For those with attractions to the same sex or gender, there exists the theoretical capacity to transform oneself into one's object of desire. The result is an infernal paradox where attraction is often inseparable from jealousy. In the context of francophone literature, where cultural, societal, and religious ideals often render intermasculine desire and attraction immoral, this inextricable jealousy transforms desire and potential love into a competition of masculinities. By examining three contemporary novels from the francophone literary canon, one can see how the formation of this competitive hierarchy results in the drive to dominate or destroy that which one most desires.
Gender Studies Graduate Research Workshop
Title: To Kill is to Love; Jealousy and Desire in the Hierarchy of Masculinity in Francophone Literature
Presenter: Elijah Andrews (MA Romance Languages & Literatures)
November 1
4:00 pm
336 O’Shaughnessy
Elijah is originally from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and received his B.A. in French and Francophone Studies from Davidson College in 2017. He is currently pursuing an M.A. in French and Francophone Studies with a minor in Gender Studies. His research interests include francophone methods of colonization and occupation, specifically in the arab world, and representations of masculinity and inter-masculine affection in French and Francophone literature.