My research lies at the intersection of French cultural production, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, and public humanities. I study how literary and cultural narratives shape public understandings of gender-based and sexual violence, with particular attention to the links between representation, media discourse, and political responses.
My dissertation explores how contemporary feminist rewritings of the French canon challenge dominant narratives around consent, sexual harassment, rape, pedophilia, and incest. Drawing on feminist, queer, and postcolonial theory, as well as the history of gender and sexuality, I analyze rewriting as a mode of resistance that reinterprets patriarchal literary inheritance and creates space for alternative voices and forms of cultural memory. My work spans early modern and contemporary literature, while also engaging with film and texts produced outside traditional publishing channels, such as fanfiction. This broad corpus allows me to examine how narratives circulate across media and shape collective understandings of violence and justice.
My research is also informed by my collaboration with the Collectif Féministe Contre le Viol in Paris, the organization responsible for France’s national helpline for survivors of sexual violence. This field-based experience brought an essential practical dimension to my research, grounding it in the lived realities of sexual violence and in the everyday work of listening, support, and advocacy.
As part of my commitment to public humanities, I am presenting my dissertation in podcast form to make my research accessible beyond academia and to contribute to wider conversations on sexual violence, its cultural representation, and the legacy of #MeToo. This project is part of a broader effort to translate research into forms that engage public audiences and institutional contexts. I pursued a Certificate of Advanced Studies in Foreign Affairs and Applied Diplomacy at the School of Management and Law of Zurich (ZHAW) to strengthen my understanding of how cultural analysis can inform public institutions, policy frameworks, and professional environments beyond the university.