La d'où je viens

ABSTRACT

Fabienne Kanor introduced her creative work by presenting a dramatic reading of excerpts from two of her novels, Humus–roman (2005) and Faire l'aventure–roman (2014), accompanied by scenes from her documentary film Des pieds mon pied–documentaire, and dialogues from her unpublished play, La Grande Chambre. In her essay she poses a question crucial to all literary endeavors. How does the writer react to contemporary chaos and the injustices in this world? She questions herself about how to understand and transmit her experiences. She sees herself as a writer whose role is to faire savoir, to make others know about those distant realities in time and space, to remember the forgotten histories of forced and willing immigration.

Keywords:

• Fabienne Kanor
• contemporary novel
• Humus–roman
• Faire l'aventure–roman
• eliminating class and racial barriers
• slave narratives

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Fabienne Kanor

Born in France, novelist, filmmaker, and broadcast journalist, Fabienne Kanor, Chevalier in the Ordre des Arts et Lettres, is strongly attached to her parents' birthplace, Martinique. Her work has been recognized by the following awards: the Fetkann prize for her 2004 novel D'Eaux Douces (Gallimard); the RFO prize for Humus–roman (Gallimard, 2006); the Grand Prize Carbet de la Caraïbe et du Tout-Monde for Faire l'aventure–roman (Lattès, 2014); and the Angers Film Festival Prize for the Best Scenario for her 2008 film C'est qui l'homme. Other works of note include: Un caillou et des hommes, the first documentary filmed in Guadeloupe about crack addiction; her documentary Retour au Cahier on Aimé Césaire's Cahier d'un retour au pays natal; and four long radio documentaries filmed in Martinique and Guadeloupe for France Culture. Her latest novel, Je ne suis pas un homme qui pleure (Lattès, 2016), a reflection on writing, love, and identity, recounts the journeys and upheavals of a black novelist in France.