Introduction: Truth and Representation in French and Francophone Studies

• Published in: Australian journal of French studies Vol. 56; no. 2; pp. 117 - 124
• Main Authors: Barnes, Leslie, Collins, Ashok, King, Gemma
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Clayton, Vic Liverpool University Press 01.07.2019
• Subjects: Attitudes; Authenticity; Authors; Baudrillard, Jean; Common ground; Debates and debating; Fiction; Francophones; French language; Genocide; Literature and history; Multiculturalism & pluralism; Persian Gulf War; Philosophy; Politics; Postmodernism; Propaganda; Truth; Wars; Rwanda
• ISSN: 0004-9468; 0004-9468; 2046-2913
• DOI: 10.3828/ajfs.2019.09

Can fiction tell the truth? This question is at the heart of a very public feud that erupted between Camille Laurens and Marie Darrieussecq in 2007, a dispute that began when the former accused the latter of "une sorte de plagiat psychique" in the pages of La Revue litteraire and, once the dust had settled, saw Laurens lose her contract at P.O.L and both authors publish reflections on literature, ownership, authenticity and betrayal in the era of autofiction ascendant. In an essay entitled "Marie Darrieussecq ou le syndrome du coucou", published shortly after the release of Darrieussecq's novel Tom est mort (2007), Laurens likens her colleague to a brood parasite, a thief who would appropriate another's story to ensure the success of her own literary endeavour. Both authors had written works about the death of a child, but only Laurens had lived through it. In her accusation and subsequent writing, Laurens lays claim to the traumatic experience and its representation, insisting that the death of a child is not a theme to be explored in literature, but a trauma to which the work of literature might testify.