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D’IBERVILLE, CHAUSSEGROS DE LÉRY, THE LATERRIÈRES AND TOCQUEVILLE: QUEBEC THROUGH THE PRISM OF ABSOLUTISM, THE ENLIGHTENMENT AND ROMANTICISM DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Virginia Rae Donovan, B.A., M.A. * * * * * The Ohio State University 2007 Dissertation Committee: Professor Jean-François Fourny, Adviser Approved by Professor Mihaela Marin ______________________________ Professor Jennifer Willging Adviser Graduate Program in French & Italian Copyright by Virginia Rae Donovan May 29, 2007 ABSTRACT Although Pierre Le Moyne d’Iberville, Gaspard-Joseph Chaussegros de Léry, Pierre de Sales Laterrière, Pierre-Jean de Sales Laterrière, and Alexis de Tocqueville were all observers of Canada, their views of Quebec differ greatly one from another because they were from different generations. D’Iberville (1661 – 1706), Quebec’s first national hero, lived during the age of classicism, the reign of Louis XIV and the absolute monarchy. He provides a politico-military perspective of Quebec. Gaspard-Joseph Chaussegros de Léry (1682 – 1751), Quebec’s chief military engineer and architect, lived and worked in Quebec during a time of transition between the absolute monarchy and the Enlightenment. He provides an esthetic perspective of Quebec. Pierre de Sales Laterrière [1743?(47) – 1815], Quebec’s first memorialist, landed on the shores of the St. Lawrence in 1766 when the Enlightenment was in full bloom. He provides a scientific/literary perspective of Quebec. His son, Pierre-Jean de Sales Laterrière (1789 – 1834), wrote the first treatise that defended French Canadians under British control and domination. His life also encompassed the Romantic Movement in all its glory. He provides a politico-sociological perspective of Quebec. Finally, Alexis de Tocqueville (1805 – 1859) traveled through Quebec in 1831. Tocqueville’s view of Quebec was shaped by Romanticism, as well as by the political turmoil which was occurring in his native France. He provides a socio-political perspective of Quebec. Each individual ii featured in this dissertation was an initiator of or a principle contributor to major discourses in Quebec’s imaginary. This dissertation evaluates the perspectives of these writers through a careful analysis of selected major writings about Quebec. Included are historical documents that were not originally intended to be literature according to the classic definition of the term. Yet these documents bear the mark of the conceptual framework in which they were written, even as does the literature of a given era. This demonstrates that these historical documents provide us with different views of Quebec which mirror not only these individuals’ life experiences, but which also reflect their participation in the dominant literary, philosophical or historical movements in existence at the time that they lived: Absolutism, the Enlightenment, and Romanticism. iii Dedicated to my devoted husband Dan iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wish to thank my advisor, Dr. Jean-François Fourny, Dr. Mihaela Marin and Dr. Jennifer Willging for their indispensable counsel during the writing of this dissertation. I am also thankful for the kind guidance and constant support of Dr. Karlis Racevskis, Graduate Committee Chair, who believes in me. I am indebted to Mr. Rice, Dr. David Green and Dr. Tony McRae who taught me French from the beginning. They laid the foundation upon which others have built. I also wish to thank Colleen Albright for her precious friendship. Finally, I am grateful for the love and encouragement of my husband Dan, my parents, and my children, without which the writing of this dissertation would not have been possible. v VITA 1973………………………………………B.A. French, Concordia College Moorhead, Minnesota 2003………………………………………M.A. French, University of Cincinnati Cincinnati, Ohio 2003 – present……………………………Graduate Teaching Associate The Ohio State University PUBLICATIONS 1. Donovan, Virginia R. “Classroom Activity: Teaching about ‘La Francophonie et les États-Unis.” AATF National Bulletin, September 2006: 21-22. FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: French and Italian vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract…………………………………………………………………………….... ii Dedication………………………………………………………………………….... iv Acknowledgments………………………………………………………………….... v Vita…………………………………………………………………………………... vi Chapters: 1. Introduction…………………………………………………………............. 1 2. Pierre Le Moyne d’Iberville………………………………………................ 12 3. Gaspard-Joseph Chaussegros de Léry……………………………................. 72 4. Pierre de Sales Laterrière ......……………………………………………..... 138 5. Pierre-Jean de Sales Laterrière……………………………………………... 194 6. Alexis de Tocqueville………………………………………………………. 