Writerly Identities in Beur Fiction and Beyond

(Paperback)

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Writerly Identities in Beur Fiction and Beyond explores the Beur/banlieue literary and cultural field from its beginnings in the 1980s to the present. It examines a set of postcolonial Bildungsroman novels by Azouz Begag, Farida Belghoul, Lela Sebbar, Sad Mohamed, Rachid Djadani, and Mohamed Razane. In these novels, the central characters are authors who struggle to find self-identity and a place in the world through writing and authorship. The book thus explores the different ways all these novels relate the process of "becoming" to the process of writing. Neither is straightforward as the author-characters struggle to put their lives into words, settle upon a genre of writing, and adopt an authorial persona.

Each chapter of Writerly Identities in Beur Fiction and Beyond focuses on a given author's own relationship to writing before assessing his or her use of the author-character as a proxy. In so doing, the study as a whole explores a set of literary questions (genre, textual authority, reception) and engages them against the backdrop of socio-cultural challenges facing contemporary French society. These include debates on education, cultural literacy, diversity and equal opportunity, and the "banlieue" environment. Finally, it argues in relation to the authors and novels in question for the particular relevance of "rooted and vernacular" cosmopolitanism, which suggests both that exploration of the world must begin at home and that stories are crucial for such explorations.

Reviews

Writerly Identities in Beur Fiction and Beyond presents insightful analyses both of established Beur authors and classics of that literature and of more recent writers and works. This book is a must-read for anyone interested not only in contemporary French Studies, but also in immigrant literature, comparative literature, postcolonial studies, and Arab studies. -- Michele Bacholle-Boskovic, Eastern Connecticut State University, author of Un pass contraignant: double bind et transculturation, Eastern Connecticut State University, author of Un pass contraignant: double bind et transculturation
The focus of this book is provided by postcolonial writing in France. Laura Reeck traces the evolution of this extensive corpus of works, locating these contributions within the context of contemporary cultural, political, and social challenges associated with the unresolved legacy of colonialism, arguing for their pertinence to current debates on Republican ideals and values and to the treatment of underrepresented communities, and underscoring their vital role in expanding perceptions of multicultural realities. The result is a more rigorous and comprehensive understanding of culture and politics in contemporary France. -- Dominic Thomas, University of California, Los Angeles
Laura Reeck publie ici son premier ouvrage consacr quelques crivains franais classs - relgus - par la doxa dans le rayon des auteurs "beurs" ou "crivains de banlieue". A chacun, elle consacre un chapitre. Elle ne se contente pas dy analyser les uvres des uns et des autres mais se livre galement des mises en perspectives thoriques, sociales et biographiques. Elle illustre ainsi, avec rigueur et conviction, la fameuse opinion qui veut que la littrature en dise plus sur nos socits et sur leur devenir que nombre de doctes traits, lourdement lests de statistiques. A lre du chiffre-roi, les potes ne seraient pas tout fait morts -- Mustapha Harzoune, Cit nationale de l'histoire de l'immigration
Reeck (Allegheny College) provides insightful, well-documented analyses of important Beur/banlieue novels from the 1980s to the present, while problematizing the labels 'Beur' literature and 'banlieue' fiction. She also offers discerning comments on the social and political contexts from which these works emerged, and examines the broader issues of immigration, integration, education, cultural diversity, and national identity in France. All the novels studied are Bildungsromane in which the themes of writing and becoming (authorship and self-authorship) are closely interconnected. The book comprises three parts: the first features novels whose protagonists are young children learning how to write in a school context; the second includes novels about runaway teenagers engaged in storytelling; the third is devoted to authors-characters writing about life in the banlieues within the banlieues. The author concludes by relating the narratives studied to the concept of 'rooted and vernacular' cosmopolitanism, inviting all readers to explore the world starting at home then reaching out to others to learn about differences. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty. -- Choice

Writerly Identities provides a nuanced presentation of both established and emerging voices of
Beur and banlieue fiction, and is best suited for an advanced undergraduate course or graduate
seminar on Beur and banlieue film and fiction. The main strength of Writerly Identities lies in
Reecks sophisticated close readings, however, and her focus on the practice and politics of
writing in the banlieue. As such, it constitutes an important and original contribution to the field
of Beur and banlieue studies, providing a welcome break from the autobiographical
interpretations that prevail in the mainstream reception of these works.

Author Bio

Laura Reeck is associate professor of French at Allegheny College.