Maria Chapdelaine

As much as it is a romance, Maria Chapdelaine is a chronicle of pioneer life in rural Québec. Hémon himself was a migrant to Québec. Born in Brittany, France, Hémon was fascinated by the idea of rural life and drawn to Québec. In 1911, Hémon moved to Québec, settling in the rural Lac Saint-Jean region, which served as the inspiration for Maria Chapdelaine’s setting. He worked as a hired hand on a farm, a job that allowed him to meet and interview many French-Canadian habitants, the descendants of original French settlers who carried on their agricultural lifestyle.

Though Hémon spent only a few years in Québec before his death in 1913, his brief tenure made an impact on him and inspired him to write Maria Chapdelaine. The character of Maria is believed to be based on a young Québécois woman he met while working on her family’s farmhouse. The harsh landscape and hardscrabble lifestyle that so fascinated Hémon is related in detail in the narrative, exploring how habitant lives are guided by the laws of nature and the rules of their deeply held Catholic faith.

Much of the novel focuses on the Chapdelaine family’s struggle to eke out a living from the land.