ABSTRACT
Before beginning the task of identifying and categorizing the predominant themes and issues in North African women’s dramatic literature, a discussion of translation is in order. This will also introduce a play that serves as a touchstone for many of the ideas contained in the body of work as a whole, Fatima Gallaire’s aforementioned Princesses, originally titled Ah! vous êtes venues…là où il y a quelques tombes (Gallaire 1988a; Gallaire 1988b; Gallaire 1991a; Gallaire 1991b; Gallaire 1996c). Reliance upon translations is a delicate matter. It is also an absolute necessity for even the most erudite of scholars. At some point, most academics find themselves in the position of using a second party’s translation of a work by a third party, and praying that the party of the second part is as addicted to accuracy as they believe themselves to be. A simple wordfor-word translation will not do, even between languages as closely related as French and English. Sometimes, one simply cannot get there from içi.
