Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Francophone Studies

Document Type

Dissertation

Abstract

This dissertation brings into dialogue trauma studies, disability studies, queer theory, and scholarship on autofiction and self-portraiture to examine representations of the self in contemporary Quebecois literature. Focusing on La fille d’elle-même (2021) by Gabrielle Boulianne-Tremblay, Tu aimeras ce que tu as tué (2017) by Kev Lambert, Grosse (2018) by Lynda Dion, Désormais, ma demeure (2020) by Nicholas Dawson, Chienne (2019) by Marie-Pier Lafontaine, and Ouvrir son cœur (2018) by Alexie Morin, this study argues that the literary self emerges as fundamentally unstable, shaped by trauma, embodiment, cognitive variation, and shifting configurations of gender and sexuality. Across this corpus, fragmentation and multiplicity function not merely as thematic concerns but as structuring principles that transform autofiction into a site of narrative and affective disruption. Rather than positioning autofiction as a space of referential ambiguity alone, this dissertation demonstrates how the genre mediates lived experience under conditions of vulnerability and marginality. The text examined here mobilize autofiction to produce forms of self- representation that resist coherence, blending realism with fantasy, and intertwining multiple forms of media—including poetry, diary, prose, drawing, and photography. In doing so, they do not simply recount experience but actively engage with the reader, enacting violence, rupture, and affect through their formal strategies. By situating these works within the specific linguistic and cultural context of Quebec, this dissertation contributes to scholarship on autofiction while highlighting the role of embodiment, trauma, and difference in shaping narrative form. It thus expands existing theoretical frameworks by demonstrating that autofiction operates not only as a genre of self-writing, but as a dynamic site where identity, narrative, and experience are continuously reconfigured.

Date

2-6-2026

DOI

https://proquest.com/docview/3347813127

First Committee Chair

Gaëtan Brulotte

First Committee Member

Fabrice Leroy

Second Committee Member

Nathan Rabalais

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