Meeting Feirouz Guettiche immediately strikes you with her radiant smile, warmth, and sunny voice. She exudes a generous presence that hints at the dedication she brings to everything she undertakes.
A phrase to describe the way he lives his life?
"Ignorance is a disease, questioning is its cure." - Mohamed
His wealth?
Her dual culture: one French, by birth, the other Algerian, by origin. An "extraordinary cultural in-between" that allows her to question the assumptions of each.
But also her dual social identity: between the working-class town in northern France where she grew up and the 16th arrondissement of Paris where she lives and works. She cherishes the solidarity she learned in working-class neighborhoods and the strength of networks she experienced in more affluent circles.
His most prominent character trait?
Her perseverance, "emblematic of her DZ side" (Djazaïr, Algeria in Arabic). The challenge puts her into action!
The fight of his life?
A feminism "à la Gisèle Halimi," where empathy and values are not subject to change. A feminism of action that aims to "give women the opportunity to be who they are, and not who they are told to be."
In fact, here are the words she spoke when she received an award for excellence for her thesis:
"I dedicate this prize to all the women who do not ask permission before speaking."
To all those who express and defend their convictions loudly and clearly.
To all those who are not afraid to transgress the codes and the established order.
To all those who share, reflect, and write without seeking to please or conform.
The books she gives as gifts most often?
- The Cost of Excellence, by Nicole Aubert and Vincent de Gaulejac
- Eldorado, by Laurent Gaudé
His favorite quotes?
It is his mother whom Feirouz quotes most often, and her Algerian proverbs so full of common sense.
"You can't applaud with only one hand."
"Forget your problems, and they will forget you. If you dwell on them, they will take you."
"Beware of taking an idiot as a friend; he might harm you while trying to be helpful."
The talents she recognizes in herself?
- To uncover the talents of others, by identifying what makes them unique.
- Connecting distant worlds and people from different backgrounds.
- To convey complexity by simplifying it without distorting it: "simplexity"
His favorite verbs?
Take action and persevere.
His 3 favorite words?
Though rarely used, they reveal a part of his personality:
- Sagacity: intuition and quick thinking
- Compersion: the opposite of jealousy
- Performativity: one of the key concepts of his thesis, which deserves closer examination. It refers to the fact that language not only serves to describe reality but can also create it.
His favorite places?
- Museums! And especially the Marmottan Monet Museum in Paris, for its magnificent Impressionist collection.
- Le Bristol, in Paris, for its wonderful pastries and its peaceful atmosphere conducive to one-on-one exchanges and deep conversations.