The Island [1989]
(Oberon, Ottawa, 1991)
Original
Résumé A group of men and women gather on an island of beaches, sun and sea, like castaways stranded
for life and death. Whether they are white or black, young or old, inside or outside the mainstream,
they share the same destiny on this isle besieged by all the scourges of modern society:
racism, AIDS, indifference... The island becomes the mirror image of our society where there are
no guarantees and everything has to be negotiated. Yet even in this barren place, tenderness and
compassion sometimes alleviate the gloom and bring moments of joy. Extrait « TONY: Look, Robert, they're all closed: the hotel, the restaurants, the terraces. Are they planning to shut down the entire island? (Echoes of joyful laughter.) They've even closed that magnificent garden where we used to drink and dance all night. You remember, the waiters served us in shorts and white knee socks… laughing, insolent, golden faces, streaming with sweat… innocence… innocence… no flower will ever grow again in that garden… the gate is locked… nothing left now… like the silent aftermath of a war… / ROBERT: Eric, Donald, Vic, Réjean… / TONY: Nothing will grow here again… it's all over… » |