Canadian literature
Encyclopedia
Canadian literature is literature originating from Canada
. Collectively it is often called CanLit.
Some criticism of Canadian literature has focused on nationalistic and regional themes, although this is only a small portion of Canadian Literary criticism. Critics against such thematic criticism in Canadian literature, such as Frank Davey
, have argued that a focus on theme diminishes the appreciation of complexity of the literature produced in the country, and creates the impression that Canadian literature is sociologically-oriented.
While Canadian literature, like the literature of every nation state, is influenced by its socio-political contexts, Canadian writers have produced a variety of genres. Influences on Canadian writers are broad, both geographically and historically.
Canada's dominant cultures were originally British and French, as well as aboriginal. After Prime Minister Trudeau's "Announcement of Implementation of Policy of Multiculturalism within Bilingual Framework," in 1971, Canada gradually became home to a more diverse population of readers and writers. The country's literature has been strongly influenced by international immigration, particularly in recent decades.
. Canada's ethnic and cultural diversity are reflected in its literature, with many of its most prominent writers focusing on ethnic life.
It was the rise of Quebec patriotism and the 1837 Lower Canada Rebellion
, in addition to a modern system of primary school education, which led to the rise of French-Canadian fiction. L'influence d'un livre
by Philippe-Ignace-Francois Aubert de Gaspé is widely regarded as the first French-Canadian novel. The genres which first became popular were the rural novel and the historical novel. French authors were influential, especially authors like Balzac.
In 1866, Father Henri-Raymond Casgrain
became one of Quebec's first literary theorists. He argued that literature's goal should be to project an image of proper Catholic
morality. However, a few authors like Louis-Honoré Fréchette
and Arthur Buies broke the conventions to write more interesting works.
This pattern continued until the 1930s with a new group of authors educated at the Université Laval
and the Université de Montréal
. Novels with psychological and sociological foundations became the norm. Gabrielle Roy
and Anne Hébert
even began to earn international acclaim, which had not happened to French-Canadian literature before. During this period, Quebec theatre, which had previously been melodramas and comedies, became far more involved.
French-Canadian literature began to greatly expand with the turmoil of the Second World War
, the beginnings of industrialization in the 1950s, and most especially the Quiet Revolution
in the 1960s. French-Canadian literature also began to attract a great deal of attention globally, with Acadian
novelist Antonine Maillet
winning the Prix Goncourt
. An experimental branch of Québécois literature also developed; for instance the poet Nicole Brossard
wrote in a formalist style.
In 1979, Roch Carrier
wrote the story The Hockey Sweater
, which highlighted the cultural and social tensions between English
and French
speaking Canada.
See also: List of Quebec writers, Literature of Quebec, List of French Canadian writers from outside Quebec
's Canada Made Me http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/norman-levine-494715.html, a travelogue that presented a sour interpretation of the country in 1958, for example, was widely rejected.
After 1967, the country's centennial year, the national government increased funding to publishers and numerous small presses began operating throughout the country.http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1SEC828178
In the late 1970s, science fiction fan
and scholar of Canadian literature Susan Wood
helped pioneer the study of feminist science fiction
, and (along with immigrant editor Judith Merril
) brought new respectability to the study of Canadian science fiction, paving the way for the rise of such phenomena as the French-Canadian science fiction magazine
Solaris.
By the 1990s, Canadian literature was viewed as some of the world's best.
Canadian authors have won international awards:
and Catherine Parr Traill, English sisters who adopted the country as their own, moved to Canada in 1832. They recorded their experiences as pioneers in Parr Traill's The Backwoods of Canada (1836) and Canadian Crusoes (1852), and Moodie's Roughing It in the Bush (1852) and Life in the Clearings (1853). However, both women wrote until their deaths, placing them in the country for more than 50 years and certainly well past Confederation. Moreover, their books often dealt with survival and the rugged Canadian environment; these themes re-appear in other Canadian works, including Margaret Atwood
's Survival. Moodie and Parr Traill's sister, Agnes Strickland
, remained in England and wrote elegant royal biographies, creating a stark contrast between Canadian and English literatures.
However, one of the earliest "Canadian" writers virtually always included in Canadian literary anthologies is Thomas Chandler Haliburton
(1796–1865), who died just two years before Canada's official birth. He is remembered for his comic character, Sam Slick, who appeared in The Clockmaker and other humorous works throughout Haliburton's life.
Arguably, the best-known living Canadian writer internationally (especially since the deaths of Robertson Davies
and Mordecai Richler
) is Margaret Atwood
, a prolific novelist, poet, and literary critic. Some great 20th century Canadian authors include Margaret Laurence
, Gabrielle Roy
, and Carol Shields
.
This group, along with Alice Munro
, who has been called the best living writer of short stories in English, were the first to elevate Canadian Literature to the world stage. During the post-war decades only a handful of books of any literary merit were published each year in Canada, and Canadian literature was viewed as an appendage to British and American writing.
Much of what was produced dealt with extremely typical Canadiana such as the outdoors and animals, or events in Canadian history. A reaction against this tradition, poet Leonard Cohen
's novel Beautiful Losers
(1966), was labelled by one reviewer "the most revolting book ever written in Canada".
Canadian poet Leonard Cohen
is perhaps best known as a folk singer and songwriter, with an international following.
Canadian Author Farley Mowat
, best known for his work "Never Cry Wolf", also author of "Lost in the Barrens
" (1956), Governor General's Award-winning children's book.
