Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Publication
Toronto: Macmillan of Canada, 1970
Description
Winner of the Governor General ?s Award for Fiction Canada Reads Selection (CBC), 2013A landmark of nationalist fiction, Hugh MacLennan ?s Two Solitudes is the story of two peoples within one nation, each with its own legend and ideas of what a nation should be. In his vivid portrayals of human drama in First World War ?era Quebec, MacLennan focuses on two individuals whose love increases the prejudices that surround them until they discover that ?love consists in this, that two solitudes protect, and touch and greet each other. ?The novel centres around Paul Tallard and his struggles in reconciling the differences between the English identity of his love Heather Methuen and her family, and the French identity of his father. Against this backdrop the country is forming, the chasm between French and English communities growing deeper. Published in 1945, the novel popularized the use of ?two solitudes ? as referring to a perceived lack of communication between English- and French-speaking Canadians.Content note: This book contains racial slurs that readers may find offensive or upsetting.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member tripleblessings
Maclennan's classic novel of French and English Canada, their division and mutual misunderstanding. An important work in Canadian literature, and in Canadian politics.
LibraryThing member autumnc
This book is a good read for:
1. All Canadians
2. All Quebeckers
3. Anyone from the US/Britain that doesn't understand the Canadian identity crisis.
4. Readers interested in Quebec during WWI, Depression and WWII.
My sense about Canada, and this is beautifully illustrated in Two Solitudes, is that there
And how to deal with a superpower like the United States, a mere stones throw across the border? In the authors words "The Americans were doubtless all right but they would be far better if they were a thousand miles away." Fear of basking in the reflected glory of a country that might just as well swallow us up with it's shiny-ness.
I have only two complaints about Two Solitudes. First, why end with a tragic love story? It is ill-placed, unnecessary and all too predictable. Second- although in all fairness it was written in the 40s- is that no voice is given to the existence of First Nations. I guess when the book was written there was still a sense of Western imperialism. Perhaps that is still true in Quebec now. Also, what of the Acadians? Maybe that story has another place.
But I felt, after reading this novel, give Quebec sovereignty if they can reach consensus with Cree/Metis in the interior of the province. Quebec values their culture and are afraid of losing it to British and American interests- and who isn't? Good for them for trying to find their own cultural name.
1. All Canadians
2. All Quebeckers
3. Anyone from the US/Britain that doesn't understand the Canadian identity crisis.
4. Readers interested in Quebec during WWI, Depression and WWII.
My sense about Canada, and this is beautifully illustrated in Two Solitudes, is that there
Show More
is an ongoing struggle of identity. How does an individual cope with a questioning identity and furthermore, how to treat an entire nation suffering form this sort of confusion?And how to deal with a superpower like the United States, a mere stones throw across the border? In the authors words "The Americans were doubtless all right but they would be far better if they were a thousand miles away." Fear of basking in the reflected glory of a country that might just as well swallow us up with it's shiny-ness.
I have only two complaints about Two Solitudes. First, why end with a tragic love story? It is ill-placed, unnecessary and all too predictable. Second- although in all fairness it was written in the 40s- is that no voice is given to the existence of First Nations. I guess when the book was written there was still a sense of Western imperialism. Perhaps that is still true in Quebec now. Also, what of the Acadians? Maybe that story has another place.
But I felt, after reading this novel, give Quebec sovereignty if they can reach consensus with Cree/Metis in the interior of the province. Quebec values their culture and are afraid of losing it to British and American interests- and who isn't? Good for them for trying to find their own cultural name.
Show Less
LibraryThing member funfunyay
People mention this book often, as a political metaphor. But this book is such a loving and clear portrait of the times, people, and ideas that I fell in love with it. We've been happily married for over a year.
When I visited Montreal this summer I couldn't help but remember different scenes from
When I visited Montreal this summer I couldn't help but remember different scenes from
Show More
the book, they are so full of place. Show Less
LibraryThing member Romonko
This book written by the marvellous Hugh MacLennan and was originally released in 1945. It’s a novel that has been on my “to read” list for a long time and it is a “must-read” classic for all Canadians. The novel revolves around the city of Montreal and the province of Quebec from just
Show More
before the beginning of World War I and ends just as World War II begins in 1939. There are so many layers and so many intricacies in this book and it is defined by two solitudes as the title suggests. The two solitudes are varied. There are the solitudes of the English-speaking Canadians and the French-speaking Canadians, and the book depicts so clearly why there has been so much discord between the two nationalities in Canada. It depicts the solitudes of the Canadian way and Canada and our nearest neighbours the United States of America, and how and why there are such differences between the two countries. The most glaring thing is that Canadians really never considered themselves a separate country until after the second World War. We came into our own after that war, mostly because of the bravery and valour of the soldiers who fought and died in that war. Canada took it’s rightful place on the world stage after that war. There are the two solitudes of the fictional characters in the book. Young French-Canadian Paul Tallard, the son of a fading French Canadian aristocrat, is the soldering iron that connects the old French Canadian families to the English-speaking proletariat characters who controlled the money and affairs of Canada and its destiny. As Paul struggles with his English and French Canadian identities, he goes through many epiphanies that enable him to understand the solitudes and why they are there. When the book opens, the world and Canada are on the brink of war (WWI), but the world is also on the brink of enormous change and Canada is on the precipice of taking the leap forward or not - forever remaining a little country outpost in the British empire. As we all know we took the leap and became the Canada we are today. The main characters in the book are wonderfully drawn, but what really drew me in to the book is MacLennan’s love for Canada and for our vast and beautiful country. It was humbling to realize just how important and wonderful my country is. It’s one of those things that I’ve always known, but never really took the time to really examine. It’s the best place on earth and Mr. MacLennan makes that abundantly clear throughout this wonderful book. “O Canada, we stand on guard for thee”. Show Less
LibraryThing member mahallett
His books start off well and then get lost.
Awards
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1945
Physical description
412 p.; 18 cm