Entre génétique textuelle et identité culturelle. Aspects de la représentation du roman flamand

Abstract

Research in the field of textual genesis reveals that most canonized Flemish novels have been the result of a long creative process. A detailed study of preliminary drafts and different manuscripts, of typescripts and corrected proofs, of correspondence and diaries makes clear that every and each novel can be considered as a poly-system of variables. The study of textual genesis can be situated within the philosophical framework of postmodernism considering all texts as inter-texts referring to a wide variety of linguistic registers and text traditions. The analysis of literary « avant textes » also sheds an important light on the process of stereotyping in the context of cultural discourse : all too often canonized literary works have been reduced to cultural stereotypes, thus creating a distorted image of a given culture. This form of ideological text manipulation is both active within the confines of the Flemish source culture as in a broader international perspective : both auto-stereotypes and hetero-stereotypes have often been distilled from a prejudiced approach. In this article we summarize some results of our research. The textual genesis of the following novels has been analysed : F. Timmermans, Pallieter (1916) ; S. Streuvels, Het leven en de dood in de ast (1926) ; L. Zielens, Moeder, waarom leven wij ? (1932) ; M. Gilliams, Elias (1936) ; G. Walschap, Houtekiet (1939) ; H. Claus, De hondsdagen (1952) en W. Ruyslinck, Wierook en tranen (1958). We express our sincere thanks to all authors and archives concerned.