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Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Science

ISSN Online: 2576-0548 ISSN Print: 2576-0556 CODEN: JHASAY
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ArticleOpen Access http://dx.doi.org/10.26855/jhass.2026.06.007

“Reenactment” as Method: A Study on Narrative Empowerment of Postcolonial Feminism in Four Daughters

Zhongwei Wang*, Jianjun Guo

School of Journalism, Tarim University, Alar City 843300, Xinjiang, China.

*Corresponding author: Zhongwei Wang

Published: June 30, 2026

Abstract

The documentary Four Daughters by Tunisian director Kousou Ben Hania is not merely a visual exploration of family trauma but also a methodological experiment with profound theoretical awareness. Drawing on Spivak’s question, “Can the Subaltern speak?”, Foucault’s concept of “bodily discipline,” and Butler’s theory of “performativity,” the study argues that the film’s use of “reenactment” constitutes not just a narrative technique but a systematic postcolonial feminist cinematic approach. It further identifies three core mechanisms: resolving the paradox of representation through “intermediary expression,” contesting bodily sovereignty via “anti-disciplinary techniques,” and achieving “generative subject construction” through “performative practices.” Through an in-depth analysis of the film’s audiovisual language, the study demonstrates this methodology’s coherence across operational, ethical, and epistemological dimensions, while exploring its applicability to narratives involving marginalized groups and potential limitations—thus offering a responsible paradigm for knowledge production in global Southern cinema.  It further reflects on how localized critical frameworks can challenge dominant Western-centric discourse in film studies, providing theoretical references for deconstructing the existing hegemony of film criticism and promoting more inclusive, pluralistic academic dialogues around transnational cinema practice.

Keyword

Reenactment; postcolonial feminism; narrative empowerment; methodology; performative

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Copyright

© 2026 by the author(s).
This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) license, which permits non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not modified or adapted.
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

How to cite this paper

“Reenactment” as Method: A Study on Narrative Empowerment of Postcolonial Feminism in Four Daughters

How to cite this paper: Zhongwei Wang, Jianjun Guo. (2026) “Reenactment” as Method: A Study on Narrative Empowerment of Postcolonial Feminism in Four Daughters. Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Science10(6), 647-653.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.26855/jhass.2026.06.007