Joseph-Charles Taché was one of the most vigorous founders of the Patriotic School of Quebec, the literary movement which transformed writing from a sporadic occurrence into a distinctive French-Canadian tradition. His activities extended from his own writing to founding and directing periodicals and writing articles in defense of Canadian language and culture. At the same time, he was a medical practitioner, distinguished journalist, member of Parliament, and deputy minister. Both as politician and as author, he was a passionate defender of traditional French-Canadian values, which he largely identified with language, religion, and folklore, but also with forest industries and economic development. He is best remembered for his arch-conservative but sympathetic representation of backwoods life and his love of the forests, lakes, and rivers.

Taché, born on 24 December 1820 in Kamouraska, about one hundred miles from Quebec City, was the son of Charles Taché, captain in an...