Author: Paul Toupin
Profile: Paul Toupin was a Quebec essayist, journalist and playwright. He was born on December 7, 1918 in Montreal, Canada and studied at College Jean-de-Brebeuf, the Sorbonne, Columbia University and Aix-Marseille University. He has taught at the Loyola University and Universite de Sherbrooke and Loy in addition to his journalism and writing.
Paul Toupin has been one of the first prominent writers who were openly gay besides novelist Jean-Paul Pinsonneault and poet Paul Chamberlan, in Quebec literature. In his 1964 essay collection, L’Ecrivain et son theatre, he has written and addressed gay related themes. He has been very open about his very own sexuality while writing his memoirs Mon mal vient de plus loin in 1969 and Le Coeur a ses raisons in 1971.
One of the few tragedies ever composed in French Canada was Brutus (1952) which was televised in the year 1953. It was for television only that Le Mensonge (1960) and Chacun son amour (1961) were performed after which he turned towards writing autobiographical memoirs and essays like L’Ecrivain et son theatre (1964).
Paul Toupin left for the heavenly abode on March 8, 1993. Archives of Paul Toupin have been preserved in the Montreal archives centre of the Bibliotheque et Archives nationals du Quebec.
Writing style: Paul Toupin’s plays, classical in terms of structure, language and universal in theme have been accredited more by critics as compared to his audiences in Quebec. He has been very open about his very own sexuality.
Published Texts:
1951 – Le Choix (play)
1960 – Le Mensonge (play)
1961 – Chacun son amour
1979 – Son dernier role
Awards and Acknowledgements:
1952 – Won the Quebec’s Prix David Award for Brutus
1952 – Prix de literature de la province de Quebec
1960 – Won the Governor General’s Award for French-language non-fiction at the Governor General’s Award in 1960 for Souvenirs pour demain
1960 – Souvenirs pouor demain (1960) was awarded the prize for best foreign publication in French from the Academie francaise
Member of the Academie des letters du Quebec