Education as Paradox and Possibility in Mohammed: Choukri’s novel Streetwise (1992)

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1-1-2024

Abstract

This chapter focuses on interrelated forms of colonial and post-colonial violence as depicted in Mohammed Choukri’s autobiographical novel Streetwise (1992). The novel attributes Morocco’s broken relationships and its failed system of education to a colonial system, which led to a cycle of unstoppable violence. It also faults an entrenched Moroccan patriarchal system that objectifies women and forces them into an illicit economy as a means of survival. The chapter draws on the theory of haptic aesthetics, as well as on Pierre Bourdieu’s theories to shed light on the physical and symbolic manifestations of violence. It also relies on Frantz Fanon’s theories of the effects of colonialism on the colonized to highlight a post-colonial system that bases its power upon extreme repression without questioning masculinity. Hegemonic masculinity is exemplified by the attitudes of abusive male teachers who exercise their power on students. It mutates into real violence enacted by Choukri himself. Antonio Gramsci’s concept of hegemony helps explain this dynamic, since Choukri has learnt aggression through his increased literacy and exposure to bullying at school. As a result of such exposure, he now views aggression as just the commonsense approach to life. Gramsci’s framework also helps illuminate the author’s coercion into accepting the language of the dominant culture as a form of symbolic violence. Foucault’s theories of power and knowledge provide a useful framework for shedding light on Choukri’s defiant attitude towards any kind of authority and his critique of different workings of power.

Publication Source (Journal or Book title)

Reading Mohamed Choukri’s Narratives: Hunger in Eden

First Page

64

Last Page

76

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