L’écriture du génocide dans les littéraures africaine et caribéenne d’expression française: entre transfiguration émotive du réel et mémoire transculturelle

Evil is too often perceived in Manichean terms as the opposite of good. However literature has the potential to offer a more nuanced approach to the issue, especially when treating accounts of genocide and mass atrocities. The focus will be on specific ways in which literature can bring to light the complexity of the reality of genocide, including victims’ reactions to the violence. Whereas it only takes but an instant for evil to manifest itself in a society, it often takes many generations to overcome its many consequences and to heal the invisible wounds. Of interest here are literary manifestations of this process of healing. In genocide studies, evil is understood as embedded in the perpetrator’s very intent—to wipe out the victim’s entire family line, including women, children, and the elderly. This intent is what distinguishes genocide from conventional war and offers the justification of referring to it as “absolute evil.” Approaching a literary text through the theoretical tools provided by postcolonial, genocide, and trauma studies can articulate the complex and multi-faceted nature of historical events considered evil, including how both individuals and societies react to forms of collective violence. Using a comparative analysis of novels and films dealing with Rwanda and Haiti this study will consider how literature can bear witness to genocide, reveal the incommensurable human suffering that it causes, and reveal the psychological impact on individuals and the societies in which they live. Furthermore special attention is given to exploring ways in which oral testimonies can challenge and subvert conventional historical representations.Ph.D.Includes bibliographical referencesIncludes vitaby Mamadou F. Wattar