In this dissertation I query a notion that is prevalent among contemporary literary critics, cultural policy-makers, and media representatives in Canada: the notion that Canadian literature is national "soul-stuff" and thus not an ordinary commodity. I argue that this notion obscures the crucial nexuses at which the literary, economic, and political spheres blur inside Canada. My analysis of Canada's literary conditions under contemporary globalization examines just these nexuses. It pries apart the discourses of national literature and national identity in order to investigate how they function and onto which economic, political, and social values they project themselves. With this approach, I do not intimate that Canadian literature does not have any non-market value. Rather, I want to draw attention to the fact that the traditional focus on literature as a trope of non-material, national values masks what is really at stake at the present moment -namely questions of "value." What are the social and political values that structure contemporary Canadian society: its political organization, public sphere, cultural production, public policies? How are literary-cultural decisions made and by whom? These questions open to scrutiny nationalist narratives of globalization, which tend to reduce contemporary processes of globalization (such as global cultural commodification) to the totalizing force of U.S. neo-imperialism. Not only is Canada's relationship to cultural imperialism, capitalism, and globalizing forces more complicated than assumed in such reasoning, but globalization also is a more complicated phenomenon than the currently widespread notion of U.S. neo-imperialism suggests. I show that this notion has in substantial ways distracted from the active and voluntary involvement of other parties and countries in the current neoliberal restructuring of global power, which asserts as inevitable the commercialization and privatization of cultural and social goods, policies, and public functions, and the deregulation of markets. In Canada, claims of cultural-national sovereignty and strategies of cultural protection have tended to omit the fact that the increasing conversion of Canada's "national literature" in economic terms is symptom of this neoliberal restructuring process in which the Canadian government actively participates by depoliticizing its functions and handing control over markets to multinational corporations, international trade agreements, and international judicial and political instruments. Subsequently, I propose that we should not, at this point, study (and teach) Canadian literature in order to protect a national tradition and assert the image of an autonomous literature of multicultural "Canadianness," but in order to approach the question of globalization and the issue of neoliberalism from alternative perspectives. Hence, I also distance myself from postmodernist approaches to the literary study of globalization, which tend to read the latter in purely textual terms that emphasize transnational and transcultural images and narratives. While this postmodernist focus has in many ways countered the totalizing implications of the term globalization, it has run the risk of excluding the material realities of literary globalization from its inventory of study objects. So has the more recent North American discourse of "global literary study," which has been largely limited to postmodernist idealizations and transnational histories of globalization. As an alternative to these readings, I propose a materialist literary approach that emphasizes that an understanding of the contemporary literary conditions in Canada requires an understanding of neoliberal globalization as the context within which literary studies articulates itself as an academic discipline and within which the production and consumption of literature takes place today. Materialist literary criticism engages in a process of critical interdisciplinarity -at the junction of the fields of English-Canadian literary studies, cultural studies, postcolonial studies, and globalization studies -that is non-nationalist and unsettling of the neoliberal power structures and values that increasingly pervade universities and cultural policies and markets. The dissertation chapters explore the possibility and emphasize the actual existence of alternative globalization processes and narratives. The first chapter does so by engaging in the more recent North American debate on the literary study of globalization. The second chapter discusses the neoliberal orientation in the present practice of modernrepresentative democracy in Canada in order to test the grounds for alternative methods of more inclusive cultural decision-making, especially as it relates to literary production. In opposition to the still-prevalent modernist ideal-purported most notably by Northrop Frye and A.J .M. Smith -of a globally vanguardist Canadian literature, the study of Aboriginal and ethnic minority writers undertaken in the third chapter brings forth an "allochronic" (or differently-timed) understanding of Canadian literature, globalization, and their interrelations. The fourth chapter complicates the cultural nationalist binary of Canadian-owned, government-funded publishing and foreign-owned, market-driven publishing. It explores the idea of alternative publishing by means of interviews with small-scale Aboriginal and EuroCanadian publishers and an analysis of radical Canadian writers that publish with big publishing conglomerates such as Random House and HarperCollins. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This is an examination of the critical reception and canonical status of Ernest Bucklers <i>The Mountain and the Valley </i> and Sinclair Rosss <i>As For Me and My House</i>. While both novels have been regarded as important works of Canadian literature,<i> As For Me and My House</i> is currently regarded as a canonical novel and <i>The Mountain and the Valley</i> is not. This study examines the notion of the Canadian canon and its relation to Bucklers and Rosss novels to show how the specific case of Ross and Buckler illustrates the process of Canadian canon formation. Through a review of the critical work produced on each novel, an understanding of trends in Canadian critical practice and theory, and the application of canon theory, this thesis examines the reasons for the differences in the reception and status of the two works. This thesis argues that the interplay between critical trends, academic interests, and literary value ultimately determines the canonical status of a text.

