Abstract
The article examines the literary representation of masculinities in the context of border crossings in the Mediterranean area and specifically the relationship between multilingualism and gender identity. The discussion is based on comparative close-readings of two auto-fictional novels which embody border crossings in the form of migration, globalization and (de)colonization: L’armée du salut (2006) by Abdellah Taïa and Princesa (1994) by Fernanda Farias de Albuquerque. The article argues that the novels’ representations of multilingualism and complex gender identities can be fruitfully understood in terms of Bakhtin’s notion of heteroglossia, and that both gender and linguistic practices shift as they are recontextualized socially and geographically.
Highlights
Literary representations of exile and migration are interesting laboratories for the portrayal of multifaceted identities
This article seeks to examine literary representations of the enactment and interpretation of gender identities in the context of border crossings, and how the practices of multilingualism that characterise such contexts interact with the negotiation of gender identities
In order to reconceptualize or redirect this metaphor from its potential pitfalls, we argue that multilingualism and heteroglossia may be more fruitful metaphors for understanding how gender identities are navigated in migrant narratives
Summary
Literary representations of exile and migration are interesting laboratories for the portrayal of multifaceted identities. In order to reconceptualize or redirect this metaphor from its potential pitfalls, we argue that multilingualism and heteroglossia may be more fruitful metaphors for understanding how gender identities are navigated in migrant narratives We will explore this hypothesis by providing a comparative close-reading of two auto-fictional novels that represent border crossings across the Mediterranean: L’armée du salut (The Salvation Army) by Abdellah Taïa (2009) and Princesa (Princess) by Fernanda Farias de Albuquerque (1994). Fernanda experiences the dark side of both migration and gender violence, and she ends up in jail found guilty of attempted murder In prison she finds out that she is HIV-positive, and to keep together and to stay alive, she starts to write her own life-story in collaboration with two male inmates and in a threefold linguistic community: Brazilian Portuguese, Italian and Sardinian. Third section provides readings of the two novels, while final section presents the final remarks
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