Why did regionalist writers in Quebec focus on rural life and local language?

In the early 20th century, regionalist writers in Quebec focused on rural life and local language as a means of reinforcing a specific French Canadian nationalism that was being promoted by influential figures such as Henri Bourassa and Lionel-Adolphe Groulx.1

This literary movement, which became dominant for approximately 30 years starting around 1910, emerged as a reaction to the rapid industrialization and urbanization of Quebec society. Nationalist leaders and officials of the Roman Catholic Church feared that the growing French-speaking working class would lose their religion, language, and culture while working in English-language industrial enterprises.12

Consequently, regionalists championed an agriculturalist ideology, portraying rural life as the ideal setting for preserving traditional French Canadian values. By emphasizing local subject matter and language in publications like the magazine Le Terroir, these writers sought to provide a cultural counterweight to the economic and social shifts occurring in the province.12