On examining novels written in Quebec after the 1950s, surprisingly some common themes emerge. One finds progressively increasing references to the themes of the book, the library, and the author. In this thesis, we study the fictional work of Gerard Bessette and Jacques Poulin, two authors who make abundant references to the universe of the book. Their characters read, write, work and even live in libraries and bookshops. / We will discuss the concept of the library, in order to clarify various key issues. Our definition of the library will include any place where books are read or stored. In other words, we do not intend to limit our study only to the traditional library, but rather to extend it to any place which shelters books. The concept of the library is thus taken in its broadest definition and includes the bookshop, the office, or even the bus. / These books were selected because each author gives an account of contemporary Quebec history. In addition, the opposing themes in these fictitious worlds, seem to be at the core of the concept of the library. Indeed, it is at the same time both closedness and openness, both hoarding and lending. We will examine how the paradoxical realities are presented in these novels.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.81482 |
| Date | January 2004 |
| Creators | Crainic, Corina |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Master of Arts (Département de langue et littérature françaises.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 002182924, proquestno: AAIMR06499, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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