American Writers in Paris Exploring the “Unknown” in Their Own Time: Edith Wharton’s In Morocco and Diane Johnson’s Lulu in Marrakech

Abstract

In Morocco and Lulu in Marrakech, a book of travel and a fiction, written by two American writers who have lived in Paris, Edith Wharton and Diane Johnson respectively, surpass the limits of their genres. Although Wharton claims that she has written a travel book for “the happy wanderers who may be planning a Moroccan journey, [and] …[she has] added to the record of. … [her] personal impressions a slight sketch of the history and art of the country” (In Morocco 12), In Morocco does not simply unfold a series of attractive sites for the probing vacationer. Neither does the travelogue represent the writer’s authentic views; nor does it describe the genuine prevailing condition of the country that she visited in 1917. Lulu in Marrakech, a novel published in 2008, essentially promises a series of fictitious events by imaginary characters in a world of fantasy. Indeed, Johnson’s work fulfills this promise par excellence. Similarly, however, as Wharton’s travelogue, Johnson’s fiction too serves as a conduit to manifest the political consciousness and convey the involvements and interests in the ongoing world events of the rulers, governments, and agencies of both her host country and native country.