Canadian National Culture And Its Influence On Literature: A Comparative Study With Australian Literature

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Canadian National Culture and Literature

The notion of national culture has gained a substantial amount of prominence within the framework of contemporary society and is being used to refer to the attributes which characterizes the people of a nation (Moss 2015). Mann (2018) is of the viewpoint that the entity of national culture refers to the plethora of the traditions, customs, beliefs and other aspects of the lives of the citizens of the concerned nation. As per the opinion of Carpenter (2017), the culture of a country not only forms the identity of the people of that nation but at the same time reveal insightful details about the lifestyle of the citizens as well. In this regard, the Canadian culture has emerged as one of the most important ones of the world in the recent times because of the various facets of it (Mann 2018).

Canada consists of wide diversity of people from the different parts of the world like India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, United States of America, United Kingdom and others (Moss 2015). The individual cultural traditions of these people finds representation in the national culture of the nation and the net result of this is fact that Canada is one of the most multi-cultural nations of the world currently (Carpenter 2017). The effect of multiculturalism is manifested in the various fields like artistry, politics, literature, humor, music and other attributes of the nation (Kröller 2017). This report discusses about the manner in which the Canadian national culture finds manifestation in the Literature of the nation. The report, at the same time, compares the Literature of the nation with the one of the Australian nation in the particular context of management, entrepreneurial and leadership theories.

Nischik (2016) is of the viewpoint that the Canadian culture wields an important influence on the Literature of the nation and as a matter of fact the majority of the themes which dominate the literary works are related to the aspect of culture itself. In this regard, mention needs to be made of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau's “Announcement of Implementation of Policy of Multiculturalism within Bilingual Framework” of 1971 which highlighted the role of the authors of Canada in providing a medium for the representation of the national culture of Canada (Howells 2014). As opined by Nischik (2016) the net result of this declaration was the fact that the various authors as well as the multitude of literary works produced by them tried to showcase the various facets of the national culture of the nation. In this regard, mention needs to be made of Mark Abley, Carolyn Abraham, Marianne Ackerman, Barry D. Adam, Evan Adams, Kateri Akiwenzie-Damm, Rebecca Agatha Armour, Margaret Atwood, Meenakshi Mukerji and others (Hétu 2015). Cabajsky (2014) has argued that the majority of the literary works composed by these authors can not only be seen as social chronicles but at the same time cultural chronicles as well.

Themes in Canadian Literature

As argued by Suchacka, Zagratzki and Lutz (2014) one of the major themes which dominate the work of the majority of the Canadian authors is the theme of post-colonialism. It is pertinent to note that until the latter half of the 20^th century the nation of Canada was subjected to the evil machinery of colonialism and this machinery has left its imprints on the national culture of the nation as well which is being mirrored by the literary works of the period (Fachinger 2014). The net result of this is the fact that the various evils of colonialism and the manner in which it affected the national culture and also the lives of its citizens form the lacuna of these literary works (Cabajsky 2014). Suchacka, Zagratzki and Lutz (2014) argue that apart from the theme of post-colonialism another major theme which dominates the majority of the literary works of the nation is the theme of diaspora. Canada is populated by people of different nationalities who despite gaining citizenship in Canada still try to cling to the culture of their motherland. This aspect of the Canadian culture is being pertinently manifested in the literary works of authors like Meenakshi Mukerji and others (Fachinger 2014). In addition to this, the literary works of the nation at the same time highlights the impact that the integration of the recent technologies, business enterprises and others had on the national culture of the nation (Mangan 2017). Thus, it can be said that the Canadian culture has played a pivotal role in the literary landscape of the nation and also in the formulation of the various literary works of the nation.

