This research provides a linguistic assessment of the role of literature and the writer in the evolution of a language. It investigates the inner structure of the text, from morphological specificities to the semantics of the narrative, and highlights new evidence of a deliberate attempt by Rabelais to "illustrate" the French vernacular, glorify its potential and proudly participate in a highly politicized debate: the elaboration of a unified and unifying national language. This research aims to show that the movement in Rabelais' work ... is a self-fulfillment of the language, perpetually creating and destroying itself in search for identity and meaning. This research lies at the crossroads of linguistics and literature--Condensed from the abstract.
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