PT Journal
AU Abdelatif Benamar, M
TI The beur novel: from the stereotype to the pastiche, the case of Ali le Magnifique by Paul Smail
SO Romanica Olomucensia
PY 2017
BP 77
EP 86
VL 29
IS 1
DI 10.5507/ro.2017.006
DE beur novel; stereotypes; cliches; pastiche; literary deception
AB This article addresses the phenomenon of stereotyping from a narratological and literary point of view, especially its deployment in "beur literature". In this context specifically, the stereotypes are to be understood as "cliche", because if the stereotype reflects the reality of society to some extent, the cliche, initially, is reinterpreted in literary fiction, where it performs a poetic and rhetorical function. Therefore, studying the cliche in the literary context is of major importance, since this kind of writing is able to generate textual typologies, mainly created of cliches, thus inviting some critics to use the designation "stereotypical literature". The object of this study, the novel Ali le Magnifique, would be part of this "stereotypical literature", since it is considered as a pastiche of the beur novel, and any pastiche requires a codified writing which is the result of a horizon of expectations and a play on stereotypes. The following questions will be addressed: What is this pastiche made of? How does the false beur novelist manage to write a pastiche of the beur novel? Why Paul Smail's pastiche? It has to be stressed that Paul Smail's pastiche emphasizes some stereotypes, such as racism, discrimination, or unemployment, which, in turn, form important writing cliches. The aim of this paper is to see more precisely, through Ali le Magnifique, which are the main cliches and commonplaces that give this literature an easily recognizable style.
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