Poetry and cultural identity in F. T. Pacéré’s writing: from identity affirmation to universal humanism

Abstract

My concern is the socio-cultural characteristics of F. T. Pacéré’s poetry and their aesthetic and semantic structuring role. Pacéré’s poetry is not just about identity affirmation; it is also about being open to the world, namely other people and other cultures. Through this, it seeks to achieve universal humanism. I conclude my study by arguing that like the Burkinabè written poetry of the 1970s, Pacéré’s poetry operates on a double dialogic and dialectic process, as required by the negritude movement: rooting in his native culture and openness to the world.

Keywords

• poetry
• identity
• culture
• humanism