L' Artisan at D' Amelie Nothomd : Les Narrateurs Masculins de Cosmetique del 'Ennemi et le Voyage d'Hiver et Leurs Jeux Dans L'Aeroport Avec Une Nouvelle Origin Ale : «Arret De Tram : Destination Multilinguisme »

Abstract

Contemporary French fiction is a reflection of contemporary French society. However, the literature as a whole fails to demonstrate the extraordinary diversity and modernity of contemporary French and Francophone authors, since not all of the authors are native French citizens. Moreover, the canon of this literature inspired me to explore the nuances of the French language through fiction and the writing. The objective of my research is to examine how Amélie Nothomb, a Belgium native writer, uses classic literary narrative techniques in two of her novels: Cosmétique de l’ennemi and Le Voyage d’hiver to create her own narrative voice via two masculine protagonists and to demonstrate how her voice remains constant throughout her works. In this study, the characteristics and foundations of narratology are defined by French literary critic Gerard Genette in his works Figures I, Figures II, and Figures III and by professor of Romance Languages Gerald J. Prince in his work A Dictionary of Narratology. In conclusion, this paper demonstrates the unique voice of a single contemporary francophone author, Amélie Nothomb, through the canonical definitions of narratology and literature, as well as my personal work and passion for French literature and language through an original short fiction.