New Contexts of Canadian Criticism

Bert Almon is a professor of English at the University of Alberta. He is
the author of Calling Texas, Earth Prime, and Mind the Gap.

This updated edition of Contexts of Canadian Criticism, an important
collection of essays originally edited by Eli Mandel and published in
1971, reflects Canada’s multiracial, multicultural realities. The
essays deal with art, literature, and society. Topics range from the New
Social Gospel of the Catholic Church to the reactions of Anglo-Canadian
artists to the free trade agreement. Linda Hutcheon contributes a
brilliant article on the “Into the Heart of Africa” exhibition at
the Royal Ontario Museum, which was meant to be antiracist, but ended up
outraging the black community. The essays—several of which are in
French—are contentious, often biased, and thoroughly stimulating; many
are accompanied by lengthy bibliographies.