(ed.): History of Literature in Canada: English-Canadian and French-Canadian. Rochester, NY: Camden House, 2008.
Awards For Children and Young Adult Literature:
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Collectively it is often called CanLit.
Some criticism of Canadian literature has focused on nationalistic and regional themes, although this is only a small portion of Canadian Literary criticism. Critics against such thematic criticism in Canadian literature, such as Frank Davey
Frank Davey
Frankland Wilmot Davey is a Canadian poet and scholar.Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, he grew up in the Fraser Valley village of Abbotsford. In 1957 he enrolled at the University of British Columbia where, in 1961, shortly after receiving his BA, he became one of the founding editors of the...
, have argued that a focus on theme diminishes the appreciation of complexity of the literature produced in the country, and creates the impression that Canadian literature is sociologically-oriented.
While Canadian literature, like the literature of every nation state, is influenced by its socio-political contexts, Canadian writers have produced a variety of genres. Influences on Canadian writers are broad, both geographically and historically.
Canada's dominant cultures were originally British and French, as well as aboriginal. After Prime Minister Trudeau's "Announcement of Implementation of Policy of Multiculturalism within Bilingual Framework," in 1971, Canada gradually became home to a more diverse population of readers and writers. The country's literature has been strongly influenced by international immigration, particularly in recent decades.
Characteristics of Canadian literature
Canada’s literature, whether written in English or French, often reflects the Canadian perspective on: (1) nature, (2) frontier life, and 4r(3) Canada’s position in the world, all three of which tie in to the garrison mentalityGarrison mentality
The garrison mentality is a common theme in Canadian literature and Canadian cinema, in both English Canada and French Canada. In texts with the garrison mentality, characters are always looking outwards and building metaphorical walls against the outside world...
. Canada's ethnic and cultural diversity are reflected in its literature, with many of its most prominent writers focusing on ethnic life.
Categories of Canadian literature
Because of its size and breadth, Canadian literature is often divided into sub-categories.- The most common is to categorize it by region or province.
- Another way is to categorize it by author. For instance, the literature of Canadian women, AcadianAcadianThe Acadians are the descendants of the 17th-century French colonists who settled in Acadia . Acadia was a colony of New France...
s, Aboriginal peoples in CanadaAboriginal peoples in CanadaAboriginal peoples in Canada comprise the First Nations, Inuit and Métis. The descriptors "Indian" and "Eskimo" have fallen into disuse in Canada and are commonly considered pejorative....
, and Irish Canadians have been anthologized as bodies of work. - A third is to divide it by literary period, such as "Canadian postmoderns" or "Canadian Poets Between the Wars."
Traits of Canadian literature
Traits common to works of Canadian literature include:- Failure as a theme: Failure and futility feature heavily as themes in many notable works; for instance, Not Wanted on the VoyageNot Wanted on the VoyageNot Wanted on the Voyage is a novel by Canadian author Timothy Findley, which presents a magic realist post-modern re-telling of the Great Flood in the biblical Book of Genesis. It was first published by Viking Canada in the autumn of 1984.-Plot summary:...
by Timothy FindleyTimothy FindleyTimothy Irving Frederick Findley, OC, O.Ont was a Canadian novelist and playwright. He was also informally known by the nickname Tiff or Tiffy, an acronym of his initials.-Biography:...
or KamouraskaKamouraskaKamouraska may refer to:*Kamouraska Regional County Municipality, Quebec*the municipality of Kamouraska, Quebec*the book Kamouraska by Anne Hébert*the film Kamouraska by Claude Jutra, based on the book...
by Anne HebertAnne HébertAnne Hébert, CC, OQ , was a Canadian author and poet. She is a descendant of famed French-Canadian historian Francois-Xavier Garneau, "and has carried on the family literary tradition spectacularly."...
. - Humour: Serious subject matter is often laced with humour. See also: Canadian humourCanadian humourCanadian humour is an integral part of the Canadian Identity. There are several traditions in Canadian humour in both English and French. While these traditions are distinct and at times very different, there are common themes that relate to Canadians' shared history and geopolitical situation in...
. - Mild anti-Americanism: There is marked sentiment of anti-AmericanAnti-AmericanismThe term Anti-Americanism, or Anti-American Sentiment, refers to broad opposition or hostility to the people, policies, culture or government of the United States...
often in the form of gentle satire. While it is sometimes perceived as malicious, it often presents a friendly rivalry between the two nations - MulticulturalismMulticulturalismMulticulturalism is the appreciation, acceptance or promotion of multiple cultures, applied to the demographic make-up of a specific place, usually at the organizational level, e.g...
: Since World War Two, multiculturalism has been an important theme. Writers using this theme include Mordecai RichlerMordecai RichlerMordecai Richler, CC was a Canadian Jewish author, screenwriter and essayist. A leading critic called him "the great shining star of his Canadian literary generation" and a pivotal figure in the country's history. His best known works are The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, Barney's Version,...
(author of The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz), Margaret LaurenceMargaret LaurenceJean Margaret Laurence, CC was a Canadian novelist and short story writer, one of the major figures in Canadian literature.- Early years :...
(author of The Stone Angel), Rohinton Mistry, Michael OndaatjeMichael OndaatjePhilip Michael Ondaatje , OC, is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian novelist and poet of Burgher origin. He is perhaps best known for his Booker Prize-winning novel, The English Patient, which was adapted into an Academy-Award-winning film.-Life and work:...
