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Textual Transgressions: Confessional Discourse in Late Twentieth-Century Canadian and Québécois Writing

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Textual Transgressions: Confessional Discourse in Late Twentieth-Century Canadian and Québécois Writing TEXTUAL TRANSGRESSIONS: CONFESSIONAL DISCOURSE IN LATE TWENTIETH-CENTURY CANADIAN AND QUÉBÉCOIS WRITING by Myra D. Bloom A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Department of The Centre for Comparative Literature University of Toronto © Copyright by Myra D. Bloom (2014) Textual Transgressions: Confessional Discourse in Late Twentieth-Century Canadian and Québécois Writing Myra Bloom Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Department of The Centre for Comparative Literature University of Toronto 2014 Abstract Through close readings of six works of confessional fiction from Canada and Québec, this dissertation argues that the subversive use of confessional discourse can serve as a powerful platform for social critique. It challenges Michel Foucault’s thesis that confession, a practice that he regards as fundamental to our major social institutions such as religion, law, and medicine, is allied to a history of domination and as such serves to trap the subject within existing dynamics of power. Rather than regard confession as an instrument of repression, I reformulate it as a speech act that the subject can embrace in creative ways to resist and subsequently undermine constraining social narratives. My first chapter provides the theoretical basis for this argument, outlining the four main assumptions that underlie confession—the unified subject; guilt/shame; the need for forgiveness; the desire to be readmitted into the community—and introducing the strategies by which writers parodically undercut them. In Chapter 2, I apply this discussion to two texts that portray religion as a repressive force, Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and Michel Tremblay’s Damnée Manon, Sacrée Sandra; I argue that the subversion of confessional discourse analogously undercuts the determining power of religious dogma. Chapter 3, by contrast, examines two works that strategically align themselves with religious language and iconography in order to transcend mundane social convention: bpNichol’s Martyrology reacts against entrenched modes of perception, while Elizabeth Smart’s By Grand Central ii Station I Sat Down and Wept reimagines an adulterous affair as a morally viable relationship. My final chapter challenges Derrida’s claim that it is impossible for a text to convey the experience of madness: an analysis of Louise Bouchard’s Les images and Normand Chaurette’s Provincetown Playhouse, juillet 1919, j’avais 19 ans reveals that, in fact, it is through confession that these writers not only give voice to madness, but, moreover, articulate a powerful critique of the hegemony of rationalism. Ultimately, this dissertation aims to challenge the perception of confession as an inherently normative practice by demonstrating that, when used creatively, confessional discourse can serve as a means of positive self-definition and as an instrument of social critique. iii Acknowledgments It takes a village to write a dissertation. Thankfully, my village is populated by incredibly supportive and encouraging mentors, colleagues, family members, and friends. I am forever grateful to my supervisor, Barbara Havercroft, whose meticulous eye missed nothing and on whose unfaltering guidance I have relied over the entirety of my doctoral career. I would also like to thank the other members of my committee, Nick Mount and Pascal Riendeau, each of whom brought a unique perspective to this project, and who constantly inspired me to push myself further than I imagined possible. Thanks to the colleagues who provided feedback and the friends who provided refuge from the rigours of the dissertation-writing process: Sarah O., the older sister I never had; my Toronto family, Heather, Ali, and Sarah L.; Natalie, Catriona, Elizabeth, Kat, Rachel, Sophie, Little Olive, and all the creatures great and small who make my world a brighter place. I owe a major debt of gratitude to Bao Nguyen and Aphrodite Gardner at the Centre for Comparative Literature for their technical and existential assistance. I would also like to acknowledge the generous support of the Social Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. This dissertation is dedicated to my family, the rock on which the edifice is built. To Lynn, Leonard, and Simon, whose love, wisdom, and humour have inspired these pages. iv Table of Contents Acknowledgments .......................................................................................................................... iv! Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................ v! Introduction: The Confessing Animal ............................................................................................ 1! Chapter 1: Theoretical and Historical Background ...................................................................... 15! Roots of Confession ................................................................................................................. 15! Foucault’s Critique of Confessional Discourse ........................................................................ 17! The Critique of Foucault’s Account of Confession ................................................................. 24! Confession as a Speech Act ..................................................................................................... 28! First Tenet: The Interior Conversion and the Myth of the Unified Subject ............................. 37! Second Tenet: The Confessant Feels Guilt or Shame and Desires Punishment ...................... 46! Third Tenet: The Confessant’s Duty Is to Tell the Truth ......................................................... 51! Fourth Tenet: The Confessant Seeks to Be Readmitted into His or Her Community ............. 55! Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 58! Chapter 2: Confessions from the Underground: Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and Michel Tremblay’s Damnée Manon, Sacrée Sandra ........................................................ 62! Introduction to Chapter 2 ......................................................................................................... 62! The Handmaid’s Tale: Introduction ......................................................................................... 63! Confessing in the Underground ........................................................................................ 66! (In)visible Woman ............................................................................................................ 70! Critical Backlash ............................................................................................................... 77! Dismantling the Conventions of Confession and Becoming an Agent ............................. 80! Damnée Manon, Sacrée Sandra: Introduction and Historical Background ............................. 91! Structural Parallels .......................................................................................................... 101! Infelicitous Confessions .................................................................................................. 106! Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 121! v Chapter 3: The Sacred and the Mundane: bpNichol’s The Martyrology and Elizabeth Smart’s By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept ................................................................... 124! Introduction to Chapter 3 ....................................................................................................... 124! The Martyrology: Introduction ............................................................................................... 125! The Poem as Journal and the Confessional Poets ........................................................... 128! The Quasi-Theology of The Martyrology ....................................................................... 144! By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept: Introduction ............................................. 157! The Seduction of By Grand Central Station ................................................................... 160! Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 179! Chapter 4: The Impossible Confession of Madness: Louise Bouchard’s Les images and Normand Chaurette’s Provincetown Playhouse, juillet 1919, j’avais 19 ans ........................ 182! Introduction to Chapter 4: Can Madness Speak? ................................................................... 182! Les images: Introduction ........................................................................................................ 189! Les images as “Livre impossible” ................................................................................... 191! Provincetown Playhouse, juillet 1919, j’avais 19 ans: Introduction ..................................... 211! Provincetown Playhouse as Impossible Performance .................................................... 216! Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 242! Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 245! Impossible Confessions .........................................................................................................
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