Des fragments de savoirs à la construction de la pensée dans l’essai : le cas des Céphalophores de Sylvie Germain

Abstract

The essay as a literary genre represents reflective writing, generally consisting of fragments that provide a partial and subjective view of philosophical thoughts or literary texts. Compared to other literary forms and genres, it allows human life to be expressed in a specific way. Sylvie Germain deals in her writings with metaphysical questions and often does so deploying fragments of literary works, biblical images or poetry. Such fragmentary cultural references provide stimuli and starting points for her thinking, allowing not only for reviving source texts but also for producing new meanings. Hence, it could be argued that the author wilfully employs discontinuity as an essential practice for expressing her vision of the world. The study aims to draw out the discontinuous character of the essay through Céphalophores (1997), one of her first collections of essays.