The thesis is divided into five parts. The first consists of a revue of the opinions of the critics on the work of Georges Bernanos, and then proceeds to define the aims of the thesis: (i) to combat the pernicious idea that we are dealing with a "Catholic Opus", one where the term "Catholic" would imply "idealistic" or "out of touch with reality", and to arrive at a different way of approaching the work; (ii) to lay bare the hidden unity of the work since the new interpretation we are seeking will derive from the relation of the parts to the whole; (iii) to show the radical nature of Bernanos's thought which lays bare the roots of the Discontents of our Civilisation and, by so doing, imparts a prophetic tone to his writings. In the second part Bernanos is placed within the context of his times and compared to other intellectuals, both Catholic and non-Catholic, in order to separate the "Catholic" from the "non-Catholic" elements in his work. Next, using the methods of Charles Mauron, we study the Youthful Works. In the third part, following the methods of Lucien Goldmann, we place the Novels in the context of Ecclesiastical Politics. In the fourth part we trace the transformation of the Novelist into the political pundit, then we go back to La Grande peur des bien-pensants to retrace the origins of his political thinking. Chapter twelve, "Birth of the Modem World", traces the development of capitalism in France and concomitant evolution of the value-system and ways of thinking. The fifth part contains the second half of the "Ecrits de Combat" entitled "The Modem World" which gives us Bernanos's view - a prophetic view - of the world we inhabit at present, Then the Conclusion. / Whole document restricted, but available by request, use the feedback form to request access.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/278279 |
| Date | January 1987 |
| Creators | Carlyle, Diane P. (Diane Patricia) |
| Publisher | ResearchSpace@Auckland |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | Whole document restricted but available by request. Items in ResearchSpace are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated., http://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/docs/uoa-docs/rights.htm, Copyright: The author |
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