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This course is intended as an introduction and exploration to the history, literary traditions and cinema of Francophone West Africa from 1945 to today. It seeks to familiarize students with the practice of reading literary texts, discussing seminal films and articulating critically informed reaction in writing. The course will focus on a selection of canonical authors and seminal films from Burkina Faso, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Mali, Mauritania and Senegal . The texts and films will provide a point of entry to the study of history, society, and culture. Historical, socio-political and cultural issues covered in the course will include: Ancient rites and oral literature, French colonization and post-colonialism, women and gender issues, childhood, immigration, the "Afropean" literature and West African Francophone countries contemporary challenges (politics and economies) with presentations on Benin, Niger and Togo today. (Cross-listed with FREN 8076).

Prerequisite(s): FREN 2120