Talk | Sovereign bodies, revolutionary bodies: towards collective liberation
The Euguélionne bookstore and Espace de la Diversité were pleased to collaborate in organizing a cross-disciplinary conversation on June 20 at 6 p.m. Starting from the notion of corporeality, through which it is possible to initiate acts of resistance and writings that unfold other utopian possibilities in an increasingly dystopian world, the discussion focused on reflecting on the possibilities for collective liberation.
This conversation was moderated by Beck Joachim, who spoke with authors Cato Fortin (La Chienne de Pavlov), Anya Noursi (On m’a jeté l’oeil), and J.D. Kurtness (Aquariums).
About the discussion:
The authors were invited to address the notion of corporeality as a space for prosperity, fluidity, resistance, and solidarity through the experiences of different communities and individuals who are often marginalized. Rituals, challenges, and celebrations—all for collective liberation.
About the authors:
Cato Fortin (she/they) is a doctoral candidate in literary studies at UQÀM. She is interested in the processes of political reappropriation of blame, insults, and injunctions to femininity by feminist and queer communities. She embraces a playful and supportive vulgarity. La chienne de Pavlov is her first novel.
Anya Nousri is a Montreal-based author of Algerian origin. She is interested in Maghreb literature and decolonial issues. She has published in the anthologies Cruelles, Récits infectés, Pissed pestes puissantes, Capillaires, and Mortel·les. She has also published texts in the journals Saturne and MuseMedusa. On m’a jeté l’œil (Triptyque, 2024), her first novel, won the Grand Prix du livre de la Ville de Sherbrooke in the literary creation category and was a finalist for the first edition of the Prix Radio-Canada Caroline-Dawson 2024.
J. D. Kurtness was born in Chicoutimi to a Quebecois mother and an Ilnu father from Mashteuiatsh. She moved to Montreal with the intention of studying microbes, but ultimately devoted herself to writing and, more recently, computer science. In 2017, she published her first novel, De vengeance, with L’instant même. Both dark and funny, the book was immediately praised by critics. In 2019, her second book, Aquariums, was published, a genealogical novel whose narrative spans a long period of time, concluding in the near future where humanity is the victim of an unprecedented epidemic. Kurtness also contributes to various literary projects, such as the exhibition Le legs (Kwahiatonhk!, 2021) and the collective Wapke (Stanké, 2021). She has promised herself that one day she will write about world peace.
