Sylvain BRIENS, La mondialisation du theatre nordique a la fin du XIXe siecle. Le fonds Prozor de la Bibliotheque nordique de Paris lu au prisme de la sociologie de l'acteur-reseau, RLC LXXXIX, n 2, avril-juin 2015, p. 137-150. Le fonds Prozor de la bibliotheque nordique de Paris temoigne de la percee du theatre scandinave en France et en Europe a la fin du XIXe siecle. Par l'analyse du travail du traducteur Prozor, des porte-paroles et intermediaires agissant comme mediateurs, des points de passage, cet article examine les mecanismes de diffusion internationale du theatre nordique, il s'articule autour de trois acteursreseaux: Prozor dans sa fonction complexe d'agent litteraire; Paris et ses chaines de traduction; le reseau de theatres libres dans sa fonction de diffusion mondiale du theatre nordique.Thomas MOHNIKE, Le Dieu Thor, la plus barbare d'entre les barbares divinites de la Vieille Germanie . Quelques observations pour une theorie des formes narratives du savoir social en circulation culturelle, RLC LXXXIX, n 2, avril-juin 2015, p. 151-164. En 1915, l'imprimerie d'Epinal, connue pour ses estampes amusantes, publia un resume symbolique des evenements de la premiere annee de la Premiere Guerre mondiale. Sur cette gravure, le dieu norrois Thor est presente comme le dieu du Kaiser allemand, detruisant des cathedrales gothiques et ainsi la civilisation. Thor symbolisait ainsi la nature pretendument barbare des Allemands. Cet article se propose de cartographier les chemins et operations historiques qui conduisirent le dieu nordique Thor de l'Islande du XIIIe siecle en France du XXe siecle en le transformant en symbole de l'hostilite allemande. Des contextes importants sont l'Anneau de Nibelung de Richard Wagner et tout particulierement la philologie comparee. Ces observations peuvent servir de point de depart pour une theorie des formes narratives du savoir social en circulation culturelle.Regis BOYER, Meditation sur Rosmersholm, RLC LXXXIX, n 2, avril-juin 2015, p. 165-173. De l'avis de tous les connaisseurs, Rosmersholm (1886) est le chef-d'oeuvre d'Ibsen, meme si ce n'est ni la plus connue ni la plus frequemment jouee de ses pieces. On peut se demander pourquoi. Cette piece, extremement difficile a jouer, est favorable a toutes les confusions ou erreurs d'interpretation possibles, piece dont il est permis d'avancer qu'Ibsen n'est jamais alle aussi loin dans sa quete du tragique. Cet article cherche a elucider les modalites et les raisons d'un tel chef-d'oeuvre dans une perspective moderniste. Sans entrer dans la discussion sur le post-tragique, il s'agit de cerner ce qui fait en soi l'originalite moderne de cette etrange piece.Corinne FRANCOIS-DENEVE, Anne Charlotte Leffler, dans l'ombre portee de Strindberg, RLC LXXXIX, n 2, avril-juin 2015, p. 175-186. Auteure prolifique du genombrott suedois, feministe affichee, dont les pieces etaient davantage populaires que celles d'August Strindberg, Anne Charlotte Leffler a peu a peu disparu des anthologies de la litterature scandinave. En a-t-elle ete chassee par des critiques phallocrates, comme ont pu le clamer les partisans des gender studies dans les annees 1970 ? Son oeuvre etait-elle trop datee ? La redecouverte recente de son theatre, en Suede, puis en France, permet de recontextualiser cette oubliee qui a sans doute toujours des choses a dire.Harri VEIVO, Cosmopolite en crise. Decentrements de modernite et fractures de subjectivite dans les recits de voyage d'Olavi Paavolainen, RLC LXXXIX, n 2, avril-juin 2015, p. 187-203. Dans les annees 20 et 30, l'ecrivain finlandais Olavi Paavolainen (1903-1964) s'est donne la tache d'interroger et analyser la modernite dans toutes ses manifestations et dans tous les lieux ou elle se fait ressentir. Ce projet l'amene a s'interesser d'abord a la modernite jouissive et emancipatrice des annees folles, ensuite a la montee du totalitarisme en Europe et, apres ce tournant dysphorique, aux pays de l'Amerique latine, juges capables de transcender les conflits europeens. Les recits de voyage de Paavolainen produisent ainsi un decentrement de la modernite; en meme temps, ils expriment la crise de la subjectivite de l'auteur, fondee sur l'ideal europeen du cosmopolitisme.Philippe CHARDIN, Un beau roman d'education estonien: Verite et Justice d'Anton Tammsaare, RLC LXXXIX, n 2, avril-juin 2015, p. 205-217. Le long chef-d'oeuvre de Tammsaare, ecrit durant l'apres-guerre et retracant 50 ans d'histoire de l'Estonie, apparait comme une synthese