Understanding, Debate and Dialogue

1. Understanding, Debate and Dialogue Framing Translated Narratives on Quebec Nationalism, Independence Movements and the Referenda. Julie McDonough Dolmaya University of Ottawa

2. Circa the 1980/1995 referenda: Expectations of anglophones/francophones in Canada? Why should TL readers be interested in reading a work not originally intended for or addressed to them? Research questions

3. Corpus: non-fiction texts 7 English-language collections (all 7 published outside Quebec) 28 French target texts (for 26 English-language texts) 51 English target texts (for 53 French-language texts) The delimited catalogue

4. Narratives: Representation of an event or a series of events (Abbott 2002: 12) Consist of a story—an event or sequence of events—and the narrative discourse—the way in which the story is related (Abbott 2002: 16). Can be recounted through “articulated language, spoken or written, fixed or moving images, gestures, and the ordered mixture of all these substances” (Barthes 1977: 79) Narratives & Frames

5. Other views on narratives: -“Public and personal ‘stories’ that we subscribe to and that guide our behaviour” (Baker 2006: 19) -People make sense of experience mainly by putting it in the form of narratives (Riessman 1993: 4; Baker 2006: 169; Somers & Gibson 1994: 38) -Narratives figure in all aspects of our lives, and not just in literature and folk or fairy tales Narratives & Frames

6. How narratives are interpreted depends on: 1. Narratives circulating in the reader's sociocultural situation (public and conceptual narratives) 2. How narrative(s) are framed Narratives & Frames

7. Frames: -Define the limits of the narrative and set it apart from its surroundings (Young 2005: 185). -Set the status of and/or disclose an attitude toward a narrative (Young 2004: 77) Paratexts, particularly prefatory material, act as frames for the narratives they surround. Narratives & Frames

8. Paratexts: Elements that accompany, surround, prolong and present a work (Genette 1987; 2002) Can comment on/self-criticize a text Include prefaces, footnotes/endnotes, illustrations, advertisements, blurbs, titles, subtitles (Genette 2002; Crisafulli 1996: 92) Narratives & Frames

9. Narratives & Frames This presentation will focus on: Only new paratexts written specifically for the TT Only prefatory material and publishers peritexts Prefatory material: -Text that precedes or follows the main body of work (e.g. preface or postscript) -Written by the author, translator, or 3rd party (e.g. politicians or scholars) Publisher's peritexts: -Paratextual elements that are the responsibility of the publisher and appear within the work itself (e.g. format of the work, the cover, the collection to which it belongs, unnumbered title pages, series notes, biographies) (Genette 1987: 21-37)

10. New peritexts Narratives & Frames French TTs: 14 (of 28) works with new peritexts In total: 17 new prefatory peritexts 2 new publisher's peritexts English TTs: 24 (of 51) works with new peritexts In total: 29 new prefatory texts 5 new publisher's peritexts English-language collections 7 (of 7) with peritexts In total: 13 prefatory peritexts 0 publisher's peritexts

11. Framing techniques: -Temporal and spatial framing -Selective appropriation -Labelling -Positioning of participants -Titles (cf Baker 2006: 112-139) Narratives & Frames

12. The way in which participants of an interaction are placed—or place themselves—in relation to one another and outsiders (cf Baker 2006: 132) Positioning

13. Positioning technique used to: 1) Reassure TL readers 2) Demonstrate a work's uniqueness 3) Promote the work as a resource for better understanding other Canadians 4) Support debate/dialogue among Canadians 5) Acknowledge potential to provoke TL readers 6) Create a new activist text for TL readers Positioning

14. English TTs: Christian Dufour's Le défi québécois: essai “This not a 'separatist' book.” (Dufour 1990: 10) [Foreword by Rob Dobell] Chaput-Rolland's Quebec Year One: “How kind and generous this woman is, really!” (1968: 11) [Foreword to the English Edition by Hugh MacLennan] Chaput-Rolland's Reflections II: The Second Conquest: The “pan-Canadianism” running though this work is due to “the determination of Madame Chaput-Rolland to understand and, where she cannot understand, to feel Canada, to reach out to all of us.” (1970: 10) [Foreword by Douglas Fischer] Positioning: Reassurance

