Silence(s) des patriarches : configurations et valeurs de la « parole retranchée » dans la littérature des descendants de harkis

Abstract

The engagement in the French army during the Algerian war condemned the harkis to a silent existence. Considered as traitors in their country of birth, and undesirable in their country of exile, they strive to remain invisible and silent. In the writings of their descendants, who decided one day to tell the traumatic Hi/story of their community, a character inevitably stands out: the father walled in silence, leading his life alone, for fear of disappointing or not being able to give the best explanations for a “shameful” past. To illustrate the different “configurations” and values of the “entrenched words” that the descendants of harkis inscribe in their literary works, we will base our analysis on the novels Mon père, ce harki (2003) by Dalila Kerchouche, Mohand, le harki (2003) by Hadjila Kemoum and L’Art de perdre (2017) by Alice Zeniter.

Keywords

• harkis
• algerian war
• silence
• trauma
• invisibility