Biography and Colonial Discourse in 'French West Africa
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3652584 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Alioune Sow (0000-0003-3125-5279, University of West Florida, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2004 |
| Volume | 30 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 69-83 |
| Publication date | 2004-06-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Social Dynamics (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0253-3952 • E-ISSN: 1940-7874 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/02533950408628662 |
| OpenAlex | W2136852857 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 4 |
There are several biographies of West African leaders located in diaries and memoirs written by influential agents of the French colonization. Such location signals a specific narrative display characterized by the subordination of the biographies to narratives that, in general, celebrate the French historical and political experience in Africa. The investigation of such narratives exposes distorted interpretations of African historical figures and reveals a colonial biography of persuasion. For instance, the analysis of the biography of Ahmadou, last king of the Tukulor Empire, located in Méniaud's Les Pionniers du Soudan discloses a specific biographical strategy that aims to demonize the West African leader in order to impose a discourse of colonial necessity. To do so the biographer adopts a biographical mode of presentation articulated around adversarial references such as Islam and animism, or debatable cultural codes of practice
Ancient history · Art · Biography · Colonialism · Empire · Literature · Narrative · Political science · Politics · African history and culture studies · Historical Studies and Socio-cultural Analysis · History · Law · North African History and Literature
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |