Contemporary Francophone African Writers and the Burden of Commitment

Preface

p r e fac e This book project was born of several years of collaboration through a series of roundtables and participations in panel discussions we cochaired at the African Literature Association (ALA) and the Congrès International des Etudes Francophones (CIEF). These include “Litt ératures de la postcolonialité” (Sousse, Tunisia, CIEF 2000), “Ecrire le génocide au Rwanda: Réflexions sur le projet Rwanda, Ecrire par Devoir de Mémoire” (Richmond, Virginia, U.S.A., ALA 2001), “Nouveaux regards sur la jeunesse et la ville” (Abidjan, Ivory Coast, CIEF 2002), “Nouvelles formes d’engagement au féminin” (San Diego , California, U.S.A., ALA 2002), “Ecritures de la violence dans l’Océan Indien” (New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.A., CIEF 2003), “Figurations mémorielles et histoire dans le roman africain francophone contemporain” (Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A., ALA 2005), “New Voices of Commitment in Francophone African Literature” (Accra, Ghana, ALA 2006). This is not a work where a single chapter can be attributed to one of us alone; rather it is the result of a careful process of combined readings and long-standing discussions, including on writing. This collaborative process helped us produce, we think, an original piece of scholarship based on a sustained dialogue. The authors express their gratitude to the following colleagues who generously gave of their time and critically engaged with our ideas: Susan Andrade, Elisabeth Cardonne-Arlyck, Ken Harrow, Christine Reno, David L. Schalk, and Susan Zlotnick. Conversations with the writers and critics Hamidou Dia, Boubacar Boris Diop, Emmanuel Dongala, Cheikh Hamidou Kane, and Lilyan Kesteloot have contributed to sharpen our historical understanding of engagement in its African contexts. Conversations and invited lectures with the writ- Preface x ers Mongo Beti, Tanella Boni, Ken Bugul, Tierno Monénembo, Patrice Nganang, Michèle Rakotoson, Sami Tchak, Véronique Tadjo, and Abdourahman Waberi have enabled us to discuss further what it means to be writing as a francophone African writer today, what challenges it entails, and what role and position it may spell. Many thanks to the University of Virginia Press’s Humanities Editor , Cathie Brettschneider, Susan Spilecki, and especially Teresa Jesionowski for their careful editing, Patricia Célérier’s research assistants at Vassar, Dan Lupo ’09, Caroline Hudnut ’08, Janeen Madan ’10, and Stephanie Owen ’11, and Chad Fust, Vassar College’s Technology Training Coordinator, for their help with editorial matters and attention to details. This book benefited from a 2005 Vassar College research grant (Gabrielle Snyder Beck Fund) and a 2009 award from Vassar College’s Dean’s Discretionary Fund under the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation’s Faculty Career Initiative. Finally, our heartfelt thanks to Kerry Chukwu-Onuoha for his unfailing support, to Ogemdi and Andreas for their patience, and to Théo for being there. ...