The school community warns against
a novel by François Blais
The Association québécoise pour la prévention du suicide (AQPS) is preparing a guide to good practices for fiction authors. In a rare warning, the Ministry of Health asks school professionals not to recommend the latest children's novel by author François Blais,
which "explicitly" addresses suicide.
"People who publish or distribute works must be aware that they also have a responsibility to their audience," says Jérôme Gaudreault, President and CEO of the AQPS.
His association is working on a guide of good practices for authors and producers who wish to address
the delicate subject of suicide in their work.
"It is not a posture not to do this or that, but to be aware that there are risks," he said.
"Explicit reference to suicide"Mr. Gaudreault was reacting to concerns raised by public health authorities about the content of Le Garçon aux pieds à l'envers — Les chroniques de Saint-Sévère by the writer François Blais, a novel published in October by Fides.
Intended for adolescents, the book "refers several times and explicitly to suicide, as well as concrete means to achieve it," says a notice sent on December 16 to regional public health directors, reported Thursday Le Soleil.
Suicides are addressed in the form of "games and challenges," and "no mention is made of the importance of seeking help."
According to the Ministry of Health, "reading the novel could affect young people with vulnerabilities."
"In particular, they could adopt suicidal behaviours by imitation. Even in the case of fiction,
the risks of identification are real," the letter also states.
As a result, Quebec is asking professionals who work with young people not to recommend the novel,
published posthumously after the suicide of its author last May.
Holding cultural activities or carrying out school work on the structure is also to be avoided.
Known riskThe Department rarely makes such recommendations.
It happened in the past with Yan England's film 1:54 and the American series 13 Reasons Why, recalls the Ministry of Health by email.
"The means are put in place according to the situation, it can be by letters to the partners, communication with the producer, a call for vigilance," says public relations officer Noémie Vanheuverzwijn.
The risk is known, and is called the Werther effect: the hypermediatization of a suicide can trigger suicides by imitation in the general public.
In this case, a vulnerable teenager could identify with the character in the novel who kills himself,
explains UQAM psychology professor Cécile Bardon.
If these are cultural objects that are specifically dedicated to the young person, the power of identification is all the greater.
Cécile Bardon, Professor in the Department of Psychology at UQAM and Associate Director at the Centre for Research and Intervention on Suicide, Ethical Issues and End-of-Life Practices
According to the professor, the Ministry's recommendations are consistent with good practices in suicide prevention.
What if your child brings home a book about suicide at home? Don't panic, saysMs. Bardon. The goal is to start an open dialogue with your young person. Some examples of questions to ask him: "How do you feel about this book? Do you ever feel hopeless? "These works exist and children will be confronted with them," warns the teacher.
By email, Agenzia Fides indicates that a warning has been added to its website, and that a notice will be inserted in the copies of the book in response to the intervention of the Ministry of Health.
However, the publishing house considers the interpretation of public health authorities to be "biased"
and denounces the directive issued by Quebec.
It is an act of censorship that is detrimental to the author's work, the reputation of the publishing house and, ultimately, readers.
Excerpt from an email sent by Fides Group
"The attention [is] focused on a single aspect, presented out of context, stripped of the humanistic foundations of the narrative and which thereby obscures the inspiring, positive and constructive aspects of the work," she laments.
Data deficientRob Whitley, an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry at McGill University, notes that scientific data are insufficient to conclude that fictitious suicides in literary works have an influence on the passage to the act.
No public health issue is solved by silence.
Rob Whitley, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, McGill University
Instead, Whitley believes there is a need for more suicide prevention activities in educational institutions,
as long as they focus on messages of hope and help resources.
"One thing is certain, and that is that young people will discuss these issues with their peers,"
says the senior researcher at the Douglas Research Centre.
which "explicitly" addresses suicide.
"People who publish or distribute works must be aware that they also have a responsibility to their audience," says Jérôme Gaudreault, President and CEO of the AQPS.
His association is working on a guide of good practices for authors and producers who wish to address
the delicate subject of suicide in their work.
"It is not a posture not to do this or that, but to be aware that there are risks," he said.
"Explicit reference to suicide"Mr. Gaudreault was reacting to concerns raised by public health authorities about the content of Le Garçon aux pieds à l'envers — Les chroniques de Saint-Sévère by the writer François Blais, a novel published in October by Fides.
Intended for adolescents, the book "refers several times and explicitly to suicide, as well as concrete means to achieve it," says a notice sent on December 16 to regional public health directors, reported Thursday Le Soleil.
Suicides are addressed in the form of "games and challenges," and "no mention is made of the importance of seeking help."
According to the Ministry of Health, "reading the novel could affect young people with vulnerabilities."
"In particular, they could adopt suicidal behaviours by imitation. Even in the case of fiction,
the risks of identification are real," the letter also states.
As a result, Quebec is asking professionals who work with young people not to recommend the novel,
published posthumously after the suicide of its author last May.
Holding cultural activities or carrying out school work on the structure is also to be avoided.
Known riskThe Department rarely makes such recommendations.
It happened in the past with Yan England's film 1:54 and the American series 13 Reasons Why, recalls the Ministry of Health by email.
"The means are put in place according to the situation, it can be by letters to the partners, communication with the producer, a call for vigilance," says public relations officer Noémie Vanheuverzwijn.
The risk is known, and is called the Werther effect: the hypermediatization of a suicide can trigger suicides by imitation in the general public.
In this case, a vulnerable teenager could identify with the character in the novel who kills himself,
explains UQAM psychology professor Cécile Bardon.
If these are cultural objects that are specifically dedicated to the young person, the power of identification is all the greater.
Cécile Bardon, Professor in the Department of Psychology at UQAM and Associate Director at the Centre for Research and Intervention on Suicide, Ethical Issues and End-of-Life Practices
According to the professor, the Ministry's recommendations are consistent with good practices in suicide prevention.
What if your child brings home a book about suicide at home? Don't panic, saysMs. Bardon. The goal is to start an open dialogue with your young person. Some examples of questions to ask him: "How do you feel about this book? Do you ever feel hopeless? "These works exist and children will be confronted with them," warns the teacher.
By email, Agenzia Fides indicates that a warning has been added to its website, and that a notice will be inserted in the copies of the book in response to the intervention of the Ministry of Health.
However, the publishing house considers the interpretation of public health authorities to be "biased"
and denounces the directive issued by Quebec.
It is an act of censorship that is detrimental to the author's work, the reputation of the publishing house and, ultimately, readers.
Excerpt from an email sent by Fides Group
"The attention [is] focused on a single aspect, presented out of context, stripped of the humanistic foundations of the narrative and which thereby obscures the inspiring, positive and constructive aspects of the work," she laments.
Data deficientRob Whitley, an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry at McGill University, notes that scientific data are insufficient to conclude that fictitious suicides in literary works have an influence on the passage to the act.
No public health issue is solved by silence.
Rob Whitley, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, McGill University
Instead, Whitley believes there is a need for more suicide prevention activities in educational institutions,
as long as they focus on messages of hope and help resources.
"One thing is certain, and that is that young people will discuss these issues with their peers,"
says the senior researcher at the Douglas Research Centre.
