Folklore in Ousmane Sembène's Tribal Scars and Other Stories

We continue with the topic of folklore in modern African literature this week with “Tribal Scars and Other Stories”, a collection of short stories by Senegalese film director, producer, screenwriter, actor and author: Ousmane Sembène. The collection was originally published as  “Voltaique” in French in 1962. It was translated to English and published again in 1974, and has remained a classic text of African literature ever since.

The most interesting thing about the collection is that aside from one story which is a retelling of a folktale well known in the Muslim world, the book is curiously devoid of any folklore! I speculate on some reasons why and get a good chuckle in over some of the author’s childhood antics.

(As if protesting the slander of her people, you might hear my cat being very loud and demanding in the background! Sorry! She’s a cranky sweetheart!)

Monument to Ousmane Sembène in Dakar, Senegal (Image Credit)

Meanwhile…

Have you heard? “The Watkins Book of African Folklore” or the “Mythological Africans Book”, is now available for preorder! Click image for preordering options!

Not ready to preorder? Tell someone about the MA Book!

Can’t Get Enough?

• “The Community” is a folktale retold in Tribal Scars and Other Stories. Other versions of the story can be found in:

  • The Pilgrim Cat from Ahmed Al-Shahi’s 1978 book, “Wisdom from the Nile: A Collection of Folk-Stories from Northern and Central Sudan”.

  • The Medicine Chest from Enènge A'Bodjedi's Ndòwé Tales from Equatorial Guinea

• Read: Nigeria's facial scars: The last generation

• Read: Ousmane Sembène Cinematic Revolutionary

• Read: Close Up on Ousmane Sembène (includes a list of his films)

• Watch: Ousmane Sembène’s Black Girl (French version with English Subtitles)