Ousmane Diop Socé (October 31, 1911, Rufisque, Senegal, French West Africa – October 27, 1973,

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The Departments of Senegal, department of Dakar has a population of 1,278,469, and the population of the Dakar metropolitan area was at 4.0 mill ...

, Senegal) was a writer, politician, and one of the first

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

ese novelists.

Biography

He attended a Qur'anic school, and later entered into the colonial school system, from which he would become one of the first African students to receive a scholarship to study at a French university. He studied veterinary medicine, during which time he had two novels published in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France: ''Karim'' (1935) and ''Mirages de Paris'' (1937). The former expressed a concern of Socé's where young Africans would face problems moving from rural to urban areas, while in the latter he incorporated his own experiences in writing about the tragic love story of a Senegalese student and a French woman."Socé, Ousmane." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2006. Like that of other early Senegalese novelists, his writing was heavily influenced by his French counterparts—inventing a plot and leading their characters into various sorts of adventures. They also borrowed techniques such as dialogue, flashbacks, and stream of consciousness. Socé later wrote a number of animal and historical tales in his ''Contes et légendes d'Afrique noire'' (1942; "Stories and Legends of Black Africa"), which he drew from Senegalese oral tradition. He founded the magazine ''Bingo'' in 1953, and in 1956 had ''Rythmes du Khalam'', a volume of poetry, published. Socé served in the

French Senate The Senate (, ) is the upper house of the French Parliament, with the lower house being the National Assembly (France), National Assembly, the two houses constituting the legislature of France. It is made up of 348 senators (''sénateurs'' and ...

from 1946 to 1952 and in the Sénat de la Communauté from 1959 to 1961. He also served as Senegal's ambassador to the United States and delegate to the

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. However, he was forced to retire in 1968 due to increasing blindness.

Notes

1911 births 1973 deaths Ambassadors of Senegal to the United States Government ministers of Senegal People from Rufisque People of French West Africa Permanent representatives of Senegal to the United Nations Senators of French West Africa Senegalese novelists Senegalese poets {{Senegal-diplomat-stub