Francophone Subsaharan Africa 1880-1985 by Patrick ManningReview by: Thomas E. O'TooleCanadian Journal of African Studies / Revue Canadienne des Études Africaines, Vol. 24, No. 1(1990), pp. 125-126Published by: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. on behalf of the Canadian Association of African StudiesStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/485614 .

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125 Book Reviews / Comptes rendus

defense or to invite a rival superpower to act as its patron. Contrary to Makinda's con- clusion, neither choice has a stabilizing effect in the long run.

These blemishes notwithstanding, this book is a significant contribution to the lit- erature on national security in Third World countries in general and superpower diplomacy in Africa in particular.

Severine Rugumamu Institute of Development Studies University of Dar es Salaam, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Patrick Manning. Francophone Subsaharan Africa 1880-1985. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988. 215 pp.

Covering nearly forty percent of the continent the seventeen nations of francophone sub-Saharan Africa are home to over 100 million people. This slim volume offers the reader a clear concise social and cultural history of these nations from Senegal in West Africa to Zaire in Central Africa. The African island nations of Comoros, Seychelles, Mauritius, and even the Democratic Republic of Madagascar are, like Djibouti, scarcely considered. The range of political and ideological vision represented by Sene- gal, C6te d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Benin, Congo, Chad, and Zaire, however, make for suf- ficient diversity of coverage. The integrated treatment of colonial and post-colonial history and the focus of cities are of special value. Often neglected by North American and English-speaking scholars and policy makers, Francophone Sub-Saharan Africa's unique weaving of the European heritage of France and Belgium and the rich cultural contributions of many African ethnic grofips make the area increasingly important to those interested in African literature, art, and philosophy.

Patrick Manning's contributions to the understanding of this vibrant portion of the African continent are already considerable. These six chapters, prologue, and epilogue are no exception. His clear style and straightforward narrative are models of lucidity. Pulling together the diverse strands of economic and social history, outlining major changes in government, politics, culture, and religion, Manning's synthesis is, in itself, a major addition to our knowledge and understanding.

Manning's major contribution is his deliberate and conscious confrontation of one of the major paradoxes of francophone African history in the past century. Although the French and Belgian colonial regimes were oppressive, they nonetheless contri- buted to the rise of distinctive national characters and to a francophone pan-African tradition unique to the relatively new nations. Skilfully tracing the major events and personalities of key countries and leaders, Manning outlines the dreams and realities of francophone Africa today as both linked to its pre-colonial past and deeply influenced the century of colonial captivity. He neither over-romanticizes the past nor belabors the continuing dependency which today continues to be a major factor in the political, economic, and cultural life of both the former Belgian and French possessions. Man- ning's equation of the domination of Gaelic-speaking Brittany, the Occitanian-speak- ing south, and German-speaking Alsace and Lorraine by the French-speaking core in France with the later acculturation which took place in Africa may be debatable, but it does demonstrate his willingness to posit interesting hypotheses.

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126 CJAS / RCEA 24:1 1990

Mature scholars, advanced graduate students, and those who are just beginning to study Africa will find much of interest in this concise source. For the forty percent of Africa's population who live in English-speaking (anglophone) Africa, this book is an invaluable guide to their understanding of one-fifth of the continent's people.

I enthusiastically recommend this book for most undergraduate survey courses. As a graduate level text or as survey of the topic for the well motivated general reader, it also deserves high praise. Very readable, it is nevertheless an excellent source for scho- lars, detailed and challenging enough to offer much of interest to readers at all levels. Unlike many of the excellent works published by academic presses, this book also has a place in the mass market. I would recommend this work to all African studies special- ists whose studies have concentrated largely on English, Arabic, or Portuguese-speak- ing Africa to complete their understanding of the continent's past century of change.

Thomas E. O'Toole The Social Science / Social Studies Program St. Cloud State University St. Cloud, Minnesota

Pieter de Marees. Description and Historical Account of the Gold Kingdom of Guinea (1602). Edited by Albert van Dantzig and Adam Jones. London: Oxford University Press, 1987.272 pp. Union Academique Internationale Fontes Historiae Africanae, Series Varia V.

In 1602 "P. D. M" published in Amsterdam a substantial account of West Africa, espe- cially the Gold Coast, which was swiftly translated into French and then prdcised into German and Latin. Samuel Purchas made a shortened English version in 1624. S.P. l'Honord Naber provided a scholarly edition of the original for the great Linschoten- Vereeniging series in 1912. In 1987 a long-standing project for an English edition was finally completed by Albert van Danzig in Ghana and Adam Jones in Germany. This work will stand as an admirable complement to Naber, as it offers an accessible English translation (except for the price) and a scholarly contextualisation which draws on the considerable findings of the last seventy-five years.

Since travellers to Africa have habitually plagiarised one another, an important strand in recent scholarship has been the foundation of a critical apparatus for the major texts. Pieter De Marees borrowed from others (chiefly Linschoten and Pard on page xvi), but many more people borrowed from his, which is another reason to wel- come this volume. The editors do not indicate at which points the borrowing occurred but give a list of names, including Dapper, Villault, and Barbot as well as the later anthologists of voyages like Astley. They also note that engravings from this book were remodelled in subsequent volumes until the late eighteenth century. The origins of these depictions, as well as their sequelae, surely deserve a study on their own. (The editors simply note that some of the captions are in French, and that de Marees may have done the French translation himself - he had probably moved from Antwerp and Dutchified his name from du Marais).

The editors justly claim that de Marees was an outstanding reporter who has been unfairly overshadowed by Bosman. It is interesting to read the well-known account of Benin by "D. R." in its context, late in de Maree's book; it is noticeably limited in

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