Hôtel La Fêlure: A work of fictocriticism

“Hôtel La Fêlure” is a work of fictocriticism in the form of a short story. In the piece’s auto-critical introduction, the author explains that, after a visit to Marrakech, Morocco, in early 2023, he conducted preliminary research on Moroccan male sexuality in advance of a return visit. Along the way, he viewed The Blue Caftan, a Morocco-set film directed by Maryam Touzani, and read L’amour Fait Loi (Love Lays Down the Law), a Morocco-based essay collection edited by Pierre Pascual. Rather than write a scholarly essay on the film, his first inclination, he created “Hôtel La Fêlure”. In the short story, Benjamin and a cast of Moroccan characters, who lodge in the eponymous hotel, watch and analyse The Blue Caftan through the lens of a fictional lecture on Moroccan male sexuality. Over the course of their conversation, the characters occasionally ventriloquize lines from L’amour Fait Loi.