Two writers, two disciplines, one word: denial
A literary scholar and a sociologist who set out from very different worlds have each published a book on denial, and Bibliobs brought them together to talk it through.
According to Bibliobs (Le Nouvel Obs), the literary scholar Hélène Perlant and the sociologist Marc Joly come from, in the outlet's words, not the same world at all. Yet both have just published books built around the same idea: that denial, whether of the intimate kind or the political kind, is the word that runs through the present moment.
Bibliobs organized a conversation between the two. The outlet reports that the encounter did not start smoothly: Perlant and Joly began by arguing. By the end, according to the same account, they had come to understand each other and warmed to one another.
The source material does not give the titles of the two books, their publishers, or publication dates, nor does it detail the specific arguments either author makes about denial in intimate life versus denial in political life. Readers who keep track of essay publications on subjects like memory, self-deception and collective avoidance may want to watch for further coverage once those details surface.
Sources
This article was written from these reports.
