Écriture féminine de jeunesse et postulation de l’émergence d’un pays dans Lettre à Tita 2 : entre anti-modernisme, exaltation passéiste et quête éthique

Children’s literature is sometimes considered to be the poor relation of literary genres throughout the world, as it is often confined to the rank of literature for the very young. Yet, on closer inspection, does this literature not play an important role in establishing national identity? In other words, does it contribute to the spread of tolerance and therefore to living together? Backed by Pierre Barbéris’ sociocriticism and structured in three parts, this contribution first illustrates the motivations behind the characters’ behavioural imposture; then examines the internal components that articulate the novel’s literality. Finally, the analysis shows that Jeanne Abou’ou’s Lettre à Tita 2, beyond the stigmatization of a poorly assumed modernism or the exaltation of traditional values, deeply encapsulates the writer’s desire to postulate an emerging world in which Cameroonians would readily identify themselves.

Textiles

As with many crafts, textiles and their production have been a poor relation in studies of ancient Egypt, and even today a detailed academic description of a stele or relief is more likely to concentrate on artistic merit, hieroglyphs, role, and status with only the most basic description of clothing. The study of textiles has been seen as a gendered (female)—non-archaeological (museum and craft)—specialization, and only recently has this changed. This chapter seeks to place textiles and clothing at the heart of our understanding of Egyptian society as the main signifier of gender, status, and personal wealth. It also briefly addresses how wealth was measured in the ancient world and the impact of textiles on land use and the economy.

The Maghreb al-Aqsa

Islamic archaeology in Morocco has its roots in the colonial period and developed in concert with architectural and urban studies of the imperial cities of Fes, Marrakech, and Meknes. For many years, it remained the poor relation to classical archaeology, and it was only in the 1970s and 1980s that systematic excavations began at Islamic sites. Since then, there has been a significant rise in the number of projects and amount of evidence available for urban and rural sites, particularly between the 8th and 14th centuries, though many challenges remain in terms of funding, training, finds analysis, and the use of new scientific technologies. This chapter charts the development of Islamic archaeology and lays out the key developments in urban and rural archaeology and the study of material culture in Morocco.

Afterword

The overall picture emerging from the preceding chapters is one of social work survival in a cold climate. The halcyon days of the early 1970s with double-digit growth rates have never been repeated. Even when the Blair/Brown government was investing heavily in the NHS during years of plenty, social care was the poor relation. (And in the British system social work is regarded as being subsumed within social care.) It was not before about 2010 that government came to realise that the effects on the NHS of a failing social care system will be disastrous....

Headscarves return to the CJEU: Unfinished business

In 2017, the CJEU brought out its judgments in two cases concerning bans on the wearing of Islamic headscarves at work as possible discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief under Directive 2000/78/EC. These judgments led to heavy criticism, mainly because the CJEU did not do a rigorous proportionality test and left a number of questions open. Two recent preliminary references from courts in Germany present the CJEU with an opportunity to expand on the earlier judgments and to answer the questions they left open. It is submitted that the CJEU should deal with this unfinished business in a way which respects Europe’s religious diversity and ensures that the ground of religion and belief does not become the poor relation of EU anti-discrimination law.

Byzantine Matters

For many, Byzantium remains byzantine—obscure, marginal, difficult. Despite the efforts of some recent historians, prejudices still deform understanding of the Byzantine civilization, often reducing it to a poor relation of Rome and the rest of the classical world. This book addresses misconceptions about Byzantium, suggests why it is so important to integrate the civilization into wider histories, and lays out why Byzantium should be central to ongoing debates about the relationships between West and East, Christianity and Islam, Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, and the ancient and medieval periods. The result is a compelling call to reconsider the place of Byzantium in Western history and imagination.