Davidson and Houston (2018) have stated that the Australian literature is characterized by the representation of the contemporary issues that are affecting the nation currently and also the cultural conflicts that the people of the mainland of the nation face while dealing with indigenous and aboriginals. Furthermore, it is also seen that just like the Canadian literature, the Australian literature is redolent with the theme of post-colonialism (Birns 2017). This can be attributed to the fact that just like Canada, Australia itself was once a colonial country and the various criminals and other outcasts from the nations of the United Kingdom, France and others were sent to Australia (Ravenscroft 2016). However, as argued by Davidson and Houston (2018), a closer analysis of the Australian literature would reveal the fact that the literature of Australia is imbued with the usage of the modernistic, post-modernistic techniques and other recent developments in the field of literature (Birns 2017).

Australian National Culture and Literature

Ravenscroft (2016) are of the viewpoint that the literature of Australia is heavily influenced by the works of the various French authors and thus the themes of existentialism, surrealism and others are commonplace in the Australian literature. This aspect is something which is not there in the Canadian literature. This difference in the literatures of the two nations can be attributed to the national cultures of the two nations. It is pertinent to note that although both the nations are excellent examples of multiculturalism yet the Australian culture is a more open as well as a changing one (Birns 2017). Davidson and Houston (2018) argue that the net result of this is the fact that the Australian literature is not redolent solely with the themes of the national culture and also the past history of the nation in comparison to Canada. However, the representation of the nation as well as the past history and also the traditions of the nation form an integral part of the Canadian literature. Thus, it can be said that the machinery of culture wields a substantial influence on the national literatures of the two nations under discussion here and the difference between the literatures of the two nations can be explained on the basis of this factor.

Suchacka, Zagratzki and Lutz (2014) hold the view that the entity of cross-cultural professional practices plays a significant role in not only the composition of the various literary works by the authors but also in the marketing as well as the sale of these literary works. For example, it is seen that there are many writers in Canada like Meenakshi Mukerji and others who find the national culture which is dominated within the Canadian nation is drastically different from the one that was prevalent in their motherland (Wiltse 2015). In addition to this, it is seen that there is a gulf between appearance and reality in the particular context of the Canadian culture which is being portrayed before the entire and the one which is being actually followed within the nation. In this regard, it needs to be mentioned the image which is being presented to the outer world of the Canadian culture is one of a multicultural one as well as a utopian one whereas it is seen that the nation still tries to hold on the traditional culture which was being followed by the inhabitants of the nation during the colonial times (Suchacka, Zagratzki and Lutz 2014). Furthermore, even in the 21^st century, it is seen that there are various individuals of Canada who are still struggling to come to terms with the culture which is being followed in the mainland of the nation (Wiltse 2015). Kertzer (2016) is of the viewpoint that this gulf between appearance and reality not only causes a feeling of discontent as well as dissatisfaction within these writers but at the same time impacts the literary works composed by them as well.  

Differences between Canadian and Australian Literature

As opined by Kearney (2014) the differences between the cultures of the various people of the country also become evident in the entity of cultural intelligence that the citizens of the nation are required to have. For example, it is seen that same words and also expressions have different meanings in the diverse parts of the nation and this often gives rise to the misinterpretation of the literary works (Mann 2018). The net result of this fact is that the authors are required to use the standard words as well as phrases which are commonly used by the people in the mainland of the nation (Kearney 2014). However, at the same time, it needs to be said that this often hinders the authors from expressing the things that they actually want to express and also the effectiveness of the work gets lost in the process (Kertzer 2016). Thus, many of the cultural and other kind issues which are important in the contemporary society of the nation are not being represented by the works of these authors. Mann (2018) has argued that that the cross-cultural differences and miscommunication often leads to the creation of caricatures and portrayal of the national culture in a miniscule form because of the resultant dissatisfaction that the actual representation might create. This becomes especially important because of the fact that the writers had to depend on the sale of the literary works composed for their sustenance and thus disregarding the cultural factors is likely to hamper the sale of their works.

