The star, the cross, and the crescent : religions and conflicts in Francophone literature from the Arab world / Carine Bourget.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction. Religion, politics, and literature from the Francophone Arab world -- 1. The Arab-Israeli conflict : Amin Maalouf's Les croisades vues par les Arabes and Les echelles du Levant, Myriam Antaki's Les versets du pardon -- 2. The Arab-Israeli conflict beyond the Middle East : Albert Memmi, Edmond Amran El Maleh, Farid Boudjellal, and Karin Albou -- 3. The Lebanese civil war : Andree Chedid's La maison sans racines and Evelyne Accad's L'excisee -- 4. The Algerian civil war : Rachid Boudjedra's Le FIS de la haine, Rachid Mimouni's De la barbarie en general et de l'integrisme en particulier, and Une enfance algerienne -- 5. Islam and the French Republic : the affair of the Muslim headscarf in works by Tahar Ben Jelloun, Abdelwahab Meddeb, Amin Maalouf, Albert Memmi, Leila Sebbar, and Yamina Benguigui -- 6. Portrait of a terrorist : Slimane Benaissa and Salim Bachi's 9/11 novels -- Conclusion. The politics of translation : Francophone literature from the Arab world in the U.S.

"The Star, the Cross, and the Crescent analyzes fiction, films, comics, autobiographical narratives, and essays by Francophone Arab writers whose Christian (Accad, Antaki, Chedid, Maalouf), Jewish (Albou, Cixous, El Maleh, Memmil, Muslim (Bachi, Benaissa, Benguigui, Ben Jelloun, Boudjedra, Boudjellal, Meddeb, Mimouni), and secular (Sebbar) backgrounds are emblematic of the diversity of the Francophone Arab world. It examines how these writers represent the intertwining of religion and politics against the backdrop of the current international political context and the resurgence of religion. Focusing on a series of disputes commonly framed in religious terms (with Islam as the common denominator for all: the Arab-Israeli conflict, the Lebanese and the Algerian civil wars, the affair of the Muslim headscarf in France, and 9/11), this book questions the effectiveness of the Francophone studies model in providing insights into the complexity of the Islamic Revival. The study concludes by unpacking the influence of politics on the translation of these works in the United States. It brings heightened awareness to the modalities according to which a creative work can serve as a cultural mediator."--BOOK JACKET.