Abstract

Upon the basis of the strict Huguenot faith received from his mother, Andre Gide developed a faith of his own. Renouncing the Calvinism of his youth, he became a champion of the freedom of the individual to live as one pleases. Gide was unable to remain silent about his convictions and incorporated his philosophy into his fictional works. Gide's fictional works are parabolic in that beneath the surface story there is a moral point which Gide wished to make. ;Fundamental to this study is the manner in which Gide employed the Biblical parable and parabolic technique in the development of his fiction. The first point of the study examines the nature, structure, and purpose of parable. Especially considered is the peculiar capability of parable to soften the blow of the parablist's message and to elicit from the hearer the response desired by the parablist. The study addresses the question of interpretation of parable, and the role of the hearer. ;Since a parable must be interpreted in its context, if one is to find the clues necessary to interpret the parable, the fictional works selected for this study were analyzed in the light of statements made by Gide in his journals and other nonfictional works. Gide's life and nonfictional writings have been considered as the immediate context of his parabolic works. The study focuses on Gide's Le Retour de l'enfant prodigue