English, 
French, Bilingual,
Jean
Amrouche (1907-1962) is one of the pioneers of Algerian literature
in French. He was born into a Catholic family in the Kabyle mountains.
At a certain point the family was forced to emigrate to Tunisia where
he was educated and began his career. As a high school teacher in Tunis,
Albert Memmi was one of his students. During the Algerian Civil War he
saw it as his duty to explain the French to Algerians and Algerians to
France. He published his first book or poetry, Cendres in 1934.
This, and his second volume, �toile secr*te are marked
by themes of mysticism and exile. Amrouche was also concerned with the
preservation of his Amazigh (Berber) cultural heritage. He collected songs
from the Amazigh region of Kabylie in his 1939 book Chants berb*res
de Kabylie. Books
by Jean Amrouche in French Top of Form | African Literature
Index | African Writers Index | E-mail us! Marguerite
Taos Amrouche--Born in 1913, Marguerite-Taos is the younger sister
of Jean Amrouche. Like her brother, she was concerned with preserving
the cultural heritage of the Kabylie. In 1966 she published a collection
of tales, poems and proverbs called le Grain magique. She also
collected and recorded songs and chants from this culture. She also wrote
two novels: l'Amant imaginaire (1975) and an autobiographical novel
Jacinthe noire (1947). Books
in by Taos Amrouche French---English
translations Top of Form | African Literature
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Mammeri was born on the 28th of December 1917 in Kabylia. A patriot
who struggled for the independence of Algeria from French Colonization,
he also studied in Morocco and in France before becoming director of the
Centre de recherche anthropologiques in Algiers. But Mammeri is probably
best known as a staunch advocate for cultural pluralism in Algeria and
for the struggle for the recognition of the Amazigh culture and language
throughout North Africa. In 1980 his lecture on ancient Amazigh poetry
from Kabylie was canceled by the authorities. This act of cultural repression
triggered massive demonstrations all over Algeria. Among the people in
the front ranks of the demonstrations were Kabylie artists and intellectuals.
The date in which the demonstrations started is still celebrated as Tafsut
Imazighen "The Amazigh Spring" by Amazigh cultural movements
all over North Africa. Mammeri was a founder of a review, Awal
, dedicated to research into Amazigh culture, language and history. His
novels include La Colline Oubli* (1952), Le Sommeil du
juste (1955) and l'Opium et le B�ton (1965). He also
collected the poems and stories of his native region in Contes Berberes
de Kabylie and Po*mes kabyles anciens (1980). Books
by Mouloud Mammeri in French Top of Form | African Literature
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Benhedougga was born in 1925 in El Mansoura (Bordj-Bou-Arreridj),
and pursued his higher educaiton in Tunisia. He returned to Algeria in
1954 where he taught Arabic literature. In 1955 he left for France where
he held odd jobs to earn a living. He retunred to Tunisia in 1958 where
he wrote for the radio and press of the FLN. He returned to Algeria in
1962 and has written for the theater, radio and television, including
the BBC and Radio Tunisia. His publications inlcude a collection of articles
called Al Djazair Bayn El amsi wal youmi (Algeria Between Yesterday and
Today, 1958) a collection of poems, Al-Arwah Ash-Shaghira (Empty Souls,
1967) and several novels, most recently Wa Ghadan Yaoum Djadid (Tomorrow
is a New Day, 1992). His novel, Je reve d'un monde..., (I Dream
of a World) has been published in French translation in number 15-16
of Algerie Litterature
/ Action Kateb
Yacine--Born August 6, 1929 in Constantine, Kateb Yacine is one of
the most respected writers in the Maghreb. His most famous novel is Nedjma,
was published in the midst of Algeria's anti-colonial war against the
French. It arguably the most important novels in the Francophone Maghrebi
tradition. Yacine has described it as "autobiographie au plurielle"
in which three narratives, memories of his childhood and his mother, infatuation
with his cousin Nedjma and Algerian history. He has also published poetry
(Soliloques) and theater (Le Cercle des repr*sailles)
and other novels. He died on October 28,1989. Books
by Kateb Yacine in French---English
Translations Top of Form | African Literature
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Senac--The child of an unknown father, Jean Senac was
born in 1926 to Jeanne Comma in 1926 in a village near Oran. It is said
that this status as a "bastard" was the source for his poetic
genius and, indeed, Senac frequently uses his quest for identity
as a metaphor for Algeria's status as a newly independent nation. This
search is most pronounced in Senac's only novel �bauche
du Pere, a remarkable autobiographical novel published after Senac
was brutally murdered on August 19, 1962. He was a protege
of Albert Camus who became very much a father figure for the young poet,
a relationship strained by Senac fervent support for Algerian independence.
