dr. J.M.L. (Jeanette) den Toonder

Huidige projecten

Transnational Iranian Women’s Writing in Europe

Iranian women writers from the Diaspora have been very prolific in the first two decades of the 21^st century and their decision to not only become writers, but to also write in the language of their adopted country, choosing genres such as the novel and the short story, has enabled them to write critically about cultural conflicts and encounters. In their work, exile is often considered as empowerment, even if the feeling of displacement also conceptualizes loss and disillusionment. This project proposes to move beyond the more mainstream topics that have been examined in relation to exile literature such as homelessness, identity crises and in-betweenness, coming-of-age memoirs and nostalgia, and to adopt an intersectional approach that will enable to examine the dynamics of empowerment resulting from the recognition of multiple and interlocking influences. Thus, the image of the eroticized Oriental woman being a victim of patriarchal heritage will be replaced by a new model of womanhood reclaiming strength and agency. Several studies have been published on the works of a number of well-known female authors, mostly from the perspective of U.S. Iranian Diaspora writing. Within the European context research is limited, particularly from a comparative perspective. The corpus will therefore consist of post-revolutionary novels published in Europe in the 21^st century and written in Dutch, English, French, German and Swedish. The novels will be examined in the original languages. The comparative approach focuses on works that to date have been understudied by intersecting the categories of age, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, class, family, religion and nationality. The dual approach of comparison and intersectionality will exhibit Iranian women’s agency as a cultural response to transnational dispersals and will illustrate the liberating power of literature as a form of soft power transforming stereotypical images of subservience, eroticization and exclusion.

Lezingen:

A Sense of Wellbeing: Narratives of Migration, Language and the Body. Language Learning and Wellbeing in Newcomers and Refugees. Rudolf Agricola School for Sustainable Development, University of Groningen, October 5, 2023.

Écrire l’expérience de l’exil: voix féminines de la Diaspora iranienne. Journée de la Francophonie, University of Groningen, 14 mars 2023.

Voices of Iranian Women Writers in Europe. European Evening, Esperia & ZaZa, University of Groningen, December 13, 2022.

Hopeful Alternative Narratives or How to Use Difference Productively. An Analysis of Iranian Women’s Writing in Europe. XI Graduate Conference in Culture Studies, The Cultural Politics of Hope, Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Lisbon, December 2-4, 2021.

Migratory Feminism, Francophone Female Voices from Iranian Descent. Summer School Beyond Horizons. Migrant and Minority Literature. Transmitting and Writing New Identities, University of Groningen. August 15-20, 2021.

Exile, Identity and the Female Body in Franco-Iranian Women’s Writing. Society for French Studies Virtual Conference, June 28-30, 2021.

Migrant Bodies and Cultural Transfer: How Narratives of Migration Counter Cultural Stereotypes. Enlight on-line Colloquium Translation as Transfer of Cultural Images, Department of Translation Studies, University of Tartu. May 11, 2021.

Iranian Women’s Writing in Europe. Research Centre for the Study of Democratic Cultures and Politics, University of Groningen, October 22, 2020.

Travel writing and exile in Négar Djavadi’s Désorientale (2016). U4 Workshop Concepts and Tools in Cultural Transfer Research. Case: Travel Writing. Georg-August-University Göttingen, May 16-17, 2019.

Liminality, Language and Identity in Chahdortt Djavann’s novel Comment peut-on être français? (2006). U4 Workshop Whose side are you on? Border crossing, rites of passage, and liminal experiences in literature. University of Ghent, October 27-28, 2016.

Publicaties:

Exile, travel narrative and cultural transfer in Négar Djavadi’s Désorientale. In Petra Broomans, & Jeanette den Toonder (Eds.). Travel Writing and Cultural Transfer. Amsterdam: John Benjamins (FILLM studies in Languages and Literatures 20), 2024: 181-202.

