Access Type

Open Access Dissertation

Date of Award

January 2023

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Ph.D.

First Advisor

Alina Cherry

Abstract

In this dissertation, I explore the complex relation between man and space, place, and mobility in the context of increasingly globalized societies where transit spaces (airports, train stations, hotels) proliferate, and people, goods, technologies, and capital circulate at an accelerated pace and frequency. Drawing on the views of anthropologist Marc Augé, of geographers Michel Lussault, Mathis Stock, Tim Cresswell and of prominent mobilities studies scholars John Urry and Mimi Sheller, I argue that the paradoxical dynamic of stasis and mobility that permeates Jean Echenoz and Jean-Philippe Toussaint’s novels prompts us to reconsider the concepts of space, place, non-place through the notion of hyperplace. I specifically stress the relativity and porosity of the concept of non-place which cannot be exclusively used to interpret the greater homogenization of spaces and the increasing urbanization of the world since the 1980s. Additionally, I show that, in these novels, some of the transit spaces encountered are not entirely non-relational. They have the potential to become hyper-places, at least in part, even if they are weakened on one or more of their criteria. I also posit that the integrated web of intensified circulation and inertia defines our contemporary way of life which reflects issues of instability, anxiety, and sense of place while concomitantly offering opportunities for reconfigurations and renewal of the way we experience and use space. I contend that despite such challenges, the protagonists adapt to the fluid nature of today’s world emphasizing the complexity and ambiguities of the dynamics of our global world driven by speed and mobility. In doing so, the authors also unveil a posture of resistance towards this contemporary way of life. Moreover, I consider that, despite their wanderings, the protagonists inhabit the places and spaces they cross through their varied spatial practices which are anchored in their daily routine, physical gestures, and comings and goings. Yet, the authors maintain a form of ambivalence regarding the ability of the characters to dwell or inhabit the spaces and places they go through. Indeed, because of the filtered relationship they develop with their environment, the emotional attachment to these places or sense of place cannot entirely be determined. In this way, inhabiting is never fully complete, it is a process being constantly elaborated which can be done, undone, and experimented. The notion of dwelling or inhabiting spaces for Echenoz and Toussaint reflects a way of living and being in the world which accounts for the vicissitudes of life and for the passage of time, reminding us of our mortality. Finally, as the protagonists seek the presence of others defying their solitary nature, the authors show that there are still possibilities for users of the same space, and by extension, for humans to cohabitate and live together in this contemporary world.

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