Entretien avec Fabienne Kanor

D’origine martiniquaise, Fabienne Kanor est devenue romancière etréalisatrice après une première carrière dans le journalisme. Dans cet entretien, elle parle surtout de son deuxième roman, Humus(2007), qui raconte à voix multiples les récits de quatorze femmes qui se trouvent à bord d’un bateau négrier à destination des Antilles et décident de se jeter à l’eau. Kanor se penche surl’histoire de la traite négrière et surl’acte d’écriture, ainsi que sur sa propre identité en tant qu’écrivain de la “diaspora”, ayant grandi en Métropole dans une famille d’origine antillaise

User-Friendliness and Virtual Reality: A Hypertextual Reading of Alain Mabanckou’s \u3cem\u3eVerre Cassé\u3c/em\u3e

Set in a seedy Congolese bar seemingly far removed from the ever-present influences of globalization (aside perhaps from the occasional copy of Paris-Match), Alain Mabanckou\u27s Verre Cassé (2005)2 does not have a single foot- or endnote. In fact, the novel has no such peritext3 whatsoever aside from its title and two short inter-titles that serve to identify the two parts of the work as premiers feuillets and derniers feuillets. However, this absence of peritext is not in the least surprising given that the novel does not contain any lexical, idiomatic or vernacular terms specific to the region that might confuse or otherwise disorient the reader. Rather, what is shocking is the novel\u27s syntax. Rivaling the syntactic dexterity of Perec and Proust, the eponymous protagonist\u27s long-winded narrative (presented in the form of a notebook that recounts the exploits and hardships of his fellow patrons at Le Crédit a voyagé) amounts to nearly 250 pages without recourse to a single punctuation mark aside from commas and quotations marks. What is even more shocking (and clearly a testament to Mabanckou\u27s talent as a wordsmith) is that, rather than being impeded by Verre Cassé\u27s stream-of-consciousness prose, readers soon find themselves swept up in the current of the narrative agent\u27s ingenuity, carried along in seemingly effortless fashion to the novel\u27s conclusion (which, of course, lacks final punctuation)4

Dative experiencers and (null) subjects in Peninsular Spanish infinitives

Dative experiencers have been argued to have certain subject properties in finite domains. The question thus arises whether they can ever be controlled like structural (null) subjects. In the literature, it has been argued that one feature distinguishing dative experiencers from (nominative) subjects in Spanish is that the former cannot be controlled, differently from true quirky subjects. By examining corpus data, I argue that Dative experiencers have been argued to have certain subject properties in finite domains. The question thus arises whether they can ever be controlled like structural (null) subjects. In the literature, it has been argued that one feature distinguishing dative experiencers from (nominative) subjects in Spanish is that the former cannot be controlled, differently from true quirky subjects. By examining corpus data, I argue that Spanish dative experiencers, even though they cannot be obligatorily controlled in complement infinitives, can appear in adjunct infinitives in non-obligatory control contexts. One property that is crucial for sanctioning this option is the possibility of licensing full DP subjects in nonfinite domains. If the subject position is occupied by a non-controlled nominative DP, dative experiencers are bound by logophoric or topic coordinates in C. The data give further support to an Agree-based theory of control, according to which the referential relation between the subject of infinitives and its controller is mediated by functional heads of the extended verbal projection

Intertexts of the Ecological: Literary Space Revisited in Yanick Lahens\u27s \u3cem\u3eBain de Lune\u3c/em\u3e

The opening lines of Yanick Lahens’s Bain de lune (2014) find an unidentified narrator lying on a beach not far from the coastal community of Anse Bleue, staring at the worn, muddy boots of the man who has just discovered her lifeless body. As her narrative reveals, a hurricane has devastated the region over the past three days, and, in the wake of the storm, the deceased protagonist tries to piece together the fragmented memories of her life as a means of determining how she has ended up dead on the sand. From the very beginning of Lahens’s novel, however, the protagonist’s search for answers—a search to “remonter toute la chaîne de mon existence pour comprendre une fois pour toutes”—is inseparable from the history, evolution, and, indeed, future of the natural environment around her: “Quel ouragan! Quel tumulte! Dans toute cette histoire, il faudra tenir compte du vent, du sel, de l’eau, et pas seulement des hommes et des femmes. Le sable a été tourné et retourné dans le plus grand désordre. On dirait une terre attendant d’être ensemencée.