15. French TTs: Richard Simeon (Ed.) Le Canada face à son destin “[Les auteurs dans cette collection n'ont] le moindre soupçon de dogmatisme fédéraliste, ni la moindre trace d'arrogance ethnique. [...] il est partout évident que l'on considère les Québécois comme des frères amis et qu'on ne veut rien d'autre que de les comprendre et de les rendre à l'aise au sein du Canada.” (1978: viii) [Préface de Léon Dion] Positioning: Reassurance

16. French TTs Hubert Guindon's Tradition, modernité et aspiration nationale de la société québécoise “[La pensée d'Hubert Guindon] est solidement ancrée dans la tradition des sciences sociales du Québec francophone mais en même temps s'en distancie de différentes façons et souvent dans une prise de position critique, polémique même.” (1990: ix) [Préface à l'édition française de Pierre Dandurand et Louis Maheu] Positioning: Uniqueness

17. French TTs John F. Conway's Des comptes à rendre “Là où John Conway est original et en rupture avec son milieu, c'est qu'il perçoit comme normales et justifiées ce qui paraît à presque tous les Canadiens anglais comme des demandes exagérées et exaspérantes de la part du Québec.” (1995: préface, n.p.) [Préface de Guy Rocher] Positioning: Uniqueness

18. French TTs David Jay Bercuson & Barry Cooper's Goodbye—et bonne chance ! Les adieux du Canada anglais au Québec “il nous est toutefois apparu d'une importance primordiale, dans le contexte des débats constitutionnels actuels, [...] de faire connaître le point de vue de nos interlocuteurs canadiens-anglais” (1991: n.p.) [Note de l'éditeur] Positioning: Understanding

19. English TTs Claude Morin Quebec versus Ottawa: The Struggle for Self-government, 1960-1972 “[...] my hope is that this book will afford readers an opportunity to better understand Quebec's recent evolution and its attitude to federalism” (Morin 1976: xii) [Preface to the English edition by the author] Positioning: Understanding

20. English TT: “People of good will, whatever their ultimate conclusions about the merits of the positions exposed here, can only welcome the opportunity afforded to deepen their understanding of the aspirations of Quebec sovereignists” (Parti Québécois 1994: xiv-xv) [Foreword by Duncan Cameron] Positioning: Understanding

21. English TTs “Unfortunately, these developments [Quiet Revolution] are not sufficiently perceived and understood in English Canada, where the Québec concept of a Canada of two nations, English and French, stands discredited and forgotten.” (Dion 1976: xiii) “Canadians outside Quebec have often been unaware of the significance and the intensity of the debate [on the referendum question] in the province. They have not realized what profound questions are at stake.” (Bergeron, Brown & Simeon 1980: 3) Positioning: Understanding

22. English TTs Léon Dion Québec: The Unfinished Revolution “It is my hope that these pages will evoke interest and response among non-francophone readers” (1976: ix) [Preface by the author] Parti québécois. Quebec in a new world “The initial response [outside Quebec to this work] is likely to cover the spectrum from astonishment to frustration, to indifference and disbelief, but some will want to engage in a dialogue with the PQ [...] Open democratic debate is an end in itself and the PQ has made an important contribution with this publication” (1994: xiv) [Foreword by Duncan Cameron] Positioning: Debate & Dialogue

23. French TTs Hubert Guindon Tradition, modernité et aspiration nationale de la société québécoise “Il faut espérer que cette édition en langue française d'écrits d'Hubert Guindon offre à certains l'occasion d'ouvrir un débat et à d'autres de poursuivre des débats” (Guindon 1990: xii) [Préface à l'édition française de Pierre Dandurand et Louis Maheu] Positioning: Debate & Dialogue

24. English TTs Chaput-Rolland Reflections II: The second Conquest “[This diary] jars my complacency. It will jar yours if you tend to think that the skeptical feelings of French Canadians about us and Canada as we conceive it do not run deep or that they will quieten and phase themselves out in a pleasant accommodation to the majority will in Canada” (Chaput-Rolland 1970: 7) [Foreword by Douglas Fisher]. Richard Fidler Canada Adieu “most readers of this compilation will find some of the views expressed here challenging, and some possibly downright infuriating” (Fidler 1991: ii) [Foreword by Rod Dobell]. Positioning: Provocation

