Ousmane Socé Diop

Socé Diop, Ousmane (1911-73). Senegalese novelist and poet, belonging to the generation of young black intellectuals who founded the négritude movement in Paris in the inter-war years. His pioneering first novel, Karim, roman sénégalais (1935) (awarded the Grand Prix Littéraire d'Afrique Occidentale, 1947), introduces into African fiction the theme of the African at the crossroads of two civilizations, attempting without success to preserve traditional values in a rapidly changing urban situation. The social scene is closely observed and the hero's dilemmas and vicissitudes described with a certain detachment leavened with humour. His second novel, Mirages de Paris (1937), is the progenitor of a long line of semi-autobiographical works dealing with the ‘Negro in Paris’ theme, including the emotional involvements of the déraciné hero with white women. Long passages of philosophical and moralizing discussion reduce the protagonists to marionnettes, acting out a roman à thèse. He published a collection of tales, heroic legends, and folk-fables, Contes et légendes d'Afrique noire (1938), drawn from his country's oral heritage. Like Birago Diop, he claims to be the faithful scribe of the griot, singing the chansons de geste of Africa to the accompaniment of his guitar or khalam. His poems are entitled Rythmes du khalam (1948). In Dakar he founded the literary magazine Bingo as a vehicle for his compatriots' poems and short stories.

[Dorothy Blair]

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)