Ime in Quebec visible minorities (Canada’s BAME/POC) are more receptive to the anglophone dynamic at play itt when the topic arises, but it’s way less pronounced. In France, you almost never hear the arguments put forth here, regardless of where your ancestors come from, and when they do come up they’re couched in endless caveats. In Romania, well, you can guess.
― pomentiful (pomenitul), Monday, 24 August 2020 18:41 (three years ago) link
In France, you almost never hear the arguments put forth here, regardless of where your ancestors come from, and when they do come up they’re couched in endless caveats.
Huh, that is very much not my experience! My wife's family and friend group might be seen as outliers there, but even in the magazines she reads it's becoming more and more prevalent.
And surely "endless caveats" means you're still walking on eggshells, just from a different perspective?
― Daniel_Rf, Tuesday, 25 August 2020 09:53 (three years ago) link
Jtbc I'm not saying that the contemporary French literary scene is oblivious to the problem of diversity. The key difference, to my mind, is that writers who come from non-white backgrounds (or women or LGBTQ+ authors) are generally keener to present themselves as predicateless writers, first and foremost, which is in keeping with the Republic's universalist, colourblind ideals, for better or for worse. Anglophone-style identity politics are often viewed as excessive and/or needlessly divisive when imported into a French context, and France's visible minorities are far likelier to agree with this reading than their British or American or Canadian counterparts. There are exceptions to the rule, of course, and challenges to this doxa have become more common in recent years, but it's still a far cry from the anglosphere.
And yeah, the eggshell-walking is definitely a matter of context. Fwiw I tend to feel like an oddity on both sides of the divide, and for opposite reasons.
― pomentiful (pomenitul), Tuesday, 25 August 2020 16:12 (three years ago) link
Mantel has missed out on the shortlist, and people are angry.
https://amp.theguardian.com/books/2020/sep/15/most-diverse-booker-prize-shortlist-is-also-almost-all-american-hilary-mantel?
― xyzzzz__, Wednesday, 16 September 2020 10:42 (three years ago) link
Giving the same prize to the same author for the same series of books 3 times in a row would be a bit crap.
― Tsar Bombadil (James Morrison), Wednesday, 16 September 2020 10:53 (three years ago) link
Yes, except it's now going to be about a white author missing out because 'diversity'.
― xyzzzz__, Wednesday, 16 September 2020 11:03 (three years ago) link
True. The weird thing here is having four American authors on the shortlist. The sole Brit (Scot, actually) has lived in New York for 25 years. Tsitsi Dangarembga is from Zimbabwe.
― Gerneten-flüken cake (jed_), Wednesday, 16 September 2020 11:13 (three years ago) link
I don't think the panel should overthink who wins it.
I suppose they (or any prize) should give it to Mantel if they, a contingent set of readers, think it's the best novel they've read this year. If they don't, don't. And they didn't.
Many people have always been opposed to opening this prize to US authors, and I'm inclined to agree with them.
― the pinefox, Wednesday, 16 September 2020 13:55 (three years ago) link
I'd be surprised if Mantel herself is especially bothered, she's done just fine out of this particular prize.
I wasn't sure about nominating US authors either but Lincoln In The Bardo is one of the two or three best books to have won it in the last decade (the other being A Brief History Of Seven Killings).
― Matt DC, Wednesday, 16 September 2020 14:02 (three years ago) link
Mantel seems gracious and supportive of new writers so I agree.
― Gerneten-flüken cake (jed_), Wednesday, 16 September 2020 21:31 (three years ago) link