Authentic violence: The changing sameness of 'real' Romani discourse in Dominic Reeve's life story. Issue 2 (November 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Shaw, Martin
• Is Part Of: Romani studies. Volume 26:Issue 2(2016)
• Page Start: 129
• Page End: 149
• Publication Date: 2016-11
• Subjects: Dominic Reeve -- life story -- Real and True Romani/traveller -- recognition -- dominant discourse -- symbolic violence; Romanies -- Periodicals; Romanies; Periodicals; 305.891497
• DOI: 10.3828/rs.2016.8
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0737-3759

Abstract

Abstract : The article focuses on the discourse of the real or true Romani/traveller in Dominic Reeve's life story, which consists of five autobiographical texts published between 1958 and 2010. Reeve defends various factions of Romanies/travellers from a real/fake dichotomy that partially dominates negotiations of recognition. This discourse changes over time from biological to bio-cultural and then to cultural, but then on to bio-genetic and finally a conflation of bio-genetic and cultural discourse. However, throughout these changes there is a structural sameness that Reeve cannot quite escape, and which casts doubt on whether the discourse actually does change. Ultimately, Reeve attempts to settle on a traveller- gauje divide, but the real/fake discourse re-emerges, thus reproducing the dominant discourse itself. During these negotiations, Reeve communicates with three seemingly competitive views of Romani/traveller identity, and in a sense re-unites them. On a more subjective level, Reeve gradually negotiates a much-desired position of group belonging for himself and this brings the life story into the frame of the bildungsroman.