PRESENTATION Fifty years of French Studies

This article examines the founding premise of the Etudes francaises journal and the spirit that characterized its early decades, first of all by situating its creation within the exceptional period of transformation at Universite de Montreal that secured the primacy of research and the disciplinary divisions. Etudes francaises stands out, however, in seeking to reconcile scholarly discourse and literary creation, which forms part of the "new criticism," to develop a hermeneutic of trust and resist theoretical excess, as shown in comparison with Etudes litteraires.