With Martyna Kander

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It is a widely acknowledged truth in the Caribbean: the dead are not dead. This reality, however, is dismissed by Western and colonial rationalism as mere superstition, in a typical dynamic of dominating non‑Western imaginaries and practices.

After a brief introduction to the syncretic Caribbean context, this talk will present the results of the speaker’s doctoral research on representations of relationships between the living and the dead in contemporary French‑language literature. The aim of this session is to provide the audience with enough insights to foster a discussion about what this relational model can bring to our society.

This activity is produced in collaboration with the X·RE Chair and the 1P1 Laboratory as part of the 2026 Interdisciplinary Encounters.

About Martyna Kander

Martyna Kander is a writer and specialist in French‑language Caribbean literature. Her practice‑based PhD at the Université de Montréal examines the question: How do we live with our dead? The creative component of her research is a novel titled Hautes falaises en toi. Her latest article, “Facing the Crisis: An Aquatic Reading of Waiting for the Waters to Rise,” is forthcoming with Honoré Champion Editions in the collective volume Maryse Condé. Une traversée des mondes. Her most recent short story will soon appear in Zizanie magazine.

Cover image : Tasia Sevenard. Source : Unsplash

Published on March 19, 2026

Cette publication est également disponible en : Français (French)