The Forbidden Woman

by Malika Mokeddem, Karen Melissa Marcus (Translator)

The Forbidden Woman tells the story of Sultana, an Algerian woman doctor who, after years spent living in France, returns to her native village in order to attend the funeral of a former lover. The clash between her origins and the Westernized life she now leads is explored in telling detail against the backdrop of current events in Algeria. A work that combines insight into both political and personal matters, The Forbidden Woman develops a complex portrait of a country torn between progress and prejudice, secular life and Islamic fundamentalism. In this passionate book, Malika Mokeddem places special emphasis on the position of women in modern Algeria. The frequent indignities and injustices suffered by the narrator reflect the plight of women in a society marked by patriarchalism and religious fundamentalism. Yet the novel also suggests that, along with modernization, there are emerging demands for women’s rights in Algeria—demands that might well signal a vastly different future for this tormented nation.

Genres: Algeria, Fiction, France, Islam, Africa

156 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1993

About the author

Malika Mokeddem spent her childhood in a ksar, a traditional village. She now lives in Montpellier, France, where she divides her time between practicing medicine and writing.
Her works (published in French, and also available translated into English) include The Forbidden Woman and Of Dreams and Assassins.

Reviews

[Asma · Rating 1 out of 5]

شعرت وكأنها سيرة ذاتية للمؤلفة ولم يعجبني تحللها من السلوك الأخلاقي والديني, ولا وتذمرها من الإسلام وإن لم يكن بعبارات كثيرة ولا صريحة ، إنما تذكر من تسميهم الإسلاميون ، وأيضا اللغة ربما الترجمة ليست جيدة، يوجد العديد من الأخطاء النحوية، اندمجت في آخر الفصول وبدأت أفهم طريقنها في السرد وتحليل الأفكار، كما أن السرد أصبح أجمل ، أعجبتني بعض الأشياء ولكن ككل لم تروقني ولو لم أقرأها لكان أفضل فليست هي من الروايات التي أسعد بقراءتها

[Douce Cattleya · Rating 5 out of 5]

C'est le meilleur de Malika le style d'écriture ma fait plongée dans le déroulement de l'histoire

[Kimberly · Rating 1 out of 5]

Absolutely the perfect stereotype of French prose at its worse. The characters are overly sentimental to the point I found myself hating them all. The endless metaphores are exhausting. The few parts I liked about the socio-economic issues impacting Algeria are overshadowed by whining and chapter-long explanations for feeling melancholy.

[راويـه · Rating 2 out of 5]

غاضبة جداً من المجتمع الجزائري، متحررة و ثائرة على كل تقاليده ..

[Lamari Mohamed · Rating 1 out of 5]

رواية مفتعلة ، القصة ، الحوارات ، المونولوغات ، كل شيء داخل هذه الرواية يبدوا مجردا و غير حقيقي .

[BookLovingLady (deceased Jan. 25, 2023...) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Malika Mokeddem is one of those authors whose work I’ve bought because I very much wanted to read some of her books, but never got around to reading anything by her through lack of time. Until this past week, when I read De ontheemde for the spring challenge of the Netherlands & Flanders group. What a marvellous book. I loved both her style of writing as well as the story itself, which was absolutely fascinating and enlightening. She obviously knows what she’s talking about and it is needless to say really that the book taught me a lot about Algeria and the position of women of in this country.

[Katrina Becker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hmm, this is one of those books that I really enjoyed reading & which never ceased to surprise me and teach me something new, but I think it actually could have been just a little... I don't know. It was satisfying, yes, but not 100%. Still, this is one book I would have read even if it wasn't for a class, but which I never would have found- it's a bit obscure, as in not available in English, that I know of. I have a feeling I'll be thinking about this one for a while, and not just because we'll discuss it in class.

[jtabz · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mokkedem's novel about an Algerian exile who returns to the country when her ex-lover dies has a lot of ideas, but it doesn't quite bring them together.

Also, the 10 year old character talks like a combination of Rhett Bulter and Camus, which is, well, weird.

[Caitlyn Loux · Rating 3 out of 5]

The novel felt dramatic and somber to a point of detracting from its message, especially during the chapters from Sultana's point of view. Her dialogue with Vincent and Salah nearly always felt cloudy and disjointed, and her inner dialogue did not provide the context I was hoping it would. I never truly felt like I understood Sultana. Her personality varied and stayed mysterious, both to the people in her life and to the reader.

Although I felt claustrophobic through the whole novel, the plot became more intriguing in the second half as I learned more about Sultana's past. Before this, I had no context about Algeria and its civil war, so the somber, hopeless tone was lost on me.

