For writer Jean-Baptiste Andrea, winning literary awards -- including the prestigious Goncourt Prize in 2023 -- felt like finally becoming "visible."
"I've wanted to be a writer since I was 9 years old. But we live in a world that doesn't exactly encourage anyone to become a novelist. I was lucky to succeed, but before that, I was invisible. Because until we gain recognition, we are, in a sense, transparent," said Andrea at a press conference held at the French Embassy in Seoul on Monday.
The winner of the 2023 Prix Goncourt was in Seoul ahead of Tuesday's Goncourt Choice of Korea. The initiative, jointly organized by the French Embassy and the Academie Goncourt, invites students studying French at high schools, universities and language institutes to read and debate the final four Goncourt Prize shortlisted novels over five months before selecting a winner by majority vote.
Andrea, who turned to writing novels after a long career as a screenwriter, likened his literary success to a transformation from obscurity to acknowledgment.
"Imagine a homeless man sitting on a park bench -- he is almost invisible. But then he wins the lottery and becomes a billionaire. Suddenly, his presence carries weight. That’s how it felt after winning the Goncourt Prize. I had always been here, but only after recognition did people start to notice," he said.
"I think society should support artists, even when they are still homeless and sitting on a bench."
Since his debut as a novelist, Andrea has quickly risen to prominence, solidifying his status as one of France's most compelling literary voices, winning 19 major literary awards in the country, including the Best French Debut Novel and the Students Femina for his debut novel “My Queen” (2017) and the Grand Prix RTL-Lire for his third novel “Devils and Saints” (2021). With his fourth novel, “Watching Over Her” (2023), a sweeping saga set against the backdrop of Italy’s fascist era, Andrea won the Goncourt Prize.
Spanning several decades of 20th-century Italy, "Watching Over Her" follows Michelangelo "Mimo" Vitaliani, a poor sculptor, and his tumultuous relationship with Viola Orsini, the daughter of an aristocratic family.
The novel explores Italy’s political history and class structures from World War I to the 1980s, depicting the rise of fascism as a gradual phenomenon of everyday life, also tackling themes of feminism, art and patronage.
"The reason it was important for me to talk about fascism was because my book is about resistance against dictatorship, fear and terror. The protagonist (Mimo) is in constant struggle with society, family and himself," Andrea said.
"Like any good work of fiction, my novel speaks to our present era. We are seeing authoritarian regimes and fascist ideologies resurface today. I wanted to emphasize that these things don’t happen by accident. I wanted to say that there is no such thing as 'no choice.'"
Andrea said that all the characters in his work could be seen as his alter ego -- each struggling for recognition in a society that doubts itself, while also grappling with their own self-doubt.
But he described his overarching theme as: "I am convinced that, in the end, human civilization and the human spirit will prevail."
The 53-year-old writer also described storytelling as a universal bridge between cultures.
"French and Korean cultures are vastly different, but the fact that my work can be translated and read here means we are not so different after all," said Andrea. "My characters, like all of us, have dreams, ambitions, problems and laughs. I hope that readers see a reflection of themselves in my stories."
While a film adaptation of “Watching Over Her” is underway, Andrea said he doesn’t have plans for his next novel.
"I don't want to repeat stories I've already told. And I don't have the desire to write next story every time I write. I think it's because I always write each story as if it were my last."
While in Korea, Andrea is scheduled to meet with readers at Seoul National University on Monday, Yonsei University on Tuesday and Hankuk University of Foreign Studies on Wednesday.
hwangdh@heraldcorp.com
