Reconstructing Force-Bonté’s path to publication: an “assisted” foundational text reassessed

Abstract

I argue for a re-evaluation of Bakary Diallo’s pre-Négritude Force-Bonté by reconstructing the steps that led to its publication and the ensuing debate surrounding its authorship among scholars of early African literature texts in French. Building on recent research, this article is based on archival research relating to the origins and development of Diallo’s autobiography. I also examine disputes about its authenticity that emerged during the period which saw the growth of Francophone African Literature into a distinct field of inquiry. My examination of archival records and correspondence sheds light on the nature of the assistance that Lucie Cousturier, the book’s presumed ghost-writer, and others offered Diallo. I aim to show that the document-based research offers justification for an alternative understanding of the role played by both Bakary Diallo and Lucie Cousturier in the publication of the autobiography.