Liberté, égalité, fraternité

Global Studies Seminar welcomes Beti Ellerson, visiting assistant professor, presenting “The Black Woman in the French Imaginary: Exploring the motto “liberté, égalité, fraternité” in the context of féminité, identité, racialité.” The talk explores representations of the Africa-descended woman in the French imagination from the beginning of the 1800s to the present. As allegory of the republic, as racialized sexual spectacle, as muse, as object of desire, the image of the black woman has ­­­­traversed the French cultural, social and political landscape. The presentation examines the discursive representation of women of color of African descent spanning more than two centuries. Framing contemporary discourse on femininity, identity and raciality, the talk interrogates notions of liberty, gender and the body from late 18th century France to present.