Variable First Person Singular Subject Expression in Spoken Valencian Catalan

Altres ajuts: This research has been supported by a postdoc grant from the DAAD (Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst) which has made my stay at the Universitat de València possible. Parts of this research have been conducted in the research group "Linguistic variation in Catalan (VaLingCat)", University of València (Ref: GIUV2017-397)In this paper, I analyze first person singular subject pronoun expression in spoken Valencian Catalan varieties. I present a quantitative and qualitative analysis of 7 interviews from the corpus Parlars, examining 1sg subject rates regarding tense markings (syncretic vs. non-syncretic forms), verb type, and discourse type (monologues vs. conversations). It will be shown that the factor of morphological syncretism as well as verb type influence 1sg subject expression rates. Differently from what has been observed in some previous studies on Spanish, cognitive verbs are not associated with particularly high 1sg subject expression rates, but verbs of saying are. Looking at frequent verb forms in the spoken interviews, it will be shown that (jo) dic '(I) say' plays an important role, direct speech being a commonly used mechanism in the data examined here. Furthermore, discourse type (monologue vs. conversation) affects subject expression rates. These results suggest that 1sg subject expression is influenced by an interaction of verb morphology, verb type and specific verb forms, but that subject expression rates and the factors influencing them vary depending on particular pro-drop varieties, discourse types and the type of data. Looking at the contexts in which the strong pronoun jo 'I' is used with verbs of saying in spoken Valencian Catalan, I argue that subject expression triggers a perspectival, rather than referential shift in several cases.Aquest article estudia la realització del pronom de subjecte de primera persona singular en varietats orals del valencià. Es presenta una anàlisi quantitativa i qualitativa de 7 entrevistes del corpus oral Parlars i s'examinen les freqüències dels pronoms explícits i implícits tenint en compte les variables de temps verbal (formes amb sincretisme i sense), tipus de verb i tipus de discurs (monòleg o conversa). Es demostrarà que tant el factor del sincretisme morfològic com el factor del tipus de verb influeixen en la realització del pronom de primera persona singular. A diferència dels resultats d'alguns estudis previs de l'espanyol peninsular, els verbs cognitius en les dades del valencià oral no es correlacionen amb freqüències altes de subjectes explícits de primera persona singular, però sí que s'hi associen els verbs de comunicació. En l'anàlisi de les formes verbals concretes, es mostrarà que (jo) dic, un mecanisme de narració en estil directe, és freqüent i té un paper important en aquest tema. A més, el tipus de discurs (monòleg o conversa) també afecta la realització del subjecte. Aquests resultats suggereixen que tant la morfologia verbal, com el tipus de verb i les formes verbals concretes influeixen en la realització del subjecte de primera persona singular, però que els factors poden variar segons el tipus de pro-drop, de discurs i de dades. L'anàlisi amb detall dels contextos en què el pronom fort jo es combina amb verbs de comunicació ens fa pensar que l'expressió del subjecte de primera persona singular provoca un canvi de perspectiva (i no pas un canvi referencial) en molts casos

Ecological impact of land-derived anthropogenic nutrients and organic matter on tropical estuarine and coastal systems of Hainan, China

