Overcoming Father-Son Conflict in Selected Novels of Claude Jasmin
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OVERCOMING FATHER-SON CONFLICT IN SELECTED NOVELS OF CLAUDE JASMIN by LEONARD MARCEL ARES METKA ZUPANČIČ, COMMITTEE CHAIR BRUCE EDMUNDS CARMEN MAYER-ROBIN JEAN-LUC ROBIN THEODORE TROST A DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Modern Languages and Classics in the Graduate School of The University of Alabama TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA 2014 Copyright Leonard Marcel Ares 2014 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ABSTRACT This study delves into selected works of the Québécois writer Claude Jasmin that were written between 1972 and 2010. In each novel, the narrator and his father are manifestations of the same individuals; the narrator represents Jasmin and the character of the father depicts Jasmin’s own father. These characters indirectly convey Jasmin’s evolving attitudes towards his father. Read chronologically, the ever-present father-son tensions depicted in the texts eventually abate, and the recurring narrator is seen to progress from rebellion towards a symbolic reconciliation with the father. The author’s perspective towards his father is perceptible through his recurring narrator and reveals that, over time, Jasmin attains a growing overall understanding of him. The domestic strife in the novels corresponds to the societal situation in Québec around the time of the Quiet Revolution of the 1960s when the Church lost power in the region. Jasmin witnessed the rapid social changes of his province during this era, which included the search for a new collective identity. The designation “French Canadian” no longer seemed appropriate for the dynamic period of modernization, and the people of the province began to refer to themselves as Québécois. The recurring narrator’s diminishing animosity towards his father in the selected novels can be seen to parallel the Québécois who, as a people, similarly reconcile with their past while continuing to advance and define themselves in their contemporary secular culture. ii DEDICATION I would like to dedicate this dissertation to my parents, my son, and my sister Christine Marie, along with Mr. Claude Jasmin, whose work continues to foster the advancement of his native Québec. iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CEGEP Collège d'enseignement général et professionnel CEQ Corporation des enseignants du Québec CIEQ-UQTR Centre interuniversitaire d'études québécoises de l'Université du Québec à Trois- Rivières CRILCQ Centre de recherche interuniversitaire sur la littérature et la culture québécoises CSN Confédération des syndicats nationaux DIP Département de l’instruction publique FLQ Front de libération du Québec FTQ Fédération des travailleurs du Québec INRS-UCS Institut national de la recherche scientifique-Urbanisation Culture Société RIN Rassemblement pour l’indépendance nationale UdeM L’Université de Montréal UQAM L’Université du Québec à Montréal UQTR L’Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am indebted to many, both near and afar, who have helped me in a multitude of ways along the road to the completion of this endeavor. Dr. Zupančič has given me invaluable help and support for many years, which merits my deep gratitude. I also recognize the time, patience, and assistance that the dissertation committee and Dr. Drouin have accorded me. Additionally, I am profoundly grateful for the assistance of the staff at the University of Alabama Writing Center, as well as Jennifer McClure and Brett Spencer of the Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library. This dissertation, more than the conclusion of years of study, is the reflection of my relationships with many kindhearted people. v CONTENTS ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................... ii DEDICATION ............................................................................................................................... iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ........................................................................................................ iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .............................................................................................................v CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION—CLAUDE JASMIN’S WORK: DOMESTIC STRIFE AMID QUÉBEC’S TURBULENT PAST ..................................................................................................1 The Duplessis Era of Jasmin’s Youth .......................................................................................10 Jasmin and the Selected Novels ................................................................................................14 Jasmin’s Place in the Literature of Québec...............................................................................30 General Objectives of the Study ...............................................................................................34 CHAPTER 2: THE QUÉBÉCOIS, RELIGION, AND FATHER FIGURES—RECEPTION OF JASMIN: A BODY OF WORK PRAISED FOR ITS INSIGHT ON QUÉBEC ……………….36 Literature Review: University Studies Presenting Jasmin’s Work as Social Commentary…..45 Methodology. ............................................................................................................................51 Freud, Jung, Kristeva: Psychoanalytic Theory ...............................................................51 Charles Taylor’s Perspectives .........................................................................................56 Stuart Hall: Cultural Studies ...........................................................................................60 An Author’s Intention, Freud, and Jasmin’s Novels.................................................................64 Autobiography and Autofiction ................................................................................................68 CHAPTER 3: THE GREAT DARKNESS—CATHOLICISM, WOMEN, AND A PSYCHOANALYTIC APPROACH TO THREE JASMIN NOVELS ........................................71 vi Unrestrained Catholicism ..........................................................................................................73 The Great Darkness, Women, and the Church .........................................................................76 A Psychoanalytic Approach to Jasmin’s Novels.......................................................................85 Pointe-Calumet boogie-woogie (1973)—Breaking Free From External Forces Through Language…………………………………………………………….…………….…...85 Je vous dis merci (2001)—The Road to Adulthood Passes Through Adolescence...….90 Papamadi (2010)—Liberating out of Love ...................................................................95 CHAPTER 4: THE QUIET REVOLUTION—QUÉBEC IN TRANSITION AND JASMIN’S NOVELS………………………………………………………………………………………..104 Precursors to the Quiet Revolution: Change on the Horizon as a People Awaken…………107 The 1960s: A Time of Rapid Social Change………………………………………………..115 Charles Taylor, Stuart Hall, and Jasmin’s Novels………………………………………..…122 Taylor’s “Frameworks” ................................................................................................122 Utilitarian Ideologues....................................................................................................127 “Disembedding” Religion .............................................................................................133 CHAPTER 5: THE POST-QUIET REVOLUTION—IDENTIFICATION, SPIRITUAL BONDING, AND LIBERATING INDIVIDUATION………………………………………...139 Psychoanalytic Approaches to Jasmin’s Novels .....................................................................141 La Petite Patrie (1972)—Religion and the Father Figure………………………...….141 Sainte-Adèle-la-vaisselle (1974)—The Search forUniqueness…………..…….…….147 La vie suspendue (1994)—Identification: A Hindrance to Progress?..........................154 Enfant de Villeray (2000)—The Feminine Soul-Image…………….…….………….161 CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSION—VESTIGES OF RELIGION’S INFLUENCE IN AN EVER- EVOLVING QUÉBEC…………………………………………………………………...……169 The Demise of Catholicism in the Province……………………………………………..….174 vii Contemporary Québec: A Society Faithful to its Language of Origin……………………...177 REFERENCES…………………………………………………………….………………..…185 viii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION CLAUDE JASMIN’S WORK: DOMESTIC STRIFE AMID QUÉBEC’S TURBULENT PAST The seven novels of my study, written by the Québécois author Claude Jasmin, are La Petite Patrie (1972), Pointe-Calumet boogie-woogie (1973), Sainte-Adèle-la-vaisselle (1974), La vie suspendue (1994), Enfant de Villeray (2000), Je vous dis merci (2001) and Papamadi (2010). In each work, the narrator is a portrayal of Jasmin and the paternal character embodies the author’s father. Through these characters, Jasmin indirectly conveys his attitudes toward both his own father and the people of Québec—attitudes that evolve over time and come to suggest a symbolic reconciliation between the author and his father. The father-son conflict in the selected novels corresponds to the societal situation in Québec around the time of the 1960s, a period when the Church lost power in the province. When the novels are read sequentially, by publication dates, the domestic conflicts depicted are seen to eventually subside, and the recurring narrator’s attitudes towards his father progresses from revolt towards thoughtfulness. The author’s changing perspectives towards his own father are perceptible through his recurring narrator and show that, with the passing of time, Jasmin attains a better overall understanding of his father. Jasmin also indirectly