Evelyn

Introduction

I'm Evelyn and I'm in my final semester at Dawson in the Languages program. Like the majority of people in this program, I enjoy learning about culture and languages. I am particularly interested in foreign languages and applied linguistics and I am hoping to study abroad in Europe someday. My target language at the moment is German, but I have also done a bit of Spanish and Hungarian.

I first became interested in languages when I saw the film L'Auberge espagnole (2002). It follows the lives of students from all around Europe sharing an apartment together in Barcelona on an exchange program. Despite language barriers and cultural differences, they all get along and their household is a very warm and welcoming place. This movie is what inspired me to learn more about other cultures and languages and the reason I want to eventually study abroad.

L'Auberge espagnole (2002)

Topic

The Role of French as Colonial Language in Africa

Focusing primarily on french colonies, I am aiming to explore the use of the french language in Africa. This includes the influence of French culture in these colonies and the attitudes held towards French as a colonial language as well as linguistic, social, and political phenomenons related to it. In order to do this, I will also go through France's history within these colonies and how they managed to colonize these places as well as how these countries got their independence.

The reason this topic interests me is because I want to learn more about francophone culture around the world. Since French is so prominent and influential in Quebec, I think it is important to learn about Francophonie from all over the world to get a better understanding of how this language has influenced the world and how the cultures it has affected have influenced the language as well.

Sources

Source #1

Boussougou, Sosthène and Karim Menacere. The Impact of French on the African Vernacular Languages: For Better or for Worse? Gabon As a Case Study. E-book, Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. 2015.

This book is written by linguistic researcher and author of The Theory of Languages Sosthène Boussougou as well as Karim Menacere who has ties to Liverpool John Moores University. The goal of this book is to explore the politics and place of the French language in post-colonial African countries, specifically Gabon which is one of the 17 countries that made French the national language after their independence.

Focus on chapter 2, 3, 4, 6, and 7

French West Africa post WW2

Black: French Republic

Green: French West Africa

Grey: Other French colonies

Source #2

"France in Africa" Boundless World History, Lumen Leaning, Pressbooks. courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-worldhistory/chapter/france-in-africa/ Accessed 19 February 2020.

This website provides an educational history of France's colonialism in West Africa and Maghreb and includes a section on the assimilation policies of colonial France in these regions. Focusing primarily on Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, and Senegal, it gives an overview of how France came to power in these countries and how they came to gain independence. This happened mostly due to the needs of native citizens to have economic and political representation and consideration, particularly because France prioritized white Europeans and pieds-noirs within certain colonies. It also describes the French laws on citizenship for natives of the colonies, which required the citizens to assimilate and maintain french cultures and traditions. In addition, the article explains how France organized the colonies and their government, separating the regions into what they referred to as a cercle. Each cercle was governed by a commander under the lieutenant governor of the colony, who then reported to the Governor General in Dakar. The cercles were also divided into cantons consisting of several towns or cities and were appointed chiefs who were generally locals and were in charge of enforcing the french "customary law" as well as collecting taxes.


Senegal

The four oldest colonial towns in French-controlled West-Africa, referred to as the four communes, were all in Senegal: Dakar, Saint-Louis, Gorée, and Rufisque. In 1848 during the 2nd French republic, citizens of these towns were granted

full French citizenship, however there remained barriers that prevented the full exercise of their rights. Moreover, the citizens of these towns who pursued higher education received voting rights along with their citizenship. However, they faced discrimination because the French viewed them as the "African elite" and referred to them as "évolués" but did not consider them to be "full" French citizens due to racial prejudice. This left them ostracized from the culture they were forced into.


Algeria

The French invaded and conquered Algeria between 1830 and 1847. Famine and disease were prominent during the war and it led to deaths of approximately 500,000 and 1 million Algerians. While Algeria was under the French rule,

it became a popular destination for European immigrants (pieds-noirs) and its Mediterranean coast was even considered a part of the metropole. The majority of the population remained Muslim and/or Berber which eventually led to the population wanting economic and political representation as well as independence from France. Tensions grew and the Algerian War started in 1954, ending in 1962 with the Évian Accords and a referendum leading to Algerian independence.

