France and Racism in "This Morning, This Evening, So Soon"
In "This Morning, This Evening, So Soon", the narrator presents France as a post-racial utopia: a place without expectations from white people for him, as a black man, to act a certain way. However, this stance is complicated by the scene with Boona and the American students at the club. Boona clearly feels discriminated against in France, and by extension, by Vidal. The question arises, though, why does the narrator not feel this same racism that Boona does?
The story is set somewhere in the late 1950s, when Tunisia had just gotten its independence and Algeria is nearing its own. Boona's resentment makes sense as a representation of the attitude of North Africans towards the French at the time: fed up with being oppressed. The French had ruled Tunisia and Algeria for around a hundred years, however European powers had ruled Tunisia for longer. This long history of European rule rooted a resentment towards Europeans for years among Northern Africans, meaning that Boona surely inherited some hatred toward the French (though his resentment is totally justified).
The narrator, on the other hand, inherited a resentment towards white Americans, a resentment that is again, totally justified. But in France, he seems to feel totally free of the constraints of racism. I think that we can say fairly confidently that in a lot of cultures, racism is stronger between certain groups of people because of the history of those groups. Does this mean that the narrator really doesn't feel any racism in France though? I don't think so. I think that because of his history and raising in the United States, he is much more aware of white presence. I think that in Europe, though, he does not feel the history as much, but his assessment of the country as a racial utopia is not accurate. To all of his Northern African friends, it certainly is not. And to his son, who is mixed and may look more Northern African, it may not be. This is not to say that France isn't a better atmosphere than America for their family: it might be. However, I think that his original interpretation of France as almost post-racial is misled.
I think since racism is dependent on the context and history of the people, the narrator has a certain idea of what constitutes racism because he is accustomed to the American standard of it. But since racism in France has a different historical context and it is one that the narrator doesn’t understand, he doesn’t feel the same things as Boona who is very much a part of that history with Vidal.
ReplyDeleteI think at the time, there was a much smaller African American population in France than in the US (at least, according to a literary criticism I read). So I think it's possible that in the US, the significant African American population might have been seen as a threat to the white people which could have contributed to their treatment. That, as well as the historical context of slavery. In France, there was a much smaller population, and there existed a "French fascination with blackness." In addition, "France was viewed by many African Americans as a welcome change from the widespread racism in the United States."
ReplyDeleteAs you mentioned, that's not to say that racism doesn't exist in France—it's definitely present! But again, because of the recent historical lack of tension between France and America, as well as the small African American population in France at the time, the narrator probably never experienced widespread racism in France.
*Although, we should probably keep in mind that he's a celebrity and his experiences probably won't align with those of people with ordinary status.
Coming from our perspective, yes, France is certainly not a place without these post-racial tensions - that is clearly shown in the story. However, comparatively to 1950's America, it must seem that way to him. The narrator also mentions how Paul's only experience in France with racism is being called mixed one time, which is most likely much better than what would be faced in America. Perhaps there might be more racism in France that has not been found, but in the paradigm of the narrator's world and the desire to keep Paul safe, I still think that, to them, France is like a utopia away from these tensions.
ReplyDelete