Global France Seminar

MIT Global France Seminar & Harvard Mahindra France and the World Seminar presents, A Conversation with Mathias Énard   When: Thursday February 15th @ 5:30pm Where: Barker Center, Room 114 This event is a part of Villa Albertine’s Authors on Tour program. Mathias Enard’s 2024 US tour is made possible by Villa Albertine and New Directions. Part of the France and the World series. Co-sponsored by the MIT French+ Initiative. Mathias Énard is the author of Compass  (winner of the Prix Goncourt, the Leipzig Prize, and the Premio von Rezzori, and shortlisted for the 2017 Man Booker International Prize), Zone, and Street of Thieves–as well as being a translator from Persian and Arabic. He will be speaking about his latest book, The Annual Banquet of the Gravediggers' Guild , out now in English translation with New Directions.

Join us for an insightful evening with acclaimed French author Benjamin Hoffmann, whose latest novel Je suis Murakami offers a unique perspective on self-discovery and belonging through an elegant and thought-provoking narrative. Hoffmann’s previous works include Sentinel Island, a captivating tale of the Sentinelese people—one of the last uncontacted tribes on earth—woven with themes of globalization, friendship, and escape.  In Les Minuscules, Hoffmann tells the story of Casanova’s last love and takes the reader on a journey filled with encounters with historical figures such as Mozart and Da Ponte, Leibniz and Voltaire, Diderot and Sade. Moderated by Benoit Landon, librarian at the French Library, this conversation will shed light on Hoffmann's creative process, literary influences, and his journey as a writer.Our author talk will be followed by a Q&A session, with a book signing and a glass of wine! Language: The event will be held in English, with select excerpts from his books read in French. Book Pre-Sales: Copies of Je suis Murakami are available for pre-order through the French Library and can be picked up in advance of the event. Ticket information here...

Presented by: Jacqueline Ngo Mpii CEO & Founder of Little Africa, Cultural Tourism expert, DEI advisor, and Cultural Ambassador Little Africa as a neighborhood, a concept, a city guide, a cultural space, and a company that maps and amplifies Black presence in Paris and beyond Abstract: Over a century ago African art profoundly influenced the Parisian avant-garde shaping the works of Picasso, Matisse, Derain and many others. It was also during this period that as Daniel Maximin notes in La France Noire “Africans Antilleans and African Americans met for the first time in Paris.” Today the traces of these cultural intersections are still visible—whether in art and gastronomy design and fashion music and literature—manifesting as infinite hybridizations.Yet beyond this historical legacy Black communities continue to actively shape Parisian identity not just as subjects of the past but as entrepreneurs, artists, and cultural innovators defining the city’s present and future. In this talk Jacqueline Ngo Mpii founder and CEO of Little Africa offers an insider’s perspective on how Black life is lived represented and transformed in contemporary Paris. Jacqueline Ngo Mpii is a dynamic leader and the founder of Little Africa, a transformative platform dedicated to promoting the rich cultural heritage of […]

Join us for an evening with Julia Malye, author, translator, and rising literary voice, as she discusses her latest novel, Pelican Girls—a sweeping historical epic that brings to light a little-known chapter of French and American history. A work of sweeping historical fiction, the novel follows the perilous journey of young women sent from Paris to Louisiana in 1721, bound for arranged marriages in a colony desperate for settlers. But Pelican Girls is more than just a historical epic—it’s a deeply human story of survival, resilience, and sisterhood, set against the backdrop of colonial expansion, Indigenous resistance, and the brutal realities of the 18th-century Americas. Written simultaneously in French and English, Pelican Girls is also a fascinating exploration of language, identity, and the act of storytelling itself. During this conversation, Malye will discuss the research and creative process behind the novel, her experience writing in two languages, and how translation shapes literature. She will be joined by Shuchi Saraswat, writer, editor, and senior editor at AGNI, for a lively discussion about historical fiction, cross-cultural storytelling, and the art of bringing lost voices back to life. Our author talk will be followed by a Q&A session, with a book signing and a glass of wine. The event will […]