Human development of the coastal zone causes cumulative effects on the nutrient and organic matter (OM) transport to coastal waters, especially by increased inputs, modified transport and altered biological processing. These effects are among the primary reasons for increasing degradation and losses of valuable coastal habitats, such as seagrasses and coral reefs. Generally, fertilizers from agriculture are thought to be the main source for nutrient enrichment in aquatic ecosystems. This may be different in the Southeast Asian region, where pond aquaculture for the production of shrimp and fish has expanded rapidly during the last decades at the expense of natural wetlands. The major objective of this thesis was to study on the example of NE Hainan, tropical China, how land-based activities alter nutrient and OM fluxes to tropical coastal waters, and how these, in turn, affect the health and ecological functions of coastal habitats. Biogeochemical, ecological and stable isotope methods, as well as experiments with bioindicators were used to determine the sources, pathways and fate of nutrients and OM in the Wenchang/Wenjiao Estuary (WWE) and nearshore coastal waters. Furthermore, the state of the seagrass meadows in three back-reef areas was determined. Samples and measurements were obtained in riverine, estuarine and coastal waters and sediments, as well as from potential land-based sources, including agriculture fields and aquaculture ponds and drainage channels, during four field campaigns between 2006 and 2009, one of that in the wake of a typhoon. Results indicate that effluents from aquaculture ponds lead to high nutrient and OM inputs to the WWE and coastal waters, in particular dissolved ammonium and dissolved organic nitrogen. Those stimulate phytoplankton growth, causing eutrophication of estuarine and nearshore coastal waters. While effluents released into the WWE are removed from the water column to large extents due to efficient phytoplankton uptake in the estuarine lagoon during low to moderate precipitation conditions, aquaculture ponds releasing their effluents directly into coastal waters cause continuous nutrient enrichment in usually oligotrophic back-reef areas, especially close to shore. Additionally, precipitation-induced freshwater pulses, which were strongest after typhoon events, are responsible for export of nutrients and OM from the agriculture-dominated hinterland of the WWE into coastal waters. These export pulses add to water quality deterioration in the region with the highest frequency of tropical storms worldwide and, are likely aggravated due to the loss of nutrient-reducing and sediment-retaining mangroves in the course of land use change. Stable nitrogen isotope values (delta 15N) of the ammonium in pond effluents reported for the first time were extremely high (~17 per mill). Consequently, elevated delta 15N values in TSM and seagrass leaves (5-12 per mill) and a significant delta 15N increase from 2.5 km from the shore. A much lower seagrass species abundance, shoot density and total biomass and higher sulphide intrusion indicated by stable sulfur isotopes in seagrass leaves and higher epiphyte loads at the pond-affected sites compared to the almost aquaculture-free control site indicate adverse growth conditions due to reduced photosynthesis and sulphide poisoning. Our study indicates that still increasing pond aquaculture has to be taken into account for global estimates of land-derived nutrient inputs into the ocean and as a direct threat to coastal ecosystem health

Reflexive SE with first and second person plural verb forms: A corpus study of spoken Valencian Catalan varieties

This paper presents a corpus study of 1st and 2nd person plural verbs and their reflexive clitics in a sample of spoken Valencian Catalan varieties. Previous studies have observed that the reflexive clitic SE, which standardly appears with 3rd person verb inflection, can co-occur with verbs marked for 1st and 2nd person plural in some varieties of Spanish and Catalan. With respect to the latter language, it has been mentioned that the phenomenon is especially extensive in the Valencian Catalan varieties. By means of an examination of data from the corpus Parlars it will be shown that even within Valencian Catalan, there is considerable variation with respect to the following factors: (i) whether SE is used with 2nd person only, 1st and 2nd person, or none of the two specifications; (ii) whether SE is the only form or whether it alternates with proto-typical 1st and 2nd person plural reflexives (1PL mos and 2PL vos), and (iii) whether the first person plural reflexive mos can be ‘doubled’ by SE (mo(s) se). The data indicate that SE can be the result of processes in different components of grammar: in phonology, as the result of a reduction operation, in morphology as the result of the elimination of a person feature, or in the lexicon as a feature bundle that fully lacks person

Cerberus at the Gates: The Demonization of the French Female Concierge

Located at the threshold of modern Parisian apartment living, the concierge maintains the common spaces, delivers mail and, until 1957, pulled the cord to permit dwellers to enter the building at all hours of the night. Neither owner of nor renter in the building that she tends, the concierge occupies the first-floor loge – a liminal space that is neither entirely public nor truly private – where she simultaneously lives and works. In the nineteenth century, the concierge was often poor and uneducated, yet influential thanks in great part to her post at the front door: She was feared because of her intermediate position, straddling public and private, between tenants and landlords and at times in cahoots with the police, who turned to her whenever there was an incident and who sought to recruit her as a spy (Arlès et Duby 230).1 Her identity was so inextricably linked to her physical location at the entry to the building that she was often referred to as a portière. However, the concierge\u27s role of gatekeeper also earned her the far less flattering moniker of Cerberus – the mythological three-headed guard dog at the gates of hell. For instance, in his 1871 memoire, At Home in Paris: at Peace and at War, Jerrold Blanchard writes, Concierges\u27 boxes are usually gloomy; but that in which our Cerberus lived was in perpetual twilight (13),2 and even more recently, in José Benjamin\u27s La concierge est dans le cercueil (2008), the eponymous character\u27s loge is referred to as l\u27antre du cerbère (40)