Faculty of Humanities School of Literature and Language Studies 0413458h edwardmooka@yahoo.com / This study explores the forms of masculinity which occur in a crisis situation as represented in Sembene Ousmane’s colonial text God’s Bits of Wood. The study relies on the theories of Robert Connell, Judith Butler, Judith Halberstam, and Ifi Amadiume amongst others in identifying the masculinities in the novel. The introduction discusses issues of masculinity and looks at how different types of masculinity have been defined, especially in relation to power. Chapter one focuses on the white hegemonic masculinities. Chapter two looks at black workers’ masculinities which were marked by opposition, complicity, and cowardice. The third chapter analyses the female masculinities and the violent boyhood masculinity that were forged during the crisis. The conclusion summarizes the arguments in the preceding chapters and indicates how Sembene Ousmane’s novel dispels certain stereotypes of black masculinity.

I declare that this research project is my own unaided work. It is submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree of Master of Arts in translation, at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, It has not been submitted before for any degree or examination at any other university. / This projeot examines Clive Wake's translation of Xala a neo-colonial French African novel by Sembene Ousmane' (1973) focusing on the manner in which the ideological content of the novel is approached and dealt with in translation. A comparison of passages in the source text chosen on the basis of their ideological contribution to the novel with the corresponding passages in this large text, forms the basis of the study. (Abbreviation abstract) / Andrew Chakane 2018

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My thesis examines the figure of the griot in five films of the Senegalese writer and film director, Ousmane Sembène, widely considered to be the "Father of African Cinema." I reevaluate the figure of the griot in Sembène‟s works from the vital place played by history. I focus on the use of the griot by Sembène to rewrite sub-Saharan African history. I compare Sembène‟s representation of history with the modern historical criteria laid out by Paul Ricoeur, Michel de Certeau and Pierre Nora. The central claim of my dissertation is that the griot should be contextualized as a historical figure that interprets memory and influences the perception of the past rather than as a mere literary and cinematic device. Current scholarship on Sembène privileges the Western interpretation of the griot, that is, the narrative aspect-the storyteller-over the more nuanced position the griot traditionally holds in West African societies. In an oral traditional culture, the griot holds a place of honor and power because of his role as a chronicler, storyteller, educator, advisor, spokesperson, historian, genealogist and guardian of traditions, history and culture. The griot knew the history of the kingdom, its foundation and the various ethnicities and communities which constituted it, as well as the history of each group. As the living receptacle of history, he had the ability to shape and influence the memories of his community, and its perception of the past. The historical aspect of the griot figure provides an unparalleled opportunity to free Sembène works from classical themes such as Marxism, Panafricanism and the father of African cinemas as well as to contribute to the debate between history and memory from a West African perspective. In order to analyze the representation of history through the figure of the griot in Sembene‟s films, I have chosen to study five films of Sembène: Black Girl (1966), Emitai (1971), Ceddo (1977), Guelwaar (1992), and Camp de Thiaroye (1987) which depict distinct periods (pre-colonial, colonial, and post-colonial) in West African history.

[pt] O colonialismo europeu teve um grande impacto nas sociedades africanas e é sentido até os dias de hoje. Mesmo com as lutas de independência no pós Segunda Guerra Mundial, o peso do domínio colonial se faz presente, especialmente no campo da cultura. A descolonização das mentes foi um desafio assumido pelos intelectuais engajados nas lutas de independência, principalmente aqueles de origem africana. O cinema se tornou uma importante ferramenta nesse processo, surgindo pela primeira vez a proposta de um Cinema Africano, no âmbito da antiga África Ocidental Francesa durante a década de 1960. Este trabalho analisa a produção cinematográfica do senegalês Ousmane Sembène durante o período supracitado. Sua proposta de cinema e sua militância influenciaram muitos artistas e intelectuais africanos, sua busca por uma estética que rejeitasse os padrões europeus e de Hollywood é considerada por muitos a fundação do que se costuma chamar de Cinema Africano. Esta dissertação tem como objetivo contribuir para a análise dos elementos que compõe essa proposta estética e o debate sobre a possibilidade de um Cinema Africano. Além disto, o trabalho se propõe ainda a se debruçar sobre a trajetória de vida de Sembène, seu processo de formação intelectual e seu exílio numa tentativa de estabelecer a conexão entre o artista formado e suas origens, através de sua biografia e suas entrevistas, investigando dessa maneira as relações sociais que deram origem ao cineasta. / [en] European colonialism had a great impact on African societies and is felt to this day. Even with the struggles for independence in the post World War II, the weight of colonial rule is present, especially in the field of culture. The decolonization of the minds was a challenge taken up by intellectuals engaged in the process of decolonization, especially those of African origin. The cinema has become an important tool in this process, appearing for the first time a proposed African Cinema, under the former French West Africa during the 1960s. This paper analyzes the cinematic of the senegalese Ousmane Sembène during the stated period. His proposal for an african cinema and his activism influenced many African artists and intellectuals, his quest for an aesthetic that rejected the European and Hollywood standards is considered by many the foundation of what is called African Cinema. This dissertation aims to contribute to the analysis of aesthetic elements that make up this proposal and the debate about the possibility of an African Cinema. In addition, the study aims to further look into the life trajectory of Sembène, the process of intellectual formation and his exile in an attempt to establish the connection between the artist and his origins, through his biography and his interviews, investigating this way the social relations that gave rise to the filmmaker.

