Tensions of discourse in Muḏakkirāt miṯliyya by Fāṭima al-Zahrā’ Amzkār: A sensational example of gendered representation through fictional autobiography

Abstract

Fāṭima al-Zahrā’ Amzkār’s debut novel, Muḏakkirāt miṯliyya (‘Memoirs of a Lesbian,’ 2022), caused a scandal in Morocco when it was banned from Rabat’s 2022 International Book Fair. This article first examines the expectations generated by the novel’s title, specifically within the context of the Moroccan women’s muḏakkirāt genre, and explores the nuances it assumes when combined with the term miṯliyya. Next, using a cognitive narratology approach informed by trauma studies, the article demonstrates how the construction of memory and identity in this fictional autobiography is both realistic and suspenseful, thereby eliciting the reader empathy for the narrator. Finally, it identifies a discourse of shame and pride embedded within the novel, situating it in the Moroccan socio-cultural context. This discourse helps explain the novel’s controversial nature and justifies its existence (despite its ban in Morocco), highlighting the socially transformative power of openly embracing what is typically stigmatized as shameful, despite prevailing gendered norms. The conclusion synthesizes the perspectives from the three sections to assess whether the author’s engagement with this gendered representation can be understood within the tension between distinct poles (writer/narrator, fiction/reality, global/local, past/future).