How has the Female Body become a Site of National Identity Construction and Representation in contemporary France? MA Thesis in European Studies Identity & Integration Track Graduate School for Humanities Universiteit van Amsterdam Eilidh McCann 11314060 Main Supervisor: Dr. Krisztina Lajosi-Moore Second Supervisor: Dr. Marleen Rensen July 2017 Acknowledgements I would like to extend my thanks to all those who assisted me in the completion of my MA thesis. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Krisztina Lajosi-Moore for all her words of wisdom and encouragement. I would like to express my appreciation to Dr. Alex Drace-Francis for his assistance to my peers and I in the development of our MA thesis projects. Thanks goes out to all the staff of the University of Amsterdam European Studies department. I would like to express my gratitude to my superiors who I have reached out to at University College Cork, for all their interest, perspective and encouragement. Finally, I thank my parents for all their constant loving support. !1 Preface This essay was written as part of the Master of Arts programme of European Studies: Identity and Integration. Citations have not been translated because of the prominence of the French language in Europe. Moreover, specific terminology like laïcité does not have a direct English translation therefore, for clarity, certain terminology remains in its original form. Not for lack of effort, I have been obligated to cite secondary sources for certain images and media sources due to geographical remoteness and lack of accessibility to foreign language sources. This research question was inspired by my essay that was written for the module of Cultures of Nationalism, as part of my Master of Arts degree in European Studies: Identity and Integration. This essay was entitled ‘The Contested Perception of Marianne: Reflections of a Contemporary France?’ My bachelor dissertation featured a similar line of inquiry regarding laïcité. It focused on an in-depth analysis of the judicial process of the Baby Loup case in France between 2010 and 2014. The dissertation was entitled, ‘Baby Loup: An Exceptional Case? An analysis of the Nature of Laïcité in Contemporary France.’ !2 Acknowledgements…………………………………………………..…………………… 1 Preface…………………………………………………..……………………..…………… 2 Contents Page………………………………………………..…………………..…………. 3 I. Methodology & Theoretical Background…………………………………………………. 5 I.i Introduction & Background………………………………………………………. 5 I.ii Discourse & Media Analysis..…………………………………………………… 7 I.iii National Identity..…………………………………………….…………………. 9 I.iv Perspectives & Approaches…………………………………….………………. 10 I.iv.a Gender & Feminism………………………………………..………… 11 I.iv.b Multiculturalism………………………………………….……….….. 12 I.v. Case Studies: Marianne & the Veiled Muslim Woman……..………………….. 15 II. Contextualisation: Female Symbolism within the French Republic……………………. 19 II.i Marianne……………………………………………………..………………… 19 II.i.a Evolutive History……………………………………………………… 22 II.i.b Interpretations & Confusion..……………..………….……………..… 24 II.ii. The Veiled Muslim Woman………………………………………………….… 26 II.ii.a The Nation’s Other…………………………………………………… 28 II.iii Laïcité & the Veiling History………………………………………………….. 29 !3 III. French, Feminine & Feminist?…………………………………………………………. 35 III.i Burdening the Body……………………………………………………………. 35 III.i.a Femen………………………………………………………………… 36 III.i.b The Real & the Idealised…………………………………………….. 39 III.ii Cultural Framing: Burkinigate………………………………………………… 41 III.ii.a Femininity à la Français…………………………………………..…42 III.ii.b Mothers of the Nation……………………………………………..… 46 IV. Feminism versus Multiculturalism……………………………………………………… 50 IV.i. The Burqa Ban…………………………………………………………………. 50 IV.i.a The Face of the Other………………………………………………… 53 IV.ii Identity Politics………………………………………………………………………… 55 IV.ii.a Immigration………………….………………….…………………… 58 IV.iii The Racialisation of Marianne………………….………………….…………. 61 IV.iii.a The Ethnicisation of Marianne……………………………………………… 62 V. Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………..… 64 V.i Veiling Marianne……………………………………………………………….. 64 V.ii An Engendered & Racialised Identity of the Nation………..…………………. 