Narrating Pain: The Power of Storytelling in Maryam Madjidi's Marx et la poupée. Frontiers of Narrative Studies, 8(2), 2022: 139-157. https://doi.org/10.1515/fns-2022-2018

Writing in the Feminine: Identity, Language, and Intercultural Dialogue in Chahdortt Djavann's Comment peut-on être français? (2006). DiGeSt Journal of Diversity and Gender Studies 5(2), 2018: 7-21. https://doi.org/10.11116/digest.5.2.1

Migrantenliteratuur in Frankrijk: van transnationale naar transculturele identiteit. met Annique Garnier. Vooys: instituutsblad van het Instituut De Vooys voor Nederlandse Taal- en Letterkunde 34(1-2), 2016: 76-86.

Interdisciplinair onderzoeksproject

Human Mobility and Migration Lab

Deze onderzoeksgroep is onderdeel van het Democracy & Governance Theme van de Rudolf Agricola School for Sustainable Development en bestaat uit onderzoekers van verschillende Faculteiten met diverse onderzoeks expertises. Wij onderzoeken gezamenlijk de impact van mobiliteit en migratie op samenlevingen en gemeenschappen met als doel het ontwikkelen van nieuwe benaderingen om duurzame oplossingen te formuleren voor de uitdagingen waar de huidige diverse samenleving voor staat. We werken samen met partners uit de E.U., Canada en de V.S. en vormen zo een internationaal netwerk. Op 25 en 26 januari 2024 organiseerden we het internationale congres "Contemporary Human Mobilities: Uncovering Dissonance(s) between Governance Practices and Lived Experiences".

Afgerond project

Alfa Meerwaarde Gedeelde Literatuur

Het door NWO gefinancierde project Gedeelde literatuur: cultuuroverdacht in leesgroepen (Alfa meerwaarde sept. 2014-sept. 2015) heeft samenwerking mogelijk gemaakt met de publieke partnerorganisaties: Stichting Senia, de Bibliotheek Groningen en Bibliotheek Eemland. Binnen dit project heb ik samengewerkt met Dr. Sandra van Voorst (Moderne Nederlandse letterkunde), Dr. Petra Broomans (Moderne Zweedse letterkunde) en Drs. Saskia Visser (wetenschapswinkel Taal, Cultuur & Communicatie). In het kader van een Interdisciplinair Master college (2014-2015) hebben studenten veldonderzoek kunnen verrichten dat resulteerde in eindwerkstukken die gepubliceerd zijn op de website van de wetenschapswinkel. We hebben ons onderzoek gepresenteerd aan zowel een wetenschappelijk als breed publiek. De resultaten zijn vastgelegd in (inter)nationale publicaties.

Lezingen: 

Huizinga Instituut, Onderzoekschool voor Cultuurgeschiedenis, Research Master Course "Cultures of Reading", Presentatie "A Case of Valorisation: Cultuuroverdracht door Leesgroepen", Universiteit van Amsterdam, 10 juni 2016.

Symposium Gedeelde Literatuur, "Cultuuroverdracht in Leesgroepen: hoe werkt dat?", i.s.m. Saskia Visser (Wetenschapswinkel Taal, Cultuur & Communicatie, RUG) en Dr. Sandra van Voorst (Moderne Nederlandse Letterkunde, RUG), Amersfoort, 9 oktober 2015.

Ravenstein Seminar, Presentatie "Added Value Grant Shared Literature. Cultural Transfer in Reading Groups", i.s.m. Dr. Sandra van Voorst (Moderne Nederlandse Letterkunde, RUG), Universiteit van Amsterdam, 21 januari 2015.

Publicaties:

den Toonder, J., van Voorst, S., Visser, S. (2017). "Cultural Transfer in Reading Groups. From Theory to Practice and Back". Research for All 1(1), 52-63. DOI: 10.18546/RFA01.1.05 

van Voorst, S. (2016). "Gedeelde literatuur. Lezen in leesgroepen anno 2015". Jaarboek voor Nederlandse Boekgeschiedenis 23. 137-156.

van Voorst, S., Visser, S. (ed.) (2015). Gedeelde literatuur: Cultuuroverdracht in leesgroepen. Groningen: Barkhuis Publishing.