Two Solitudes, by Hugh MacLennan (Toronto, New York and Des Moines, 1945), is a novel whose title has become emblematic of Canada's most troubling legacy: the relations between English and French Canadians. Using historical settings within a mythological framework, MacLennan explores the tensions in these relations from WWI to 1939. The French Canadian realities are set in the parish of Saint-Marc-des-Érables, which is dominated by its priest, Father Beaubien, and by Athanase Tallard, a powerful but tragic figure ostracized by his church for trying to industrialize the village. Montréal, on the other hand, is dominated by characters such as Huntley McQueen, a Presbyterian businessman from Ontario. Tallard's son Paul, at home in both languages but alienated from both cultures, embarks on an Odyssean quest for his own identity and for a vision of Canada as he struggles to write a novel which will define his own Canadian experience. It has been translated into French, as Deux solitudes (Paris, 1963), and Spanish, Swedish, Czech, Dutch and Estonian.
-
- MLA 8TH EDITION
- Besner, Neil. "Two Solitudes". The Canadian Encyclopedia, 05 May 2014, Historica Canada. www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/two-solitudes. Accessed 05 November 2024.
- Copy
-
- APA 6TH EDITION
- Besner, N. (2014). Two Solitudes. In The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/two-solitudes
- Copy
-
- CHICAGO 17TH EDITION
- Besner, Neil. "Two Solitudes." The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica Canada. Article published February 07, 2006; Last Edited May 05, 2014.
- Copy
-
- TURABIAN 8TH EDITION
- The Canadian Encyclopedia, s.v. "Two Solitudes," by Neil Besner, Accessed November 05, 2024, https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/two-solitudes
- Copy
Thank you for your submission
Our team will be reviewing your submission
and get back to you with any further questions.
Thanks for contributing to The Canadian Encyclopedia.
CloseArticle
Two Solitudes
Article by Neil Besner
Published Online February 7, 2006
Last Edited May 5, 2014
Two Solitudes, by Hugh MacLennan (Toronto, New York and Des Moines, 1945), is a novel whose title has become emblematic of Canada's most troubling legacy: the relations between English and French Canadians.