Identity Papers

What does citizenship mean? What is the process of "naturalization" one goes through in becoming a citizen, and what is its connection to assimilation? How do the issues of identity raised by this process manifest themselves in cultural production? These questions, and the way they arise in contemporary France, are the focus of this divers collection, In contrast to the traditional metaphor of the United States as melting pot, French government politics have long made the assertion of minority difference secondary to assimilation in the name of a single nation and culture. The contributors to this work explore the effects of imposed conformity by studying specific instances in which conflict of identity arise. Among the topics discussed are the 1937 Exposition Universelle; films dealing with Vichy France; Algerian independence; and nation building under Francois Mitterand.