(author of The English PatientThe English PatientThe English Patient is a 1992 novel by Sri Lankan-Canadian novelist Michael Ondaatje. The story deals with the gradually revealed histories of a critically burned English accented Hungarian man, his Canadian nurse, a Canadian-Italian thief, and an Indian sapper in the British Army as they live out...
) and Chinese CanadianChinese CanadianChinese Canadians are Canadians of Chinese descent. They constitute the second-largest visible minority group in Canada, after South Asian Canadians...
writer Wayson ChoyWayson ChoyWayson Choy, CM is a Canadian writer.-Early life:Choy was born in Vancouver in 1939. A Chinese Canadian, he spent his childhood in the city's Chinatown...
. - Nature (and a "human vs. nature" tension): Reference to nature is common in Canada's literature. Nature is sometimes portrayed like an enemy, and sometimes like a divine force.
- Satire and irony: Satire is probably one of the main elements of Canadian literature.
- Self-deprecation: Another common theme in Canadian literature.
- Self-evaluation by the reader
- Search for Self-Identity: Some Canadian novels revolve around the theme of the search for one's identity and the need to justify one's existence. A good example is Robertson DaviesRobertson DaviesWilliam Robertson Davies, CC, OOnt, FRSC, FRSL was a Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor. He was one of Canada's best-known and most popular authors, and one of its most distinguished "men of letters", a term Davies is variously said to have gladly accepted for himself...
's Fifth BusinessFifth BusinessFifth Business is a 1970 novel by Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor Robertson Davies. It is the first installment of the Deptford Trilogy and is a story of the life of the narrator, Dunstan Ramsay...
, in which the main character Dunstan Ramsay searches for a new identity by leaving his old town of DeptfordDeptfordDeptford is a district of south London, England, located on the south bank of the River Thames. It is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne, and from the mid 16th century to the late 19th was home to Deptford Dockyard, the first of the Royal Navy Dockyards.Deptford and the docks are...
. - Southern Ontario GothicSouthern Ontario GothicSouthern Ontario Gothic is a sub-genre of the Gothic novel genre and a feature of Canadian literature that comes from Southern Ontario. The term was first used in Graeme Gibson's Eleven Canadian Novelists to recognize an existing tendency to apply aspects of the Gothic novel to writing based in...
: A sub-genre which critiques the stereotypical Protestant mentality of Southern OntarioSouthern OntarioSouthern Ontario is a region of the province of Ontario, Canada that lies south of the French River and Algonquin Park. Depending on the inclusion of the Parry Sound and Muskoka districts, its surface area would cover between 14 to 15% of the province. It is the southernmost region of...
; many of Canada's most internationally famous authors write in this style. - The underdog hero: The most common hero of Canadian literature, an ordinary person who must overcome challenges from a large corporationCorporationA corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
, a bankBankA bank is a financial institution that serves as a financial intermediary. The term "bank" may refer to one of several related types of entities:...
, a rich tycoon, a governmentGovernmentGovernment refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
, a natural disasterNatural disasterA natural disaster is the effect of a natural hazard . It leads to financial, environmental or human losses...
, and so on. - Urban vs. rural: A variant of the underdog theme which involves a conflict between urban culture and rural culture, usually portraying the rural characters as morally superior. Often, as in Stephen LeacockStephen LeacockStephen Butler Leacock, FRSC was an English-born Canadian teacher, political scientist, writer, and humorist...
's Sunshine Sketches of a Little TownSunshine Sketches of a Little TownSunshine Sketches of a Little Town is a sequence of stories by Stephen Leacock, first published in 1912.It is generally considered to be one of the most enduring classics of Canadian humorous literature....
or Alistair MacLeodAlistair MacLeodAlistair MacLeod, OC is a noted Canadian author and retired professor of English at the University of Windsor.- Academic career :...
's No Great MischiefNo Great MischiefNo Great Mischief is a 1999 novel by Alistair MacLeod.The novel opens in the present day, with successful orthodontist Alexander MacDonald visiting his elderly older brother Calum in Toronto, Ontario...
, the simplicity of rural living is lost in the city.
French-Canadian literature
In 1802, the Lower Canada legislative library was founded, being one of the first in Occident, the first in the Canadas. For comparison, the library of the British house of commons was founded sixteen years later. It should be noted the library had some rare titles about geography, natural science and letters. All books it contained were moved to the Canadian parliament in Montreal when the two Canadas, lower and upper, were united. On April 25, 1849, a dramatic event occurred: the Canadian parliament was burned by furious people along with thousands of French Canadian books and a few hundred of English books. This is why some people still affirm today, falsely, that from the early settlements until the 1820s, Quebec had virtually no literature. Though historians, journalists, and learned priests published, overall the total output that remain from this period and that had been kept out of the burned parliament is small.It was the rise of Quebec patriotism and the 1837 Lower Canada Rebellion
Lower Canada Rebellion
The Lower Canada Rebellion , commonly referred to as the Patriots' War by Quebeckers, is the name given to the armed conflict between the rebels of Lower Canada and the British colonial power of that province...