Senac was an Algerian citizen by choice and his love for the nation
is always present in his poetry. Some of his collections are D*rision
et Vertige, Poemes, and Avant-Corps. Books
by Jean S*nac in French--See,
also, the anthology of Senac's works published by Marsa Editions.
Top of Form | African Literature
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Dib is by far Algeria's most prolific writer and a major figure of
world literature. His work provides a fascinating, moving picture of Algerian
history beginning with a trilogy Algerie which covered the
period from 1939-1942. The trilogy includes the novels: La Grande Maison,
l'Incendie and Le Metier a tisser. Dib is
an innovative writer who often explored experimental techniques. For example,Qui
se souvient de la mer is a novel about the war for independence in
Algeria, set in a mythical, science fiction like city. In so doing, the
novel becomes a compelling allegorical narrative of the specific conflict
in Algeria and of the psychology of resistance to oppression. Dib's other novels include:
Le Talisman, La Danse du roi, Habel, and, most recently,
Le Desert sans detour. He has also published collections
of poetry such as Ombre gardienne; Feu, beau feu and O
vive. Books
by Mohamed Dib in French----English
Translations Top of Form | African Literature
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Djebar is certainly the best known woman writer (if not the best known
overall) of the Maghreb, at least in the West.She taught history for many
years at the University of Algiers, and much of work is pervaded by persistent
historical questioning. But above all Djebar's work is concerned with
the situation of women in Algeria and with giving them the voice that
elements in society would have them denied. She is also a prize winning
film-maker. Les Enfants du nouveau
monde (1962), the first of her works to receive widespread critical
acclaim, is a novel which deals with the Algerian anti-colonial war and,
in particular, the role women played in it. Femmes d'Alger dans leur
appartement (1980) takes its title from Delacroix's famous painting
and is made up almost entirely of conversations between women. L'Amour
la fantasia (1985) is an extraordinarily complex work which weaves
together historical narratives of French colonization and autobiography.
In Loin de M*dine (1991) she explores the lives of the women
in the life of the prophet Mohammed. Her other novels include La Soif
(1957), Les Impatients (1958), Les Allouettes naives
(1964) and Ombre sultane (1987). Books
by Assia Djebar in French---English
Translations Top of Form | African Literature
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Ouettar (also spelled Tahir Wattar) Is one of the more inportant figures
in Algerian literature written in Arabic. He began his higher studies
in Constantine, Tunisia, but left in 1956 to join the Civil Organization
of the FLN. After the war he edited periodicals in Tunisia and Algeria.
He also served as Controller of the FLN and Director Genreal of Algerian
Radio. He has published novels plays and short stories in Arabic. Titles
include: al-Laz (The Ace, 1974) 'Urs baghl (The
Donkey's Wedding, 1978), Az-Zilzel (The Earthquake,
1974) and al-Shama'a wa'l-dahaliz (The Candle and Dark Tunnels,
1995). He currently resides in Algiers. English
Translations Top of Form | African Literature
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Mosteghanemi--Ahlam
Mosteghanemi is the author of Dhakirat al-jasad (1985), the first
novel published by an Algerian woman in Arabic. In 2000, an English translation
bearing the title Memory
in the Flesh was published by the American University in Cairo,
as a result of the novel receiving the Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature.
Holder of a B.A. in Arabic literature from the University of Algiers and
doctorate in sociology from the Sorbonne, Mosteghanemi has written two
novels, two volumes of poetry and has published a collection of essays
called Alg*rie:
Femmes et *critures.
Books by Ahlam Mosteghanemi in French---English
Translations Top of Form | African Literature
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Sebbar--Born and raised in Algeria, Leila Sebbar moved to France at
the age of 17. In fact, many of her novels deal with the situation of
Algerian women who have immigrated to Europe. Some of the titles which
built her reputation are: On tue les petites filles (1980), Des
femmes dans la maison (181) and Sherazade (1982). Books
by Leila Sebbar in French---English
Translations Top of Form | African Literature
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Boudjedra--It is said that the publication of Rachid Boudjedra's first
novella R*pudiation (1969) announced a new generation of
Algerian writers. Through a story recounted by a young Algerian to his
foreign lover concerning the life of his mother who had been repudiated
by his father, Boudjedra questions the values of his traditional society.
According to the author, the text is partially autobiographical, stemming
from the repudiation of Boudjedra's mother by his father. Boudjedra's fiction is provocative,
experimental and moving. Topographie ideale pour un agression
caract*ris*e, for example, is the story of an illiterate
immigrant lost in the Paris metro through which Boudjedra examines complex
philosophical and aesthetic issues. FIS de la haine is a work of
nonfiction in which Boudjedra examines the roots of the current crisis
in Algeria. The books pulls no punches towards the FIS, the West, or anyone
else. And yet Boudjedra makes every effort to sort out the bloodthirsty
ambitions of the FIS (Islamic Salvation Front) from the more tolerant
tradition of Islam, and the ruthless, money-driven character of the West
from its noble humanistic tradition. Since 1982 he has written exclusively
in Arabic and the issuing French versions of his novels. Books
by Rachid Boudjedra in French---English
Translations Top of Form | African Literature
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Sari was born in 1958 in Menacer, in the Cherchell region of
Algeria. He and is currently a professor of Arabic literature at the University
of Algiers. He has published literary criticism and three novels in Arabic,
including As-Sa'ir (1986) and 'ala Djibel Ad-Dahra (The
Mountains of Dara, 1988). His newest novel, Le Labyrinthe,
has been published in French translation in Alg*rie
Litterature / Action, Nos 41-42. Top of Form | African Literature
Index | African Writers Index | E-mail us! Tahar
Djaout was one of the first of a far too long string of intellectuals
to be killed in the violence that has shaken Algeria since the canceled
1992 elections. One of the men arrested for the assassination allegedly
said that Djaout was targeted because, "he wrote too well, he had
an intelligent pen, and he was able to touch people; because of this he
was a danger to the fundamentalist ideology." Since his assassination,
Djaout has become an important symbol for freedom of expression and the
movement for a pluralist state in Algeria, but beyond all this, the world
lost a phenomenal literary talent when he died. Djaout was born in Kabylie,
(1952) studied mathematics at the university, then became a journalist.
As such he was a staunch advocate for democracy, and a harsh critic of
corruption in the Algerian government and of the FIS. Although he began
his literary career in poetry, he is best known for his novels. The three
which brought him the most attention are: Les chercheurs d'os ,
the story of a boy who goes off to search for the remains of his brother
after the Algerian war for independence; Le Invention du d*sert,
in which a writer working on a history of the Almohad movement in North
Africa confronts the ghost of history, bringing an ancient religious reformer
back to life in his mind to confront the street of Paris; and Les Vigiles,
the story of a young inventor and a old war veteran who confront the corruption
of their society. A posthumous novel, Le Dernier ete
de la raison, was published in 1999, in which Djaout imagines life
in a state controlled by a fundamentalist government and one individuals
resistance to it. Books
by Tahar Djaout in French Top of Form | African Literature
Index | African Writers Index | E-mail us! Rachid
Mimouni--Decades after Algerian independence Rachid Mimouni's literary
production in French shows the incredible ability of Maghrebi writers
to use French as a language of artistic creation and expression. Although
he died at very young age in his self-imposed exile in Tangiers,Morocco,
Mimouni left behind an impressive body of work that grapples with some
of the most powerful issues in modern Algerian history. Some of his works
are: Le Fleuve detourne (1982), Une paix �
vivre (1983), Tombeza (1984), Paris Dakar (Written
in collaboration with Leila Sebbar and others) (1987), L'Honneur de
la tribu (1989), La Ceinture de l'ogresse (1990), Le Printemps
n'en sera que plus beau (1990), De la barbarie en general
et de l'integrisme en particulier (1993), La Malediction
(1993). Books
by Rachid Mimouni in French---English
Translations Top of Form | African Literature
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Khelladi is a journalist, novelist, playwright and poet who has lived
in France since 1994. He has published books on the rise of Islamic fundamentalism,
plays, poetry and several novels, most notably Peurs et Mensonges
and Rose d'abime, both of which deal insightfully and unflinchingly
with the situation in contemporary Algeria. His writing is intense and
gripping and often very innovative in its style. Khelladi is also the
director of the important new review Algerie
Litterature / Action.
