Du mépris à la dignité : Bakhita de Véronique Olmi
“From Disdain to Dignity – Bakhita by Véronique Olmi”

Summary/Abstract: Véronique Olmi’s novel entitled Bakhita (2017), telling the story of St. Josephine Bakhita, shows the process of achieving dignity, or even sanctity, through overcoming disdain, humiliation, and animalization. However, it is not the degradation of feelings and a human being that is emphasized in Olmi’s novel but the possibility of overcoming the condition of a disdained person in order to enjoy freedom and fullness. The aim of the article is therefore to explore the manifestations of disdain in the analyzed text and the use of rhetorical devices applied to express contempt. The article also examines the process leading from disdain to fullness as defined by Charles Taylor, as well as the reasons for the popularity of the novel in France, regarded as the most laic country in Europe.

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