, in addition to a modern system of primary school education, which led to the rise of French-Canadian fiction. L'influence d'un livre
L'influence d'un livre
The Influence of a Book is a novel by the Canadian writer Phillipe-Ignace François Aubert du Gaspé. It is considered to be the first French Canadian novel, and although the book was not well received initially, it has come to be recognized as a major landmark in Canadian literature.It is the tale...
by Philippe-Ignace-Francois Aubert de Gaspé is widely regarded as the first French-Canadian novel. The genres which first became popular were the rural novel and the historical novel. French authors were influential, especially authors like Balzac.
In 1866, Father Henri-Raymond Casgrain
Henri-Raymond Casgrain
Henri-Raymond Casgrain was a French Canadian Roman Catholic priest, author, publisher, and historian. He is the author of some of the best works in Quebec literature....
became one of Quebec's first literary theorists. He argued that literature's goal should be to project an image of proper Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
morality. However, a few authors like Louis-Honoré Fréchette
Louis-Honoré Fréchette
Louis-Honoré Fréchette, , was a Canadian poet, politician, playwright, and short story writer.-Biography:...
and Arthur Buies broke the conventions to write more interesting works.
This pattern continued until the 1930s with a new group of authors educated at the Université Laval
Université Laval
Laval University is the oldest centre of education in Canada and was the first institution in North America to offer higher education in French...
and the Université de Montréal
Université de Montréal
The Université de Montréal is a public francophone research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It comprises thirteen faculties, more than sixty departments and two affiliated schools: the École Polytechnique and HEC Montréal...
. Novels with psychological and sociological foundations became the norm. Gabrielle Roy
Gabrielle Roy
Gabrielle Roy, CC, FRSC was a French Canadian author.- Biography :Born in Saint Boniface , Manitoba, Roy was educated at Saint Joseph's Academy...
and Anne Hébert
Anne Hébert
Anne Hébert, CC, OQ , was a Canadian author and poet. She is a descendant of famed French-Canadian historian Francois-Xavier Garneau, "and has carried on the family literary tradition spectacularly."...
even began to earn international acclaim, which had not happened to French-Canadian literature before. During this period, Quebec theatre, which had previously been melodramas and comedies, became far more involved.
French-Canadian literature began to greatly expand with the turmoil of the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the beginnings of industrialization in the 1950s, and most especially the Quiet Revolution
Quiet Revolution
The Quiet Revolution was the 1960s period of intense change in Quebec, Canada, characterized by the rapid and effective secularization of society, the creation of a welfare state and a re-alignment of politics into federalist and separatist factions...
in the 1960s. French-Canadian literature also began to attract a great deal of attention globally, with Acadian
Acadian
The Acadians are the descendants of the 17th-century French colonists who settled in Acadia . Acadia was a colony of New France...
novelist Antonine Maillet
Antonine Maillet
Antonine Maillet, is an Acadian novelist, playwright, and scholar. She was born in Bouctouche, New Brunswick and lives in Montreal, Quebec....
winning the Prix Goncourt
Prix Goncourt
The Prix Goncourt is a prize in French literature, given by the académie Goncourt to the author of "the best and most imaginative prose work of the year"...
. An experimental branch of Québécois literature also developed; for instance the poet Nicole Brossard
Nicole Brossard
Nicole Brossard, O.C. is a leading French Canadian formalist poet and novelist.She lives in Outremont, a former city in Montreal, Quebec. She wrote her first collection in 1965, Aube à la maison. The collection L'Echo bouge beau marks a break in the evolution of her poetry...
wrote in a formalist style.
In 1979, Roch Carrier
Roch Carrier
Roch Carrier, OC is a Canadian novelist and author of "contes" . He is among the best known Quebec writers in English Canada....
wrote the story The Hockey Sweater
The Hockey Sweater
"The Hockey Sweater" is a short story published in 1979 by Canadian author Roch Carrier....
, which highlighted the cultural and social tensions between English
English Canada
English Canada is a term used to describe one of the following:# English-speaking Canadians, as opposed to French-speaking Canadians. It is employed when comparing English- and French-language literature, media, or art...
and French
French Canada
French Canada, also known as "Lower Canada", is a term to distinguish the French Canadian population of Canada from English Canada.-Definition:...
speaking Canada.
See also: List of Quebec writers, Literature of Quebec, List of French Canadian writers from outside Quebec
Contemporary Canadian literature: late 20th to 21st century
Following World War II, writers such as Mavis Gallant, Mordecai Richler, Norman Levine, Margaret Laurence and Irving Layton brought added to the Modernist influence to Canadian literature previously introduced by F.R. Scott, A.J.M. Smith and others associated with the McGill Fortnightly. This influence, at first, was not broadly appreciated. Norman LevineNorman Levine
Norman Levine was a Canadian short-story writer, novelist and poet. He is perhaps best remembered for his terse prose. Though he was part of the St. Ives artistic community in Cornwall, and friends with painters Patrick Heron and Francis Bacon, his written expression was not abstract, but concrete...
's Canada Made Me http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/norman-levine-494715.html, a travelogue that presented a sour interpretation of the country in 1958, for example, was widely rejected.