Howells (2014) hold the view that one of the most common trends seen within the field of Literature is its commercialization and the need of the contemporary authors to write as per the kind of things that the readers want to read. The commercial success of an author is directly related to the effectiveness with which the concerned author is being able to write about the things or the topics that the readers hold dear (Fachinger 2014). The end result of this is the fact that the authors despite belonging to different cultural backgrounds are required to write as if he or she belongs to the cultural background to which the majority of the readers composed by them belong (Carpenter 2017). Furthermore, at the same time, the various publication houses also insist that the authors cater to this demand of the readers so as to boost the sale of the books or literary works (Howells 2014). In addition to these, the process of commercialization has penetrated the field of literature to such an extent that the various restaurants, brands and others entities used by the protagonists of these literary are not only the popular choices of the people but also the ones which are sponsoring the concerned publication houses (Wiltse 2015).    

Cross-cultural Practises Impacting Literature

   In the landscape of the Canadian literature it is seen that the various publication and also the authors are taking the help of the economic concept of “scarcity and demand” for the sale of the books (Cabajsky 2014). For example, in the contemporary literary world it is seen that the nation of Canada is one of the largest producers of Diasporic literature in comparison to the other nations and it is also seen that the authors who are not Diasporas are using this genre (Cabajsky 2014). This fact is being used by the various authors and also the publication houses to market the books offered by them in the scarcity of this kind of books offered by the authors of other nations (Carpenter 2017). In addition to this, it is also that taking the help of the national culture, the Canadian authors are using effective promotional means like book reading sessions and others particularly in the vicinities around which the majority of the culture as well as the locations used in the book are based on (Fachinger 2014). Thus, it can be said that the effective utilization of the Canadian culture and also the management practices has enabled the authors to gain a substantial amount of success in the recent times.

Conclusion

To conclude, the national culture of a nation wields a large impact on the themes as well as the concepts used by the various authors of that nation. In this context, an analysis of the Canadian literature on the basis of the national culture of the nation becomes important since it is seen that the works of the majority of the authors of the nation are heavily influenced by the culture of the nation. However, it is seen that the cultural differences which are apparent in the nation at the same time deters the authors from writing about the themes or the topics that they normally would have wished to represent. The net result of this is the fact that the authors are required to write as per the demands of the popular culture and write about the topics that the people want to read about. Furthermore, the process of commercialization of the landscape of literature and the use of management practices has boosted the sale of the books offered by these authors. Thus, it can be said that culture is an important factor which determines the work of an author.

References 

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Cabajsky, A., 2014. Resituating CanLit. Canadian Literature, (222), p.117.

Carpenter, C., 2017. Pauline Johnson's “As It Was in the Beginning” and Drew Hayden Taylor's The Night Wanderer: The Gothic Tradition in Canadian Indigenous Literature. International Journal of Canadian Studies, 56, pp.47-66.

Davidson, T. and Houston, D., 2018. Australian Authors in Place: 21st Century Maps and Gaps. Journal of the Association for the Study of Australian Literature, 1(18), pp.1-13.

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Hétu, D., 2015. " All I ever wanted was to keep them safe": Geographies of Care in Comparative Canadian Fiction. Canadian Literature, (226), p.36.

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Kertzer, J., 2016. Worrying the Nation: Imagining a National Literature in English Canada. University of Toronto Press.

Kröller, E.M. ed., 2017. The Cambridge companion to Canadian literature. Cambridge University Press.

Mangan, J.A., 2017. Noble specimens of manhood: schoolboy literature and the creation of a colonial chivalric code. In Imperialism and juvenile literature. Manchester University Press.

Mann, J., 2018. A Culture of Rights: Law, Literature, and Canada by Benjamin Authers. British Journal of Canadian Studies, 31(1), pp.116-116.

Moss, L., 2015. Canadian Literature 6.0. Canadian Literature, (225), p.6.

Nischik, R.M., 2016. Comparative North American studies: transnational approaches to American and Canadian literature and culture. Springer.

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Wiltse, L., 2015. Mirrors and windows: Teaching and research reflections on Canadian Aboriginal children’s literature. Language and Literacy, 17(2), pp.22-40.