Article: Le sacré au quotidien : réalités spirituelles et sociales dans La boîte à merveilles d’Ahmed Sefrioui
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Date
2026
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Authors
Boudiab, Adil
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Abstract
Dans La boîte à merveilles, Ahmed Sefrioui invite le lecteur à une immersion dans le quotidien de la société marocaine traditionnelle à travers le regard candide et introspectif d’un enfant de six ans, Sidi Mohammed. Ce point de vue enfantin confère au récit une dimension à la fois naïve et profondément révélatrice des structures culturelles et symboliques qui organisent la vie sociale. Parmi ces structures, le sacré occupe une place centrale et transversale dans le roman. Loin de se réduire aux seules pratiques religieuses institutionnelles, le sacré se déploie dans une multitude de gestes, de croyances et d’objets qui jalonnent le quotidien des personnages : amulettes, talismans, invocations, rites protecteurs ; mais aussi dans la visite de sanctuaires et le recours aux figures saintes. Cette présence diffuse du sacré témoigne d’une vision du monde où le visible et l’invisible s’entrelacent constamment, façonnant les comportements individuels et collectifs. Le sacré apparaît ainsi comme un cadre interprétatif à travers lequel les personnages tentent de donner sens aux épreuves de l’existence, qu’il s’agisse de la maladie, de la pauvreté ou de l’angoisse face à l’avenir. En ce sens, la spiritualité populaire représentée dans le roman participe activement à la construction de l’identité sociale et culturelle des personnages. Cet article se propose donc d’analyser les différentes manifestations du sacré dans La boîte à merveilles, en montrant comment cette sacralisation du quotidien fonctionne comme un miroir des réalités sociales, culturelles et spirituelles du Maroc traditionnel, tout en révélant les mécanismes symboliques qui structurent l’imaginaire collectif.
The sacred in everyday life: Spiritual and social realities in Ahmed Sefrioui’s La boîte à merveilles. In La boîte à merveilles, Ahmed Sefrioui invites readers to immerse themselves in the everyday life of traditional Moroccan society through the innocent and introspective perspective of a six-year-old child, Sidi Mohammed. This child’s viewpoint gives the narrative both a sense of naivety and a strong capacity to reveal the cultural and symbolic structures that shape social life. Among these structures, the sacred occupies a central and pervasive position in the novel. Far from being limited to formal religious practices, the sacred extends into various aspects of daily life, encompassing beliefs, rituals, and objects such as amulets, talismans, protective charms, and visits to shrines dedicated to saints. The omnipresence of the sacred reflects a worldview in which the visible and the invisible constantly interact, influencing individual behaviours and collective attitudes. Through popular spirituality, characters seek protection, consolation, and meaning in the face of life’s hardships, including illness, poverty, and uncertainty about the future. In this sense, the sacred functions as a fundamental interpretive framework that helps individuals make sense of their experiences and reinforces social cohesion within the community. This article aims to examine the different manifestations of the sacred in The Box of Wonders, highlighting how the sacralization of everyday life mirrors the social, cultural, and spiritual realities of traditional Morocco. By doing so, it reveals the symbolic mechanisms through which faith and popular beliefs contribute to the construction of collective identity and cultural continuity
The sacred in everyday life: Spiritual and social realities in Ahmed Sefrioui’s La boîte à merveilles. In La boîte à merveilles, Ahmed Sefrioui invites readers to immerse themselves in the everyday life of traditional Moroccan society through the innocent and introspective perspective of a six-year-old child, Sidi Mohammed. This child’s viewpoint gives the narrative both a sense of naivety and a strong capacity to reveal the cultural and symbolic structures that shape social life. Among these structures, the sacred occupies a central and pervasive position in the novel. Far from being limited to formal religious practices, the sacred extends into various aspects of daily life, encompassing beliefs, rituals, and objects such as amulets, talismans, protective charms, and visits to shrines dedicated to saints. The omnipresence of the sacred reflects a worldview in which the visible and the invisible constantly interact, influencing individual behaviours and collective attitudes. Through popular spirituality, characters seek protection, consolation, and meaning in the face of life’s hardships, including illness, poverty, and uncertainty about the future. In this sense, the sacred functions as a fundamental interpretive framework that helps individuals make sense of their experiences and reinforces social cohesion within the community. This article aims to examine the different manifestations of the sacred in The Box of Wonders, highlighting how the sacralization of everyday life mirrors the social, cultural, and spiritual realities of traditional Morocco. By doing so, it reveals the symbolic mechanisms through which faith and popular beliefs contribute to the construction of collective identity and cultural continuity
Description
Subject Headings
Maroko, lidová víra, marocké umění
Keywords
sacré, traditions, Ahmed Sefrioui, La boîte à merveilles, religion, croyances populaires, sacred, traditions, Ahmed Sefrioui, Morocco, La boîte à merveilles, religion, popular beliefs
ISBN
ISSN
DOI
doi.org/10.15452/SR.2026.26.0003
License
CC BY-NC 4.0
Citation
Studia Romanistica 26(1), 2026, 23-33