Quand l’informatique soulève des questions épistémologiques dans le domaine de la littérature de langue bretonne : l’exemple de la base de données PRELIB

Abstract

PRELIB is a database that allows users to access and process data relating to actors in the field of Breton literature from its origins to the present day. Through an interdisciplinary collaboration combining literature, social sciences and computer science, this study examined both the relationships between Breton literature and other literatures, notably French-language literature, and the interrelationships within the Breton literary domain. In particular, the aim was to identify the places of sociability and the networks of the actors and producers in the field. The paper also revisits some of the questions that have emerged as a result of the development of this database. What constitutes a work of literature? What is an author? And what does a relationship between individuals mean?

Keywords

• relational database
• sociology of literature
• Breton literature
• network analysis
• places of sociability