us to examine new modes of representation of contemporary islands in these two novels, particularly when discussing the prevalent topics of and undocumented immigrants.
Western imagination has often portrayed islands as heavenly places, or even utopias. However, contemporary island narratives often put violence, social inequalities, as well as climate issues and topics of exile at the heart of their narrative. The districts of “Gaza” and “West Eden” in Alfred Alexandre's novel Les Villes assassines (2011) and in Nathacha Appanah's Tropique de la violence (2015) are indeed depict-ed as zones of extreme precarity. This article examines the relevance of the conceptual category of “dystopia” for addressing certain tropes of French-speaking island literature. The link between dystopia and the popular notion of “collapse” shall lead us to examine new modes of representation of contemporary islands in these two novels, particularly when discussing the prevalent topics of and undocumented immigrants.
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Keywords
Alfred Alexandre, Nathacha Appanah, dystopie, effondrement, insularité, contre-utopie, dystopia, collapse, island narratives, counter-utopia
Citation
"Quêtes littéraires" 2021, nº 11, s.