Global Maghreb: Transnational Recognition and Knowledge of a Postcolonial Literature offers a groundbreaking approach to the study of Postcolonial literatures and, more generally, literary history, by (1) promoting a genuinely interdisciplinary approach that spans both literary studies and the social sciences (i.e. sociology, history); (2) reframing the “national literature” used in literary studies with a transnational (and multilingual) perspective; and (3) questioning the Postcolonial in the context of Globalization. The objective is to understand the impact of transnational circulation of texts and writers on literary recognition, as well as to historicize the transnationally produced knowledge of these literatures. The research is focused on North-African countries that gained independence from France in the 1950s/1960s (i.e. Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia) and examines them in an international landscape (ie., French, Arabic, English). The work is divided into three case studies. (1) “Transnational intermediation of Maghreb literature” develops a macro understanding of the circulation of texts, using a bibliographical database and interviews with translators and other intermediaries of the transnational circulation, as well as archives of publishing houses and University departements. (2) “Female Maghreb Writers in the USA ” compares the trajectory and reception of three female writers and their work in the USA, depending on their generation and language they write in (French, Arabic, English). (3) “Transnational creation of a national literature” historicizes the nationalization of “Algerian literature” and the exclusion of writers for political (European writers after independence), religious (Jewish writers), ethnic (Black writers) or linguistic (Francophone) reasons, and highlights the ongoing struggles on this literature’s “identity.” The dual objectives of Recognition and Knowledge are inherently political. As such, GLOMAG is an original and effective means to combat (1) global cultural hierarchies, and (2) prejudices regarding so-called “identities” (especially those concerning Muslims).
Both objectives have been achieved. North African literature’s recognition depends on factors such as its periphery within both Linguistic area (Francophone and Arabophone); and the language used. The literature translated from Arabic into English, from French into English, or directly written in English form a continuum in terms of recognition in the USA. However, writers as well as intermediaries have also a strong impact in modifying the weight of those variables. Regarding the second objective, WP4 addresses it thoroughly, demonstrating that national literatures emerge from contested and contradictory perceptions, both internal and external to the nation, and across different languages. As for the main hypothesis, the research confirms that France and the French language remain central to the recognition and understanding of the Maghreb. However, this centrality is increasingly challenged locally by the growing emancipation of Arabic literature and internationally by the growing centrality of English in the economy of translation, and of North African knowledge about the Maghreb.
