Abstract

            This article analyzes the humour elements used by Joseph Quesnel in the comedy “L'anglomanie ou le dîner à l'angloise”. The humour element is the object of jokes or the elements that provoke laughter. Quesnel was a French-Canadian poet and playwright of the eighteenth century. He shifted to Quebec in 1779. He was one of the forerunners who expressed his disagreement with the anglicization of the French spirit in Quebec in his play “L'anglomanie ou le dîner à l'anglaise”. This is a short piece of comedy written in a single act and in verse in 1803. This play satirizes the Anglomania and the bourgeoisie attitude. Did Quesnel make use of humour to express his criticism for the Anglomania? What techniques did he employ to devise humour in the text? These are the two main objectives of our research. We have used the general humour theories to find the comical elements in the language and then we have created “the portrait” as put forth by the theorist Sainte-Beuve. The research study is aimed to identify the places where and how the dramatist attacked the socio-political situation of Quebec in relation to the British colonization and its impact during the eighteenth century. The recent bill passed in Quebec declared that the official language is french. The non-french speaking residing in Quebec are not in favour of this bill. Quebec has witnessed many protests ever since the bill is passed. The issues concerning the French and English traditions and by extension other aspects of these two languages and its cultures which we have witnessed in the chosen play still persist in a refined manner. The relevance of the play is significant in the contemporary Quebec.