25. Centre de formation populaire. Beyond the PQ: The National Struggle and the Quebec working class Preface [to the English edition] “We believe these [translated] articles are of vital importance to the English Canadian working class. [...] the national aspirations of the Quebec people are not directed against English Canadian workers bur rather, on the contrary, are directed against the common enemy of both French and English speaking workers, namely the Canadian bourgeoisie and their U.S. allies.” Introduction [to the English edition] [...] The present struggle in Quebec poses no threat to the working class in English Canada or to its allies, actual or potential, among the urban poor, agrarian petite bourgeoisie, native people or other exploited minorities. In fact, the people of Quebec are in the forefront of a struggle which can benefit all of us. Positioning: Activism

26. Conclusions Assumptions in English TTs -English-speaking Canadians have a more limited understanding of the political views of French-speaking Canadians than vice versa. -English-speaking Canadians do not understand reasons, emotions, arguments behind referendum questions -English-speaking Canadians are hostile to ideas expressed by SL authors -English-speaking Canadians need to be more accommodating to points of view commonly held by various French-Canadian groups -More communication and understanding among Canadians needs to occur

27. Conclusions French-speaking Canadians -Many French TTs said to offer a point of view not normally held by English Canadians -views more commonly held by French-speaking Quebecers. -Other French TTs positioned as unique works -New insight into nationalism, independence- or referendum- related issues Assumptions: -Francophones already aware of arguments surrounding the sovereignty issue -Francophones looking for something new and unique -Francophones will not be offended by the TTs

29. The following slides were cut from this presentation to ensure time constraints were adhered to Cut material

30. For further study: 1. Did public narratives circulating in Canada also urge understanding from anglophones but not from francophones? 2. Do the visual frames (front and back covers) position works differently than the written frames (peritexts)? 3. What do public institutions (e.g. Canada Council) have to say about prize-winning books, authors and translators? Conclusions

31. Narratives & Frames

32. Quebec (province)--History--Autonomy and Independence movements Nationalism—Quebec (province) Referendum—Quebec (province) The delimited catalogue • Works published in English or French in Canada between 1968 and 2000 • Listed in the National Library and Archives Catalogue • Non-fiction texts

33. Excluded: audio-visual recordings electronic media theses bibliographies conference proceedings periodicals legal texts The delimited catalogue

34. The year and region in which a work is published will ultimately affect its interpretation (Baker 2006; Somers & Gibson 1994: 59). Pierre Vallières' Nègres blancs d'Amérique (1968): -French ST republished in 1979 and 1994 -English TT initially published in 1971 -Republished again in 1988 Temporal and spatial framing

35. Omissions and additions designed to suppress, highlight or elaborate certain aspects of narratives (Baker 2006: 114) Selective Appropriation

36. An impossible Quebec (Vallières 1980, Jeffrey Moore Transl.) Biography prepared by translator: -Vallières was “never […] the kind of man from which society needed protection” -Vallières may have been a radical, but he was civil and compassionate rather than “the wild and irresponsible bomb thrower that many wanted to believe he was” (1980: 11). -Legal proceedings used to convict Vallières of manslaughter were “kangaroo courts” and “Tartufferie” best suited to a “Costa Gavras scenario” (Vallières 1980: 8). Selective Appropriation: Examples

37. The Assassination of Pierre Laporte (Vallières 1977, Ralph Wells, Transl.) and An impossible Quebec (Vallières 1980, Jeffrey Moore Transl.) 1) Vallières lauded for his “impassioned, flamboyant” court room performance that “drew plaudits from the University of Montréal law faculty” (Vallières 1980: 9) [Not mentioned: seven-month sentence for contempt of court (Lebel & Seale 1970: 8)]. 2) Vallières after “highly publicized court battles”, won on appeal or was acquitted of “the main charges” (Vallières 1977: 191) [not mentioned: “main charges” included manslaughter for the death of Thérèse Morin during a shoe factory bombing (Lebel & Seale 1970: 8).] Selective Appropriation: Examples

38. The use of a lexical item, term or phrase to identify a person, place, event or other important element of a narrative (cf. Baker 2006: 168) Labelling

