Janice Kulyk Keefer (born 2 June 1952) is a Canadian novelist and poet. Of
Ukrainian heritage, Kulyk Keefer often writes about the experiences of first-generation Canadian children of
immigrants
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as permanent residents. Commuters, tourists, and other short- ...
.
Biography
She was born as Janice Kulyk on 2 June 1952 in
Toronto
Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
, Ontario.
She studied
English literature
English literature is literature written in the English language from the English-speaking world. The English language has developed over more than 1,400 years. The earliest forms of English, a set of Anglo-Frisian languages, Anglo-Frisian d ...
at the
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...
, graduating with a BA.
She then studied at the
University of Sussex
The University of Sussex is a public university, public research university, research university located in Falmer, East Sussex, England. It lies mostly within the city boundaries of Brighton and Hove. Its large campus site is surrounded by the ...
, where she received an
MPhil
A Master of Philosophy (MPhil or PhM; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. The name of the degree is most often abbreviated MPhil (or, at times, as PhM in other countries). MPhil are awarded to postgraduate students after completing at least ...
and
D.Phil.
Following this, Keefer became an assistant professor of
English studies
English studies (or simply, English) is an academic discipline taught in primary, secondary, and post-secondary education in English-speaking countries. This is not to be confused with English taught as a foreign language, which is a dis ...
at
Université Sainte-Anne
Université Sainte-Anne is a French-language university in Pointe-de-l'Église, Nova Scotia, Canada. It and the Université de Moncton in New Brunswick are the only French-language universities in the Maritime Provinces.
History
Université Sa ...
in
Pointe-de-l'Église, Nova Scotia
Church Point ( French: ''Pointe-de-l'Église'') is an unincorporated community located on Saint Mary's Bay in the District of Clare, Digby County, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Local facilities
Church Point is home to Université Sainte-Anne (abou ...
.
She is a specialist in
Modernist literature
Modernist literature originated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and is characterised by a self-conscious separation from traditional ways of writing in both poetry and prose fiction writing. Modernism experimented with literary form a ...
.
In her literary work on Ukrainian-Canadian identity, she "rejects simplified notions of multiculturalism"
in preference to a Ukrainian transnational identity.
, she is a professor of literature and theatre in the graduate studies department at the
University of Guelph
The University of Guelph (abbreviated U of G) is a comprehensive Public university, public research university in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1964 after the amalgamation of Ontario Agricultural College (1874), the MacDonald I ...
in
Guelph, Ontario
Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as The Royal City, it is roughly east of Kitchener, Ontario, Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Ontario Highway 6, ...
.
Her sister is the Canadian artist,
Karen Kulyk and her son is th
Decouple Podcasthost Dr. Chris Keefer.
Awards and honours
*1987
Governor General's Awards
The Governor General's Awards are a collection of annual awards presented by the governor general of Canada, recognizing distinction in numerous academic, artistic, and social fields.
The first award was conceived and inaugurated in 1937 by the ...
, nominated, ''Under Eastern Eyes''
*1988
Books in Canada First Novel Award
The Amazon Canada First Novel Award, formerly the Amazon.ca First Novel Award and the Books in Canada First Novel Award, is a Canadian literary award, co-presented by Amazon.ca and ''The Walrus'' to the best first novel in English published the p ...
, nominated, ''Constellations''
*1996
Governor General's Awards
The Governor General's Awards are a collection of annual awards presented by the governor general of Canada, recognizing distinction in numerous academic, artistic, and social fields.
The first award was conceived and inaugurated in 1937 by the ...
, nominated, ''The Green Library''
*1999
Marian Engel Award, lifetime achievement
*2006 Greifswald Canadian Studies Fellow in Residence,
University of Greifswald
The University of Greifswald (; ), formerly known as Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University of Greifswald, is a public research university located in Greifswald, Germany, in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
Founded in 1456, it is one of th ...
, Germany
*2008
Kobzar Literary Award KOBZAR Book Award is a biennial literary award that "recognizes outstanding contributions to Canadian literary arts by authors who develop a Ukrainian Canadian theme with literary merit". The prize is . It is awarded in one of several genres: liter ...
, ''The Ladies Lending Library''
Bibliography
* ''White of the Lesser Angels'' (1986)
* ''The Paris-Napoli Express'' (1986)
* ''Transfigurations'' (1987)
* ''Under Eastern Eyes: A Critical Reading of Maritime Fiction''
* ''Constellations''
* ''Reading Mavis Gallant'' (1989)
* ''Travelling Ladies'' (1992)
* ''Rest Harrow'' (1992)
* ''The Green Library''
* ''Marrying the Sea'' (1998)
* ''Kyiv, of Two Lands: New Visions'' (1998, anthology co-edited with
Solemea Pavlychko)
* ''Honey and Ashes: A Story of Family'' (1998)
* ''The Waste Zone'' (2002)
* ''Thieves'' (2004)
* ''The Ladies' Lending Library'' (2007)
* ''Foreign Relations'' (2010)
References
Further reading
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
Interview, online from CBC Words at LargeJanice Kulyk Keeper at writerscafe.ca
The authorat English-Canadian Writers,
Athabasca University
Athabasca University (AU) is a Canadian public university that primarily operates through online distance education. Founded in 1970, it is one of four comprehensive academic and research universities in Alberta, and was the first Canadian ...
, by Deborah Saidero, University of Udine, 2016
1952 births
20th-century Canadian novelists
20th-century Canadian poets
21st-century Canadian novelists
21st-century Canadian poets
Canadian women poets
Canadian women novelists
Canadian people of Ukrainian descent
Living people
Poets from Toronto
Novelists from Toronto
Academic staff of the University of Greifswald
Canadian women academics
German women academics
Academic staff of the University of Guelph
20th-century Canadian women writers
21st-century Canadian women writers
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