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Pierre Benoit, récit d’île et roman de l’île
| Summary: | Pierre Benoit’s novel L’ïle Verte is interesting not only because the story takes place in an island but also because the island is the place where the novel originates. One of our purposes is to analyze how, starting from an island in the novel, we get to the novel of the island. A writer comes to Île Verte in order to write a novel that becomes L’Île Verte... One should also ask oneself what can be the story of an island. An island is first and foremost an isolated place. Observation is another condition. The character is a naturalist. He aims to learn about the life of migratory birds. He comes to Île Verte precisely because it is both a spot for taxidermy and for taxonomy. The island is a kind of museum. At last, the island becomes a laboratory where the character experiments. However, unfortunately, the lakes and canals he builds are to the detriment of the dams and locks essential to the preservation of the whole island. Beyond the structuring elements of the narrative of the island, a paradox appears: what makes an island is also what makes it disappear. |
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| Subject: | isoloir laboratoire conservatoire museum laboratory isolation répertoire observatoire observation island |
| Country: | Portugal |
| Document type: | journal article |
| Access type: | Open |
| Associated institution: | Carnets, Revista Electrónica de Estudos Franceses |
| Language: | French |
| Origin: | Carnets, Revista Electrónica de Estudos Franceses |
| Summary: | Pierre Benoit’s novel L’ïle Verte is interesting not only because the story takes place in an island but also because the island is the place where the novel originates. One of our purposes is to analyze how, starting from an island in the novel, we get to the novel of the island. A writer comes to Île Verte in order to write a novel that becomes L’Île Verte... One should also ask oneself what can be the story of an island. An island is first and foremost an isolated place. Observation is another condition. The character is a naturalist. He aims to learn about the life of migratory birds. He comes to Île Verte precisely because it is both a spot for taxidermy and for taxonomy. The island is a kind of museum. At last, the island becomes a laboratory where the character experiments. However, unfortunately, the lakes and canals he builds are to the detriment of the dams and locks essential to the preservation of the whole island. Beyond the structuring elements of the narrative of the island, a paradox appears: what makes an island is also what makes it disappear. |
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