Contemporary French literature

Contemporary French literature

French and
Francophone literature

French literature
By category
French language

French literary history

Medieval
16th century - 17th century
18th century - 19th century
20th century - Contemporary

Francophone literature

Francophone literature
Literature of Quebec
Postcolonial literature
Literature of Haiti

French language authors

Chronological list

French Writers

Writers - Novelists
Playwrights - Poets
Essayists
Short Story Writers

Forms

Novel - Poetry - Plays

Genres

Science Fiction - Comics
Fantastique

Movements

Naturalism - Symbolism
Surrealism - Existentialism
Nouveau Roman
Theatre of the Absurd

Criticism & Awards

Literary theory - Critics
Literary Prizes

Most visited

Molière - Racine - Balzac
Stendhal - Flaubert
Emile Zola - Marcel Proust
Samuel Beckett - Albert Camus

France Portal
Literature Portal

Contemporary French literature is French literature roughly from the 1990s to today.

The economic, political and social crises of contemporary France˜—exclusion, immigration, unemployment, racism, etc.—and (for some) the notion that France has lost its sense of identity and international prestige—through the rise of American hegemony, the growth of Europe and of global capitalism (French: mondialisation)—have created what some critics (like Nancy Huston) have seen as a new form of detached nihilism, reminiscent of the 50s and 60s (Beckett, Cioran). The best known of these authors is Michel Houellebecq, whose Atomised (French: Les particules élémentaires) was a major international phenomenon. These tendencies have also come under attack. In one of her essays, Nancy Huston criticises Houellebecq for his nihilism; she also makes an acerbic censure of his novels in her work The teachers of despair (French: Professeurs de désespoir).

Although the contemporary social and political context can be felt in recent works, overall, French literature written in past decades has been disengaged from explicit political discussion (unlike the authors of the 1930s-1940s or the generation of 1968) and has focused on the intimate and the anecdotal. It has tended to no longer see itself as a means of criticism or world transformation, with some notable exceptions (such as Michel Houellebecq or Maurice Dantec).

Other contemporary writers during the last decade have consciously used the process of "Autofiction" (similar to the notion of "faction") to renew the novel (Christine Angot for example). "Autofiction" is a term invented by Serge Doubrovsky in 1977. It is a new sort of romanticised autobiography that resembles the writing of the romantics of the nineteenth century. A few other authors may be perceived as vaguely belonging to this group: Alice Ferney, Annie Ernaux, Olivia Rosenthal, Anne Wiazemsky, and Vassilis Alexakis. In a related vein, Catherine Millet's 2002 memoir The Sexual Life of Catherine M. gained much press for its frank exploration of the author's sexual experiences.

Many of the most lauded works in French over the last decades have been written by individuals from former French colonies or overseas possessions. This Francophone literature includes the novels of Ahmadou Kourouma (Côte d'Ivoire), Tahar ben Jelloun (Morocco), Patrick Chamoiseau (Martinique), Amin Maalouf (Lebanon) and Assia Djebar (Algeria).

Other contemporary authors include: Jonathan Littell, David Foenkinos, Jean-Michel Espitallier, Christophe Tarkos, Olivier Cadiot, Chloé Delaume, Patrick Bouvet, Charles Pennequin, Nathalie Quintane, Frédéric-Yves Jeannet, Nina Bouraoui, Hubries le Dieu, Arno Bertina, Edouard Levé,and Christophe Fiat.

References

Francophone Literature:

  • Littérature francophone, by Jean-Louis Joubert. Paris: Nathan, 1992
  • Littérature moderne du monde francophone, by Peter Thompson. Chicago: National Textbook Company (McGraw-Hill), 1997
  • Négritude et nouveaux monde—poésie noire: africaine, antillaise, malgache, by Peter Thompson. Concord, MA: Wayside Publishing, 1994

Footnotes


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • French literature of the 20th century — French literature of the twentieth century is, for the purpose of this article, literature written in French from (roughly) 1895 to 1990. For literature made after 1990, see the article Contemporary French literature. Many of the developments in… …   Wikipedia

  • French literature — This article is a general introduction to French literature. For detailed information on French literature in specific historic periods, see the separate historical articles in the template to the right. French literature is, generally speaking,… …   Wikipedia

  • French literature of the 17th century — mdash;the so called Grand Siècle mdash;spans the reigns of Henry IV of France, the Regency of Marie de Medici, Louis XIII of France, the Regency of Anne of Austria (and the civil war called the Fronde) and the reign of Louis XIV of France. The… …   Wikipedia

  • French Literature — • Origin, foundations, and types Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. French Literature     French Literature     † …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • French literature of the 19th century — French literature of the nineteenth century is, for the purpose of this article, literature written in French from (roughly) 1799 to 1900. Many of the developments in French literature in this period parallel changes in the visual arts. For more… …   Wikipedia

  • French literature — Introduction       the body of written works in the French language produced within the geographic and political boundaries of France. The French language was one of the five major Romance languages to develop from Vulgar Latin as a result of the …   Universalium

  • FRENCH LITERATURE — Biblical and Hebraic Influences The influence of the Hebrew Bible and other Jewish writings on early French literature is limited. With the exception of the 12th century Jeu d Adam, an Anglo Norman verse play, and the 15th century Mistère du Viel …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Medieval French literature — French and Francophone literature French literature By category French language French literary history Medieval …   Wikipedia

  • literature — /lit euhr euh cheuhr, choor , li treuh /, n. 1. writings in which expression and form, in connection with ideas of permanent and universal interest, are characteristic or essential features, as poetry, novels, history, biography, and essays. 2.… …   Universalium

  • LITERATURE, JEWISH — Literature on Jewish themes and in languages regarded as Jewish has been written continuously for the past 3,000 years. What the term Jewish literature encompasses, however, demands definition, since Jews have lived in so many countries and have… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”