Literature Re-members History: The Algerian War in Un regard blessé of Rabah Belamri and La Malédiction of Rachid Mimouni

Françoise Sule (1) , Christophe Premat (2)

1 Institute for Canadian Studies
2 SPIRIT - Science Politique Relations Internationales Territoire

In the literature of Algeria, the war and the Independence are central pieces. A series of novels have been published on this topic. The particularity of the novels consists in an attempt to recollect pieces of memory of that period. Before the Independence war, the use of French language was imposed by the colons whereas many Algerians saw the French school system as the devil system. It is a kind of paradox that after the Independence of 1962, the use of French language spread in Algeria, but it means that afterwards the use of French language became free in Algeria as well as in other countries of Maghreb (Geyss, 2009, 24). When we deal with francophone literature of Maghreb, we point out the fact that French language is neither homogenous nor the cultural property of the French State. The word “francophonie” was used for the first time in 1885 by Onésime Reclus to qualify the zone of influence of the French language in Africa after the share of the colonies made in the Congress of Berlin (Geyss, 2009, 25). Then, the word became popular in the sixties after the decolonization and meant thus the free use of French language in Literature.

Mots clés: Algerian war; History; literature; Rabah Belamri; Rachid Mimouni

Domaines: Science politique; Littératures

Françoise Sule, Christophe Premat. Literature Re-members History: The Algerian War in Un regard blessé of Rabah Belamri and La Malédiction of Rachid Mimouni. Colloque What's Culture Got to Do with It?, Session VI: Representation and the Power over Memory, Institut nordique des études africaines, Jun 2009, Uppsala, Sweden. ⟨halshs-00424998⟩