Anne Hébert (1916-2000) differs from her contemporaries, be they French or Québécois, by her writing style. Although she never was in favour of the “joual”, the sociolect exploited by Michel Tremblay, author of the famous
Les Belles-sœurs(1968), her language is “accurate” and “evocative” and has been largely praised by critics (see Biron et al., 2007: 311-312). The first notable pattern of her writing is the echoing game of sounds, words, and whole sentences. If one were to read successively all her prose, one would most likely share the feeling noted by Janet Paterson (1985) with regard to
Les Fous de Bassan(1982), that is, the impression of “déjà-vu” (“already-seen”) or “déjà-lu” (“already-read”). Repetition being a primary factor on which this…
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Citation: Pascal, Marie. "Anne Hébert: Overview of Her Literary Style and Themes". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 22 November 2018 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=19549, accessed 22 November 2024.]
