Queneau et l’écriture du silence : le cas de Zazie dans le métro

A fascinating topic for linguists as well as for writers, the relationship of silence to speech has been extensively explored by twentieth-century literature. Zazie dans le métro by Raymond Queneau (1959) constitutes an ideal ground for carrying out an investigation of this type as well as for approaching our theme from a linguistic perspective. The occurrences of the word and the importance of silence in the dialogues of this «phonocentric» universe (Jouet) prove it. In this paper, we will try to illustrate the role that «connective silence», which, as Paioni says, is «within discourse», plays in this novel. We will also try to define the position that Queneau as a «linguist» takes in the debate on the opportunity of considering silence as an «eloquent» form of communication.