Packaging Zainab A1-Ghazali： The Gendered Politics of Translation and the Production of ＂Moderate＂ Muslim Sister and Islamism

This paper deals with translation and knowledge production of both an exemplar mould for Islamic woman identity and a cosmetic ＂moderate＂ veneer for Islamism. The paper particularly tackles the question of the visibility of Islamic women in the translational narrative sphere and its implication with respect to both the co-optation of ＂Muslim Sisterhood＂ within the dominant Islamist gender politics and selling political Islam to international politics. Utilizing Baker＇s thesis of translation as re-narration, especially narrative flaming strategies, the paper reads Mokrane Guezzou＇s translation of Zainab al-Ghazali＇s autobiography Return of the Pharaoh： Memoir in Nasir＇s Prison （2006） to examine the framing of al-Ghazali＇s personal narrative and its implications for furthering the Middle Eastern democratization march （in response to Bush＇s ＂Freedom Agenda＂）, while keeping the Muslim Brothers＇ gender politics intact. The paper＇s argument is the gendered politics of Guezzou＇s translation and their influence on the transnational and international spheres. Firstly, in tune with the expectation of the transnational constituency of Muslim Brothers＇ readership, al-Ghazali＇s personal and self-aggrandizing narrative is packaged and re-framed within the public narrative of the Muslim Brothers＇ gender/gendered ethos to co-opt her politicized inscription of ＂Muslim Sisterhood＂ within the Muslim Brothers＇ male-ranked organizational structure and thereby reproduce the mould of a ＂moderate＂ Muslim sister. The individualistic leaning of the narrative is transposed onto the meta-narratives of the Exodus in ancient times and Holocaust in modem times. The female imprint of the narrative is suppressed onto the conflict between militant masculinities with Nasir centerstaged in the title, referenced as the pharaoh, and semantically associated with Hitler and fascism in the translator＇s note. Her gender agency is de-framed and her visibility and access to organizational rank is harnessed to her social identity in marriage and her subscription to and fulfillment of the masculine constructed and assessed criteria of ＂virtue, piety and modesty＂ （Guezzou, 2006, p. ix）. Secondly, in line with the changing dynamics of geo-strategic realities, the translational renarration contributes to configuring the race-based underpinning of Arab exceptionalism onto the compatibility of （the ＂purely political＂ and hence ＂moderate＂） Islamism with democracy through projecting the Muslim Brotherhood＇s anti-fascist, democratic, modern/moderate and gender inclusive image. After all, Islamic women＇s visibility is a testament of feminism capable of redeeming Islamism and selling ＂moderate＂ political Islam to international politics/readership.

On the Threshold： Urban Exchange and Intervention in Flora Lau＇s Bends （2013）

The metaphor at the heart of Hong Kong filmmaker Flora Lau＇s debut feature film, Bends （2013）, set in the border spaces of Hong Kong and Shenzhen, is that of intersection. By constructing a quietly observant view of life on both sides of the Sam Chun River, which separates Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland, Lau＇s film inhabits this metaphor by cutting through the public and private domains with a narrative of intimacy and connection at the nexus of wider socioeconomic concerns. Delving into Hong Kong-mainland relations, Bends inserts the real-life social issues of immigration, border control, economic privilege, and China＇s one-child policy into its diegesis to capture Hong Kong at a moment in time. In considering the intertwined relationship between identity, politics, and urban space, this paper employs the trope of disappearance perpetuated in critical discourses on Hong Kong as a point of departure to explore the distinct filmic topography of Bends, which attempts to cinematically preserve the dynamics of the city under Chinese administration. In so doing, this paper also examines Lau＇s interest in giving marginalized female groups narrative agency to shed light on an alternative perspective of the special administrative region and its unfolding relationship with the motherland.