Les (En)jeux de la femme: conflits et (ré)solutions dans la littérature vietnamienne et sénégalaise d'expression française

Abstract

In this thesis, I analyze the female conflicts and resolutions that are represented in two Francophone Vietnamese novels - En s'écartant des ancêtres and La Réponse de l'Occident by Trinh Thuc Oanh - and two Francophone Senegalese novels - Une si longue lettre and Un Chant écarlate by Mariama Bâ. I begin with an exploration of the patriarchal constraints of Vietnamese and Senegalese societies in order to demonstrate that female oppression results in the competition between women for men and their resources. Additionally, since women are considered the bearers of culture due to their role as mothers, the introduction of Western culture through colonization creates a cultural conflict between traditional and `modern' or `Westernized' women in these societies. Despite these conflicts, I also address the authors' proposal of education and careers for women as channels through which the socio-cultural and personal liberation of Vietnamese and Senegalese women will be possible.