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Topic spans: 1967 - 2000
Margaret Atwood: Queen of CanLit
Poet, novelist, storywriter and essayist — the Ottawa native is a Canadian literary giant. Margaret Atwood first raised eyebrows as a young poet in the 1960s. Since then, one of Canada's most written about writers has struggled to keep her personal life private. Over her prolific career, Atwood has earned a reputation for being brilliant but aloof. But her caustic tongue and wicked sense of humour only fuel Atwood's stature as an internationally acclaimed writer.
Photo by Susan King/Library and Archives Canada
9 television clips
8 radio clips
Bona fide member of the literary elite
Broadcast Date: Dec. 10, 2000
Margaret Atwood is in a whimsical mood as she sits down for a chat with CBC's Evan Solomon. The usually aloof writer even cracks a few jokes. She has a reason to celebrate. Atwood's 10th novel The Blind Assassin has just been awarded the Booker Prize, one of the world's most prestigious literary awards. Atwood wins on her fourth attempt with a novel that weaves an intricate series of stories within stories told by Iris Chase, a woman near the end of her life.Bona fide member of the literary elite
• In awarding the Booker Prize to Margaret Atwood, the five-member panel of judges admitted their decision was not unanimous, but said there was a "consensus" among them.• Atwood made the Booker Prize short list three previous times: For The Handmaid's Tale (1986), Cat's Eye (1988) and Alias Grace (1996).
• The essays Atwood talked about in this interview were published as Negotiating With the Dead: A Writer on Writing (2002). It was part of a series of lectures Atwood gave at the University of Cambridge in 2000.
• Atwood's latest book, Oryx and Crake, was published in May 2003. Atwood's 11th novel begins with a narrator known as Snowman, who is the sole survivor of a catastrophe that has destroyed the human race.
Bona fide member of the literary elite
Medium: Television
Program: Hot Type
Broadcast Date: Dec. 10, 2000
Guest(s): Margaret Atwood
Host: Evan Solomon
Duration: 14:47
Last updated:
Dec. 10, 2004
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17 clips in this topic . page
Television
4:50
Jan. 4, 2006
The grand man of poetry who hoped his words would heal a nation's ills has died at 93.
Radio
5:35
Feb. 4, 1958
On his 75th birthday, famed narrative poet E.J. Pratt chuckles at being called Canada's leading poet.
Bona fide member of the literary elite.
The CBC Digital Archives Website.
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Last updated: Dec. 10, 2004.
[Page consulted on Feb. 9, 2010.]