Fatou Diome (born 1968 in Niodior) is a
French-
Senegalese
Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
writer known for her best-selling novel ''The Belly of the Atlantic'', which was published in 2001. Her work explores immigrant life in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
, and the relationship between France and Africa. Fatou Diome lives in
Strasbourg, France.
Biography
Fatou Diome was born in
Niodior on the island of the same name in the
Sine-Saloum
Sine-Saloum is a region in Senegal located north of the Gambia and south of the Petite Côte. It encompasses an area of 24,000 square kilometers, about 12% of Senegal, with a population in the 1990s of 1,060,000.
The western portion contains the ...
Delta. She was raised by her grandmother and went to school and became passionate about French literature. At the age of 13 she left Niodior and continued her education in
M'Bour
M'Bour or Mbour ( ar, مبور; Wolof: ''Mbuur''), is a city in the Thiès Region of Senegal. It lies on the Petite Côte, approximately eighty kilometers south of Dakar. It is home to a population of nearly 233,000 (2013 census).
The city's ma ...
. Later she moved to
Dakar
Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from :wo:daqaar, daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar ...
to study at the university, supporting herself by working as a housekeeper.
In 1990, she married a Frenchman and moved to
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
. Rejected by her traditional
Serer family and by his family, she divorced two years later. In 1994 Diome moved to
Strasbourg to study at the
University of Strasbourg
The University of Strasbourg (french: Université de Strasbourg, Unistra) is a public research university located in Strasbourg, Alsace, France, with over 52,000 students and 3,300 researchers.
The French university traces its history to the ea ...
. The title of her Ph.D. thesis was ''Le Voyage, les échanges et la formation dans l'œuvre littéraire et cinématographique de
Ousmane Sembène
Ousmane Sembène (; 1 January 1923 or 8 January 1923 – 9 June 2007), often credited in the French style as Sembène Ousmane in articles and reference works, was a Senegalese film director, producer and writer. The ''Los Angeles Times'' consider ...
'' (Voyage, Exchanges, and Education in the Literary and Cinematographic Work of Ousmane Sembène).
From 2002 to 2003, Diome was a part-time lecturer at
Marc Bloch University The University Marc Bloch, also known as Strasbourg II or UMB was a university in Strasbourg, Alsace, France. As of 2006, it had around 13,000 students. Its name used to be ''Université des Sciences Humaines'' (University of Social Sciences), but i ...
, Strasbourg, and at the Institute of Pedagogy of
Karlsruhe
Karlsruhe ( , , ; South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the third-largest city of the German state (''Land'') of Baden-Württemberg after its capital of Stuttgart and Mannheim, and the 22nd-largest city in the nation, with 308,436 inhabitants. ...
(Germany).
From September 2004 to November 2006, she presented the cultural and literary television program ''Nuit Blanche'' (Sleepless night) on the French channel
France 3 Alsace.
["Fatou Diome - An author from Senegal writing in French", Reading Women Writers and African Literatures.]
/ref>
Works
Diome published a collection of short stories, ''La Préférence nationale'', in 2001. Her first novel, ''The Belly of the Atlantic'' (french: Le Ventre de l'Atlantique) became a bestseller in France and is published in English by Serpent's Tail
Serpent's Tail is London-based independent publishing firm founded in 1986 by Pete Ayrton. It specialises in publishing work in translation, particularly European crime fiction. In January 2007, it was bought by a British publisher Profile Book ...
. Her first novel was partly autobiographical and is about Salie, a Senegalese immigrant living in Strasbourg, and her younger brother Madicke, who stayed behind in Senegal. After years of struggle Salie has finally arrived and settled in France. Her younger brother dreams of following her to France and becoming a successful football player. ''The Belly of the Atlantic'' was translated into English, German and Spanish. Her second novel, ''Kétala'', was published in 2006 in France.
