The Image Of The Skin In La Reine Du Silence Of Marie Nimier

La Reine du Silence is one of Marie Nimier's masterpieces.The author tells us a story of investigation about his father in the first person.In this novel,the image of the skin is often presented and is associated with the theme of the return to childhood.To reveal the meaning of images,we try to study them with thematic criticism,especially with Jean-Pierre Richard's approach,microlecture,and Didier Anzieu's psychoanalytic theory on the skin.The skin is an essential organ of the human body.According to Didier Anzieu,the skin occupies an essential place during the growth of the baby and the child.The skin,which allows the subject to protect himself,to communicate with the other and to individualize him,has not only the physiological,but also the psychological sense.This thesis begins with the analysis of recurrent images of the skin to explore its characteristics.With the "microlecture" of Jean-Pierre Richard,we discover the relationship between this image and the characters.They are classified by three main types: body skin,clothing and water.Then,in the second chapter,one deals extensively with the figurative meanings of the skin.The "psychic envelope" is a psychic mechanism that comes from the body skin.It produces positive effects during his childhood.In the face of obstacles,the heroine wishes to return to childhood so that the skin can protect it,help it to communicate with the other person and finish the reconstitution.In the last chapter,we analyze the Nimier's script to see how it manifests the state of mind of the heroine.The author has constructed an enclosed space where time stagnates and there is a "dialogic structure" in the narrative sense.By our studies,we hope that this memoir can offer a new vision on this novel.