Changing Literature Influences of Canada

Throughout history Canadian culture has been influenced by other nations. Students in Ontario often study writers of non-Canadian descent, but they should only be familiar with the work of fellow Canadians. Society as a whole will benefit from this because the youth will learn the importance of focusing on Canadian culture despite other influences, introducing the modern multicultural flair of Canada’s population and the need to promote and establish upcoming authors.
Being influenced by other Nations has been a downfall for new Canadian literature. This has been prominent in Canadian society as we have always been a “branch plant” of other countries, beginning with England in the 1600’s. Our own culture has never had the ability to develop to its fullest potential. For years, a student in Ontario would study British writers, such as Shakespeare, and currently students may also study American authors such as Fitzgerald. However, many schools limit a student’s exposure to the Canadian novels on ISP reading lists. Canada is an attic in which we have stored American and British literature without considering our own1. As Robertson Davies has said “no wonder a Canadian student has problems appreciating their culture.”
Canadian society today includes people of many different races and ethnicities; however their addition to literature is not recognized. By choosing to become familiar with authors from different backgrounds the large population of multicultural students will feel accepted. As Robertson Davies stated, “Canada is not going to have a national literature in the mode of those European lands where a long history has bound the people together…” It is time for the true population of Canada to shine through and be appreciated. Margaret Atwood can comment that Canadians have issues with establishing their identity, and this is due the fact that such a large majority of our population is ignored2.
The minimal amount of Canadian literature that is taught revolves around older novels. “Fifth Business”, which was published nearly forty years ago, is a popular read for senior classrooms. Atwood’s “Handmade’s Tale”, the most recent novel study of Canadian literature, was published over ten years ago. A vast majority of teachers encourage a student to focus on modern Canadian literature for their ISP; however their class time is limited to only studying the classics. There is a need to establish new authors in Canada, so future generations can have the ability to read novels of every time period. The lock of the door of Canadian literature needs to be cut.
As a whole, Canadians should disregard other influences, introduce the multicultural population of writers and launch the introduction of new authors. Taking this approach will allow Canadian students to see the value of their own authors. The time has come for the American and British influence to end, and the new vibe of Canada to be prominent. In the next few decades the culture amongst Canadians could be astoundingly different.

Endnotes
1. Davies, Robertson. “Canada is America’s Attic” Letters in Canada. Toronto: Macmillan Press, 1979
2. Atwood, Margaret. “Survival: A Thematic Guide to Canadian Literature” Ed: McLelland and Stewart. Toronto, 1972
Works Cited
Davies, Robertson. “Canadian Nationalism in Arts and Science” Transactions of the Royal Society of Canada.(Series IV, Volume XIII). Ed. The Royal Society of Canada. Ottawa: 1975 Davies, Robertson. “Canada is America’s Attic” Letters in Canada. Toronto: Macmillan Press, 1979
Atwood, Margaret. “Survival: A Thematic Guide to Canadian Literature” Ed: McLelland and Stewart. Toronto, 1972

Notes
There were many grammatical errors that were adjusted throughout the entire paper to improve the overall clarity.
Multiple citations were removed as they did not increase the persuasiveness of the piece; simply acted as fillers.