The ‘Spark of Human Sympathy’ in Francophone Literature

Abstract

Framed within the critical work on narrative empathy of Martha Nussbaum (Cultivating Humanity) and Suzanne Keen (Empathy and the Novel), this study of works by three Francophone authors—Mariama Bâ’s epistolary novel Une si longue lettre, Aimé Césaire’s epic poem Cahier d’un retour au pays natal, and Maryse Condé’s novel Traversée de la mangrove—argues that these authors use scenes enacting intense moments of empathy and compassion as the main vehicle to express their vision of a humanism that, setting aside fear, false pride, and inherited stereotypes, seeks to establish human relationships based in understanding, compassion, and dignity.