“Son malin génie: Préparatifs pour l’infini” was first published as a preface to the work of Safaa Fathy, Egyptian poet, documentary filmmaker, playwright, and essayist on theater, poetry, and theatrical work: Safaa Fathy, Ordalie-Terreur (Brussels: Lansmann, 2004), 5–29.

Ordalie [Trial by Ordeal]: a “play” [“piece”], as one might say a little hastily, a piece of theatre.

This “play” [“piece”], in any case, is not in one piece. Rather, it would have the force, the audacity, the singularity, it would even run the risk of smashing everything to pieces [de mettre tout en pieces]. That would be its genius, or even, we’ll really have to get into this later, its evil genius [son malin génie], a genius for evil [un génie du mal], no doubt— but a genius that uses its ingenuity [s’ingénie] in order to indict evil itself, evil everywhere. Indicting evil itself, as one takes a blow, summoning it to appear in an unprecedented trial, the evil genius, then, shatters everything to pieces [met tout en pieces].

To begin with the play [piece] itself, you and me. Like any trial by ordeal [ordalie] worthy of its name, it judges us, all of us, both you and me.

But if, from such an Ordalie, no one came out quits, acquitted or unscathed, this would perhaps be the condition for finally seeing innocence appear. In order to think this innocence, reaffirm it, and put it into a theatrical work, at last, albeit without any guarantees, even if it were to be in the undeniable form of an “as if.”