Not all women writers have wanted to be thought of as such. Some have just wanted to be thought of as writers. Others underscore that they write from a woman’s—or a feminist—point of view. Others explicitly or implicitly make the case that there is no singular woman’s point of view from which to write. We will read one work each by three French authors, Simone de Beauvoir (1908-1986), Nathalie Sarraute (1900-1999), and Marie NDiaye (b. 1967), as we explore all these possibilities. In the case of Simone de Beauvoir, we will read the first volume of her long feminist, political, and philosophical novel, Les Mandarins (1954). We will read Nathalie Sarraute’s formally innovative autobiographical text, Enfance (1983). Finally, we will read Marie NDiaye’s prize-winning 2009 novel Trois femmes puissantes. Along with these works, we will study the careers of these three remarkable writers and thinkers, and by way of our reading we will learn about the history of contemporary France, the legacies of French colonialism, the history of modern French thought, developments in French literary history, and the history of French feminism. Formally and stylistically, Les Mandarins, Enfance, and Trois femmes puissantes are remarkably different from each other, and will allow us to ask questions like: What is a feminist novel? What is a philosophical novel? How can an autobiography challenge our sense of both identity and history? What is the role of literary form in helping us grapple with the political and ethical questions of the contemporary moment?

French 102 required