Nathalie Quintane's 'Grand ensemble' Interrogates Colonial Traces in Algeria

In her 2008 book 'Grand ensemble,' French writer Nathalie Quintane returns to the subject of Algeria, which she first addressed in 2004 with 'L'Année de l'Algérie' (Inventaire/Invention). The work's mischievous subtitle, 'Concernant une ancienne colonie,' signals its indirect approach: colonial memory surfaces intermittently, like the herpes outbreak that opens the book. Through scattered images and phrases—slides of the Hoggar, veterans' slogans, gazelle horns, fake grammar examples nostalgic for French Algeria ('Algeria was a French department'), and official commemorations perpetuating clichés of conviviality—Quintane examines and humorously exposes lingering colonial reflexes. She even turns suspicion on her own writing, questioning whether her avant-garde stance might be another form of militarism, or whether a paragraph unconsciously evokes the OAS. The book's chapters are structured as 'faux-barrages' (fake roadblocks), forcing readers into constant vigilance. Ultimately, 'grand ensemble' refers to the inescapable entanglement of France and Algeria, bound together by countless historical imprints beyond their antagonisms.