Talk: “Can we dissociate the work from the author? Culture and cancellation”

From Wagner and Heidegger to Polanski, Matzneff, and others, the question of the relationship between an author and their work has been at the core of many debates and scandals. The prominent French sociologist Gisèle Sapiro addresses this question from a philosophical and socio-historical perspective. Works by racist, sexist, and transphobic authors and artists have been boycotted and the canon has been challenged from this point of view. Based on her book Peut-on dissocier l’oeuvre de l’auteur? (Seuil, 2020; Points, 2024), in her talk Gisèle Sapiro will address the question of the relationship between author and work from a philosophical and socio-historical standpoint before launching into a wider discussion lead by Eglė Kačkutė.