I was just wondering if any Dopers that read it could help with some clarification. I’m not exactly the French expert and got a little lost while reading it.
Ask away. It’s been a while but I may remember a few pertinent things.
It is somehow a tragedy is that right? I mean, Joseph goes off to World War 2 (I’m not sure if it’s Joseph or Edouard) and then comes back only to get into trouble at home. Then he leave and dies in the Korean war, which in turn makes Fleurette sad because she’s the only one that loved him (aside from his father, who was a family man?). Is any of that correct?
Personally, I’d consider it a drama, but basically you’re right also in your interpretation of the story line.
Is the father’s death in any way tragic (aside from him dying, I mean consequences on the family)?
Didn’t they incur a large debt on Joseph’s behalf that they couldn’t repay ? Although I don’t recall the exact details, I would say that, considering the era, it would have been devastating. At the time, the man was the family’s provider, the woman didn’t have the experience or training to get in the job market and society was frowning on working women.
Good point detop!
I’m just trying to collect myself for an essay. We didn’t get to see it dramatized, instead a bunch of teens who can’t read french trying to make the words out 
If you are in Canada, try to find a Radio-Canada (the French CBC) station and see if they have for rent some of their archival stuff. It was adapted for TV a couple of times in the 60s.
I’ve noticed one problem with all of Radio-Canada’s films is that during the night, it’s pitch black. Unlike the English productions which have some light during night scenes, the French films are impossible to view.
Just for the record, the essay’s intro is: Un Simple Soldat est une tragédie. Ceci est montré par les vies de Joseph et d’Edouard. Joseph était un soldat dans la guerre, il a voulu voir la bataille. C’est une bataille dans la Guerre Coréenne qui le tue. Edouard a vie pour sa famille. Il strived pour fournir chaque petit peu qu’il pourrait. Il est même allé jusque marier Bertha quoique ni l’un ni l’autre ne se soient aimés. La tragédie est un des thèmes principaux du roman et peut être vue par ces exemples.
Pretty bad isn’t it 
Cheers and thanks for the info so far.
There’s one thing you got wrong there. It is not a novel. It is a play. Marcel Dubé was the most prolific Québec playwright of the 50s and the 60s. Many of his plays were adapted for TV.
Thanks for pointing that one out.