Robert Majzels
Encyclopedia
Life
Majzels was born in MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
. In 1986, he graduated with a Master's degree in English Literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
from Concordia University in Montreal, where he would later teach creative writing for thirteen years. Between 2000 and 2002, he lived in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and studied Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
. He presently lives in Calgary, Alberta in Canada and teaches at the University of Calgary.
Works
Majzels is strongly influenced by criticalCritical theory
Critical theory is an examination and critique of society and culture, drawing from knowledge across the social sciences and humanities. The term has two different meanings with different origins and histories: one originating in sociology and the other in literary criticism...
and literary theory
Literary theory
Literary theory in a strict sense is the systematic study of the nature of literature and of the methods for analyzing literature. However, literary scholarship since the 19th century often includes—in addition to, or even instead of literary theory in the strict sense—considerations of...
. His works explore both the limits of language and narrative
Narrative
A narrative is a constructive format that describes a sequence of non-fictional or fictional events. The word derives from the Latin verb narrare, "to recount", and is related to the adjective gnarus, "knowing" or "skilled"...
forms and their ethical repercussions. His novels highlight the artificiality of Western
Western culture
Western culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
literary language
Literary language
A literary language is a register of a language that is used in literary writing. This may also include liturgical writing. The difference between literary and non-literary forms is more marked in some languages than in others...
, especially its linearity, archetypal
Archetype
An archetype is a universally understood symbol or term or pattern of behavior, a prototype upon which others are copied, patterned, or emulated...
narratives, and the ways in which it works to establish characters as believable personae (characterization). Concurrently, they explore other, neglected forms of literary expression. For example, Apikoros Sleuth experimented with a Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
ic form, noted for its polyphonic
Polyphony
In music, polyphony is a texture consisting of two or more independent melodic voices, as opposed to music with just one voice or music with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords ....
, discursive, and digressive qualities.
Awards
- Shortlisted, 2008 Canadian Griffin Poetry PrizeGriffin Poetry PrizeThe Griffin Poetry Prize is Canada's most generous poetry award. It was founded in 2000 by businessman and philanthropist Scott Griffin. The awards go to one Canadian and one international poet who writes in the English language....
and nominated for Governor General's Award for French to English translationGovernor General's Award for French to English translationThis is a list of recipients of the Governor General's Award for French-to-English translation.-1980s:*1987: Patricia Claxton, Enchantment and Sorrow: The Autobiography of Gabrielle Roy*1988: Philip Stratford, Second Chance...
with Erin MoureErin MouréErin Mouré is a Canadian poet and translator of poetry from languages which include, French, Galician, Portuguese and Spanish to English. Her mother Mary Irene was born 1924 in Galicia, Poland and moved to Canada in 1929. Erin’s father is William Moure born in Ottawa Canada in 1925...
for Notebook of Roses and Civilization, from the French Cahier de roses & de civilisation, by Nicole BrossardNicole BrossardNicole Brossard, O.C. is a leading French Canadian formalist poet and novelist.She lives in Outremont, a former city in Montreal, Quebec. She wrote her first collection in 1965, Aube à la maison. The collection L'Echo bouge beau marks a break in the evolution of her poetry...
(2007). - Governor General's Award for French to English translationGovernor General's Award for French to English translationThis is a list of recipients of the Governor General's Award for French-to-English translation.-1980s:*1987: Patricia Claxton, Enchantment and Sorrow: The Autobiography of Gabrielle Roy*1988: Philip Stratford, Second Chance...
for Just Fine, from the French Pas Pire, by France DaigleFrance DaigleFrance Daigle is a Canadian author. Born and based in Moncton, New Brunswick, she has published six novels and three plays. She writes in French and has pioneered the use of the Chiac in her written dialogue....
(2000). - Shortlisted, QWF for Best Novel, for City of Forgetting (1998).
- First prize, Canadian Jewish Playwriting Competition, for This Night the Kapo (1994).
- First prize, Dorothy Silver Award, Playwrights competition, for This Night the Kapo (1991).
Partial bibliography
- Hellman's Scrapbook (1992), a novel. Cormorant Books ISBN 0-920953-78-6
- City of Forgetting (1997), a novel. Mercury Press ISBN 1-55128-045-0
- Installations (2000), poetry translated with Erin MouréErin MouréErin Mouré is a Canadian poet and translator of poetry from languages which include, French, Galician, Portuguese and Spanish to English. Her mother Mary Irene was born 1924 in Galicia, Poland and moved to Canada in 1929. Erin’s father is William Moure born in Ottawa Canada in 1925...
from the French Installations by Nicole BrossardNicole BrossardNicole Brossard, O.C. is a leading French Canadian formalist poet and novelist.She lives in Outremont, a former city in Montreal, Quebec. She wrote her first collection in 1965, Aube à la maison. The collection L'Echo bouge beau marks a break in the evolution of her poetry...
. Muses' Co. ISBN 1-896239-65-X - A Fine Passage (2002), a novel, translated from the French Un fin passage by France DaigleFrance DaigleFrance Daigle is a Canadian author. Born and based in Moncton, New Brunswick, she has published six novels and three plays. She writes in French and has pioneered the use of the Chiac in her written dialogue....
. Anansi ISBN 0-88784-681-5 - Museum of Bone and Water (2002), poetry, translated with Erin MouréErin MouréErin Mouré is a Canadian poet and translator of poetry from languages which include, French, Galician, Portuguese and Spanish to English. Her mother Mary Irene was born 1924 in Galicia, Poland and moved to Canada in 1929. Erin’s father is William Moure born in Ottawa Canada in 1925...
from the French Musée de l’os et de l’eau by Nicole BrossardNicole BrossardNicole Brossard, O.C. is a leading French Canadian formalist poet and novelist.She lives in Outremont, a former city in Montreal, Quebec. She wrote her first collection in 1965, Aube à la maison. The collection L'Echo bouge beau marks a break in the evolution of her poetry...
. ISBN 0-88784-686-6 - Apikoros Sleuth (2004), a novel. Mercury Press ISBN 1-55128-105-8 paperback, Moveable Inc. ISBN 0968490824 limited edition.
- Life’s Little Difficulties (2004), a novel, translated frm the French Petites difficultés d'existence by France DaigleFrance DaigleFrance Daigle is a Canadian author. Born and based in Moncton, New Brunswick, she has published six novels and three plays. She writes in French and has pioneered the use of the Chiac in her written dialogue....
. ISBN 0-88784-700-5 - The Humbugs Diet (2007), a novel. Mercury Press ISBN 1-55128-130-9
External links
- Griffin Poetry Prize biography
- Griffin Poetry Prize reading, including video clip
- Profile of Robert Majzels
- Profile at the Writers' Union of CanadaWriters' Union of CanadaThe Writers' Union of Canada , founded in 1973, describes itself as supporting "the country's authors by advocating for their rights, freedoms, and economic well-being." Its members are professional writers who must have published at least one book through a commercial publisher.The Union addresses...