After 1967, the country's centennial year, the national government increased funding to publishers and numerous small presses began operating throughout the country.http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1SEC828178
In the late 1970s, science fiction fan
Science fiction fandom
Science fiction fandom or SF fandom is a community or "fandom" of people actively interested in science fiction and fantasy and in contact with one another based upon that interest...
and scholar of Canadian literature Susan Wood
Susan Wood (science fiction)
Susan Joan Wood Susan Joan Wood Susan Joan Wood (August 22, 1948-November 12, 1980 was a Canadian author, critic, and science fiction fan, born in Ottawa, Ontario.Wood discovered science fiction fandom while she was studying at Carleton University in the 1960s. Wood met fellow fan Mike Glicksohn of...
helped pioneer the study of feminist science fiction
Feminist science fiction
Feminist science fiction is a sub-genre of science fiction which tends to deal with women's roles in society. Feminist science fiction poses questions about social issues such as how society constructs gender roles, the role reproduction plays in defining gender and the unequal political and...
, and (along with immigrant editor Judith Merril
Judith Merril
Judith Josephine Grossman , who took the pen-name Judith Merril about 1945, was an American and then Canadian science fiction writer, editor and political activist....
) brought new respectability to the study of Canadian science fiction, paving the way for the rise of such phenomena as the French-Canadian science fiction magazine
Science fiction magazine
A science fiction magazine is a publication that offers primarily science fiction, either in a hard copy periodical format or on the Internet....
Solaris.
By the 1990s, Canadian literature was viewed as some of the world's best.
Canadian authors have won international awards:
- In 1992, Michael OndaatjeMichael OndaatjePhilip Michael Ondaatje , OC, is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian novelist and poet of Burgher origin. He is perhaps best known for his Booker Prize-winning novel, The English Patient, which was adapted into an Academy-Award-winning film.-Life and work:...
became the first Canadian to win the Booker Prize for The English Patient. - Margaret AtwoodMargaret AtwoodMargaret Eleanor Atwood, is a Canadian poet, novelist, literary critic, essayist, and environmental activist. She is among the most-honoured authors of fiction in recent history; she is a winner of the Arthur C...
won the Booker in 2000 for The Blind AssassinThe Blind AssassinThe Blind Assassin is an award-winning, bestselling novel by the Canadian author Margaret Atwood. It was first published by McClelland and Stewart in 2000. Set in Canada, it is narrated from the present day, referring back to events that span the twentieth century.The work was awarded the Man...
and Yann MartelYann MartelYann Martel is a Canadian author best known for the Man Booker Prize-winning novel Life of Pi.-Early life:Martel was born in Salamanca, Spain where his father was posted as a diplomat for the Canadian government. He was raised in Costa Rica, France, Mexico, and Canada...
won it in 2002 for Life of PiLife of PiLife of Pi is a fantasy adventure novel by Yann Martel published in 2001. The protagonist, Piscine Molitor "Pi" Patel, an Indian boy from Pondicherry, explores issues of spirituality and practicality from an early age...
. - Alistair MacLeodAlistair MacLeodAlistair MacLeod, OC is a noted Canadian author and retired professor of English at the University of Windsor.- Academic career :...
won the 2001 IMPAC Award for No Great MischiefNo Great MischiefNo Great Mischief is a 1999 novel by Alistair MacLeod.The novel opens in the present day, with successful orthodontist Alexander MacDonald visiting his elderly older brother Calum in Toronto, Ontario...
and Rawi HageRawi Hage-Early life and education:Born in Beirut, Hage grew up in Lebanon and Cyprus. He moved to New York City in 1984. In 1991, he relocated to Montreal, where he studied Photography at Dawson College and Fine Arts at Concordia University. He subsequently began exhibiting as a photographer, and has had...
won it in 2008 for De Niro's GameDe Niro's GameDe Niro's Game is the debut novel by Lebanese-Canadian writer Rawi Hage, originally published in 2006.The novel's primary characters are Bassam and George, lifelong friends living in wartorn Beirut...
. - Carol ShieldsCarol ShieldsCarol Ann Shields, CC, OM, FRSC, MA was an American-born Canadian author. She is best known for her 1993 novel The Stone Diaries, which won the U.S. Pulitzer Prize for Fiction as well as the Governor General's Award in Canada.-Biography:Shields was born in Oak Park, Illinois...
's The Stone Diaries won the 1995 Pulitzer Prize for FictionPulitzer Prize for FictionThe Pulitzer Prize for Fiction has been awarded for distinguished fiction by an American author, preferably dealing with American life. It originated as the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel, which was awarded between 1918 and 1947.-1910s:...
, and in 1998 her novel Larry's PartyLarry's PartyLarry's Party is a 1997 novel by Carol Shields.The novel examined the life of Larry Weller, an "ordinary man made extraordinary" by his unique talent for creating labyrinths...
won the Orange PrizeOrange Prize for FictionThe Orange Prize for Fiction is one of the United Kingdom's most prestigious literary prizes, annually awarded to a female author of any nationality for the best original full-length novel written in English, and published in the United Kingdom in the preceding year...
. - Lawrence HillLawrence HillLawrence Hill is an award-winning Canadian novelist and memoirist. He is best known for the 2001 memoir Black Berry, Sweet Juice: On Being Black and White in Canada and the 2007 novel The Book of Negroes....
's Book of NegroesBook of NegroesThe Book of Negroes is an important historical document which records names and descriptions of 3,000 African-American slaves who escaped to the British lines during the American Revolution and were evacuated by the British by ship to points in Nova Scotia as freedmen.-Background:African Americans...
won the 2008 Commonwealth Writers' PrizeCommonwealth Writers' PrizeCommonwealth Writers is an initiative by the Commonwealth Foundation to unearth, develop and promote the best new fiction from across the Commonwealth. It's flagship are two literary awards and a website...
