“A Man Among Men” in Algerian Paris: Modeling Motivation and Movement in Jake Lamar’s Rendezvous Eighteenth

Routes of Narration: romance

The third-person limited narrator guides the reader to participate in a love story between Ricky and Fatima. The novel’s title indicates the romantic route of the novel. The word rendezvous implies a meeting, sometimes in secret and between lovers, and the rendezvous in the novel occur mostly in the Eighteenth Arrondissement. As such, this novel centers on the meetings between Ricky and Fatima in the Eighteenth. And, even when Ricky meets with someone else in the novel, Fatima is usually the catalyst or the inspiration for the meeting. For instance, most of the third section of the novel is devoted to a series of rendezvous between Ricky and Fatima that begin their love affair. They meet four times between June 28th and July 12th 1998, watching the French compete for and win the World Cup. These meetings culminate in their on again, off again relationship. However, there are three major rendezvous with Ricky and other characters showing that Ricky is motivated by his love for Fatima. First, Ricky’s rendezvous with Cash—that begins “the detective case”—occurs because Fatima tells Ricky, “Just remember: Your family is all that you got.” (16). It must be noted that Ricky has no intention of meeting with Cash: the text states, “He did not want to feel pressured by Fatima to answer it [the phone]. Ricky wanted to ignore Cash, to pretend his cousin had not even called” (16). Ricky meets with Cash because he keeps “thinking of what Fatima said to him” (16). This shows Fatima’s influence on Ricky’s first rendezvous in the novel. When the narrator is focalized on Ricky, we understand what motivates him during the case.

            Second, Ricky’s rendezvous with Marva at her soul food restaurant is initiated by Fatima telling Ricky she is pregnant. As a consequence, he then goes to Marva’s for “comfort and nourishment” (80). In other words, because Ricky is feeling anxiety about the possibility of being a father, he decides he needs “comfort food.” While at her restaurant, Ricky figures he will ask Marva about Serena. The novel states, “it occurred to him that a visit to Marva’s place could also help in his ‘detective work’” (80). The word also shows that investigating Serena’s whereabouts was not the primary reason for Ricky’s visit, and “detective work” in quotes calls to question Ricky’s work and efforts as a detective. Here, Ricky’s rendezvous with Marva is not focused on finding Serena; his focus is Fatima. This is the “case” consistently.

            Third, the final meeting is at the carrefour between Ricky, Fatima, Cash, and Serena, and the carrefour is Ricky and Fatima’s lover’s lane. The carrefour is “the secluded, cobblestone, intersection of rue Saint Vincent and rue des Saules” (248). Ricky and Fatima call the street “our carrefour,” and it has been their name for the intersection since their first time together at the location. Initially, the rendezvous is set up for Cash and Serena. Cash states, “She [Serena] told me what she told you [Ricky] this afternoon. About the secret. Said she wants to meet in some neutral location so we can discuss a divorce settlement. Semipublic so that she feels safe. And she wants you and Fatima there as witnesses” (290). Ricky agrees to meet with Cash and Serena because Fatima is held hostage by Serena. He goes to their carrefour to protect Fatima. It is there that he protects her from gunfire the second time. This rendezvous, which is the climax of the novel, is another example of how Ricky’s actions pertaining to the detective case are motivated by his love for Fatima.
 

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