39. English TTs “objective”, “sincere”, “honest” Labels used in 4 cases to describe ST author's study of nationalism, independence movements or the referenda (Lallier 1991: n.p.; Morin 1976:xi), (Dion 1976: ix), (Chaput-Rolland 1970: 8) 1 case described author as someone who “tried to include all the elements of a given reality” and who “shun[ed] rash predictions and passionate judgments” (Ryan 1978b: n.p.). Labelling

40. French TT “honnête” 1 French TT preface: Used to label the language of Gibson, author of English ST for Trente millions de mousquetaires: un Canada pour tous les Canadiens (Gibson 1996: viii). Labelling

41. Used in translator peritexts: Approx. ½ of prefatory peritexts prepared by translators commented on labels -explained lexical choices -justified use of one label over another when referring to political positions or groups such as separatism or separatists (e.g. Desbarats 1977: 13) Labelling

42. Discussing linguistic issues such as terminology or other translation problems emphasizes a perceived gap between a) SL and TL readers b) ST author and TT readers c) SL and TL communities Also emphasizes a) importance of labels for describing groups in Canada b) sensitivity to labels related to the Quebec referenda Conclusions

43. Framing is an “active strategy that implies agency” and a way for us to “consciously participate in the construction of reality” (Baker 2006: 106). The same set of events can be framed in different ways to “promote competing narratives” (2006: 107). e.g. Pierre Vallières: “Political Prisoner” “Patriot québécois” “Marxist revolutionary writer” “Head of terrorist organization” Narratives & Frames

44. English TTs: Christian Dufour's Le défi québécois: essai “This not a 'separatist' book.” (Dufour 1990: 10) [Foreword by Rob Dobell] Claude Morin's Quebec versus Ottawa: The Struggle for Self-government, 1960-1972 “[c]ontrary to what some might expect, my two books [...] do not constitute a plea for Quebec independence.” (Morin 1976: xi) [author's Preface to the English edition] “M. Morin is not presenting arguments for the independence of Quebec but is rather recording and evaluating his experience of how our government works—a rare thing for a senior civil servant to do.” (Morin 1976: n.p.) [Publisher's peritext] Positioning: Reassurance

45. English TTs: Chaput-Rolland's Quebec Year One: “If a woman with a well-loved husband and a beautiful home had been spending several months of every year travelling, lecturing and explaining Quebec from St. John's to Victoria, she must have had a great deal more love for Canada than her exasperated words sometimes showed. [Her anglophone critics] forgot that her dearest friend was Gwethalyn Graham.” (1968: 8) “How kind and generous this woman is, really!” (1968: 11) [Foreword to the English Edition by Hugh MacLennan] Chaput-Rolland's Reflections II: The Second Conquest: The “pan-Canadianism” running though this work is due to “the determination of Madame Chaput-Rolland to understand and, where she cannot understand, to feel Canada, to reach out to all of us.” (1970: 10) [Foreword by Douglas Fischer] Positioning: Reassurance

46. French TTs: Reed Scowen's Le temps des adieux: plaidoyer pour un Canada sans le Québec “mon livre n'a pas pour but d'aider les Québécois à décider de leur avenir” “[j]e tiens tout de suite à rassurer les lecteurs francophones : cette traduction ne cherche aucunement à modifier leur comportement.” (Scowen 1999: 7) [avant propos de l'auteur] Gordon Gibson's Trente millions de mousquetaires: un Canada pour tous les Canadiens “le liberalisme individualiste de Gibson n'est pas celui d'un dogmatique fermé au droit à la différence du Québec. [...] Gibson nos fait entendre la voix franche et directe d'un Canada anglais conscient de ses intérêts mais ouvert au compromis." (Gibson 1996: viii) [Préface de André Burelle] Richard Simeon (Ed.) Le Canada face à son destin “[Les auteurs dans cette collection n'ont] le moindre soupçon de dogmatisme fédéraliste, ni la moindre trace d'arrogance ethnique. [...] il est partout évident que l'on considère les Québécois comme des frères amis et qu'on ne veut rien d'autre que de les comprendre et de les rendre à l'aise au sein du Canada.” (1978: viii) [Préface de Léon Dion] Positioning: Reassurance

