The Burgess Shale: The Canadian Writing Landscape of the 1960s (CLC Kreisel Lecture Series)

“the Outburst Of Cultural Energy That Took Place In The 1960s Was In Part A Product Of The Two Decades That Came Before. It’s Always Difficult For Young People To See Their Own Time In Perspective: When You’re In Your Teens, A Decade Earlier Feels Like Ancient History And The Present Moment Seems Normal: What Exists Now Is Surely What Has Always Existed.”margaret Atwood Compares The Canadian Literary Landscape Of The 1960s To The Burgess Shale, A Geological Formation That Contains The Fossils Of Many Strange Prehistoric Life Forms. The Burgess Shale Is Not Entirely About Writing Itself, However: Atwood Also Provides Some Insight Into The Meagre Writing Infrastructure Of That Time, Taking A Lighthearted Look At The Early Days Of The Institutions We Take For Granted Today—from Writers’ Organizations, Prizes, And Grant Programs To Book Tours And Festivals.