This is an examination of the critical reception and canonical status of Ernest Bucklers <i>The Mountain and the Valley </i> and Sinclair Rosss <i>As For Me and My House</i>. While both novels have been regarded as important works of Canadian literature,<i> As For Me and My House</i> is currently regarded as a canonical novel and <i>The Mountain and the Valley</i> is not. This study examines the notion of the Canadian canon and its relation to Bucklers and Rosss novels to show how the specific case of Ross and Buckler illustrates the process of Canadian canon formation. Through a review of the critical work produced on each novel, an understanding of trends in Canadian critical practice and theory, and the application of canon theory, this thesis examines the reasons for the differences in the reception and status of the two works. This thesis argues that the interplay between critical trends, academic interests, and literary value ultimately determines the canonical status of a text.

English Studies began in Canada in 1884 at Dalhousie University; Canadian literature was first taught at the post-secondary level in 1907 at the Ontario Agricultural College in Guelph. Arnoldian humanism dominated the outlook of early professors of English in Canada. Their feeling that Canadian literature was not among "the best" explains why so few courses appeared in Canadian universities, despite nationalist pressure from students. About 5-10% of courses then were devoted to Canadian literature in the English curriculum and this (except in Quebec) remains the case today.

The dissertation investigates the correlations among the development of general anthologies of Canadian literature, the Canadian canon, and visions of national identity. While literature anthologies are widely used in university classrooms, the influential role of the anthology in the critical study of literature has been largely overlooked, particularly in Canada. The dissertation begins with an analysis of the stages of development of general anthologies of Canadian literature, demonstrating that there are important links between dominant critical trends and the guiding interests of the various phases of anthology development and that anthologies both reflect and participate in moulding views of the nation and its literature. Focusing then upon five eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Canadian authors, the dissertation traces their treatment in anthologies and analyzes in detail the impact of stages of anthology development upon authors’ inclusion and presentation. The reception of Frances Brooke, John Richardson, William Kirby, Susanna Moodie, and Emily Pauline Johnson over a span of nearly 90 years is examined, and points of inclusion and exclusion are scrutinized to determine links with prevailing critical interests as well as canonical status. These case studies reveal the functions of anthologies, which include recovering overlooked authors, amending past oversights, reflecting new areas of critical inquiry, and preserving the national literary tradition. Their treatment also reveals the effect of larger critical concerns, such as alignment with dominant visions of the nation, considerations of genre, and reassessments of past views. The dissertation shows that the anthology is a carefully constructed, culturally valuable work that plays an important role in literary criticism and canon formation and is a genre worthy of careful scrutiny.

The dissertation investigates the correlations among the development of general anthologies of Canadian literature, the Canadian canon, and visions of national identity. While literature anthologies are widely used in university classrooms, the influential role of the anthology in the critical study of literature has been largely overlooked, particularly in Canada. The dissertation begins with an analysis of the stages of development of general anthologies of Canadian literature, demonstrating that there are important links between dominant critical trends and the guiding interests of the various phases of anthology development and that anthologies both reflect and participate in moulding views of the nation and its literature. Focusing then upon five eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Canadian authors, the dissertation traces their treatment in anthologies and analyzes in detail the impact of stages of anthology development upon authors’ inclusion and presentation. The reception of Frances Brooke, John Richardson, William Kirby, Susanna Moodie, and Emily Pauline Johnson over a span of nearly 90 years is examined, and points of inclusion and exclusion are scrutinized to determine links with prevailing critical interests as well as canonical status. These case studies reveal the functions of anthologies, which include recovering overlooked authors, amending past oversights, reflecting new areas of critical inquiry, and preserving the national literary tradition. Their treatment also reveals the effect of larger critical concerns, such as alignment with dominant visions of the nation, considerations of genre, and reassessments of past views. The dissertation shows that the anthology is a carefully constructed, culturally valuable work that plays an important role in literary criticism and canon formation and is a genre worthy of careful scrutiny.

