Visions Of Odalisques: Orientalism And Conspicuous Consumption In Leila Sebbar\u27s Le Peintre Et Son Modele (2007)

Many Algerian writers (Alloula, Djebar, Boudjedra) have revisited the representational politics of colonial iconography despite awareness that this endeavor is at risk of renewing exoticism. This article examines how Leïla Sebbar\u27s Le peintre et son modèle reproduces such a problematic stance through the inclusion of a photograph by Joel Leick inline with her short story. Whereas Sebbar attempts to deconstruct the photograph\u27s orientalism by placing it outside the realm of the aesthetic and resituating it within the sexual exploitation of women in the former French colonies, I intend to demonstrate how this photograph reintroduces the very inequalities that her text tries to evacuate. Leick\u27s model elicits an eroticized gaze from readers, who become onlookers and obedient participants in the neocolonial consumption process. Rereading Sebbar\u27s short story through the lens of this photograph thus shows current limitations to the power of postcolonial texts and, ultimately, their troubled dependence on orientalist iconography

The physical maze and the spiritual labyrinth of Gide's Les Caves Du Vatican

This article discusses the maze motif in Andre Gide's 1914 novel, Les Caves du Vatican. The author argues that the spiritual labyrinth of French cathedrals, particularly that of Chartres, offers both the key to the novel's composition and a better reading of the spatial and emotional journeys of the characters than the obvious physical mazes of the work

The Rise Of Dz-Manga In Algeria: Glocalization And The Emergence Of A New Transnational Voice

This article aims to establish Algerian manga as a new object of study within the field of Francophone studies and the broader field of cartooning in the developing world. To this end, it provides a survey of existing works while answering three main questions: How has manga become part of the cultural habits of young Algerian creators and readers? What status does it hold in local cultural production? Finally, what strategies have artists employed to broaden the readership of Algerian manga and how have they taken advantage of the unique possibilities offered by this new medium