The “Beautiful Abyss” of Human Cruelty, Anthropogenic Violence, and Other-Than-Human Friendship in Yamen Manaï’s <i>Bel Abîme</i>
Yamen Manaï’s novel <i>Bel Abîme</i> upholds Dominique Lestel’s contention that friends are those who we hold near and dear in our hybrid communities. Lestel and Manaï’s reexamination of the reality of other-than-human friendship presents our domesticated pets as sentient, semiotic agent...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-07-01
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| Series: | Humanities |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/11/4/94 |
| _version_ | 1797409927446134784 |
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| author | Keith Moser |
| author_facet | Keith Moser |
| author_sort | Keith Moser |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Yamen Manaï’s novel <i>Bel Abîme</i> upholds Dominique Lestel’s contention that friends are those who we hold near and dear in our hybrid communities. Lestel and Manaï’s reexamination of the reality of other-than-human friendship presents our domesticated pets as sentient, semiotic agents with whom we co-construct meaning and a sense of identity together in the “enchanted space of trans-specific communication.” Additionally, our species appears to derive immense psychological and moral benefits from polyspecific encounters that enable us to reach a higher stage of ethical development. Nonetheless, Lestel and Manaï recognize that we cannot extend the family circle to include even more other-than-human co-inhabitants of the biosphere unless we (re-) establish a more sustainable way of living and being in the world. Not only is climate change a question of survival, but it is also a matter of preserving the spaces of meaning in which we are forever transformed by the non-human Other. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T04:22:34Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0de369ef90c447cfa0667f9f3ae5ee59 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-0787 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T04:22:34Z |
| publishDate | 2022-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Humanities |
| spelling | doaj.art-0de369ef90c447cfa0667f9f3ae5ee592023-12-03T13:45:17ZengMDPI AGHumanities2076-07872022-07-011149410.3390/h11040094The “Beautiful Abyss” of Human Cruelty, Anthropogenic Violence, and Other-Than-Human Friendship in Yamen Manaï’s <i>Bel Abîme</i>Keith Moser0Department of Classical & Modern Languages and Literatures, Mississippi State University, Starkville, MS 39762, USAYamen Manaï’s novel <i>Bel Abîme</i> upholds Dominique Lestel’s contention that friends are those who we hold near and dear in our hybrid communities. Lestel and Manaï’s reexamination of the reality of other-than-human friendship presents our domesticated pets as sentient, semiotic agents with whom we co-construct meaning and a sense of identity together in the “enchanted space of trans-specific communication.” Additionally, our species appears to derive immense psychological and moral benefits from polyspecific encounters that enable us to reach a higher stage of ethical development. Nonetheless, Lestel and Manaï recognize that we cannot extend the family circle to include even more other-than-human co-inhabitants of the biosphere unless we (re-) establish a more sustainable way of living and being in the world. Not only is climate change a question of survival, but it is also a matter of preserving the spaces of meaning in which we are forever transformed by the non-human Other.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/11/4/94Dominique LestelYamen Manaïother-than-human friendshiptrans-specific communicationbiosemiotics |
| spellingShingle | Keith Moser The “Beautiful Abyss” of Human Cruelty, Anthropogenic Violence, and Other-Than-Human Friendship in Yamen Manaï’s <i>Bel Abîme</i> Humanities Dominique Lestel Yamen Manaï other-than-human friendship trans-specific communication biosemiotics |
| title | The “Beautiful Abyss” of Human Cruelty, Anthropogenic Violence, and Other-Than-Human Friendship in Yamen Manaï’s <i>Bel Abîme</i> |
| title_full | The “Beautiful Abyss” of Human Cruelty, Anthropogenic Violence, and Other-Than-Human Friendship in Yamen Manaï’s <i>Bel Abîme</i> |
| title_fullStr | The “Beautiful Abyss” of Human Cruelty, Anthropogenic Violence, and Other-Than-Human Friendship in Yamen Manaï’s <i>Bel Abîme</i> |
| title_full_unstemmed | The “Beautiful Abyss” of Human Cruelty, Anthropogenic Violence, and Other-Than-Human Friendship in Yamen Manaï’s <i>Bel Abîme</i> |
| title_short | The “Beautiful Abyss” of Human Cruelty, Anthropogenic Violence, and Other-Than-Human Friendship in Yamen Manaï’s <i>Bel Abîme</i> |
| title_sort | beautiful abyss of human cruelty anthropogenic violence and other than human friendship in yamen manai s i bel abime i |
| topic | Dominique Lestel Yamen Manaï other-than-human friendship trans-specific communication biosemiotics |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/11/4/94 |
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