extraordinairement originale de plusieurs genres europeens differents parmi lesquels un roman rural dans sa premiere partie et un roman du Crime et du Chatiment, sorte de tragedie familiale du peche originel; mais on remarque aussi de fortes analogies avec trois formes de romans d'education: un roman pedagogique tragi-comique a l'Ecole de M. Maurus, le roman d'une education sentimentale douloureuse et par-dessus tout un roman de la transformation d'un jeune homme qui vient de son village en intellectuel avec son ironie devastatrice contre toutes les valeurs sociales et religieuses, sa conscience malheureuse et ses engagements a demi forces dans la vie politique ou dans sa vie privee qui rappellent d'autres grands romans contemporains, de Musil, de Proust, de Thomas Mann et de Svevo.Frederique TOUDOIRE-SURLAPIERRE, Phedre et la Suede: un decentrement de modeles, RLC LXXXIX, n 2, avril-juin 2015, p. 219-230. Cet article examine, a partir de la piece de l'ecrivain suedois, Per Olov Enquist, Till Fedra, les modalites et les enjeux de ce transfert culturel que constitue cette reecriture de la celebre tragedie de Racine. Utilisant les ressources scientifiques de l'imagologie et de l'ethnocritique, cet article met en evidence les differentes operations de ce que nous avons appele un decentrement de modeles, par le biais de la deconstruction de la langue francaise, de l'oedipianisation du mythe, un transfert d'images et un deplacement de concepts.Mickaelle CEDERGREN et Ylva LINDBERG, Vers un renouvellement du canon de la litterature francophone. Les enjeux de l'enseignement universitaire en Suede, RLC LXXXIX, n 2, avril-juin 2015, p. 231-243. Meme si la circulation de la litterature francophone est aujourd'hui en pleine expansion a travers le monde, sa diffusion et, par consequent, sa place dans les circuits de canonisation, reste encore inegale. Cet article analyse la place octroyee aux lettres francophones dans l'enseignement universitaire du francais langue etrangere en Suede. Proposant une reflexion sur le canon litteraire traditionnel et montrant la necessite de reconsiderer sa valeur dans un contexte universitaire etranger, la Suede apparait tantot comme le pays promoteur de la haute-culture francaise tantot comme le bastion des litteratures francophones souvent contemporaines et/ou de la litterature couronnee de prix litteraires.Sylvain BRIENS, The globalization of Nordic Theatre. The Prozor collection at the Nordic library in Paris read through the Actor-network Theory, RLC LXXXIX (in French), no. 2, april-june 2015, p. 137-150. The Prozor collection at the Nordic library in Paris demonstrates the breakthrough of Scandinavian theatre in France and Europe at the end of the 19th Century. Through an analysis of Prozor's translations, the work of spokespeople and intermediaries acting as mediators, and points of passage this article will attempt to understand the mechanisms promoting Nordic theatre's international distribution. The study is centred on three actor-networks: Prozor in his complex function as literary agent; Paris and its translation supply chains; the network of free theatres in its role in the worldwide distribution of Nordic theatre.Thomas MOHNIKE, "The god Thor, the most barbarous of all barbarous gods of the Old Germany." Some observations for a theory of narrating forms of social knowledge in cultural circulation, RLC LXXXIX (in French), no. 2, apriljune 2015, p. 151-164. In 1915, the Epinal printing company, known for its often amusing illustrated one page prints, published a summary of the first year of the First World War, depicting the Old Norse God Thor as the god of the German Kaiser, destroying gothic cathedrals and thus civilization. Thor thus served as symbol for the supposedly barbarous nature of the Germans. In my article, I try to map some of the ways and historical operations that took the Old Norse god Thor from 13th century Iceland to 20th century France and transformed him to a symbol for German warfare. Major contexts appear to be Richard Wagner's Ring of the Nibelung and particularly comparative philology. These observations, I propose, could serve as a starting point for a theory of narrating forms of social knowledge in cultural circulation.Regis BOYER, Meditation on Rosmerholm, RLC LXXXIX (in French), no. 2, apriljune 2015, p. 165-173. In the opinion of all the experts, Rosmersholm (1886) is the masterpiece of Ibsen, even though it is neither the most famous nor the most frequently performed of