I did, however, like the relationship between Sultana, Vincent, and Salah. The preface describes "métissage," a French word that describes "the blending of cultures, languages, psychologies, and perceptions that result when people from different countries and backgrounds live together," (xiii). This is seen most evidently on the last few pages of the novel, when Sultana, Vincent, and Salah are sitting in the car together. From my interpretation, their ability to finally understand each other represents the "possibility of a harmonious and peaceful métissage for France and Algeria," (xiii).

The writing style was not my favorite, but I do feel like I have a better understanding of the struggle that Algerian women face every day, and especially in the 1990s. Every time I set this book down I felt more grateful for the life and freedoms that I have as a woman in America.

Two notes:
1) I read the English translation by Melissa Marcus, so my critiques should be taken lightly.
2) It's important to read the preface both before and after reading this novel. It's part of the story itself, creating an image of Algeria during the 1990s when this novel takes place.

[Nina · Rating 3 out of 5]

C'est sofia qui m'a prêté ce livre, l'écriture est plutôt poétique. Je l'ai lu rapidement et j'ai apprécié ma lecture mais je ne pense pas que c'est un livre qui va me marquer.
Je me demande à quel point c'est representatif, c'est le portrait d'une Algérie très négative, machos, sectaire, arriéré. L'histoire se déroule principalement dans un village reculé et elle est raconté du point de vue d'une femme donc peut être ? Ou peut-être pas ?
C'est l'histoire entrecroisé de Sultana, une Algérienne qui a quitté son village de machos radical pour devenir médecin en France et de Vincent un français ayant reçu la greffe d'un rein de la part d'une jeune Algérienne. Vincent effectue un voyage post operation pour mettre de l'ordre dans ses idées. Par hasard il croise Sultana et c'est le coup de foudre. Sultana est retourné au pays pour l'enterrement de Yacine, son amour de jeunesse. Lors de son retour, sa modernité choque, sa position de femme médecin n'est pas accepté par tous , elle subit menace et intimidation. Elle aimerait rester pour aider ceux qui portent en eux un peu de lumière, comme Dalila, une enfant éloquente qui dessine et qui s'intéresse à tous. Mais Sultana finira par quitter le village après avoir réglé ses comptes avec son passé.

[Abdelhak Chetbi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Elle s’appelle Sultana Medjahed.
Médecin, femme libre, fille du désert algérien.
Elle a fui un pays qui voulait la faire taire… pour sauver sa liberté.
Son nom ? L’Interdite. Parce qu’elle vit comme une femme qu’on ne tolère pas.
Sultana soigne, écoute, lutte…
Mais dans ce monde d’hommes, elle reste une étrangère, même chez elle.
Elle aime Yacine, son collègue médecin — un amour sincère, mais impossible.
Entre eux, le poids des traditions, la peur du scandale, les regards des autres.
Alors, Sultana choisit de partir.
Elle quitte l’Algérie pour la France, emportant avec elle ses blessures,
sa solitude, et cette rage de vivre libre.
Là-bas, elle découvre un autre exil : celui du cœur.
L’Interdite, c’est le cri d’une femme qui veut aimer sans honte,
exister sans demander pardon.
Sultana, c’est toutes celles qu’on empêche de rêver —
et qui le font quand même.
Parce que la vraie liberté,
c’est de ne plus avoir peur d’être soi.

[loubna echaiban · Rating 4 out of 5]

L'Interdite de Malika Mokeddem raconte l’histoire de Sultana, une femme médecin algérienne qui, après avoir quitté son pays pour la France, revient dans son village natal. Ce retour lui permet de revivre des souvenirs difficiles et de confronter des traditions qui oppressent les femmes. Elle est venue honorer la mémoire de son amie Yasmine, mais se retrouve face à une société qui refuse tout changement.

À travers Sultana, Mokeddem aborde la question de l’identité et du choix entre modernité et tradition. Le roman montre combien il est difficile pour une femme de vouloir être libre dans une société qui impose des rôles stricts. Sultana est perçue comme une "interdite" parce qu’elle ose défier ces règles, parce qu’elle veut avancer et faire évoluer les mentalités.

[Hazellll♤ · Rating 1 out of 5]

Une belle plume, certes, mais des propos islamophobes et vulgaires. Je pensais apprécier cette lecture. Critiquer une société fondée sur des rituels figés ou des traditions sacralisées, je peux le comprendre. En revanche, tenir des discours islamophobes, tirer sur l’islam et lui faire porter la responsabilité du sort misérable vécu par les Algériens dans les années 90 ne reflète en rien ce que l’islam enseigne.

[Costea Mirela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not really my cuy of tea.

[Harumi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Overall, Malika is an exceptional writer.

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was disappointed in the book. For the most part it was predictable and in my opinion the author only touched the surface of what could have been presented about the condition of women in Algeria. I had expected much more from it.