Books by Aissa Khelladi in French Top of Form | African Literature
Index | African Writers Index | E-mail us! Abdelkader
Djemai is a novelist and journalist who was born in Oran in 1948.
He was obliged to leave Algeria in 1993. His books include Une ete
de cendres, a recit which tells the story of a dispossessed
and haunted man who lives in his office after losing his wife and falling
out of favor with his superior. It is a personal narrative which gives
a glimpse into how one mans deals with the chaos in Algeria today. Other
titles by Djema� include Saison de pierres and Memoires
de n*gre. Books
by Abdelkader Djema� in French Top of Form | African Literature
Index | African Writers Index | E-mail us! Malika
Mokeddem is also trained as a physician. She was born in 1949 in the
Algerian desert and was the eldest of ten children. In 1966 she left Algeria
to study medicine in France where she now lives. Her first novel was written
while she was practicing medicine in an office she opened in the immigrant
quarters of Paris. She is a prize winning author of three novels foreground
the situation of Algerian. women. Le siecle des sauterelles is
set in the first half of this century, and L'Interdite deals with
the rise of fundamentalism. Books
by Malika Mokeddem in French---English
Translations Top of Form | African Literature
Index | African Writers Index | E-mail us! Merzak
Allouache is, of course, best known as a film maker. His most famous
film, Bab El Oued City, tells the story of a a poor neighborhood in urban
Algiers and the rise of Islamic militancy. The novel Bab El-Oued
was written to exorcise frustrations that arose during the making of the
film. Books
by Merzak Allouache in French---English
Translations Top of Form | African Literature
Index | African Writers Index | E-mail us! French psychiatrist and revolutionary writer, whose writings had profound influence on the radical movements
in the 1960s in the United States and Europe. As a political thinker born in Martinique, Fanon's views also
gained audience in the Caribbean islands along with Aime Cesaire, Edouard Glissant, C.L.R. James, and Eric
Williams. Fanon rejected the concept of "Negritude"- a term first used by Cesaire - and stated that persons' status depends on their economical and social position. Fanon believed that violent revolution is the only means of ending colonial repression and cultural trauma in the Third World. "I have no wish to be the victim of the Fraud of a black world.
My life should not be devoted to drawing up the balance sheet of Negro values.
There is no white world, there is no white ethic, any more than there is a white intelligence.
There are in every part of the world men who search.
I am not a prisoner of history. I should not seek there for the meaning of my destiny.
I should constantly remind myself that the real leap consists in introduction invention into existence.
In the world through which I travel, I am endlessly creating myself." (Fanon in Black Skin, White Masks, 1952) Frantz Fanon studied medicine and psychiatry in France after serving in the World War II. Seared as a youth
by racism, and influenced by Sartre's existentialism, Fanon analysed the impact of colonialism and its
deforming effects. From an 'European intellectual' Fanon gradually transformed to polemic scholar and
socialist to revolutionary. His first major work, BLACK SKIN, WHITE MASKS (1952), had a major
influence on civil rights, anti-colonial, and black consciousness movements around the world. Fanon argued
that white colonialism imposed an existentially false and degrading existence upon its black victims to the
extent that it demanded their conformity to its distorted values. He demonstates how the problem of race, of
color, connects with a whole range of words and images, starting from the symbol of the dark side of the soul.
"Is not whiteness in symbols always ascribed in French to Justice, Truth, Virginity?" Fanon examines race prejudices as
a philosopher and psychologist although he acknowledges social and economic realities. The tone of the text
varies from outrage to cool analysis and its poetic grace has not lost anything from its appeal. Top of Form | African Literature
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