What does this research mean for the field?

The film 'Letter to My Sister' revisits the experiences of victims of Algeria's dark decade of the 1990s, highlighting the ongoing struggle against repressive policies towards women. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.NOVEL_FINDING. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

What question did this study set out to answer?

To analyze the narrative and thematic elements of the film that reflect the experiences of victims during Algeria's 1990s.

March 4, 2026Regards0 citations

Triste souvenir et sombre avenir, « Lettre à ma sœur » (2006) de Habiba Djahnine

BKBoualem KHELIFATIUniversité Paris 8

Key Points

To analyze the narrative and thematic elements of the film that reflect the experiences of victims during Algeria's 1990s.
Analyzed the film's narrative structure across multiple genres.
Focused on the portrayal of women's experiences under repression.
Examined the film's reflections on memory and trauma.
The film reveals the ongoing impact of historical violence on women.
Highlights the intersection of feminist activism and personal loss.
Demonstrates how the film serves as a tool for memory and continued struggle.

Abstract

This article explores how Letter to My Sister (2006), a film by director and poet Habiba Djahnine dedicated to her sister Nabila, a democratic and feminist activist who was murdered by Islamist terrorists in Tizi Ouzou in 1995, revisits the fate of the direct and indirect victims of Algeria’s dark decade of the 1990s and the repressive religious and state policies towards women. It employs a narrative structure that combines several film genres – film-letter, film-journey, film-poem, and film-archive – showing situations in which memories and pain are shared, as well as the necessary perpetuation of a struggle that is more relevant than ever.RésuméCet article examine la manière dont Lettre à ma sœur (2006), que la réalisatrice et poétesse Habiba Djahnine consacre à sa sœur Nabila, militante démocratique et féministe, assassinée par les terroristes islamistes à Tizi Ouzou en 1995, revient sur la situation des victimes directes et indirectes de la décennie noire algérienne des années 1990 et une politique religieuse et d’État répressive à l’égard des femmes. Il met en œuvre une construction narrative située entre plusieurs genres filmiques – film-lettre, film-voyage, film-poème et film-archive – nous donnant à voir des situations faites de partage du souvenir et de la douleur, et la nécessaire perpétuation d’un combat plus que jamais d’actualité. Mots-clésNabila Djahnine, film-lettre, militantisme, lutte des femmes, violence et assassinat, traumatisme, deuil, intimité, archives, décennie noire algérienne, Code de la famille.

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