65 Appendix …………………………………………………………………………………… 67 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………………94 !4 I. Methodology & Theoretical Background I.i. Introduction and Background The proliferation of events where French national identity was being projected upon the female body often involved the enforcing – or reinforcing – of certain ideals surrounding not only national identity but, equally, female identity in contemporary French society. Moore (2012) indeed insists that ‘[f]emale bodies have stood as perpetually re-deployable symbols of the French Republic throughout its history’.1 The de-veiling of Algerian women as a means of demonstrating success in the French colonisation process;2 the presumptuous premise that Marianne must be depicted as having a bare breast alongside; and the de-robing of Muslim women on sunny beaches in Nice in 2016; all indicate the significance of the female form in public and political discourse concerning national identity in France. Historically speaking, studies have shown that laïcité – a distinct form of separation of church and state - was imposed significantly less in colonised countries than in the French metropole. Reflecting upon the infamous de-veiling of Muslim women in order to demonstrate the success of the French colonisation project, one could assume that this act was therefore not religiously motivated but culturally and politically motivated. The pattern of cultural and political motivation is reaffirmed by Patrick Weil (2008) who notes how the label of ‘Muslim’ in late 1880’s, colonised Algeria maintained an ethnic-political – not merely a religious – character. He goes on to underline how a decision made by the court of appeals in 1910 Indochina is often cited in order to reflect the situation of Algerian Muslims at the time: ‘in their nationality, they resemble citizens; in their personal status, they resemble foreigners.’3 In contemporary France, the term ‘Muslim’ is not only built upon religious 1 Alison Moore, ‘Historicising Sexual Symbols.’ Chap 1 in Sexing Political Culture in the History of France, ed. Alison Moore (Amherst, New York: Cambria Press, 2012), 2. 2 Pierre Tévanian, ‘A Conservative Revolution within Secularism: The Ideological Premises and Social Effects of the March, 15 2004, ‘Anti-Headscarf’ Law’ in Frenchness and the African Diaspora: Identity and Uprising in Contemporary France, eds. Charles Tshimanga, Didier Gondola and Peter Bloom (Bloomington, Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 2009), 198. 3 Patrick Weil, How to be French: Nationality in the Making since 1789, trans. Catherine Porter (Durham; London: Duke University Press, 2008) 219. !5 foundations but can equally be defined as a ‘neo-ethnic term’ to describe immigrants with an Asian or African background.4 The complexity of contemporary political and public discourse vis-à-vis Islamic headscarves in France mirrors the perceived transformation of laïcité into ‘un ethos social de la communauté’.5 This proclamation stems from the suggestion that there exists a ‘jarring’ with another culturally based phenomenon: female emancipation and, more generally, gender equality. These are consequently used to legitimise policies that seek to ‘de-veil’ Muslim women. In short, la ‘ “question nationale” est, singulièrement en France, liée à la fois à des enjeux de sexe et des enjeux de race.’ 6 In France, an idealised rhetoric has been used regarding ethnic minorities which combine with certain ideals of national and female identity. These ideals are expressed through discursive prompts which accumulate to form a particular, ethnic-gendered discourse. This piece of research will focus predominantly upon discursive and visual representations of national identity in order to explore their effects upon the maintenance – and construction – of French national identity along the lines of gender and ethnicity. An exploration of national identity construction and representation will be built upon the consideration of the localisation of the female form in national, visual and verbal discourse. Specifically, it will entail an exploration of contemporary perceptions and tensions surrounding two contested female forms: firstly, that of Marianne – the allegorical figure of the French Republic – and secondly, that of the veiled Muslim woman. In summary, the research question will read as follows: How has the female body become a site of national identity construction and representation in contemporary France? 4 Riva Kastoryano and Angéline Escafré-Dublet, ‘France’ in Addressing tolerance and diversity discourses in Europe: A Comparative Overview of 16 European Countries, eds. Ricard Zapata-Barrero and Anna Triandafyllidou (Barcelona: CIDOB/GRITIM-UPF, 2012), 38. 5 Romi S. Mukherjee, ‘Marianne voilée’, Histoire, monde et cultures religieuses 2, no. 34 (2015): 83. 6 Clare Hancock, ‘Le corps féminin, enjeu géopolitique dans la France postcoloniale’, L’Espace Politique 13, (2011): para 1. !6 I.ii Discourse & Media Analysis In this thesis the focus will be on the public and political debate regarding national identity in France. This will be assessed by means of discourse and media analysis. May (2016) states that ‘[m]edia content is an ‘artefact’ of social discourse’;7 therefore the two analyses will be introduced in combination. Equally, the analyses will be synthesised throughout this thesis in order to make the research as