Voir le monde avec un chapeau par by Carl Bergeron

Abstract

travel for the privileged coexists with extreme violence for unwanted and undocumented citizens of color. Another remarkable feature of Ben Jelloun’s writing is his ability to present local beliefs in the form of tales and tell tales in the form of local beliefs. For example, through his depiction of the exceptional talents, abilities, and intuition of Karim,Amir’s son by his first wife, Ben Jelloun touches upon the views and prejudices of people with Down syndrome. He also shares unique tales of Nabou’s Fula people of Senegal as a way to highlight their society. St. John’s University (NY) Zoe Petropoulou Bergeron, Carl. Voir le monde avec un chapeau. Montréal: Boréal, 2016. ISBN 9782 -7646-2415-9. Pp. 357. $28 Can. Upon reading the opening pages, this reviewer encountered a most original œuvre for it mystifies, if not defies, the traditional standards of literary genres. The format is that of a journal but it is for the most part fiction, and the text encompasses short essays, daily observations, social and political commentaries, autobiographical data, and above all, a presentation of today’s Québec as compared to the old with a fervent observation of what Bergeron calls the Épreuve, that the Québécois have to endure, meaning“se libérer de l’atavisme de la honte”(320). There is also a sharp if not angry depiction of the situation between the younger Québécois generation and that of the boomers. This is depicted in the author’s letter to his father in the emotionally charged final pages (326–37). Original in its design, this journal is driven most eloquently by Bergeron’s powerful linguistic and poetic style. There are many topics considered, such as tattooing, the art of seduction, the problem of Facebook as a social menace, subsidized medicine, liberty, love, feminism, friendship, the dire problem of students’ educational debts, and the absence of the father. Every entry, moreover, proves to have been expertly and skillfully articulated. At times the text reads like a novel, then unexpectedly and sharply turns into an acute commentary. But the overall theme seems to be the love and defense of the French language and the author’s overwhelming admiration of what Québec could be. Pertinent and sensitive questions about Québec are posed throughout this autobiographical format written by a dandy, thus explaining the enigmatic title. An author as a dandy, in accordance to its nineteenth-century traditional interpretation, can oftentimes become cynical if not antipathetic, but Bergeron nevertheless steadfastly remains like Baudelaire, brilliant and well cultivated in his prose writings:“[C]e chapeau, c’est moi, se dit l’homme; cette phrase, c’est moi, se dit l’écrivain. C’est quand l’âme se reconnaît dans la forme choisie qu’elle transmet son précieux assentiment et que tout devient clair pour la raison” (315). Bergeron also presents himself at times as haughty and insolent as when he condemns postmodern university academic programs and the representative faculty: “L’enjeu est de taille: carrière protégée et bien rémunérée, régime de retraite, voyages à l’étranger, 264 FRENCH REVIEW 90.4 Reviews 265 reconnaissance sociale. L’omerta se perpétue donc, pendant que la crédibilité de l’institution dégringole et que la transmission du savoir s’abîme au cœur de la société” (308). Notwithstanding the author’s politico-cultural leanings toward Québec, this heart-felt literary work offers gems of original proclamations that will make the reader solemnly contemplate this artful literary creation. Metropolitan State University of Denver, emeritus Alain Ranwez Bonnard,Olivier.Collector.Arles:Actes Sud,2016.ISBN 978-2-330-06427-3.Pp.316. 22 a. Ce thriller un peu particulier emmène ses lecteurs dans le paradis artificiel que sont les années 80, cette “parenthèse enchantée, entre la gueule de bois des années 1970, après la fin du rêve hippie, et la déprime des années grunge”(51). Nous sommes en 2007. Thomas Strang, alias Marty McFly quand il s’adonne au cosplay (costume playing), journaliste de 33 ans, auteur d’un livre...