Anne Hébert

Biography

Anne Hébert was born in the small village from Holy-Catherine-of-the-Jacques-Cartier (then called Holy-Catherine-of-Fossambault) in MRC from Lake-Jacques-Cartier, to 25 km of Quebec on August 1st, 1916. She lived her childhood with Quebec. Its family counts several writers, of which his/her cousin the poet Saint-Denys Garneau who will influence his choice of readings at the end of the years 1930.

She publishes in 1942 a first collection of poems, the Dreams balances of it. Its second work, published in 1950, is the collection of news the Torrent . the Tomb of the kings appears on account of author in 1953, collection on which she worked during ten years. She is committed as script writer by the National office of the film in January 1953. She works thereafter with Montreal as a scenario writer until the autumn 1954.

She moves with Paris in 1965, after the death of her mother. The novel of the Chambres of wood is published in 1958 and it receives in June 1960 the honor to be elected member of the Royal Société of Canada. After the publication of its second novel, Kamouraska in 1971, it is finally success. the Children of the Sabbath , a third novel, appears in 1975. In 1978, the Prime Minister Rene Lévesque invites it to occupy the station of Lieutenant-governor of Quebec but she refuses.

In 1980, it publishes a fourth novel, Héloïse . The écrivaine becomes then the fourth Canadian-Frenchwoman and the second Québécois one to obtain a French literary Grand Prix. Indeed, it obtains the Prix Femina for its fifth novel, the Gannet in 1982 (Gabrielle Roy, Marie-Claire Blais and Antonine Maillet preceded it like prizes winner by literary prizes). In 1983, a Doctorat honoris causa is given to him by the Université Laval. He is added to the precedents, Toronto in 1969, Guelph in 1970, UQAM in 1979 and finally, McGill in 1980.

In 1988 it publishes its sixth novel, the First garden , in homage to the women who founded the News-France. A seventh novel, the Child in charge of dreams , appears in 1992. In 1995, 79 years old, it publishes Aurélien, Clara, Miss and the Lieutenant English , a history halfway between poetry and prose. Its fifth collection Poèmes for the left hand is published two years afterwards. At the beginning of 1998, that which had lived Paris for 32 years returns to Montreal.

In 1999 it publishes what will be its last novel, a bullfighter's costume . Indeed, she will die a few months later at the Notre-Dame hospital of Montreal on January 22nd, 2000. She was 83 years old.

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