LES DÉSORIENTÉS OF AMIN MAALOUF: AN IMPOSSIBLE RETURN FROM EXILE

Abstract

Amin Maalouf writes for the first time about the events which forced him to leave Lebanon. His last novel Les Désorientés differs from his previous novels because his narrative becomes more personal. Adam, the protagonist of the novel returns to Beirut after an absence of several years. Although his friends welcome him not all respond to him in the same way. Was he right to have left his country? Would it have been better for him to stay? Is it possible for him to come back and resume the friendships he left behind? During his absence his country has changed radically. Religious feelings became sharper than ever. Adam tries to understand the situation through conversations with his old friends. Will he be able to reconcile with all of them? In this essay like novel, Amin Maalouf who was elected to the French Academy in 2012 tries to answer a question asked in the entire East Mediterranean.