Le sourire du chat, ou les temps de l’assimilation

Abstract

The will to assimilate resembles a desire for the unknown and takes on the form of identifying with majority members of society. It is another way of « doing being ordinary » (H. Sacks, L. Ionowlocki). As time passes, adapting to the model becomes more and more perfect, one has arrived, one has been « assimilated ». But it is an unstable process that can always be questioned anew (by oneself or by others) and that wears a bit thin with time. In some cases, the process can take many long years (the curve of assimilation rises, stabilizes...), in others it may be interrupted by one or several identity crises. In yet other cases, « assimilating » is out of the question. Various examples illustrate the different ways that migrants experience their new socialization. A case study extending over more than forty years follows the curve, from the necessary transformation of self to its accomplishment and... beyond.

Keywords

• personal assimilation
• curve of assimilation
• de-assimilation
• subjectivity
• self-transformation
• the migrant experience