Siting the Quebec Novel
The Representation of Space in Francophone Writing in Quebec
Published on 16. November 2000
Book
Paperback/Softback
282 pages
978-3-906758-85-5 (ISBN)
Description
Notions of place and space offer a framework for a variety of readings of the novels of Quebec. Works from the mid-nineteenth to the late twentieth century are used to offer the reader a series of detailed textual analyses, but also to illuminate aspects of the geography and history of Quebec. The corpus chosen concentrates on novels by Quebec-born authors such as Patrice Lacombe, Anne Hébert, Michel Tremblay, Jacques Poulin and Madeleine Ouellette-Michalska, but also includes writers born outside Quebec, who have lived in and written about Quebec, such as Louis Hémon in the early twentieth century, Gabrielle Roy in the mid-twentieth century and Régine Robin in the late twentieth century. The wide historical span of the corpus opens up a range of issues affecting the representation of space, including colonialism, gender, Quebec's place in the wider world and the position and perspective of the 'migrant' writer.
Reviews / Votes
«Anyone researching the Quebec novel should read this book and undergraduates should definitely be required to read the sections relevant to their set texts.» (Peter Noble, International Journal of Francophone Studies)«Rosemary Chapman offers a refreshing and well-researched reading of the works she studies. Her close textual analyses, based on appropriate sociological concepts ranging from social geography to feminist sociology, are well-grounded and firmly argued.» (Myreille Pawliez, New Zealand Journal of French Studies)
«Il s'agit. là d'un essai extrêmement bien mené, abondamment documenté, et fascinant pour qui s'intéresse à la représentation des lieux dans le genre romanesque. En outre, la justesse des lectures présentées ici doit être saluée. On a d'ailleurs rarement abordé la littérature québécoise sous l'angle de la géographie culturelle avec autant de rigueur. et de souffle. Ainsi, quiconque s'interésse à la littérature et à l'identité québécoises devrait profiter du voyage.» (Christiane Lahaie, Les Cahiers Anne Hébert)
More details
Person
The Author: Rosemary Chapman is Senior Lecturer in French at the University of Nottingham, where she teaches courses on Canadian francophone literature at undergraduate and postgraduate level. Her previous publications include Henry Poulaille and Proletarian Literature 1920-1939.
Content
Contents: The book is organised around four thematic fields: rural space; urban space; place as a site of the Quebec past; the representation of locations beyond Quebec.