12 University Canadian History
Review of Canadian Fiction
Your task will be to choose a short story written by a Canadian author. You must write a 600 –
800 word review that contains the following components:
1. Identify the author and provide a brief biography. Next, include a brief outline of the setting,
plot, characters and theme(s) of the story. Brief means maximum of 200 words.
2. Provide an assessment of how effectively the story provides an insight into Canadian history.
For example, discuss the characters, setting, events and/or themes that the book portrays and
evaluate how “historically realistic” they are. To do this, you need to develop the historical
context against which the story is written and evaluate how effectively the story conveys the time
period. Remember, history is so much more than specific events and people; for example,
consider the types of characters the author uses and determine whether or not this character is
historically realistic. A character can be historically realistic without having actually existed.
Use specific examples from the story to support your analysis here. You will obviously need to
do some secondary research to complete this part of your review and thus a brief bibliography is
required for this assignment.
This portion of your story review is the most substantial part and thus it should not be shorter
than 400 words.
3. Finally provide an evaluation of the value of the story to you, as a student of Canadian
history, i.e. did the author portray characters, plot, and context in a fashion that engaged you in
an aspect of history? Was it understandable, interesting? Would you consider it an effective
teaching tool? Would you recommend it to someone who wanted to understand more about this
event/period in history?
4. Remember to include introductory and concluding paragraphs in your review; no effective
analytical writing is complete without these.
Format Reminders
This is to be typed and is to be no more than four pages.
Do not use personal pronouns even though #3 is your personal opinion.
Do not forget to include footnotes and bibliography that includes both the citation for the short
story and any additional historical sources that you used to prove #2.
Short Story Review
Communication: the review is effectively organized and well written in terms of style, i.e.
sentence structure, spelling, grammar, diction and flow.
Mark: /10
Knowledge: an understanding of the plot, characterization and historical time period is
effectively demonstrated
Mark: /10
Thinking: criticism and analysis is effectively explained and supported
Mark: /10
Application: bibliography is included and is properly formatted. Endnotes/footnotes, where
necessary, are properly incorporated and formatted.
Mark: /10
Bibliography of Canadian Short Fiction
Bissoondath, Neil. “Security”. Canadian Short Stories. Selected by Robert Weaver.
Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1991, pp.17 – 38.
Told from the perspective of East Indian immigrant Alistair Ramgoolam, this story explores the
cultural challenges faced by an immigrant family in Canada post 1970.
Brand, Dionne. “One Down”. Story of a Nation: Defining Moments in Our History. Ed. The
Dominion Institute. Toronto: Doubleday Canada, 2001, pp. 195 – 213.
On Friday, November 8, 1946, Viola Desmond, a black woman, was bodily thrown out of the
Roseland Theatre in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia. She made the mistake of sitting in the “white
section”.
Findley, Timothy. “Stones”. Canadian Short Stories. Selected by Robert Weaver. Toronto:
Oxford University Press, 1991, pp. 60 – 81.
The story is set in Toronto during WWII and is told from the perspective of a young boy who
describes the return of his father, a veteran of the battle of Dieppe.
Findley, Timothy. “The Banks of the Wabush”. Story of a Nation: Defining Moments in Our
History. Ed. The Dominion Institute. Toronto: Doubleday Canada, 2001, pp. 145 – 175.
The story is set post WWI in small town Canada and explores both the return of young WWI
veterans and the challenges communities faced in battling the plague of the Spanish flu.
Highway, Tomson. “Hearts and Flowers”. Our Story. Ed. The Dominion Institute. Toronto:
Random House, 2005, pp. 179 – 199.
The story is set in small town Manitoba and is told from the perspective of a young native boy at
a residential school. The setting of a music festival is used to explore the relationship between
native and non native communities in 1960.
King, Thomas. “Where the Borg Are”. Story of a Nation: Defining Moments in Our History.
Ed. The Dominion Institute. Toronto: Doubleday Canada, 2001, pp. 271 – 291.
This satire, set in contemporary times, uses Star Trek to discuss the intent of the Indian Act.
MacFarlane, David. “The First of July”. Story of a Nation: Defining Moments in Our History.
Toronto: Doubleday Canada, 2001, pp. 91-117.
This story is told from the perspective of a young university student in the 1970s, who discovers
interesting truths about the deceased old lady “witch”, a former neighbour. While cleaning out
her house he explores the connection she had to the WWI battle of Beaumont Hamel.
Laurence, Margaret. “The Loons”. Elements of Literature. Second Edition. Eds. Robert
Scholes et al. Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1990, pp. 312 – 320.
This story is told from the perspective of a young girl growing up in small town Mantioba in the
1930s. It explores her relationship with a young Metis girl and the prejudices that were so
dominant at the time.
Ross, Sinclair. “The Lamp at Noon”. Images of Man. Ed. Malcolm Ross. Toronto: J.M. Dent
& Sons Limited, pp. 223 -235.
This story is set in the Prairies during the Depression and explores the challenges faced by
farmers during this time.
Turner, Michael. “The death of Albert ‘Ginger’ Goodwin”. Story of a Nation: Defining
Moments in Our History. Ed. The Dominion Institute. Toronto: Doubleday Canada, 2001,
pp. 119 – 143.
This story explores the challenges faced by the labour movement post WWI.