Christine Angot as Prosecutor: The Writer as Moral Vigilante

In an editorial for artpress n°444, Jacques Henric critiques the role of writers as moral judges, focusing on novelist Christine Angot's televised confrontation with politician François Fillon on France2. Henric compares Angot to the Erinyes, ancient Greek goddesses of vengeance, and argues that writers should not act as philosophers, moralists, or judges. He cites past petitions by writers to oust Richard Millet from Gallimard, prevent Marcel Gauchet from speaking at a symposium, and stop Renaud Camus from being published. Henric also recalls Angot's earlier involvement in the case of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, accused of rape by Tristane Banon and later acquitted. He contrasts this with historical writers who campaigned to free people from prison, noting that today some writers seek to imprison others. The editorial references Philippe Muray's concept of the 'Empire of Good' and Baudelaire's phrase 'literary rabble.' Henric warns Angot that she too could face judgment by a self-righteous figure. The piece was published in April 2017, translated by C. Penwarden.