Page "Canadian literature" Paragraph 19

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 Moodie 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.