his plays. One may wonder why. This piece, extremely difficult to play, supports all the confusions and errors of interpretation possible, and it is permitted to put forward that Ibsen never went as far in his tragedy quest. This article seeks to clarify how and why such a masterpiece in a modernist perspective. Without going into the discussion of the post-tragic, we try to identify what is in itself modern originality of this strange room.Corinne FRANCOIS-DENEVE, Anne Charlotte Leffler, the forgotten one, RLC LXXXIX (in French), no. 2, april-june 2015, p. 175-186. A prolific female writer belonging to the Swedish genombrott movement and a staunch feminist, Anne Charlotte Leffler, whose plays were even more successful than Strindberg's, slowly disappeared from Scandinavian literature anthologies. Did male critics expel her from them, as researchers in gender studies began to claim in the 1970s ? Or was it that her works were thought to be too old-fashioned ? Her theatre has been recently re-discovered, in Sweden as well as in France: it is high time to put again into perspective this forgotten one, who has still many things to say.Harri VEIVO, Cosmopolite in Crisis. Decentring Modernity and Fracturing Subjectivity in Olavi Paavolainen's Travelogues, RLC LXXXIX (in French), no. 2, april-june 2015, p. 187-203. In the 1920s and 30s, the Finnish writer Olavi Paavolainen (1903-1964) took up the task of exploring and analysing modernity in all its manifestations and in all the places where it was felt. This project focalised first on the emancipatory and joyful modernity of the annees folles, then on the rising of totalitarism in Europe and, after this dysphoric turn, on Latin America, considered capable of transcending the European conflicts. Paavolainen's travelogues produce thus a decentring of modernity, while leading at the same to the crisis of the author's subjectivity, based on the European ideal of cosmopolitism.Philippe CHARDIN, Truth and Justice, a beautiful Estonian novel of education, RLC LXXXIX (in French), no. 2, april-june 2015, p. 205-217. Tammsaare's long masterpiece, written after the first world war and retracing 50 years of Estonian history, is an extraordinary and original synthesis of several different literary European genres among which in its first part a "Rural Novel" and also a novel of "Crime and Punishment", a kind of Tragedy of Original Sin in a family but there is also a strong analogy between Taamsaare's Justice and Truth and three kinds of Educational Novels: a tragi-comical pedagogical novel in Mr Maurus's College, a painful sentimental apprenticeship and above all the novel of a young man coming from his village who becomes an "Intellectual" with his devastating irony against all social and religious values, his "Unhappy Consciousness" and his half forced bad commitments in political or private life which recall other great contemporary novels by Musil, Proust, Thomas Mann, Svevo.Frederique TOUDOIRE-SURLAPIERRE, Phaedra and Sweden: a "shift model" ?, RLC LXXXIX (in French), no. 2, april-june 2015, p. 219-230. This paper examines, from the part of the Swedish writer Per Olov Enquist, Till Fedra, terms and issues of this cultural transfer: the rewriting of the famous tragedy of Racine. Using scientific resources of imagology and ethnocritic, this paper shows the various operations of what we called a shift model through the deconstruction of the French language, the oedipalization of the myth, the image transfer and the movement concepts.Mickaelle CEDERGREN - Ylva LINDBERG, Towards a renewal of the Francophone literary canon. The role of higher education in Sweden, RLC LXXXIX (in French), no. 2, april-june 2015, p. 231-243. Even though francophone literature is expanding its territory throughout the world, its status remains ambiguous on the global field and in canonization processes. The analysis is focusing on a re-evaluation of the literary canon in the academic context abroad. Various didactic demands are revealed as essential criteria for a selection divergent from the traditional canon. It is also found that Swedish universities promote both French high-status literature, extra-occidental francophone literature and prize-winning literature, which is often commercial.
About the Author: Pierre Brunel, who teaches comparative literature at the Sorbonne, is a member of Institut universitaire de France. Daniel-Henri Pageaux teaches General and Comparative Literature at Sorbonne Nouvelle (Paris III).