Overall Best Book Award.
Notable figures
Because Canada only officially became a country on July 1, 1867, it has been argued that literature written before this time was colonial. For example, Susanna MoodieSusanna Moodie
Susanna Moodie, born Strickland , was an English-born Canadian author who wrote about her experiences as a settler in Canada, which was a British colony at the time.-Biography:...
and Catherine Parr Traill, English sisters who adopted the country as their own, moved to Canada in 1832. They recorded their experiences as pioneers in Parr Traill's The Backwoods of Canada (1836) and Canadian Crusoes (1852), and Moodie's Roughing It in the Bush (1852) and Life in the Clearings (1853). However, both women wrote until their deaths, placing them in the country for more than 50 years and certainly well past Confederation. Moreover, their books often dealt with survival and the rugged Canadian environment; these themes re-appear in other Canadian works, including Margaret Atwood
Margaret Atwood
Margaret Eleanor Atwood, is a Canadian poet, novelist, literary critic, essayist, and environmental activist. She is among the most-honoured authors of fiction in recent history; she is a winner of the Arthur C...
's Survival. Moodie and Parr Traill's sister, Agnes Strickland
Agnes Strickland
Agnes Strickland was an English historical writer and poet.-Biography:The daughter of Thomas Strickland of Reydon Hall, Suffolk, Agnes was educated by her father, and began her literary career with a poem, Worcester Field, followed by The Seven Ages of Woman and Demetrius...
, remained in England and wrote elegant royal biographies, creating a stark contrast between Canadian and English literatures.
However, one of the earliest "Canadian" writers virtually always included in Canadian literary anthologies is Thomas Chandler Haliburton
Thomas Chandler Haliburton
Thomas Chandler Haliburton was the first international best-selling author from Canada. He was also significant in the history of Nova Scotia.-Life:...
(1796–1865), who died just two years before Canada's official birth. He is remembered for his comic character, Sam Slick, who appeared in The Clockmaker and other humorous works throughout Haliburton's life.
Arguably, the best-known living Canadian writer internationally (especially since the deaths of Robertson Davies
Robertson Davies
William Robertson Davies, CC, OOnt, FRSC, FRSL was a Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor. He was one of Canada's best-known and most popular authors, and one of its most distinguished "men of letters", a term Davies is variously said to have gladly accepted for himself...
and Mordecai Richler
Mordecai Richler
Mordecai Richler, CC was a Canadian Jewish author, screenwriter and essayist. A leading critic called him "the great shining star of his Canadian literary generation" and a pivotal figure in the country's history. His best known works are The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, Barney's Version,...
) is Margaret Atwood
Margaret Atwood
Margaret Eleanor Atwood, is a Canadian poet, novelist, literary critic, essayist, and environmental activist. She is among the most-honoured authors of fiction in recent history; she is a winner of the Arthur C...
, a prolific novelist, poet, and literary critic. Some great 20th century Canadian authors include Margaret Laurence
Margaret Laurence
Jean Margaret Laurence, CC was a Canadian novelist and short story writer, one of the major figures in Canadian literature.- Early years :...
, Gabrielle Roy
Gabrielle Roy
Gabrielle Roy, CC, FRSC was a French Canadian author.- Biography :Born in Saint Boniface , Manitoba, Roy was educated at Saint Joseph's Academy...
, and Carol Shields
Carol Shields
Carol Ann Shields, CC, OM, FRSC, MA was an American-born Canadian author. She is best known for her 1993 novel The Stone Diaries, which won the U.S. Pulitzer Prize for Fiction as well as the Governor General's Award in Canada.-Biography:Shields was born in Oak Park, Illinois...
.
This group, along with Alice Munro
Alice Munro
Alice Ann Munro is a Canadian short-story writer, the winner of the 2009 Man Booker International Prize for her lifetime body of work, a three-time winner of Canada's Governor General's Award for fiction, and a perennial contender for the Nobel Prize...
, who has been called the best living writer of short stories in English, were the first to elevate Canadian Literature to the world stage. During the post-war decades only a handful of books of any literary merit were published each year in Canada, and Canadian literature was viewed as an appendage to British and American writing.
Much of what was produced dealt with extremely typical Canadiana such as the outdoors and animals, or events in Canadian history. A reaction against this tradition, poet Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships...
's novel Beautiful Losers
Beautiful Losers
Beautiful Losers is a novel by Leonard Cohen. Published in 1966 by McClelland and Stewart, it was the Canadian novelist-poet's second novel, and precedes his career as a singer-songwriter...
(1966), was labelled by one reviewer "the most revolting book ever written in Canada".
Canadian poet Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships...
is perhaps best known as a folk singer and songwriter, with an international following.
Canadian Author Farley Mowat
Farley Mowat
Farley McGill Mowat, , born May 12, 1921 is a conservationist and one of Canada's most widely-read authors.His works have been translated into 52 languages and he has sold more than 14 million books. He achieved fame with the publication of his books on the Canadian North, such as People of the...
, best known for his work "Never Cry Wolf", also author of "Lost in the Barrens
Lost in the Barrens
Lost in the Barrens is a children's novel by Farley Mowat, first published in 1956. Some editions used the title Two Against the North....
" (1956), Governor General's Award-winning children's book.
Histories of Canadian literature
There are numerous histories of Canadian literature, written in different languages. The vast majority of these deal exclusively with English-Canadian or French-Canadian literature, while only extremely few works discuss Canadian literature written in English and Canadian literature written in French in a balanced way, for instance: Reingard M. NischikReingard M. Nischik
Reingard M. Nischik is a German university professor and literary scholar.-Academic career:Nischik studied English and North American Literature as well as Social Sciences at the University of Cologne , taking the First State Examination in 1977...
(ed.): History of Literature in Canada: English-Canadian and French-Canadian. Rochester, NY: Camden House, 2008.
Awards
There are a number of notable Canadian awards for literature:- The Atlantic Writers Competition highlights talent across the Atlantic Provinces.
- Books in Canada First Novel AwardBooks in Canada First Novel AwardThe Amazon.ca First Novel Award, formerly the Books in Canada First Novel Award, is a literary award given annually to the best first novel in English published the previous year by a citizen or resident of Canada. It has been awarded since 1976....
for the best first novel of the year - Canadian Authors Association Awards for Adult Literature | Honouring works by Canadian writers that achieve excellence without sacrificing popular appeal since 1975. http://www.canauthors.org/awards/awards.html
- CBC Literary Awards
- Canada Council Molson Prize for distinguished contributions to Canada's cultural and intellectual heritage
- Floyd S. Chalmers Canadian Play Awards for best Canadian play staged by a Canadian theatre company
- Marian Engel AwardMarian Engel AwardThe Marian Engel Award was a Canadian literary award, presented each year from 1986 to 2007 by the Writers' Trust of Canada in memory of the writer Marian Engel...
for female writers in mid-career - Matt Cohen PrizeMatt Cohen PrizeThe Matt Cohen Prize is an award given annually by the Writers' Trust of Canada to a Canadian writer, in honour of a distinguished lifetime contribution to Canadian literature...
to honour a Canadian writer for a lifetime of distinguished achievement - Shaughnessy Cohen AwardShaughnessy Cohen AwardThe Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing is a Canadian literary award, presented annually by the Writers' Trust of Canada to the best non-fiction book on Canadian political and social issues. It was presented for the first time in 2000....
for Political Writing - Gerald Lampert AwardGerald Lampert AwardThe Gerald Lampert Memorial Award is made annually by the League of Canadian Poets to the best volume of poetry published by a first-time poet. It is presented in honour of poetry promoter Gerald Lampert...
for the best new poet - Lieutenant-Governor's Award for High Achievement in the Literary Arts
- Giller Prize for the best Canadian novel or book of short stories in English
- Governor General's Awards for the best Canadian fiction, poetry, non-fiction, drama, children's literature (text), children's literature (illustration) and translation, in both English and French
- Griffin Poetry PrizeGriffin Poetry PrizeThe Griffin Poetry Prize is Canada's most generous poetry award. It was founded in 2000 by businessman and philanthropist Scott Griffin. The awards go to one Canadian and one international poet who writes in the English language....
for the best book of poetry, one award each for a Canadian poet and an international poet - Milton Acorn Poetry Awards for an outstanding "people's poet"
- Pat Lowther AwardPat Lowther AwardThe Pat Lowther Memorial Award is an annual award presented by the League of Canadian Poets to the year's best book of poetry by a Canadian woman. It is presented in honour of poet Pat Lowther, who was murdered by her husband in 1975. Each winner receives an honorarium of $1000.-Winners:*1981 - M...
for poetry written by a woman - Prix Aurora AwardsAurora AwardThe Prix Aurora Awards are given out annually for the best Canadian science fiction and fantasy literary works, artworks, fan activities from that year, and are awarded in both English and French...
for Canadian science fictionScience fictionScience fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
and fantasyFantasyFantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
, in EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts... - Prix Athanase-DavidPrix Athanase-DavidThe Prix Athanase-David is a literary award presented annually by the government of Quebec as part of the Prix du Québec to a Quebec writer, to honour the body of his or her work....
for a Quebec writer - Prix Gilles-Corbeil for a Quebec writer in honour of his or her lifetime body of work (presented every three years)
- Prix Trillium for the best work by a Franco-OntarianFranco-OntarianFranco-Ontarians are French Canadian or francophone residents of the Canadian province of Ontario. They are sometimes known as "Ontarois"....
writer - Quebec Writers' Federation AwardsQuebec Writers' Federation AwardsThe Quebec Writers' Federation Awards are a series of Canadian literary awards, presented annually by the Quebec Writers' Federation to the best works of literature in English by writers from Quebec.-Categories:...
for the best fiction, poetry, non-fiction, children's & young adult literature, & first book by English Quebec writers, and the best translation (English & French alternate years) - Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction PrizeRogers Writers' Trust Fiction PrizeThe Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize is a Canadian literary award presented by Rogers Communications and the Writers' Trust of Canada after an annual juried competition between publishers who submit entries....
for the best work of fiction - Stephen Leacock Award For Humour
- Timothy Findley AwardTimothy Findley AwardThe Timothy Findley Award was a Canadian literary award, presented each year from 2002 to 2007 by the Writers' Trust of Canada in memory of the writer Timothy Findley...
for male writers in mid-career - Trillium Book AwardTrillium Book AwardThe Trillium Award is given annually by the government of the Province of Ontario and is open to books in any genre: fiction, non-fiction, drama, children's books, and poetry. Anthologies, new editions, re-issues and translations are not eligible. Three jury members per language judge the...
for the best work by an Ontario writer - W.O. Mitchell Literary Prize for a writer who has made a distinguished lifetime contribution both to Canadian literature and to mentoring new writers
- Room of One's OwnRoom of One's OwnRoom is a Canadian quarterly literary journal founded to showcase the work of established and emerging Canadian women writers and visual artists. Launched in Vancouver in 1975 by the West Coast Feminist Literary Magazine Publishing Society, the journal has always been operated by an all-volunteer...
Annual Award for poetry and literature - 3-Day Novel Contest annual literary marathon, born in Canada
- Danuta Gleed Literary AwardDanuta Gleed Literary AwardThe Danuta Gleed Literary Award recognizes a first collection of short fiction by a Canadian author writing in English. The award is presented annually by the Writers' Union of Canada and was endowed by John Gleed in honour of his late wife....
for a first collection of short fiction by a Canadian author writing in English - Ethel Wilson Fiction PrizeEthel Wilson Fiction PrizeThe Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize, established in 1985 as one of the BC Book Prizes, is awarded annually to the best work of fiction by a resident of British Columbia, Canada....
for the best novel or collection of short stories by a resident of British ColumbiaBritish ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858... - Dorothy Livesay Poetry PrizeDorothy Livesay Poetry PrizeThe Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize, established in 1986, is awarded annually to the best collection of poetry by a resident of British Columbia, Canada.One of the B.C. Book Prizes, the award was originally known as the B.C. Prize for Poetry...
for the best collection of poetry by a resident of British Columbia - The Doug Wright AwardsDoug Wright AwardsThe Doug Wright Awards are literary awards handed out annually to Canadian cartoonists, honouring excellence in works published in English. The awards are named for Canadian cartoonist Doug Wright...
for graphic literature and novels
Awards For Children and Young Adult Literature:
- Young Adult Novel Prize of the Atlantic Writers Competition
- R.Ross Annett Award for Children's Literature
- Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction
- Ann Connor Brimer AwardAnn Connor Brimer AwardThe Ann Connor Brimer Book Award is a $2000 prize given each year to an Atlantic Canadian writer deemed to have made an outstanding contribution to children's literature...
- Governor-General's Awards for Children's Literature
- Canadian Library Association Book of the Year Award for Children
- CLA Young Adult Canadian Book Award
- Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize
- Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Canadian Picture Book AwardElizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Canadian Picture Book AwardThe Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Canadian Picture Book Award was established in 1985 following the death of Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver, one of Canada's pre-eminent book illustrators. In her will, Cleaver left a fund of $10,000 dollars for an award to be given annually in recognition of outstanding...
- Floyd S. Chalmers Award for Theatre for Young Adults
- Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's AwardAmelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's AwardThe Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award was created in 1971 to honour an outstanding work of illustration in current children's literature of Canada. The award is presented annually under the auspices of the Canadian Library Association...
- Information Book of the Year
- I0DE Book Award
- Manitoba Young Reader's Choice Award
- Max and Greta Ebel Memorial Award for Children's Writing
- Norma Fleck AwardNorma Fleck AwardThe Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children’s Non-Fiction is a lucrative literary award founded in May 1999 by the Fleck Family Foundation and the Canadian Children's Book Centre, and presented to the year's best non-fiction book for a youth audience...
for children's non-fiction - Governor General's Awards for the best Canadian fiction, poetry, non-fiction, drama, children's literature (text), children's literature (illustration) and translation, in both English and French
- QWF Prize for Children's and Young Adult Literature
- Vicky Metcalf AwardVicky Metcalf AwardThe Vicky Metcalf Award is awarded to a writer whose body of work has been "inspirational to Canadian youth." It is one of the top awards for Canadian children's writers. The award was named after Vicky Metcalf...
See also
- Canadian poetryCanadian poetry- Beginnings:The earliest works of poetry, mainly written by visitors, described the new territories in optimistic terms, mainly targeted at a European audience...
- Canadian science fictionCanadian science fictionA strong element in contemporary Canadian culture is rich, diverse, thoughtful and witty science fiction.-History of Canadian science fiction:Possibly the first recorded Canadian work of science fiction is the 1896 Tisab Ting, or, The Electrical Kiss, a pseudonynous first novel by a Ida May...
- List of Canadian writers
- List of Canadian short story writers
- The Canadian Centenary SeriesThe Canadian Centenary SeriesThe Canadian Centenary Series is a nineteen volume authoritative history of Canada published between 1963 and 1986 as an extended Canadian Centennial project. The collection resulted from the initiative of W. L. Morton and D. G. Creighton....
- Canada ReadsCanada ReadsCanada Reads is an annual "battle of the books" competition organized and broadcast by Canada's public broadcaster, the CBC.-Overview:During Canada Reads, five personalities champion five different books, each champion extolling the merits of one of the titles. The debate is broadcast over a series...
- List of fiction set in Toronto
- Canadian contentCanadian contentCanadian content refers to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission requirements that radio and television broadcasters must air a certain percentage of content that was at least partly written, produced, presented, or otherwise contributed to by persons from...
External links
- Reference Sources for Canadian Literary Studies - University of British Columbia
- Introduction - Canadian Writers - Library and Archives Canada
- The Canadian Literature Archive - University of Manitoba
- Canadian Literature - CanLit
- Canadian Literature - Historica - The Canadian Encyclopedia Library