PRUNE ANTOINE »EINE FRAU IN DEUTSCHLAND«

Moderation: Matthieu Osmont

"An overwhelming story that delves into the deepest depths of motherhood." Annie Ernaux

Solingen, 2020: Christiane K. is 27 years old when she kills five of her six children and then throws herself in front of a train. She survives. Prune Antoine, a French reporter who has just become a mother herself, develops a journalistic obsession with this tragedy. She doesn't want to explain, let alone excuse, she wants to understand. In search of a truth beyond voyeurism and demonization, Antoine penetrates deeper and deeper into the world of Christiane K. until she finally comes face to face with her in prison. Is this young woman supposed to be a monster? "A Woman In Germany" is a harrowing search for clues that ultimately reveals less about the tragedy of a single family than about the role of the mother in Germany.

Prune Antoine, born in France and raised in Europe, is an independent reporter and novelist. Her reportages, some of which have won awards, have appeared in Reportagen-Magazin, Die Zeit, Le Monde and the Guardian, among others. She is currently a journalist in residence at the Max Planck Institute for International Law and researches sexual violence in times of war. She lives in Berlin.

The reading is part of the lecture series "Maternité(s) Maternity Narratives in Francophone Literature, Culture and Society".

In cooperation with the Romance Studies Department of the University of Bonn and the Institut français Bonn