An Imagological Analysis of A Girl in Paris by Shusha Guppy: Between Stereotyping and Realism

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Department of French Language and Literature; Faculty of Foreign Languages, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.

2 Department of French Language and Literature, Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literatures, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Imagology, as an approach in comparative literature, delves into the formation and representation of the "Other" within the framework of cultural interactions, offering new insights into the understanding of identities and intercultural differences. The present study undertakes an imagological analysis of the representation of the "Other" in A Girl in Paris by Shusha Guppy. Utilizing Daniel-Henri Pageaux's theories of imagology, this research explores the reactions of the "observer" when faced with the culture and society of Paris and seeks to determine whether Guppy's representations fall into the common traps of stereotypes and prejudices or she transcends these limitations. According to these theories, there are three discernible perspectives in confronting the "Other": mania, phobia, and philia. The findings suggest that Guppy's gaze aligns closely with the philia perspective, where neither the foreign culture is deemed superior nor inferior to that of the observer, but rather a mutual and equal exchange between the observer and the observed is established. Through her long-term lived experience in Paris, Guppy has distanced herself from the conventional clichés found in the travelogues of the Qajar era, engaging in a process of demythologization. Conducted using a descriptive-analytical method, this research focuses on various aspects of social and cultural life such as student life, the educational system, the housing crisis, and the arts, providing a deeper exploration of the "Self" and the "Other." This study concludes that Guppy not only offers a more realistic portrayal of Parisian society but also attains a deeper understanding of her own identity through these cultural encounters.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

Alavi, Farideh. “Negah dar safarnameha va adabiat safar” [View in Travel stories and Literature], Proceedings of the 4th Comparative Literature Conference, Tehran, University Press of Tehran, 2006 (1385).
Augé, Marc. Non-lieux. Translated by Manouchehr Farhoumand, Tehran, Daftar-e-Pajouheshhaye Farhangi, 2008.
Benjamin, Walter. Paris, Capitale du XIXe Siècle. Paris, Allia, 2003.
Dadvar, Ilmira. “Tasvir-e Yek Shahr-e Gharbi dar A'sar-e Seh Nevisandeh-ye Irani” [The Image of a Western City in the Works of Three Iranian Writers], Nashriye-ye Adabiyat-e Tatbiqi (Vizheh-nameh Farhangestan) [Comparative Literature Journal] (Farhangestan Special Issue), 2010 (1389): 118-135.
----. “Shahr-e Armani, Az Ostureh ta Adabiat” [The Ideal City, From Myth to Literature], Ostureh va Adabiat: Majmou'e Maqalat [Myth and Literature: A Collection of Articles], Tehran, Samt, 2016 (1395): 76-87.
Guppy, Shusha. A Girl in Paris. Translated by Hormoz Abdollahi, Tehran, Nashr-e Saless, 1399.
----. The blindfold horse: memories of a persian childhood. Translated by Nahid Tabatabaei, Tehran, Nashr-e Saless, 1401.
Kahnamouipour, Jaleh. “Adabiyat, Honar va Naqd-e Joghrafiaei” [Literature, Art, and Geographical Criticism], Naqdname Honar [Art Criticism], vol. 4, (2012) : 75-83.
Kerbrat, Marie-Claire. Leçon Littéraire sur la Ville. Paris, Presses Universitaires de France, 1995.
Namvar Motlagh, Bahman. “Daramadi bar Tasvirshenasi: Mo'arefi yek Ravesh-e Naqd-e Adabi va Honari dar Adabiyat-e Tatbiqi” [An Introduction to Imagology: Introducing a Method of Literary and Artistic Criticism in Comparative Literature], Motaleate Adabiyat-e Tatbighi, [Comparative Literature Studies], vol. 3, no. 12, 2009 (1388) : 119-138.
----. Daramadi bar Osoture Shenasi [An Introduction to Mythology]. Tehran, Sokhan, 2013 (1392).
Nanquette, Laetitia. “Imagology as a Reading Practice for French and Persian Contemporary Prose Texts”, translated by Mozhdeh Daghighi, Vizheh-nameh-ye Farhangestan (Adabiyat-e Tatbiqi) [Special Issue of the Academy (Comparative Literature)], vol. 2, no. 1 (Spring 1390): 100-115.
Pageaux, Daniel-Henri. La Littérature Générale et Comparée. Paris, Armand Colin, 1994.
----. “Recherche sur l’Imagologie : de l’Histoire Culturelle à la Poétique”, Revista de Filologia Francesa, vol. 8, Servicio de Publicaciones, Univ. Complutense, Madrid, (1995) :135-160.
Sansot, Pierre. Poétique de la ville. Translated by Naser Fakouhi, with the collaboration of Zahra Dodangueh, Mashhad, Ketabkadeh Kasra ; Tehran, Ensanshenasi Publications, 2020.
Sattari, Jalal. Osoture Tehran [The Myth of Tehran]. Tehran, Daftar-e Pajouheshhaye Farhangi, 2006.
Sayyah, Mohammad Ali. Safarnameh Haj Sayyah beh Farang [The Travelogue of Haj Sayyah to Europe]. Edited by Ali Dehbashi, Tehran, Sokhan, 2020.
Tabatabai Diba, Nasser-ol-Saltaneh Mirza. Safarnameh Naseri [The Travelogue of Naseri]. Edited by Rasoul Jafarian, Tehran, Ketabkhaneh, Mozeh va Markaz-e Asnad-e Majles-e Shoraye Eslami, 2011.
Research in Contemporary World Literature
Volume 30, Issue 1
March 2025
Pages 1-23

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics