Independence was only ever  embraced by a fervid minority among francophone Quebecers, although they held the high ground among intellectuals and artists, which created the  perception of a larger movement

in truth, the core and non-negotiable demand of QC voters during the Quiet Revolution was to be able to work in French, that it become the economic language and that the business  hierarchy be entirely open to French speakers ... the result was a massive increase in the number of francophone MBAs and the parallel rise of Quebec Inc. corporations in the 1980s "Bombardier generation"

After  that was  achieved, support for nationalist parties steadily softened, to the point that the PQ is almost certainly doomed to 3rd place among electoral groups after the next elections in 2018.