Topics in African Francophone History

3 units

This course seeks to demonstrate how the French colonial administration conceptualized empire in West and Central Africa, and further examines how various African populations responded to the politics of language, culture, and assimilation throughout Francophone Africa. Beginning with the Berlin Conference (1884-1885) and an introduction to Senegal, one of France's oldest colonies (1891-1960), this course uses oral historical accounts of African participation in both world wars. It also highlights U.N. imperialism in Central Africa-beginning with the trusteeship of Cameroun, culminating with the assassination of Patrice Lumumba, and subsiding with the Belgian Congo's second independence. It ends with a discussion of topical themes in political science discourse such as democratization, development, globalization, and human rights.