Epic
Janjon et autres chants populaires du Mali
Not translated into English
Massa Makan Diabaté · 1970
Synopsis
A collection of epic and popular songs from the savannah countries, rendered into French by a descendant of the griots who sang them. The song that gives it its title belongs to the Sundiata cycle: a dance of heroes, reserved for whoever has killed a lion, an elephant, a buffalo or a man, it is linked to the memory of Fakoli, nephew of Soumaoro who went over to Sundiata's camp, whose rise and trials against the king's enemies the book retraces.
Context
The collection was published by Présence africaine in 1970, the same year as a version of the Sundiata epic published by the author with the Éditions populaires of Bamako. It is one of his first transpositions of Malinke oral tradition; he would give others, including an epic of Sundiata in 1975, before turning to the novel. The title song occupies pages 43 to 52. Présence africaine reissued it in 1997.
Who it is for
A brief collection of songs translated into French; it helps to know a little of the epic of the founder of the empire, to which the title song is linked.
Prizes and reception
Grand prix littéraire d'Afrique noire in 1971, the first international distinction of its author.
Sources for this page 4
The pages consulted to check this page.