The dissertation investigates the correlations among the development of general anthologies of Canadian literature, the Canadian canon, and visions of national identity. While literature anthologies are widely used in university classrooms, the influential role of the anthology in the critical study of literature has been largely overlooked, particularly in Canada. The dissertation begins with an analysis of the stages of development of general anthologies of Canadian literature, demonstrating that there are important links between dominant critical trends and the guiding interests of the various phases of anthology development and that anthologies both reflect and participate in moulding views of the nation and its literature. Focusing then upon five eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Canadian authors, the dissertation traces their treatment in anthologies and analyzes in detail the impact of stages of anthology development upon authors’ inclusion and presentation. The reception of Frances Brooke, John Richardson, William Kirby, Susanna Moodie, and Emily Pauline Johnson over a span of nearly 90 years is examined, and points of inclusion and exclusion are scrutinized to determine links with prevailing critical interests as well as canonical status. These case studies reveal the functions of anthologies, which include recovering overlooked authors, amending past oversights, reflecting new areas of critical inquiry, and preserving the national literary tradition. Their treatment also reveals the effect of larger critical concerns, such as alignment with dominant visions of the nation, considerations of genre, and reassessments of past views. The dissertation shows that the anthology is a carefully constructed, culturally valuable work that plays an important role in literary criticism and canon formation and is a genre worthy of careful scrutiny.

Despite the ubiquity of images depicting disability in the narratives that have contributed to the shaping of Canadian national identity, images of unconventional bodies have not drawn critical attention. My study begins to address this neglect by revisiting selections from Canadas historical literary canon using Disability Studies theory. I examine eight Anglophone novels selected from the reading requirements list for field examinations in Canadian literature at the University of Saskatchewan. Because fictional representations inform the ways we interpret reality, I argue that the application of Disability Studies theories to a Canadian context provides new insights into the meaning of Canadian nationhood. The study begins with Thomas McCulloch. His Stepsure Letters provides a counter-discourse to the commercialized ethos of his time. The disabled Stepsure exemplifies the ideal citizen. While Gwen, in Ralph Connors Sky Pilot, presents a sentimentalized stereotype of disability, her role also foregrounds the imperative of human relationship. Connors Foreigner, on the other hand, intertwines disability with ethnicized difference to form images of subhumanity that the novel suggests must be assimilated and/or controlled. Lucy Maude Montgomerys Emily trilogy echoes Connors later use of disability to embody a sinister Other that threatens the British-Canadian mainstream. In Such Is My Beloved, Morley Callaghan realistically depicts the power investments involved in configuring difference as social menace, defying the eugenic discourse of his day. While Malcolm Rosss As for Me and My House seems to revert to the exploitation of disability as a trope for trouble, at the same time the story subverts convention by failing to affirm normalcy. In Ethel Wilsons Love and Salt Water disability signifies the complexity and depth of humanity. In Mordechai Richlers The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, betrayal and rejection of responsibility to Other is the source of human suffering. The marginalized figures of Adele Wisemans Crackpot, the last novel examined in this study, defy their abject roles, pronouncing the right of being within ones difference.<p>Defamiliarizing the function of portrayals of disability brings into consciousness biases that have been systemically naturalized. Exploring constructions of difference reveals constructions of normalcy. Just as interrogating Whiteness uncovers hidden processes of racism, questioning normalcy illuminates a discriminatory ableism. My reading reveals a struggle within the national imaginary between ableism and a desire for inclusive pluralism. Disability Studies readings may help to liberate the collective psyche from tyrannical impositions of normalcy to a greater realization of the richness of human diversity.

