Francophonie encompasses individuals and institutions using French for socialization, administration, and/or education, with 321 million people across five continents as of 2023. The International Organization of La Francophonie serves as its backbone, promoting French and fostering collaborations among 88 member states.
The event will highlight presentations by two French-speaking authors, Alice Zeniter and Anna Langfus, exploring the relationship between women and conflicts. While international humanitarian rights aim to protect women from sexual harassment, persistent challenges remain. Over 90% of victims in armed conflicts are civilians, predominantly women and children, facing rape as a weapon, murder, sexual slavery, forced pregnancy, and sterilization.
“What happens to women is either too particular to be universal or too universal to be particular, meaning either too human to be female or too female to be human”. Catharine A. MacKinnon
This emphasizes the significance of International Women’s Day, established in 1975, to celebrate achievements and advocate for improving women’s situations amid ongoing challenges. Authors Alice Zeniter and Anna Langfus highlight the courage of women taking a stand in the face of the most challenging conflicts. Additionally, it is noted that the Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize to Iranian activist Narges Mohammadi for her efforts against the oppression of women in Iran and her commitment to promoting freedom and rights for all.
Speakers:
- Gro Bjørnerud (French literature researcher at UiO) will present « Alice Zeniter (born 1986): The power of speech ».
- Geir Uvsløkk (French literature researcher at UiO) will present « Anna Langfus (1920-1966): the strength of a survivor ».
Through this Science Night, our objective is to celebrate together the Francophonie through the prism of Francophone women writers.
PROGRAM:
Conference & discussion
French buffet