Revenant de Chine: Norman Bethune en mémoire

Dr. Norman Bethune (1890-1939), a physician, medical inventor, army officer, artist, and political activist, lived in Montreal from 1928 to 1936 where he was employed as a surgeon, first at the Royal Victoria Hospital and then at the Hôpital du Sacré-Cœur in Cartierville. He also became involved in left-wing politics during this period, joining the Communist Party of Canada in 1935 and organizing the Montreal Group for the Security of the People's Health and workshops to teach poor children how to paint in oils and watercolours. When the Spanish Civil War broke out in 1936, he left Canada for Madrid to support the anti-fascist Republican forces. In 1938, Bethune went to China to support Mao Zedong's 8th Route Army against the invading Japanese. On November 1, 1939, he cut his hand while operating and contracted septicaemia. Bethune died eleven days later. The author points out that Bethune's association with the Chinese Red Army, as well as his death on the battlefield, led him to heroism in China. However, the author points out, the story of Bethune does not stop with his passing; there is also a story of his representations after his death. The author retraces the portrayal in Canada of Bethune's life from his death in 1939 to 1979. The author maintains that while Bethune was controversial during his lifetime, the controversy continued after his death in diametrically opposed views of the doctor.

Laval, QC

Les Presses de l'Université Laval

2023

x-208p.

fr

978-2-7637-5835-0