47. French TTs Hubert Guindon's Tradition, modernité et aspiration nationale de la société québécoise “[La pensée d'Hubert Guindon] est solidement ancrée dans la tradition des sciences sociales du Québec francophone mais en même temps s'en distancie de différentes façons et souvent dans une prise de position critique, polémique même.” (1990: ix) [Préface à l'édition française de Pierre Dandurand et Louis Maheu] John F. Conway's Des comptes à rendre “Là où John Conway fait preuve d'originalité [...] c'est dans l'explication qu'il apporte de l'enfermement des Canadiens français à l'intérieur des frontières du Québec”. (1995: préface, n.p.) [Préface de Guy Rocher] François Moreau's Le Québec, une nation opprimée “Le livre de François Moreau présente une autre vision de la lutte pour l'indépendance du Québec.” (1995: 8) [Préface de Michel Mill, le traducteur] Alain G. Gagnon (Ed.). Québec: État et société “Contrairement aux autres travaux sur la politique québécoise [ce collectif] met a contribution des chercheurs d'universités anglophones et francophones, de même que des chercheurs québécois du Canada hors-Québec.” (1994: 20) [Introduction de Gagnon] Positioning: Uniqueness

48. French TTs John F. Conway's Des comptes à rendre “Là où John Conway est original et en rupture avec son milieu, c'est qu'il perçoit comme normales et justifiées ce qui paraît à presque tous les Canadiens anglais comme des demandes exagérées et exaspérantes de la part du Québec.” (1995: préface, n.p.) [Préface de Guy Rocher] Gordon Gibson's Trente millions de mousquetaires: un Canada pour tous les Canadiens “Au moment où ses compatriotes du Canada anglais refusaient de même envisager une possible sécession du Québec Gordon Gibson écrivit un livre courageux, Plan B, qui osait sereinement penser l'impensable: l'avenir du reste du Canada sans le Québec. Un an plus tard, nageant de nouveau à contre courant, [Gibson] publiait, et pleine campagne référendaire québécoise, Thirty Million Musketeers, un essai percutant qui claimait [sic] haut et fort la faillite du statu quo et tentait d'imaginer sur de nouvelles bases l'avenir du Canada avec le Québec.” (Gibson 1996: vii) [Préface de André Burelle] Positioning: Uniqueness

49. French TTs David Jay Bercuson & Barry Cooper's Goodbye—et bonne chance ! Les adieux du Canada anglais au Québec “il nous est toutefois apparu d'une importance primordiale, dans le contexte des débats constitutionnels actuels, [...] de faire connaître le point de vue de nos interlocuteurs canadiens-anglais” (1991: n.p.) [Note de l'éditeur] Alain G. Gagnon (Ed.). Québec: État et société “Une des forces de cet ouvrage [...] est de poser les balises qui permettront aux (Gagnon 1994: 20) [introduction de l'auteur]. John F. Conway's Des comptes à rendre “[...] la traduction française de ce livre mérite d'être lue et méditée comme un précieux témoignage d'amitié et de compréhension de que nous apporte un vent favorable venu de l'Ouest” (1995: préface, n.p.) [préface de Guy Rocher]. Positioning: Understanding

50. English TTs Fernand Dumont The Vigil of Quebec “We can believe no longer, as the champions of entente so often tell us, that we only have to accept our differences and discover ourselves as we are. Since we decided to cease being what we were, it is comprehension of what we want to be that is now required of you (Dumont 1974: xii) [A letter to my English-speaking friends by the author] Claude Morin Quebec versus Ottawa: The Struggle for Self-government, 1960-1972 “[...] my hope is that this book will afford readers an opportunity to better understand Quebec's recent evolution and its attitude to federalism” (Morin 1976: xii) [Preface to the English edition by the author] “This book should help English-speaking Canadians to an understanding of the Quebecois ideas of federalism during these years and of how people in Quebec can come to believe that sovereignty is essential (Morin 1976: publisher's peritext, n.p.) Léandre Bergeron Why There Must be a Revolution in Québec “My hope is that this translation [...] will help Canadian workers and students understand Québécois workers so that the common interests of both will be a uniting force against our common enemy, American imperialism” (Bergeron 1974: 8) [Introduction by the author] Positioning: Understanding