The Friday Files - news to inform and inspire
Margaret Atwood is cleverer than us – five predictions that prove it
Our CUKF scholar, Dr. Carla Scarano D’Antonio, devoted her entire PhD to studying Margaret Atwood, in great detail. Here, she shares with us five ways that Margaret Atwood either predicted, or in the case of CanLit, shaped the future.
She put CanLit on the global map
In her writing career, Margaret Atwood has shifted from a personal and national exploration of what it means to be Canadian to a wider global perspective that encompasses socio-political and environmental issues. When she started writing, Canadian literature was not paid much attention or studied. As Atwood remarks in Survival: A Thematic Guide to Canadian Literature, real literature was supposed to come from the United States and England, and, consequently, Canadian literature was not taught in schools and universities as ‘many people assumed there wasn’t any’. Atwood outlined a cultural map that had part of its roots in a colonial past and looked for a new departure in a present that needed to be firmly established on Canadian land.
She “surfaced” environmental issues as early as 1972
In Survival and in her second published novel, Surfacing (1972), she also anticipates environmental concerns, which will become tropes in her work and one of her main topics in her role as a Canadian spokeswoman. She identifies the risks of the exploitation of nature, the danger of pollution and a consequent possible destruction of the Canadian wilderness. In this context, the presence of indigenous peoples and their culture is marked by marginality and absence. They are a source of wisdom and power but are silenced and undermined – marginalised – similarly to the protagonist of Surfacing. In the course of the narrative, the stories about wendigos and werewolves, as well as stories related to human–animal beings, such as Napi the trickster and other indigenous legends, are considered to be the alternatives to traditional fairy tales. This implies a transformation in language in a process of change and adaptation that is necessary for survival and focuses on the Canadian context.
The Handmaiden as an international symbol of protest
Environmental concerns and political issues are further explored in Atwood’s most popular novel, The Handmaid’s Tale. Atwood claims that the novel is ‘speculative fiction’ rather than a dystopian novel, that is, ‘there is nothing […] in the book without a precedent’. The novel was written during Reagan’s presidency and was published in 1985. The revival of the conservative Christian Right movement gained visibility and power in this period, putting at risk the women’s rights acquired in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Reagan supported pro-life movements and anti-abortion movements, starting a backlash against women’s rights that lasted for many years.
The Hulu TV series of The Handmaid’s Tale was released in late 2016 and Trump’s presidency started in January 2017; this drew parallels in the minds of the readers between fiction and reality. As Atwood has said, ‘Instead of going away from Gilead […] we started going back towards Gilead.’ The novel’s sales increased exponentially, and women dressed in red cloaks and white bonnets marched silently to protest against the restrictive abortion laws. Therefore, Atwood’s work is a warning about present socio-political situations and suggests alternative visions.
She foresaw broader scale genetic engineering
Further developments of these warnings appear in Oryx and Crake, in which the human race is substituted by the genetically engineered Crakers. They are childlike creatures created by Glenn-Crake, a cross between Dr Moreau and Steve Jobs. Crake himself unleashed the disease that wiped out humanity so that he could substitute it with the unflawed post-humanity of the Crakers. This is a dystopic vision of the consequences of ill-used scientific progress that has utopic intents, similar to what happens in The Handmaid’s Tale.
She gives us hope that change is possible with peaceful protest
Atwood’s 2019 oeuvre, The Testaments, is the first of her novels that provides a sense of closure, of “what happens next”, answering as it does questions about the fate of Offred and of Gilead. In The Testaments, and in recent talks and interviews, Atwood reveals a more optimistic view, a trust in the new generation and recent movements such as MeToo, Extinction Rebellion and Black Lives Matter. She shares her belief that young people involved in these movements are our best hope positive change, including a better future for the environment. She remarks that there are several possible futures – which one we end up having depends on people’s choices and on the way they vote. Indeed, this optimism about the role of peaceful protest and the importance of voting is a theme we heard her echo again very recently and very strongly, when she spoke on the Build Back Better webinar in March 2021.
Hand-made textile art embroidered with a key saying from The Handmaid’s Tale.
Work by C. Scarano
Atwood’s socio-political aims are developed in language, that is, in her revision of patriarchal narratives in a dialogic way. Her desire for change and her exploration of possible alternative ‘truths’ point to personal and human survival in a world that is risking social and environmental extinction. She engages in this discourse at a global level in a broader perspective on the human condition that might be endangered by wrong political choices that would lead to environmental collapse.
Emerging Artist Talk at AGO (Online)
On 27 May, Sobey Art Award nominee Esmaa Mohamoud will be in conversation with Wanda Nanibush (Curator, Indigenous Art, Art Gallery of Ontario). Toronto-based African-Canadian artist Mohamoud creates powerful work re-examining understandings of contemporary Blackness. Her major solo exhibition To Play in the Face of Certain Defeat draws on the modern industry of professional sports which she equates with a covert form of neo-slavery.
Part of the AGO x RBC Emerging Artists Program designed to celebrate and support artists early in their careers, this talk will explore Mohamoud’s work and how she maintains her creative practice. We think she's one to watch for the Sobey Awards as well as in her career's future evolution.
The free talk will take place at 4pm EST on 27 May over Zoom. Register here to attend.
Exciting Announcement - Save the Date!
We've got something big coming, new and fresh! We are working hard shaping our Canada Day lineup and will be ready to announce our events next week! Mark your calendars for June 29 at 5pm and be prepared for a "Live Streaming from Canada House" surprise.
We've got a follow-up to our Jim Cuddy and Madeleine Thien showcase, it's definitely a don't-miss featuring amazing Canadian talent. Check back next week for our big announcement... or be in touch now if you can't bear the suspense!