This book offers a pioneering study of Asian cultures that officially escaped from French colonisation but nonetheless were steeped in French civilisation in the colonial era and had heavily French-influenced, largely francophone literatures. It raises a number of provocative questions, including whether colonisation is the ultimate requirement for a culture's being defined as francophone, or how to think about francophone literatures that emerge from Asian nations that were historically free from French domination. The ultimate result is a redefining of the Asian francophone heritage according to new, transnational paradigms.

Mathilde Kang was born in Shanghai, China. She has received her education in Québec in Canada and has taught French and Francophone Studies at various universities in North-America and elsewhere. The multicultural course of her life and her strictly French language education have led her to an interest in studying cultures made up of several mixed influences. Her main interest is the spreading of French culture outside Europe.Née à Shanghai et scolarisée au Québec, Mathilde Kang a jusque récemment été Maître de conférences à l'Université de Technologie Sydney. De parcours multi-culturel, assorti d'une formation purement francophone, elle se montre prédisposée aux études impliquant des cultures d'horizons divers et plus particulièrement la migration de la culture française vers d'autres continents.

DRAFT TABLE OF CONTENTSIntroduction: Plaidoyer pour une francophonie de cohabitationChapitre I: La France aux portes de CathayChapitre II: L'affirmation de la présence française en AsieChapitre III: L'essaimage français : le cas de la ChineChapitre IV: Naissance d'une littérature d'expression françaiseChapitre V: Aux croisements France-AsieConclusion générale : Vers une francophonie de cohabitationBibliographie