Interpreting the Republic

Marginalization and Belonging in Contemporary French Novels and Films

Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism, French, European
Cover of the book Interpreting the Republic by Vinay Swamy, Lexington Books
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Vinay Swamy ISBN: 9780739165386
Publisher: Lexington Books Publication: June 16, 2011
Imprint: Lexington Books Language: English
Author: Vinay Swamy
ISBN: 9780739165386
Publisher: Lexington Books
Publication: June 16, 2011
Imprint: Lexington Books
Language: English

Interpreting the Republic focuses on contemporary French literary and cinematic works (1986-2003) that reflect on what it means to belong to a nation such as France by giving voice to those who find themselves marginalized by French society. While citizenship and belonging can be, and indeed are, interpreted differently depending on the socio-cultural and political context, it is the foundational universalist republican principle of egalitarianism that has remained the sacred cow of French society. One of the major claims of this study is that the rigidity of French national discourse that attempts to impose a certain homogeneity in its official identificatory practices — all citizens are French, and thus difference (ethnic, sexual or other) ceases to matter — is but one of the many possible interpretations of the notion of the Republic. Vinay Swamy seeks to show how such supposedly unshakeable principles, too, can be, and often are, reinterpreted in novel ways by the works analyzed in this study, which carve out niches for their protagonists that are otherwise foreclosed in the French national space. Swamy examines the different tactics of identification deployed in works ranging from early 'romans beurs' by Azouz Begag, Farida Belghoul and Soraya Nini, and Allah Superstar, the 2003 satirical novel by Y.B., to a number of films including Gazon maudit (1995), Ma vie en rose (1997), Le Placard (2001), Chouchou (2003), all of which (re)interpret the Republic in an effort to legitimize their protagonists' otherwise marginalized social position(s). He demonstrates how all these works put pressure, in a variety of ways, on an unacknowledged understanding of the institutional positions. Vinay Swamy underscores some of the central concerns of these works, which include a quest to unravel the often-thorny questions such as 'who represents the Republic' or 'who is represented by the institution of republican ideals,' and as a corollary, 'who or what is not represented?' In privileging moments of such questioning, Interpreting the Republic underscores some of the discursive limits of the understanding of multicultural identity formation in Contemporary France.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Interpreting the Republic focuses on contemporary French literary and cinematic works (1986-2003) that reflect on what it means to belong to a nation such as France by giving voice to those who find themselves marginalized by French society. While citizenship and belonging can be, and indeed are, interpreted differently depending on the socio-cultural and political context, it is the foundational universalist republican principle of egalitarianism that has remained the sacred cow of French society. One of the major claims of this study is that the rigidity of French national discourse that attempts to impose a certain homogeneity in its official identificatory practices — all citizens are French, and thus difference (ethnic, sexual or other) ceases to matter — is but one of the many possible interpretations of the notion of the Republic. Vinay Swamy seeks to show how such supposedly unshakeable principles, too, can be, and often are, reinterpreted in novel ways by the works analyzed in this study, which carve out niches for their protagonists that are otherwise foreclosed in the French national space. Swamy examines the different tactics of identification deployed in works ranging from early 'romans beurs' by Azouz Begag, Farida Belghoul and Soraya Nini, and Allah Superstar, the 2003 satirical novel by Y.B., to a number of films including Gazon maudit (1995), Ma vie en rose (1997), Le Placard (2001), Chouchou (2003), all of which (re)interpret the Republic in an effort to legitimize their protagonists' otherwise marginalized social position(s). He demonstrates how all these works put pressure, in a variety of ways, on an unacknowledged understanding of the institutional positions. Vinay Swamy underscores some of the central concerns of these works, which include a quest to unravel the often-thorny questions such as 'who represents the Republic' or 'who is represented by the institution of republican ideals,' and as a corollary, 'who or what is not represented?' In privileging moments of such questioning, Interpreting the Republic underscores some of the discursive limits of the understanding of multicultural identity formation in Contemporary France.

More books from Lexington Books

Cover of the book Hunting Down Social Darwinism by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book Athens, Arden, Jerusalem by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book Military Resilience in Low-Intensity Conflict by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book The Santa Marija Convoy by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book Senegal Sojourn by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book Rethinking Japan by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book National Resilience during War by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book The Body and Military Masculinity in Late Qing and Early Republican China by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book Global Women Leaders by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book Polls, Expectations, and Elections by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book The Dynamics of Change in Modern World Politics by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book Cartesian Psychophysics and the Whole Nature of Man by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book Nordic Narratives of Nature and the Environment by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book Eurasia's Shifting Geopolitical Tectonic Plates by Vinay Swamy
Cover of the book Speculative Imperialisms by Vinay Swamy
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy