La Question de L'Interculturel Dans Gens des Nuages

Abstract

Numerous critics have analyzed the representation of the challenges of intercultural conflicts in the novels and tales of J.M.G. Le Clézio, most notably in Désert (Paris: Gallimard, 1980), a partly historical novel which evokes the Moroccan South. Few critics however have studied the more recent (and still on-going) conflicts and their intercultural implications in this same region as they are presented in Gens des nuages, a travelogue written in 1997 by the author and his wife Jemia. This essay therefore discusses the modalities of this Saharan adventure, which proves to be a spiritual quest as well. Based on the findings of religious anthropology research in Morocco, notably on Georges Lapassade's Gens de l'ombre (Paris: Méridiens / Klincksieck, 1982), this essay stresses that the importance of religion in intercultural relations should not be overlooked, and examines the exact significance of Sufism in the works of Le Clézio.