Simon Harel

Simon Harel is a Full Professor at the Université de Montréal's Département de littératures et de langues du monde within the Faculté des arts et des sciences. He holds a PhD in French and Comparative Literature from Université Paris 7 (1986). His research bridges literary studies with interdisciplinary practices, focusing on narrative forms, migration, and urban cultural dynamics. He is the director of the Laboratoire sur les récits du soi mobile (Lab on Mobile Self-Narratives) and co-director of the Centre de recherche des études littéraires et culturelles sur la planétarité (CELCP).

Education:

• 1986: Doctorat nouveau régime de littérature française et comparée, Université Paris 7

Research Interests: Interdisciplinary approaches to narrative studies, migration and intercultural relations, medical humanities, urban marginalization, and the intersection of literature with healthcare. His work emphasizes collaborative creation with marginalized communities, including incarcerated women and refugees. Recent projects explore narrative forms in organ transplantation contexts and the therapeutic potential of storytelling in healthcare settings.

Grants & Collaborations:

• McConnell Foundation Chair in Research-Creation on Narratives of Organ Donation and Life in Healthcare Contexts (2019-2023)
• FQRSC-funded projects on incarcerated women's theater and refugee narratives
• Partnerships with CRCHUM (Centre de recherche du CHUM) and RéCITS (Réseau de Création International et Transversal sur le Soin)

Awards: Trudeau Fellowship (2009-2012), Royal Society of Canada membership (since 2009), and multiple recognition for contributions to Quebec cultural studies and intercultural dialogue.

Advisees & Mentorship: Supervised over 30 graduate theses spanning migration literature, queer theory, Indigenous narratives, and medical storytelling. Notable advisees include Valentina Pancaldi (PhD on Antonio D’Alfonso), Justin Leduc-Frenette (MA on Pierre Michon), and Méléda Bordeleau (MA on embodied writing).

Labs & Initiatives: Founded L’Organon, a platform for health-literature collaborations, and co-created RéCITS, a transnational network for medical humanities. Active in urban cultural projects like the 'Montréal, territoire et terrain' initiative and the Pavilion V research-creation hub.