Despite the ubiquity of images depicting disability in the narratives that have contributed to the shaping of Canadian national identity, images of unconventional bodies have not drawn critical attention. My study begins to address this neglect by revisiting selections from Canadas historical literary canon using Disability Studies theory. I examine eight Anglophone novels selected from the reading requirements list for field examinations in Canadian literature at the University of Saskatchewan. Because fictional representations inform the ways we interpret reality, I argue that the application of Disability Studies theories to a Canadian context provides new insights into the meaning of Canadian nationhood. The study begins with Thomas McCulloch. His Stepsure Letters provides a counter-discourse to the commercialized ethos of his time. The disabled Stepsure exemplifies the ideal citizen. While Gwen, in Ralph Connors Sky Pilot, presents a sentimentalized stereotype of disability, her role also foregrounds the imperative of human relationship. Connors Foreigner, on the other hand, intertwines disability with ethnicized difference to form images of subhumanity that the novel suggests must be assimilated and/or controlled. Lucy Maude Montgomerys Emily trilogy echoes Connors later use of disability to embody a sinister Other that threatens the British-Canadian mainstream. In Such Is My Beloved, Morley Callaghan realistically depicts the power investments involved in configuring difference as social menace, defying the eugenic discourse of his day. While Malcolm Rosss As for Me and My House seems to revert to the exploitation of disability as a trope for trouble, at the same time the story subverts convention by failing to affirm normalcy. In Ethel Wilsons Love and Salt Water disability signifies the complexity and depth of humanity. In Mordechai Richlers The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, betrayal and rejection of responsibility to Other is the source of human suffering. The marginalized figures of Adele Wisemans Crackpot, the last novel examined in this study, defy their abject roles, pronouncing the right of being within ones difference.<p>Defamiliarizing the function of portrayals of disability brings into consciousness biases that have been systemically naturalized. Exploring constructions of difference reveals constructions of normalcy. Just as interrogating Whiteness uncovers hidden processes of racism, questioning normalcy illuminates a discriminatory ableism. My reading reveals a struggle within the national imaginary between ableism and a desire for inclusive pluralism. Disability Studies readings may help to liberate the collective psyche from tyrannical impositions of normalcy to a greater realization of the richness of human diversity.

The Writers’ Union of Canada was founded in November of 1973 “to unite Canadian writers for the advancement of their common interests.” Drawing on extensive archival collections – from both the Writers’ Union and its member authors – this dissertation offers the first critical history of the organization and its work, from pre-founding to the early 1990s, arguing that the Writers’ Union has fundamentally influenced Canadian literature, as an industry, as a community, and as a field of study. I begin by tracing the contextual history of the organization’s founding, interrogating how union organizing, celebrity, and friendship underpin the organization’s work. Chapter One discusses the Writers’ Union’s programs, reforms, and interventions aimed at ‘fostering’ writing in Canada as I argue that the Union was instrumental in building a fiscal-cultural futurity for CanLit. In Chapter Two, I consider the role that women played in this important work, as I highlight the labour of female Union members and the all-female administrative staff, who maintained and supported the organization’s work through its first twenty years. In Chapter Three I draw attention to the stories of, perspectives of, and experiences of BIPOC authors in relation to the Writers’ Union. While the Writers’ Union’s involvement in race relations is often positioned as having ‘begun’ with the Writing Thru Race conference in 1994, this chapter uses the archives to reveal a much longer trajectory of racialized conflict within and around the organization, providing important context for the very controversial and public battles about appropriation and race that would explode in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Throughout this work, I look to see how institutional narratives are deployed and upheld, and to what ends; how successful advocacy work is often effaced and forgotten; how institutional structures function; and how their boundaries and intentions are challenged and developed over time. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / The Writers’ Union of Canada was founded in November of 1973 “to unite Canadian writers for the advancement of their common interests.” Drawing on extensive archival collections – from both the Writers’ Union and its member authors – this dissertation offers the first critical history of the organization and its work, from pre-founding to the early 1990s. I argue that the Writers’ Union has fundamentally influenced Canadian literature – as an industry, as a community, and as a field of study – as I consider how unionism, literary celebrity, and friendship underpinned the organization’s work. This dissertation recuperates and comments on the important volunteer labour of Writers’ Union members in the service of literary labour, gender equity, and racial equity over the organization’s first twenty years.