Leila Abouzeid
Leila Abouzeid | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1950 El Ksiba, Morocco |
| Occupation | Novelist |
| Years active | 1980–present |
| Known for | First Moroccan female author whose works have been translated and published in English |
Leila Abouzeid (; born 1950 in El Ksiba) is a Moroccan novelist who composes her works in Arabic. She holds the distinction of being the first Moroccan female author whose writings have been translated and published in English.
Year of the Elephant
Her debut novel, Year of the Elephant, appeared in 1980, with subsequent editions released in English and French in 1989 and 2005, respectively. The title alludes to a historic Islamic battle wherein birds overcame elephants, symbolizing Morocco’s fight for freedom against the dominant French colonial forces.
Themes of Identity
Abouzeid delves into the complexities of identity loss and reclamation. In Year of the Elephant, the main character confronts her fractured selfhood following a distressing divorce: "I feel nothing. Have I lost my own identity?" Similarly, The Last Chapter centers on identity as a teacher experiences emotional turmoil under societal expectations imposed on women. This work interrogates whether identity can be permanently erased, emphasizing both individual and cultural struggles.
The Last Chapter
The Last Chapter highlights gender inequality within Moroccan education. Among Aisha’s class of 42 pupils, only two are female, with Aisha as the sole female graduate. This reflects actual data from 2009 showing female literacy at 39.6% compared to 65.7% among males, with rural women’s literacy rates dropping to approximately 10%. The narrative critiques patriarchal obstacles that hinder women’s educational advancement despite their intellectual capabilities.
Connection to French Influence
Abouzeid’s radio broadcasts stood out for being conducted in Arabic rather than French, which was prevalent in business-related media. She translated and performed theatrical readings of various texts, including Malcolm X’s autobiography, in Arabic. Her deliberate avoidance of French is tied to its colonial legacy; Arabic remains Morocco’s official and religious language. Although proficient in Arabic, English, and French, she predominantly uses Arabic to resist assimilation into the culture of former colonizers. In The Last Chapter, she expresses her aversion to French education and language, acknowledging that this led her to adopt English as a means of engaging with Western audiences.
Her rejection of French stems from both personal experience and historical context: her father endured arrest and torture by French authorities due to his nationalist activism, which associates the language with oppression. In contrast, she harbors no comparable resentment toward English, which has not inflicted personal harm.
Notable Works
- Year of the Elephant: A Moroccan Woman's Journey Toward Independence, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, University of Texas, 1990
- Return to Childhood, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, University of Texas, 1999
- The Last Chapter, The American University in Cairo Press, 2003
- The Director and Other Stories from Morocco, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, University of Texas, 2006
- Life of the Prophet – A Biography of Prophet Mohammed, 2009
External links
- Return to childhood, introduction (accessed March 14, 2008)