"D’autres vies que la mienne" or the Witness’s True Story

Abstract

Emmanuel Carrère’s D’autres vies que la mienne, published in 2009, is one of the best literary attempts to decentralize a writer by exercising an effective otherness deployed in the space of the narrative. Indeed, the author proposes to put himself at the service of the expression of the Other. He chose situations such as the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka as examples to describe the terror witnessed and the emotions felt. The analysis of the work tends to emphasize the originality of the project which develops a thoughtful reflection on the life story of modest existences which then makes it possible to reach a universal dimension that resonates with the book experience of empathy for the reader.