Diome's work explores France and Senegal, and the relationship between the two countries. Her style is influenced by the traditional oral literature of Africa. Her language is authentic and vivid, and it traces a portrait of the difficulties of integrating in France as an immigrant, mixed with nostalgia and memories of a childhood in Senegal.
Political views
Fatou Diome rebels against intolerant people, she defends the role of the school and Republicanism
Republicanism is a political ideology centered on citizenship in a state organized as a republic. Historically, it emphasises the idea of self-rule and ranges from the rule of a representative minority or oligarchy to popular sovereignty. It ...
.
Faced with the rise of populism, Fatou Diome is regularly invited to share her point of view on political and social issues on television media or press. In particular, she takes a strong position against the rise of populism in France with the “ Rassemblement National”. As a writer, in her books, she wishes to remind people of the importance of republican and human values because she believes that “when facing people who are obsessed with national identity, we must no longer remain silent”.
Diome pursues the subject of debt and neoliberalization in "Le ventre de l'Atlantique" (2003) and "Celles qui attendent" (2010). In both works, debt is used to defend austerity measures and drive immigrants to pursue jobs in other countries under precarious conditions.
Diome also runs messages for a more egalitarian cooperation between Europe and Africa. She believes that, at the moment, Europe is controlling an unequal cooperation where Africa has no control on its assets. She also defends the idea that the former colonial power relationship remains persistent on each African and European people, which prevents this cooperation from being more egalitarian. She thinks that everyone, regardless of their origin, “should feel human being when facing another human being”. Therefore, without placing more responsibility on one continent than on the other, Fatou Diome proclaims the need for Africans to free themselves from their victim status and for Europeans to give up their dominant position in order to put an end to exploiting/exploited, donor/recipient schemes. Finally, the author specifies that helping people means helping them not to need you any longer, denouncing the development aid set up by Western countries in Africa among others.
Bibliography
* (short stories). Paris/Dakar: , March 16, 2001.
* (novel). Paris: Anne Carrière, August 20, 2003. .
**Translated as ''The Belly of the Atlantic''. London: Serpent's Tail, September 4, 2006.
* (novel). Paris: Flammarion, March 10, 2006.
* ''Inassouvies, nos vies'' ur unfulfilled lives(novel). Paris: Flammarion, 2008. .
* ''Le vieil homme sur la barque'' (autobiographical). Paris: naïve, 2010. (46p.). .
* ''Celles qui attendent'' (novel). Paris: Flammarion, 2010. .
*''Mauve'', récit, Éditions Flammarion, 2010.
*''Impossible de grandir'', novel, Éditions Flammarion, 2013.
*''Marianne porte plainte!'', essai, Éditions Flammarion, 2017.
*''Les veilleurs de Sangomar'', novel, Albin Michel, 2019.
References
External links
Review of ''Le Ventre de l’Atlantique''
* Emily Brady
"Out of Africa, Hot in France", ''Time'' magazine, December 7, 2003.
*[http://aflit.arts.uwa.edu.au/revieweng_diome09.html Jean-Marie Volet: "NOT TO BE MISSED, ''Le ventre de l'Atlantique'', a novel by Fatou Diome", September 2009, The University of Western Australia/School of Humanities]
fr
Interviews
Interview with Fatou Diome at Grioo
* ttp://aflit.arts.uwa.edu.au/AMINAdiome2006_2.html Interview with Diome by Wanda Nicot about ''Ketala'' at AminaReviews
Bi Kacou Parfait Diandue: ''LE VENTRE DE L’ATLANTIQUE, METAPHORE AQUATIQUE D’UN MIRAGE: IDEAL BRISE DE L’AILLEURS?'' in
http://ethiopiques.refer.sn/
Cheick SAKHO: ''CITOYENNETE UNIVERSELLE : LA QUETE OBSEDANTE D’UNE IDENTITE DANS LE VENTRE DE L’ATLANTIQUE''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Diome, Fatou
Serer writers
Senegalese women writers
21st-century Senegalese writers
Senegalese emigrants to France
1968 births
Living people
Senegalese novelists