Bound to Violence

By Yambo Ouologuem

Book Overview

This critical edition of the epic 1968 Malian novel explores its enduring literary power and the racist plagiarism scandal that devastated its author, the first African winner of France's prestigious Renaudot Prize.

An engrossing, tragic tale spanning the thirteenth to the twentieth century, Bound to Violence recounts the fate of the imaginary empire of Nakem and the dynasty of the Sa fs who reign there as devious masters.

While the novel was initially praised as an insider's guide to and critique of African history, with its vivid descriptions of the brutality of local rulers and the slave trade, Yambo Ouologuem's biting satire goes far beyond his native land. Through the society of Nakem, he paints a universally relevant portrait of sex, violence, and power in human relationships.

In this new edition of Ralph Manheim's vigorous translation, professor and award-winning documentary filmmaker Ch rif Ke ta provides invaluable context for the novel, whose publication in the West was mired by accusations of plagiarism, fraught with racist undertones.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1635423589
• ISBN13: 9781635423587
• Release Date: September 2023
• Publisher: Other Press (NY)
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.83 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.5" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Legends of the saifs and the Nakem empire

At the start of Bound to Violence it is the 1400's. As time progresses slave-taking and cannibalism are described. The advent of Chrisitian missionaries and the French at the beginning of the twentieth century give rise to other stresses and strains. There is religion in the region already in black Jewish figures and in Muslims. It is an uneasy brew. Violence and eroticism are intertwined. Next to arrive in this French colonial territory are German anthropologists and art dealers. As the twentieth century takes hold, this novel comes to focus more intently on individual characters enabling the reader to follow the story more easily. The four years of World War I bring some of the fighting into the area. Under the Treaty of Paris of 1919 eastern Nakem is ceded to England.In 1924 a boy from the village, Raymond, received permission to study in France. He was supposed to be part of the first generation of native administrators. France fascinated Raymond Kassoumi. He lost his appetite for study for a time when he learned that in his absence family members had become dead or enslved. He led an obscure and unglamorous life while pursuing his gradute studies. He 1933 he married a French woman. Kassoumi from Nakem-Ziuko fought in World War II. He fought on the Rhine, at Cassino, and then in Provence. In October 1945 he made his way to Paris where his wife found him. In 1947 there is a return to Nakem and the prospect of involvement in the leadership of a free country. This is a strange and interesting work. This reader was confused in trying to follow it, but was moved by the intense and artful recounting of different sorts of experiences.