This virtual course will introduce students to contemporary women’s writing of West Africa (Senegal and Ivory Coast, notably). We will first situate the works within the broader context of literature by women in Sub-Saharan Africa and within their respective national contexts. Through the study of a graphic novel about growing up in 1970s Abidjan (the capital of Ivory Coast), a parable woven around the 2013 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, and the story of one woman’s journey to selfhood, we will examine some of the diverse issues West African women writers have been grappling with over the last three decades. While the primary texts were originally published in French, we will be studying them in their English translation. Students have the option of reading the works in the original French. While not a typical Study Abroad course in African Studies, this year’s iteration will nonetheless include experiential elements such as virtual visits of geographical sites and interaction with individuals “on the ground”. In addition, at least one of the writers whose work we are studying will join us for a session as a special guest.
