Abstract

In a country massively consuming bande dessinée, graphic novel and manga like France, graphic narratives are a major medium to convey socially impactful messages. Among many creations contributing to shape a diverse, inclusive and critical representation of contemporary France, a Sino-French autobiographical and autofictional corpus has emerged since the mid-2010’s. This talk would first present some key Sino-French creations, by Kei Lam, Lucie Quéméner, Brigitte Tchao & Christel Han, Minna Yu or Luxi. It would then propose a thematical approach of the corpus in three main aspects: transcultural itineraries in relation to cultural heritage and intergenerational communication, challenges and discriminations faced in public spaces and institutions, and finally the invention of freedom and happiness by shaping original, plural identities through a multimodal medium where cultural, gender based, familial and social expectations can be re-negotiated, transgressed, transcended – or ignored. Doing so, this talk would aim to investigate both the importance of graphic narratives for the self-affirmation of Franco-Chinese creators, their catalyzing role in expressing the challenges encountered by people of more broadly Asian backgrounds in France and the rise of a nuanced, unstable “Asian-French” feeling of belonging, but also the multimodal specificities of graphic novel that would make it a privileged medium to convey and shape issues of interculturality, transculturality and emancipation.