Paper long abstract:

During a slam/performance poetry session, a wide variety of people more or less strangers to each other come together and perform their own texts. Following the ethos of s'exprimer, partager and écouter (to express oneself, share and listen), they create a cosmopolitan and democratic space. This highly socially, ethnically and generationally diverse milieu reflects the cosmopolitan, bohemian and popular environment of North-East Paris, where the slam phenomenon originated and still abounds. In this paper, I will explore the relationship between the characteristics of the space created during a soirée slam and the particular environment in the city where it is situated.

The study is based on 16 months of fieldwork in North-East Paris, from the riots in the autumn 2005 until the election of President Sarkozy in 2007.