218 7. Conclusion…………………………………………………………………... 237 Bibliography……………………………………………………………………….... 243 vii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Although Pierre Le Moyne d’Iberville, Gaspard-Joseph Chaussegros de Léry, Pierre de Sales Laterrière, Pierre-Jean de Sales Laterrière, and Alexis de Tocqueville were all observers of Canada and left written records of their experiences there, their views of Canadian society differ greatly one from another. These differences of perspective arise in part because the men were from different generations and, thus, were molded by the dominant political frameworks and literary movements that were in existence at the time they lived. For example, d’Iberville (1661 – 1706), Quebec’s first military hero, lived during the age of classicism, the reign of Louis XIV and the absolute monarchy. Chaussegros de Léry (1682 – 1756), Quebec’s chief military engineer and architect whose urban planning and fortification designs were adapted to New France’s topography (Noppen and Morriset 28), arrived in Quebec in 1716, just one year after the death of Louis XIV. Therefore, he lived and worked in Quebec during the regency and reign of Louis XV, a time of transition between the absolute monarchy and the Enlightenment. Pierre de Sales Laterrière [1743?(47) – 1815],1 Quebec’s first personal memorialist, led an adventurous life and experienced perilous times (Andrès, L’influence des livres 467). He landed on the shores of the St. Lawrence in 1766, only seven years 1 Pierre de Sales Laterrière, hereafter referred to as Laterrière (f.) unless his identity is clear from the context, is the father of Pierre-Jean de Sales Laterrière. 1 after the Conquest, three years after the Treaty of Paris of 1763 in which France signed away to England quelques arpents de neige, and when the Enlightenment was in full bloom (Voltaire, Candide ou l’optimisme 97). His life also spanned the French Revolution, the Napoleonic Empire, the American Revolution and the War of 1812. His son, Pierre-Jean de Sales Laterrière (1789 – 1834),2 was born at the beginning of the French Revolution and died just four years after the trois glorieuses and the end of the Restoration. Laterrière (s.) wrote one of the first treatises3 that defended French Canadians who lived in the grip of British control and domination (Lemire, et. al. 2: 291). He lived during the turbulence of the French Revolution, the Napoleonic era, the Restoration, and the beginning of the July Monarchy of Louis-Philippe, but his life also encompassed the Romantic Movement in all its glory. Finally, there is Alexis de Tocqueville (1805 – 1859), a Frenchman who traveled through Quebec with his friend Gustave de Beaumont in 1831, only one year after Laterrière (s.) had written and published his famous treatise. Tocqueville’s view of Quebec bears the mark of Romanticism, as well as the political turmoil which had occurred and was continuing to occur in his native France. Of course, these men’s perspectives of Quebec were shaped not only by the dominant political frameworks and literary movements which existed during their lifetimes, but also by their own life experiences. Remarkably, even in simple, concrete ways, each man serves as a transition from his predecessor to the one who follows him, 2 Pierre-Jean de Sales Laterrière, the son, will be referred to hereafter as Laterrière (s.) unless his identity is made clear by the context. 3A Political and Historical Account of Lower Canada; with Remarks on the Present Situation of the People, as Regards their Manners, Character, Religion, &.c &.c by a Canadian. (See Bibliography.) 2 so that their lives and views dovetail. For example, d’Iberville was a military man, specifically, a naval captain, yet Chaussegros de Léry also held the rank of captain in the French army. The latter had gained fame during military campaigns in France before his deployment overseas, and, furthermore, his function as engineer in New France was to improve military fortifications (Roy, La Famille Chaussegros de Léry 4). Chaussegros de Léry also “s’occupa activement des Forges de Saint-Maurice” (Roy, La Famille Chaussegros de Léry 5). Interestingly, our next famous Quebecer, Laterrière (f.), also worked at the Forges de Saint-Maurice, being named Director just seven years after his arrival in New France (Casgrain, La Famille de Sales Laterrière 20). The two Laterrières were connected not only by their familial relationship and their mutual vocation as doctors, but both also spent time in England: the elder by force of bad health, the younger due to his medical studies and his subsequent marriage to a wealthy British woman (Casgrain, La Famille de Sales Laterrière 84-5). Finally, each of the men shared a connection to the aristocracy. D’Iberville, the Laterrières and Chaussegros