In Search of Authenticity

Shnu the heck do people mean when they talk about being “authentic”? How can you be sure you’re having an authentic experience? There seems to be a lot of talk about “authentic” Moroccan life among the on-the-ground-reporter researcher ex-pats here. From day one of Fulbright Orientation this past summer, former and current Fulbrighters have almost obsessed about seeking out and claiming their own down-and-dirty, true Moroccan experiences.

What in the world do they mean?!? I’ve kept my ears open, done some reading about Orientalism, and had numerous intriguing conversations on this matter and I’ve concluded that authenticity in this context is supposed to mean that the experiences reflect reality. Don’t get me started on “reality”. How are we supposed to determine whether our daily life or any of our adventures are showing us the full Morocco in all its glory? Aren’t we all living “real” “authentic” lives here? I don’t believe a person can ever really experience everything a place has to offer, especially not in the one year duration of a research grant.

Most of the people I’ve talked to have translated “authentic” to mean “roughing it”. So a number of researchers of cultural experience enthusiasts find their way to a mountain town and learn to speak Berber. They relish in living without showers and electricity and hacking it on a farm or in a shanty town. Their authenticity comes from mimicking the lives of the majority of Moroccans, or at least the Moroccans in closest proximity.

I disagree with the assumption that rougher lives here are somehow better or truer. It is not only absurd to generalize an entire country- a country with many rich and diverse cultures and traditions- but it is demeaning to those from this country whose experiences are different. Is a Moroccan who lives in a nice house or showers regularly somehow less “authentic” than his more traditional brethren? I think we would all agree that a person from a mixed ethnic and national background who has lived in Morocco their entire life is an “authentic” Moroccan, even if they’re in the minority. This country has many faces and realities. All are pertinent to the current big picture and are as authentic as can be.

On the flip side, there are those who try to make their lives here as American as possible. That is also not the way I want to go. I’m looking for a non-American experience. I want to eat, say, and wear new things. I like being in a neighborhood full of Moroccans, not ex-pats and their foreign friends. It was not my goal to take America to Morocco, but rather to figure out how my American self fits into a new Moroccan life. It’s not fulfilling to eat McDonald’s, shop at European boutiques and speak English all day. I definitely engage in home-grown activities a little at a time, but they don’t consume me or override the advances I’m making into Moroccan culture.

Once again, perhaps moderation is key. I don’t believe I should throw my old self out the window and try to be Moroccan, while at the same time I refuse to simply transport my old life into Morocco. It’s a mélange of experiences, just as Morocco itself mixes traditions. I am also not condemning the choices of those who do rough it or who make an American life in Morocco. I am not here to judge the experiences of others or to determine what fulfills them. In the end, I believe an “authentic” Moroccan experience is one where we sample many parts of life here, find our niche, and dive right in. To find the honest-to-god truth in a new place requires enthusiastically accepting challenges while acknowledging the limited scope of our perceptions. It also means you have to stay true to yourself. And myself, at the moment, is an authentic American in Morocco.