The journey of self-discovery is a recurring theme in francophone
Maghrebi literature and film. Characters are often placed in a struggle against forces
in both French and Maghrebi society, where authors and directors evoke various themes through which characters define themselves. Despite the differences in how characters
choose to define themselves, the similarity they share is that these identities
are not rigid. They are fluid and are shaped by a multitude of factors that can be
traced to power and power contributes to perceptions and the day-to-day
experiences in these societies. One of the common ways characters embark on this journey of self-discovery is through gender. Two
characters who do this differently are Nina in Garçon manqué by Nina Bouraoui and Zahra in La nuit sacrée by Tahar ben Jelloun. Each of these characters
demonstrates the complexity of gender, the ways in which power shapes these
complexities, and how, throughout their evolution as characters, they flow
between identifying as male and female for different reasons. In both stories, gender remains central in their quest
to define themselves as individuals.
Before diving into the different ways Nina and Zahra
approach their identities through gender and how power plays a role in their
realities and experiences, these two characters share an important similarity.
Throughout both the book and the film, the characters do not maintain one
gender. They both, at different moments in the development of their respective
stories, identify both as male and female. Moreover, the evolution of their
characters and the progression of the plot centers on the change in their
self-identification. It is a central conflict for both characters. They also share a similarity regarding the terms of gender they choose to
define themselves with—a decision shaped by a combination of voluntary choices
and imposed definitions, whether from society or specific people in their
lives.
In Nina Bouraoui’s book, Garçon
manqué, Nina narrates her experiences as the child of an Algerian father
and a French mother. Nina must explore her identity in a world of "opposing dualities," as she frames it. Despite the fact that she was born in France, she grew up in
Algeria and a vast majority of her self-discovery took place in Algeria. Beyond
the conflicts she faces as a person of mixed origins, she finds refuge in the
creation of alternative identities that serve multiple objectives. At the
beginning, all the alternative identities, namely her identity as Ahmed, Brio,
and Steve, are all male. However, for the sake of concision, her alternative
identity as Ahmed will serve as the most relevant example in this context. One
of the reasons Nina creates this identity as Ahmed is due to the patriarchal
nature of Algerian society. Nina recognizes that men have the greatest amount of privilege and
she seeks to attain this privilege by identifying as male. While it may seem
that this decision is based on a voluntary choice, the powers in society rooted
in this dominant patriarchal narrative are what push her to make this decision.
Nina says, “I want to be a man. To be a man in Algeria means to become
invisible” (Bouraoui 37). She repeats this desire to attain masculine privilege
when she describes her childhood friend, Amine, who is male. She says, “His
body is what I desire” (Bouraoui 28). Through physical and psychological means,
Nina embarks on a path where she begins to discover herself as Ahmed.