Tunisia

Prior to French occupation, Tunisia, like Algeria, belonged to the Ottoman Empire while maintaining independent rule. Tunisian control was given to France in exchange for Cyprus during the Berlin Congress of 1878. Tunisia was seen as a means to make up for the violent way France had colonized Algeria and instead France focused on modernizing the region. Tunisia had already begun modern reforms however these projects were postponed until France provided financial aid,

improving infrastructure, public health, transportation, administration, and industry. Despite these improvements, French citizens and business were prioritized over locals, causing an independence movement to form among natives. The movement gained strength throughout the first half of the 20th century and led to the creation of the Republic of Tunisia in 1956.

Morocco

Tunisia was the model for the colonial policies used in Morocco. The French protectorate was instilled in 1912 with the Treaty of Fez and it allowed for Morocco to remain a sovereign state. Because Morocco was colonized in the 20th century, the French did not use their usual assimilation methods. Instead, urban planning and colonial education were used to prevent cultural mixing as this was seen as upholding French societal standards. Due to Morocco's tradition of independence, France tried preventing it from heading

towards autonomy. One of the pacific methods used to keep control was the promotion of economic development by the French government. They built a new transportation system and began a modern agricultural sector. France was pressured by colonists investing in these agricultural lands to increase control of Morocco but this failed and Morocco's independence was obtained after negotiation in 1956.

Source #3

Hale, Thomas A. "The Manifeste des Quarante-Quatre, Francophonie, la françafrique and Africa: from the politics of culture to the culture of politics." International Journal of Francophone Studies, Vol. 12, Iss. 2/3, 2009, pp.171-201.

This article is centered around Francophonie and the important role that French Africa plays, for example in the OIF where they make up biggest and most influencial voting block. It starts off by explaining the history of French in Africa before the colonial era in France. Trading was being done in Senegal which caused a fraction of the population to acquire knowledge of the French language. This included maîtres-langues who would help translate during trades, new Christian followers who had learned French from missionaries, and native women of Senegal who were referred to as signares and would take care of the French men during their stay in Senegal, acting essentially as a wife. These were the first people to acquire French before the colonial French era which put in place a francophone education system. In these schooling systems, the use of native African languages was prohibited and they were referred to as dialects in order to instill the idea that they represented a "lower" civilization in comparison to French which belonged to a "higher" civilization. Additionally, an important factor that contributed to French spreading in Africa was the recruit of African soldiers by France during the World Wars. As a part of their training, they were educated in French which led to approximately 350 000 Africans learning French.

Source #4

Horne, Janet. "To Spread the French Language Is to Extend the Patrie." French Historical Studies, Vol. 40, Iss. 1, February 2017, pp. 95-127.

This academic article was written by Janet Horne, a faculty member at the University of Virginia in the French Language and Literature department. The article focuses on the Alliance Française and its role within French colonies, from colonial education implementation and imperial dominance to a diverse network of French cultural relations. The history of the Alliance Française is usually shown as international friendship, patriotism, and the beginning of francophonie through the collective love of French and France. However many countries were forced to adopt French language and culture through the French colonial and imperial regime and this version of the Alliance's history erases the french colonial past. In 1883, the goals of the Alliance Française were political and they aimed to use language and culture as tools for colonial expansion, part of the french civilizing mission which used France as the ideal for republican progress and as an example for superior culture. World renowned figures such as author Jules Vernes used their status to promote France's national and imperial image of grandeur.

The Alliance Française also funded a great deal of schools abroad in African colonies, which increased the populations' exposure to French and helped cement France's influence on the colonies.

Source #5

Michelman, Frederic. "French and British Colonial Language Policies: A Comparitive View of Their Impact on African Literature." Research in African Literatures, Vol. 26 Issue 4, 1995, p.216-225.

The article begins by explaining the importance of the French language to French identity, and how this was a key factor in the assimilation of French colonies because it is a major factor of French culture. The British colonial language policies encouraged education in the colonies to be done in the native language, partly to keep a differentiation between the colonies and the European colonizers. In comparison, the French linguistic policies oppressed the native African languages because the Catholic education was one that encouraged linguistic and cultural centrism. In addition, most anglophone African literature has adapted the English language to African speech patterns, which gives the text more authenticity in its representation of the African culture of its basis. French African literature on the other hand is unable to do this in part due to the rigidity of French language acquisition and use in the educational systems of the colonial era. The use of African languages in French colonial education systems was strongly prohibited and regulated and any adaptation of French to African languages was considered a "desecration" of the language.

Source #6

This educational video provides insight on France's current relationship with its ex-colonies in Africa. It notes the difference between British and French colonial regimes and the methods their ex-colonies used to gain independence. While independence was gained in the British colonies through violence, the majority of French colonies gained independence without resorting to violence which has helped keep ties between them and France. During the end of the French Empire, it was believed that keeping these links with the ex-colonies would benefit France geo-politically. They created the CFA (Colonies françaises d'Afrique) and provided 14 of their recently independent ex-colonies with a Franc Monetary system which helped these countries develop a better economy. However, in

exchange for this, they required that 50% of foreign exchange reserves be deposited in the French Treasury and an added 20% for financial liability. This system seriously affected African countries by depriving them of their wealth.

Essay Structure

Thesis statement: France’s influence on Africa during its colonial era promoted the unification of the regions under one language and culture, however the language policies put in place oppressed the native African populations.

1. French colonial language policies repressed the native cultures in order to achieve assimilation and increase France’s global power and influence. France’s colonial era aimed to enable imperial power.

    • The history of France’s imperialism and colonial era in Africa.
    • The influence of France in French organizations such as the OIF and the Alliance Française and how it affects Francophonie.

2. The propagation of French culture in the colonies was done mainly through language.

    • Encouraged assimilation of French language and culture while repressing native cultures.
    • The Alliance Française financed French schools and libraries throughout the colonies to encourage the idea that French was the language of intellect and opportunity.

3. Since the independence of the colonies, France as well as French language and culture continue to have a remarkable influence on the regions.

    • Neocolonialism and French influence after the independence of colonies
    • Interventionism: French involvement in African politics

Self-Assessment

Overall, I think I could have probably applied myself more to the research and to my topic. It ended up being a lot more political than I expected but unfortunately, I couldn’t leave that aspect out because the politics are key to France’s influence on Africa during the French colonial era as well as in present day through neocolonialism. I know I might have enjoyed researching another topic over the one that I chose, but I believe that as a French speaker living somewhere where French is an official language and that has a history of French colonialism, it is important to be informed on the ways French has influenced the world, particularly because the French colonial era ended less than 100 years ago. A lot of the sources I found were repeated similar information or had to do with France’s colonialism in regions other than Africa. I also found many sources about African politics that were unrelated to France (such as socialism in the Democratic Republic of Congo), which made it harder to find new interesting sources with different takes on the subject of France in Africa. I’m sure that if I had used more sources than primarily the Dawson Library resources, I could have found more. The final essay was still easy to write because within the sources I did find, there was valuable information about the history and the current politics of France in Africa. The blog definitely helped keep track of sources, but overall it represents a small fraction of the information I gathered from the sources, most of which I wrote in my own personal notebook, but which I do not feel is organized or fully relevant enough to share on the blog, but which has certainly been included in the final essay. Although I think my classmates’ blogs are more visually appealing and rich in information, I like that my blog is straightforward and conveys the research directly without too many frills and personal information. I did however have many issues with changing the visual theme of my blog (it would continuously not save the colour changes!) and eventually decided to leave it black with varying colours in between sources.