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Text in French, with abstracts in French and English / Au lendemain des indépendances africaines, les écrivains tentent de dénoncer, sinon l’aliénation des intellectuels, du moins ce que le peuple désignait sous ce terme dans les excolonies françaises et belges. Le recours fréquent, dans la construction du récit, à la thématique de la faute de l’intellectuel se présente comme résultat d’un manquement au rôle qui lui revient. Pour mener à bien notre enquête, la théorie utilisée est l’Analyse de contenu thématique (A.C.T.) de Pierre Lannoy. Ce modèle aidera à cerner tout ce qui menace l’équilibre de l’édifice social. Cependant l’étude de l’aliénation des intellectuels a montré que l’émergence d’une crise semblable relève d’une série de causes complexes. Sa compréhension fait appel à de multiples champs scientifiques : sociologie, psychologie, économie, […] La seule solution est le compromis pour tous. C’est une vaine prétention que de vouloir établir ici un bilan exhaustif : l’étude de l’image de l’intellectuel ne peut qu’être évolutive. / In the aftermath of African independence, writers tried to denounce, if not the alienation of intellectuals, at least what people meant by this term in the former French and Belgian colonies. Frequent recourse to the theme of the fault of the intellectual in the construction of the narrative is presented as the result of a failure to fulfil the role that was assigned to him. To carry out our investigation, the theory used is Pierre Lannoy's Thematic Content Analysis (T.C.A.). This model will help to identify anything that threatens the balance of the social edifice. However, the study of the alienation of intellectuals has shown that the emergence of a similar crisis is due to a series of complex causes. Its understanding involves multiple scientific fields: sociology, psychology, economics, [...] The only solution is compromise for all. It is a vain claim to want to establish an exhaustive assessment here: the study of the image of the intellectual can only be evolutionary. / Classics and World Languages / D. Litt. et Phil. (French)

Summaries in French and English / Text in French / Les romans analyses - Une si longue lettre et Un chant ecarlate de Mariama Ba, O pays, mon beau peuple! by d'Ousmane Sembene et Agar d' Albert Memmi - proposent tous une histoire se deroulant en Afrique et ayant pour theme le mariage mixte et/ou polygame, theme particulierement riche comme foyer d'observation socioculturelle et interculturelle des milieux evoques. Le chapitre 1 cerne le theme du mariage et ses diverses configurations mixtes et polygames dans les quatre roamns. Sont examines dans les chapitres suivants: les rapports familiaux et sociaux tels qu'ils sont vecus par les couples protagonistes; la polygamie, centrale aux deux romans de Ba et omnipresente dans celui de Sembene; les religions des societes concernees, telles qu' ell es affectent les couples en jeu; les images de la femme - et surtout de la femme africaine - qui ressortent des situations conjugates developpees par les auteurs; l'eventuelle influence du sexe de l'auteur sur la representation de la femme. / The novels analysed - Une si longue lettre and Un chant ecarlate by Mariama Ba, O pays, mon beau peuple! by Ousmane Sembene and Agar by Albert Memmi - all tell stories set in Africa and share the theme of mixed and/or polygamous marriage, a particularly fertile theme through which to focus a socio-cultural and intercultural examination of the social environments portrayed. Chapter 1 identifies the theme of marriage and the various mixed/polygamous configurations it assumes in the four novels. The succeeding chapters examine: family and social relationships as experienced by the protagonists; polygamy, central to both novels by Ba and omnipresent in Sembene's novel; the religions of the societies portrayed, insofar as they affect the couples concerned; the images of woman - and particularly the Afiican woman - emerging from the marital situations developed by the authors and, finally, the possible influence of authorial gender on the presentation of woman. / Classics and Modern Euorpean Languages / M.A. (French)

Thesis--University of Helsinki, 1994. / English summary. Includes bibliographical references (p. [165]-172).

Summaries in French and English / Text in French / Les romans analyses - Une si longue lettre et Un chant ecarlate de Mariama Ba, O pays, mon beau peuple! by d'Ousmane Sembene et Agar d' Albert Memmi - proposent tous une histoire se deroulant en Afrique et ayant pour theme le mariage mixte et/ou polygame, theme particulierement riche comme foyer d'observation socioculturelle et interculturelle des milieux evoques. Le chapitre 1 cerne le theme du mariage et ses diverses configurations mixtes et polygames dans les quatre roamns. Sont examines dans les chapitres suivants: les rapports familiaux et sociaux tels qu'ils sont vecus par les couples protagonistes; la polygamie, centrale aux deux romans de Ba et omnipresente dans celui de Sembene; les religions des societes concernees, telles qu' ell es affectent les couples en jeu; les images de la femme - et surtout de la femme africaine - qui ressortent des situations conjugates developpees par les auteurs; l'eventuelle influence du sexe de l'auteur sur la representation de la femme. / The novels analysed - Une si longue lettre and Un chant ecarlate by Mariama Ba, O pays, mon beau peuple! by Ousmane Sembene and Agar by Albert Memmi - all tell stories set in Africa and share the theme of mixed and/or polygamous marriage, a particularly fertile theme through which to focus a socio-cultural and intercultural examination of the social environments portrayed. Chapter 1 identifies the theme of marriage and the various mixed/polygamous configurations it assumes in the four novels. The succeeding chapters examine: family and social relationships as experienced by the protagonists; polygamy, central to both novels by Ba and omnipresent in Sembene's novel; the religions of the societies portrayed, insofar as they affect the couples concerned; the images of woman - and particularly the Afiican woman - emerging from the marital situations developed by the authors and, finally, the possible influence of authorial gender on the presentation of woman. / Classics and Modern Euorpean Languages / M.A. (French)