The French Language:
identity, diversity and
changing environments.
Lectures 4 and 5
Michaelmas term 2012
The construction of postcolonial identities in
Francophone Africa


Most of the Francophone African countries are
close to celebrating almost 50 years of
independence.
France continues to play a dominant role in
French-speaking Africa.
Background



Area known as Francophone Africa is made up
of :
14 West and Central African states, formerly
part of France’s colonial empire
3 Central African states formerly under Belgian
rule, that have retained French as their national
language

Most of Francophone Africa was brought into
existence in its present form as a result of :
French conquest
 European hegemonic practice
 Colonial rule




French minister of the colonies in Paris (Ministre
des colonies) was legally responsible for their
administration.
However, le gouverneur général was the central
figure of the French colonial administration.
He was the governor of each federal unit.

Although the official goal of French
administrative policy was to assimilate all
Africans by making them equal citizens of the
French empire, the overall colonial system was
despotic and segregated.


Oppressive and exploitative colonial rule lasted
for more than 70 years.
This was challenged by World War II.
Language and identity in
Francophone Africa

A striking feature of Francophone Africa is that
in the majority of countries that make it up,
French is not a vernacular but a second language
for its users.


The following situations are characteristic of a
great many ‘French-speaking’ countries in
Africa:
Functional distinction between French and
other languages

Use of French for specific and distinctive
purposes.
French and the vernacular


‘division of labour’
between French and
vernacular languages:
Characterise in a few
words the differences
between the two
functions
French
Vernacular
Legal
document
TV news
bulletin
Literary
discourse
Obituary of
national
hero
Family
conversation
Folk tale
Workmates
telling jokes
Angry
customer in
market
Division of labour between French
and vernacular languages
Group the following situations into:
(a)
(b)
(c)
those where a vernacular would seem
appropriate
those where French would be
preferable, and
those where a case could be made for
either:
Division of labour between French
and vernacular languages
University lecture, election slogan, secret meeting of
terrorist group, National Anthem, letter to a
government department, televised speech by state
president, school maths lesson, tutorial at university,
job interview, quarrel between two motorists, gossiping
locals in street-corner bar, family reunion, conversation
between school friends, school staff meeting
Division of labour between French
and vernacular languages

This kind of functional differentiation between
co-existing languages in the same speech
community is called diglossia.
Diglossia

High and low language.
Thinking about diglossia….

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
Why, in Belgium and Switzerland, is the
relationship of French to the other national
languages not a diglossic one?
What about the French-English relationships in
Quebec?
Why do the Bruxellois form a bilingual but not a
diglossic community?
Low and High language


Every citizen of a diglossic society knows a
vernacular or Low (L) language.
Not everyone will know a high variety.

In a diglossic society, what do you think are the
disadvantages of being monolingual in L (or
conversely the advantages of being bilingual).


diglossia is a characteristic feature of erstwhile
French colonies where French remains a foreign
language for the local population
there are wide differences between these
countries in other aspects of language use and
status.
The Maghreb (particularly Algeria)


French colonial expansion in North Africa dates
from the 1830’s.
The three departments of Alger, Constantine
and Oran were added to the 89 metropolitan
departments of France.

In Tunisia (1881) and Morocco (1912)
protectorates were established which enabled
these states to preserve a degree of national
autonomy.


It also served an important vehicular function in
business and technology
In addition, it was the vernacular language of
around a million European settlers in Algeria
(pieds-noir).

A policy of arabization was introduced in all
three countries.
Arabisation



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Arabisation is closely linked with the ideological and
political struggle currently taking place in Algeria: (2)
To speak of replacing French by Arabic is to
oversimplify
the vernacular varieties spoken in the Maghreb are very
different from standardised literary Arabic
this is the official language elsewhere in the Arab world.
(3)
Arabe dialectal

arabe dialectal isn’t even the native language of all
Algerians (4)
Status of French

For many in the Maghreb, French represents an
essential link with the modern, secular world. (5)
Morocco: psycholinguistic
test:different ‘thought worlds’

Respondents 80 bilinguals (F: 38, M: 42)
Morocco: psycholinguistic
test:different ‘thought worlds’
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6 weeks later – given same sentences in the other
language and again asked to complete them.
Some = given French versions first and some the
Arabic ones.
Completed sentences

Sentence 1: One needs a good job
Completed sentences

Sentence 2: Rich people can afford
Completed sentences

Sentence 3: The future depends on
Completed sentences

Sentence 4: A woman without children
Completed sentences

Sentence 5: My aim in life is
Completed sentences

Sentence 6: One needs a good job
Completed sentences

Sentence 7: When we have guests,
What cultural values and attitudes do French
and Arabic respectively appear to represent for
these bilingual speakers?