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| Volume XIV, Winter 2007, Number 4 |
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BOOK REVIEW
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History and the Culture of Nationalism in Algeria. by James McDougall
Cambridge University Press, 2006. 282 pages. $85.00, hardcover.
Hamoud Salhi,
assistant professor of political science at California State University-Dominguez Hills
In his seminal work Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism, Benedict Anderson notes how three paradoxes have perplexed, apparently to the degree of irritation, theorists, of nationalism. These are the relative objectivity of modernity and the subjectivity of antiquity; the universality of the national character of nations and the particularity of individual identities; and finally, the political richness of nationalism and its philosophical poverty.
These three paradoxes are clearly illustrated in the Algerian national movement, which James McDougall has masterfully tackled in History and the Culture of Nationalism in Algeria. McDougall offers a historical trajectory of Algerian nationalism entangled in struggles over whether or not Algeria is a product of modern times or antiquity, whether the Algerian nation well represents its citizenry, and whether nationalism should be free of political meddling (my own deduction). In this context, McDougall argues that a nation can never be defined objectively and positively because it is "a field of rival representations, each claiming to articulate its 'authenticity'" and that in the end "the nation only exists meaningfully in the struggle to 'hegemonise' its meaning; in contests over the symbolic power to name and represent the community" (p. 9).
In Algeria's case, McDougall argues, it was the modernist discourse that defined the nation's history and culture, and that the question for Algerians was not about choosing between modernity, on the one hand, and Islam, tradition, and authenticity, on the other. Rather, it was about which aspects of modernity, modern politics and culture Algeria should assume as part of its national identity. Using this criterion, McDougall bestows on Tawfiq al-Madani the distinction of being the most articulate pioneer of Algeria's nationalism (p. 24). Just a page into the prologue, McDougall introduces Madani, tracing his family background and displaying in a rather descriptive manner his contributions to Algeria's nationalism (pp. 20-26). Madani becomes a frame of reference to better explain where Algeria has been, where it is heading, and why it took the nationalist shape it has.
Discussing national identity in Algeria, McDougall confirms what previous authors have shown: that the conflict among nationalists and collaborationists was over the meaning of Algeria itself (p. 87), and that historical circumstances (intransigent colonial policies) helped the nationalists dictate a uniform view of Algeria's history, which developed around the projection of a belief that all Algerians are Muslim and must unite against the colonizers, who planned to divide Algerians in order to easily conquer them. According to McDougall, this "unitary 'Islamic personality'" (p. 95) approach would be used again in post-independence Algeria to promote the Salafi project, stressing the unity of all Algerians against imperialism, a new form of colonialism. It was this approach that preempted Algeria from becoming a truly pluralistic society and kept the Berbers from realizing full representation.
McDougall makes the role of politics very clear. The author reveals the existence of a rich scholarship representing a plethora of religious writers, thinkers and historians with a multitude of theories and accounts on how to best explain Algeria's quest for its national identity; however, the power of the pen apparently is no match for politicians fully in control of the Algerian state. This is best illustrated by Ahmed Ben Bella, a revolutionary leader and Algeria's first president, who announced on independence day that Algeria is "Arab, Arab and Arab" to please his supporters, and critics, in the Arab world. McDougall rightly lays blame on the politicians and religious writers for failing to seize the opportunity at the end of colonialism to make Algeria build a pluralistic political system reflecting its social character.
Taken from this perspective, McDougall's historical account is a qualitative demarcation from previous work on nationalism. Previous studies on Maghribi nationalism concentrated heavily on refuting the distorted image colonialism had portrayed of Maghribi society. Recent trends, however, have attempted to rectify that by shifting the focus to the role of socioeconomic variables in the historical development of national movements in this region. McDougall's approach fits well within this trend, as he takes the study of nationalism in Algeria a notch higher, examining its national movement as a result of power and dominance. Using historical narratives as imagined, re-imagined, and memorized by the conquered people of Algeria, McDougall lends credence to Algerian historians and writers to compile a study of nationalism that is both complex and comprehensive in its content.
This book has its shortcomings as well. McDougall's reliance on historical narratives written by well-established Algerian scholars, intellectuals and writers seen as pioneers of Algeria's nationalism hides the very fact that they do not properly represent the entire population of Algeria; their discourse may not have accurately described their national aspirations and images. Specifically, the author's sample is elitist, male and urban, while Algeria in the colonial era was a multiethnic society in which women had a role and most of the population was illiterate and lived in rural areas. The author could have strengthened his case by exploring alternative views drawn from the works of anthropologists, feminist writers, and Berber folk heroes.
Additionally, the author does not seem to differentiate between nationalism, as an image "invented" (to use Ernest Gellner's description), and statehood, a sovereign territory with clear boundaries. Such a distinction is particularly relevant in post-independence Algeria. McDougall treats the debate over national identity in post-independence Algeria the way he treats the debate under colonialism; nationalism is portrayed as being used and abused by a dominant social force to serve the interests of the hegemonic powers. But a distinction should be made between the two eras, at least theoretically. In colonial-era Algeria, the aim of the national struggle was freedom. To that end, Algerian nationalists rallied people of different ethnic and religious backgrounds to fight against the oppressor. With independence, the struggle shifted towards nation-building and how the state could best represent its citizenry. In this context, the Berbers were not represented: they were forced to deny their own identity through a policy of Algerianization that expected them to efface their own memories, supposedly for a bigger, better and higher Algerian identity. To the Berbers, this amounted to a cultural genocide. They felt they had earned a right to learn to read and speak their own language in schools, the mediaand public spaces, and yet their language was denied. In Anderson's account, the Arab language was sacred and was being challenged by the Berbers.
History and the Culture of Nationalism in Algeria is a well-researched book. Drawing on images and memories, it provides a thorough historical analysis that advanced students and Maghribi scholars will find useful in explaining the trajectory of Algeria's nationalism.
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