Conclusion

Muslim Women in French Cinema ◽

10.5949/liverpool/9781781381984.003.0006 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 186-192

Author(s):

Leslie Kealhofer-Kemp

Keyword(s):

First Generation ◽

Muslim Women ◽

Migrant Women ◽

Silent Generation ◽

Feature Films ◽

Patriarchal Culture

This book challenges the notion that first-generation Maghrebi migrant women, as a group, constitute a uniformly silent generation and are victims because of their status as immigrants, Muslim women, or women in a traditionally patriarchal culture. The cinematic representations of first-generation women are diverse, and while some of the films examined in the study do not necessarily invite viewers to identify with the first-generation women portrayed in them, the majority of them do promote an appreciation of the experiences and hardships lived by this generation of women. The book concludes with a discussion of feature films depicting Maghrebi women protagonists that are in production at the time of writing (directed by Hafsia Herzi and Fejria Deliba, respectively). These films suggest that first-generation women from the Maghreb in France continue to serve as inspiration for filmmakers in France.

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Muslim Women in French Cinema

10.5949/liverpool/9781781381984.001.0001 ◽

2016 ◽

Author(s):

Leslie Kealhofer-Kemp

Keyword(s):

First Generation ◽

Film Studies ◽

Muslim Women ◽

Migrant Women ◽

French Cinema ◽

Post Colonial ◽

Colonial Studies ◽

Cultural Productions ◽

Feature Films ◽

Short Films

Muslim Women in French Cinema: Voices of Maghrebi Migrants in France is the first comprehensive study of cinematic representations of first-generation Muslim women from the Maghreb (Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia) in France. Situated at the intersection of post-colonial studies, gender studies, and film studies, this book uses the multi-layered concept of ‘voice’ as an analytical lens through which to examine a diverse corpus of over 60 documentaries, short films, téléfilms (made-for-television films), and feature films released in France between 1979 and 2014. In examining the ways in which the voices, experiences, and points of view of Maghrebi migrant women in France are represented and communicated through a selection of key films, this study offers new perspectives on Maghrebi migrant women in France. It shows that women of this generation, as they are represented in these films, are far more diverse and often more empowered than has generally been thought on the basis of the relatively narrow range of media and cultural productions that have so far reached mainstream audiences. The films examined in this study are part of larger contemporary debates and discussions relating to immigration, integration, and what it means to be French.

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Maghrebi Migrant Women in France and French Cinema

Muslim Women in French Cinema ◽

10.5949/liverpool/9781781381984.003.0001 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 1-33

Author(s):

Leslie Kealhofer-Kemp

Keyword(s):

Gender Studies ◽

First Generation ◽

Migrant Women ◽

French Cinema ◽

Post Colonial ◽

General Overview ◽

Feature Films ◽

Short Films ◽

To Come ◽

And Gender

The introduction provides a general overview of the place of Maghrebi migrant women in France and outlines the book’s purpose, scope, and methodology. The study adopts the concept of ‘voice’ as a framework through which to critically examine the representations of Maghrebi women in a diverse corpus of documentaries, short films, téléfilms, and feature films, and the introduction draws on scholarship in post-colonial, film, and gender studies. It sets out the book’s key questions, including: In what ways do cinematic depictions of first-generation women challenge dominant perceptions about this generation, and notably the idea that the women are silent and disempowered? Do films depicting Maghrebi women invite audiences to come to a better understanding of the women’s subjective perspectives, and if so, by what means? What opportunities and constraints do the formal conventions characteristic of the four types of films present in representing first-generation women? To what extent is the question of Islam raised, and can it be said that this shapes the representations of Maghrebi women in a particular way? The introduction concludes with a description the fieldwork undertaken to construct the study’s cinematic archive.

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First-Generation Women in Short Films

Muslim Women in French Cinema ◽

10.5949/liverpool/9781781381984.003.0003 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 74-102

Author(s):

Leslie Kealhofer-Kemp

Keyword(s):

First Generation ◽

Mother Tongue ◽

Migrant Women ◽

Cultural Productions ◽

Short Period ◽

Short Films ◽

Women's Experience ◽

Potential Channels

This chapter examines key short films featuring Maghrebi migrant women in France through an analysis of objects such as letters, a play script, food, photographs, and clothing items. It highlights the extent to which such objects are crucial to giving expression to the experiences of Maghrebi women through this particular medium, where meaning must necessarily be communicated in a short period of time. These objects have multi-layered meanings and serve as potential channels for communication and understanding between first-generation women and people who are different from them, most notably because they have not shared the women’s experience of migration and exile and in many cases do not speak the women’s mother tongue. This analysis highlights the ways in which the women negotiate, navigate, and cross various cultural, linguistic, psychological, and spatial boundaries or barriers that exist in their lives. The cultural productions discussed in this chapter include films directed by Fejria Deliba, Ismaël Ferroukhi, Faïza Guène, and Catherine Bernstein.

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The Voices of Maghrebi Migrant Women in French Téléfilms

Muslim Women in French Cinema ◽

10.5949/liverpool/9781781381984.003.0004 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 103-142

Author(s):

Leslie Kealhofer-Kemp

Keyword(s):

First Generation ◽

Country Of Origin ◽

Migrant Women ◽

European Cinema

This chapter considers the theme of agency in French téléfilms featuring first-generation women that were broadcast between 1993 and 2012. These include Yamina Benguigui’s Aïcha series and films by Philippe Faucon, Rachid Bouchareb, and Malik Chibane. The chapter first outlines the specificity of French téléfilms and gives and overview of the representations of first-generation women on French television more broadly. Then, it considers the extent to which Maghrebi women appear to achieve agency in French téléfilms and identifies factors that constitute barriers to agency. When taken together, these films present a vision of agency that is to a very large extent equated with behaving in a ‘Westernized’ fashion, conforming to norms of individualism dominant in France, whereas an absence of agency is associated with the perpetuation of traditions associated with the country of origin that are portrayed as patriarchal and oppressive to women. The families of the first-generation women in these films play a prominent role in the respective narratives and impact the treatment of the question of agency, and the readings of these films are supported by Berghahn’s work on ‘diasporic families’ in contemporary European cinema.

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The Voices of Maghrebi Women in Documentary Films

Muslim Women in French Cinema ◽

10.5949/liverpool/9781781381984.003.0002 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 34-73

Author(s):

Leslie Kealhofer-Kemp

Keyword(s):

Production Process ◽

Muslim Women ◽

Significant Degree ◽

Documentary Films ◽

Migrant Women ◽

Women's Voices ◽

The Third ◽

Minimalist Approach ◽

Yamina Benguigui ◽

Critical Writings

The chapter examines a wide variety of documentaries featuring Muslim women from the Maghreb in France. It critically analyzes the different mediations and techniques, such as the use of extra-diegetic music, voiceover, and archive material, that are employed in the documentaries and serve to ‘frame’ the women’s voices in various ways and with different consequences. It identifies three distinct levels of intervention: the first involves a heavy-handed approach, where the voices of the women are significantly ‘framed’ or even drowned out (most notably in the post-production process). The second reflects a more minimalist approach with regard to framing, while the third appears to be minimalist or transparent but in fact involves a significant degree of intervention. In examining the different forms of mediation and degrees of intervention at work in these documentaries, as well as the consequences of this with regard to the voices of the Maghrebi migrant women in them, this analysis draws on Bill Nichols’ critical writings on the different modes of documentary, notably expository, observational, and interactive. The films examined in this chapter include documentaries directed by Yamina Benguigui, Malek Bensmaïl, and Yasmina Kherfi.

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Female genital mutilation/cutting in Italy: an enhanced estimation for first generation migrant women based on 2016 survey data

BMC Public Health ◽

10.1186/s12889-017-5000-6 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Livia Elisa Ortensi ◽

Patrizia Farina ◽

Els Leye

Keyword(s):

Survey Data ◽

Female Genital Mutilation ◽

First Generation ◽

Migrant Women ◽

Genital Mutilation ◽

Generation Migrant ◽

Female Genital

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Transmitting the Voices of Maghrebi Women through Feature Films

Muslim Women in French Cinema ◽

10.5949/liverpool/9781781381984.003.0005 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 143-185

Author(s):

