Thursday-Saturday, 13-15 July, 2006.

Keynote speakers:
The following have confirmed their participation:
Michel Beniamino
Jean-Louis Joubert
Norbert Dodille
CarpaninMarimoutou
Vinesh Hookoomsing
Khal Torabully

The literatures and cultures of the Francophone Indian Ocean - Madagascar, Mauritius, Réunion, the Seychelles, the Comoros - have not been widely studied in the Anglophone world. This workshop is intended to draw attention to the relevance of their multi-cultural and multi-ethnic cultures through their abundant literary and analogous productions. The notions of 'diasporas, migrations and identities' correspond to the foundational experiences of the region, where populations of diverse origins - African, Arab, European, Indian, Chinese, South-East Asian - have come together to produce new cultural forms and experiences which reflect current postcolonial themes such as hybridity and métissage.

The region has produced a substantial literature since the 18th century, and in recent times has diversified its cultural output to include popular theatre, world music and bande dessinée. Although French has been the dominant language of the region, literatures in Creole, Malagasy, Hindi and English have also been developed. The influence of French and British cultural institutions have combined with other ethnic and linguistic traditions to produce a distinctive regional culture which is in the process of distilling its specific identity. This development will be examined and discussed in collaboration with invited writers and academic specialists from the region and researchers in parallel disciplines such as History and Sociology.

The workshop is Sponsored by the Department of French and the Centre for Colonial and Postcolonial Societies of the University of Bristol, the Department of European Studies and Modern Languages of the University of Bath, the Society for Francophone Postcolonial Studies (SFPS) and the Association Internationale des Etudes Francophones et Comparées sur l'Océan Indien (AIEFCOI). We acknowledge the generous support of BIRTHA, the Bristol Institute for Research in the Humanities and Arts, the University of Bristol Alumni Foundation, the British Academy, the Institut français du Royaume-uni.

The full programme, abstracts and booking form can be down-loaded from the conference website:
http://www.bristol.ac.uk/colonialstudies/events/postcolonial_literatures/announcement.html

For further information contact Peter Hawkins, Dept. of French, University of Bristol.

Tel: 00 44 117 928 7925. E-mail: p.g.hawkins@bristol.ac.uk