Arms of Claude La Charité
Arms of Claude La Charité
Blazon
Argent a pelican in its piety Sable, vestu enarched Azure, in chief two crosses patté Argent;
Symbolism
The pelican, a Christian symbol of charity, represents Dr. La Charité’s surname and underscores his Catholic faith. The segments in the corners of the shield, reminiscent of theatre curtains, refer to the work of the celebrated satirical Renaissance writer François Rabelais, whose work Dr. La Charité has studied in depth. The crosses patté are taken from Rabelais’ armorial bearings; for Dr. La Charité, they convey a connection between the Old World and the New, and between Antiquity and the Renaissance. The cross also alludes to the Abbey of Cluny to which the priory of La Charité-sur-Loire, the birthplace of the first Canadian ancestor, Jean-Baptiste Laspron dit La Charité, was attached.
Crest of Claude La Charité
Blazon
An amphora Sable issuant therefrom a flame proper entwined about by a salamander Or all enflamed proper;
Symbolism
The salamander, the badge of King Francis I, symbolizes the “discovery” of Canada in 1534 under his reign, as well as the period of literary history that Dr. La Charité specializes in. A mythical animal, it represents his interest in imagination and literature. The lamp is used heavily throughout Rabelais’s works, particularly among the Lychnobites (“those who live by lanterns”), a term Rabelais experts, like Dr. La Charité, use to describe themselves as people who work late by lamplight.
Motto of Claude La Charité
Blazon
ΟΥ ΖΗΤΕΙ ΤΑ ΕΑΥΤΗΣ;
Symbolism
This motto in ancient Greek reflects the definition that St. Paul gives to love and charity in the first letter to the Corinthians 13:5. It is also the motto of Rabelais’ giant Gargantua. Meaning “It seeks not its own”, it makes a pun on Dr. La Charité’s name, the pronoun referring to “charity”.
