Authorizing a tradition: Theory, criticism and (self-) canonization in French Caribbean writing

As critics have noted, Antillean literature has developed in tandem with a strong (self-) critical and theoretical body of work. The various attempts to theorize Antillean identity (négritude, antillanité, créolité) have been controversial and divisive, and the literary scene has been characterized as explosive, incestuous and self-referential. Yet writers aligned with, or opposed to, a given theory often have superior visibility. Meanwhile writers who claim to operate outside the boundaries of theory, such as Maryse Condé, are often canny theoretical operators who, from prestigious academic or cultural positions, manipulate readers’ responses and their own self-image through criticism. While recent polemics have helped to raise the critical stock of the islands generally, they have particularly enhanced the cultural capital of Chamoiseau and Condé, whose literary antagonism is in fact mutually sustaining. Both writers, through a strong awareness of (and contribution to) the critical field in which their work is read, position themselves as canonical authors.

French Autopathography

Reacting against the assumption that ill people ‘surrender’ their bodies to medicine, first-person illness narratives attempt to restore the patient’s voice to an often dehumanizing and bewildering medical experience. This special issue complements recent medical humanities scholarship on English-language illness narratives by investigating a distinctly rich tradition of French autopathography. Diverse approaches and methodologies will be used to consider first-person perspectives on a range of illnesses, disabilities and disorders, including AIDS, cancer, physical pain, mental health issues, anorexia, and locked-in syndrome. The issue aims to promote interdisciplinary dialogue across genres (literature, film, philosophy) and examine the creative potential that lies at the interface of medicine and the arts.