Just as Taiwanese writer Wu Ming-yi (吳明益) has been invited to take part in the French literary festival of Atlantide based in Nantes, the first French-language book focused on his works has been published ― a new addition to the relatively rare genre of French works on contemporary Taiwanese literature.
"La Litterature a l'ere de L'Anthropocene" ("The Literature of the Anthropocene Era") is the work of sinologist Gwennaël Gaffric and published by L'Asiathèque. Gaffric has translated a number of Chinese-language literary works, including Wu's own "The Magician on the Bridge" ("Le Magicien sur la passerelle") and "The Man with the Compound Eyes" ("L'homme aux yeux à facettes").
"La Litterature a l'ere de L'Anthropocene" is centered on Wu's ecological writings, while also drawing from works by other contemporary authors from Taiwan. From observations of ecosystems and critiques of urban renewal projects, to the ideologies of anthropocentrism and discrimination against other species, and depictions of ecological catastrophe in science fiction, the book aims to explore possibilities for peaceful coexistence between humankind and animals as presented in Taiwanese literature.
The Taiwan Cultural Center in Paris pointed out that this book, as one of a tiny number of French-language investigations of contemporary Taiwanese literature, is the first book of its kind to focus on Wu's writings and supported with a subsidy from the Ministry of Culture.
The French press release is available here: https://fr.taiwan.culture.tw/News_Photo_Content.aspx?n=719&s=27865