FREN 407 - Francophone Studies

Les Voix du Sud (Fall 2012)

This course is an introduction to francophone literature––specifically that of the sub-Saharan region––through literary, cultural, and political issues. By drawing from African text (poetry, theater, novels, and essays) and film, the course seeks to retrace several significant periods that have influenced African francophone literature to this day. The course will focus on four key axes:

The first axis is that of “traditional African oral literature” from the pre-colonial period and the translation of these oral works into French. We begin by visiting pre-colonial “oral” literature and its transcription into French translations by discussing the concept of literature in its relationship to the written and the oral, as well as the relationship of the author and the translator. The second axis explores from the beginnings of a “written” literature until the 1950s based on the revaluation of traditional African cultures and a critique of colonization. This angle will essentially be organized around works of negritude and its critique. The third axis is the “disenchantment” of African independence and the denunciation of African dictators. This aspect covers works from the 1960s to the 1980s. Finally, the fourth axis, from the 1990s to the present, is studied from two orientations: francophone literature from the African Diaspora––”migritude”––and post-genocide literature.

In addition to African films and several excerpts from texts, we study Le Pauvre Christ de Bomba by Mongo Beti, Le soleil des Indépendances by Kourouma, Le ventre d’Atlantique by Fatou Diome, and Murambi by Boris Diop. We invite writers and specialists in francophone African literature.
 

  Prerequisite(s): FREN 306  or permission of the instructor. (4 Credits)