May 68 in French Fiction and Film: Rethinking Society, Rethinking Representation

by Margaret Atack

The uprising of May 1968, during which tanks rolled onto the streets of Paris, was a radically defining moment in French intellectual life. It signalled the rise of 'new wave' cinema and the arrival of the 'post structuralist' literary-philosophy of Derrida, Foucault, and others. This is the first book-length study of May '68 in French fiction and film.

196 pages, Paperback

First published November 11, 1999

Reviews

[Hobart Mariner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set of essays on novels and cinema depicting or related to May '68. Functions in some ways as a history of the brief insurrection. Picked it up for the essay on Manchette and the neo-noir, which is good but not the most interesting (that would probably be the one on Ophuls or the one on Derrière la vitre). The author's conclusions are not that interesting or strong (representation of May remains situated in history and ideology...sounds good!); generally speaking she tends to defend works that exemplify the "spirit of May" against narrow critiques. This tendency is particularly on display with the essays Merle and Manchette. I don't know if this is a result of my growing up reading hatchet pieces block-quoted to Twitter, but I would be more interested to read the assaults on the neo-noir or The Sorrow and the Pity than in qualified defenses of them.

Lots of great details about May itself. I liked one slogan along the lines of "Don't say 'Yes Mr. Professor' say 'Die Bitch!'"