ABSTRACT
From a temporal perspective, recognizing emancipation as a moment suggests that it involves, and evolves through, its own rhythms. In congruence with Lesourd’s comments around the formative role played by “rituals of transgression”, such an observation contributes to the hypothesis according to which transgression may constitute one of the generic patterns constitutive of the moment of emancipation as it may lead – through its own repetition – to break through one’s own limitations. The evolution of the moment of emancipation reveals therefore a dialogic between individual and collective dimensions as well as between chance and necessity. It is partly organized through the vicissitudes and the free will of Ruth’s life, and at the same time it is inscribed in structures that translate predetermined temporal constraints. To envision emancipation from a temporal perspective, considering both its everyday manifestations and its inscription in the life span, the question was raised to determine how to study it, considering a real-life narrative.