Leslie Kealhofer-Kemp

Keyword(s):

First Generation ◽

Point Of View ◽

Women's Voices ◽

Women’S Experiences ◽

Women's Experiences ◽

Feature Films ◽

Wide Range ◽

Traditional Sense ◽

To Come ◽

Yamina Benguigui

This chapter analyzes how the experiences of Maghrebi migrant women in France are conveyed through feature films and considers the extent to which these films encourage spectators to come to a better understanding of the women’s experiences and appreciate their respective points of view. It analyzes a wide range of techniques used in the films, from those that could be considered the most ‘verbal’ in the traditional sense of the word (such as interior monologue voiceover and verbal exchanges) to those that are entirely non-verbal (including body language and non-verbal sounds). While the spoken words of first-generation women have the potential to provide significant insight into the women’s experiences, this is not always the case, nor do a woman’s words necessarily invite spectators to identify with her point of view. Words also have the potential to be misunderstood or not understood at all – for example, when there is a language barrier – and this can inhibit communication. Non-verbal tools can provide an effective channel through which the women’s voices can be communicated, regardless of differences in age, language, or culture between the characters and the implied spectators. Works examined include films by Yamina Benguigui, Mehdi Charef, and Bourlem Guerdjou.

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A contemplation on ‘Sultana’s Dream’

Space and Culture India ◽

10.20896/saci.v2i1.57 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

pp. 33

Author(s):

Priyanka Chakrabarty

Keyword(s):

Muslim Women ◽

Individual Growth ◽

Women In Politics ◽

Muslim Community ◽

Indian Politics ◽

The Public ◽

Patriarchal Culture ◽

Scientific World ◽

The Public Sphere ◽

Muslim Communities

Sultana’s Dream is a piece written by most prolific Muslim woman intellectual Rokeya Shekhawat, published The Ladies Magazine She spoke against the patriarchy in Muslim community. Her “ The Sultana’s Dream” depicts a dream sequence but it is not simply a sequence for entertainment. It rather speaks for a transformation in society to bring women out the boundaries of four walls of home and to work in the public sphere without interference of men, at all. Through a dream she challenges the dogmas, associated with Muslim women. Her own life is an example of many such practices, like confinement in a jenana system,This piece attempts to review the how beautifully the text is written and how it is radically forceful that encourages the readers to think of the degraded conditions of women and how women particularly, never question the same. She brings about certain unbelievable sequence during those days when Rokeya Shekhawat was wrting. At that time, women’s education itself was taboo. But some consensus were developed by the reformers in both Hindu and Muslim communities. But for them education for women was essential so that she become a good companion for her husband and a good mother. An idea that women needs education for her individual growth was very rare. In spite of living and growing in such society, it is contemplative as how she could manage to be so radical in her thoughts to challenge the patriarchal culture itself. She had managed to bring women in politics and scientific world which was traditionally male dominated. She had pronounced certain scientific marvels which is relevant even today. Her idea womens’ participation in politics is simply ahead of her time but relevant in contemporary Indian politics. Here, an attempt has been made to review her pioneering work.

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The moral and gendered crisis of the Italian welfare system seen through the prism of migrant women’s reproductive health

Religion and Welfare in Europe ◽

10.1332/policypress/9781447318972.003.0011 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Annalisa Frisina

Keyword(s):

Reproductive Health ◽

Muslim Women ◽

Welfare System ◽

Social Model ◽

Political Movements ◽

Migrant Women ◽

Negative Effects ◽

Research Dissemination ◽

The Social ◽

Moral Crisis

This chapter focuses on reproductive health among migrant women in Italy. The welfare crisis in Italy and southern Europe has not only had negative effects on women, but is also a sign of the siege mentality of the European social model. Populist political movements are using religion, especially Islam and Muslim women, as a scapegoat to avoid dealing with the underlying issues of social and economic solidarity in Europe and indeed beyond. Despite the fact that this study is based on reproductive health among Muslim women, it reveals broader tensions: between conservative and progressive Catholics in Italy, and between religious and secular values in the gendered and moral crisis of the Italian welfare system. The chapter also illustrates a novel form of research dissemination—that is, the production of a video in order to raise awareness of the social rights of migrant women.

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