Sunday Spotlight: Science Fiction In Canada

Why is science fiction so big in Canada?

Canadian author Robert J. Sawyer, one of my all-time favorite writers, gave a lecture at Darwin College in Cambridge University recently. I believe the lecture was given last year, although I can't be sure. I can only be sure that the lecture was uploaded to YouTube in 2020. In that lecture, Sawyer talked about the history and impact science fiction has had throughout science and culture, but during that talk, he said something amazing which really got me thinking. 

He pointed out that Canadians have received roughly 40% of all science fiction awards.

Now, that's an interesting figure! Canada has a population of about 37.59 million (as of 2019). That's only 11.45% of the population of the U.S. at 328.2 million. A large portion of the remainder of the awards go to the U.K., which has a much higher population than Canada at 66.65 million, but that's still only 20% of the population of the U.S. That gives Canada a hugely disproportionate share of the science fiction awards, given that Canada is only 8% of the population of the U.S., U.K. and Canada combined.

Why are Canadians so good at sci fi?

The answer Sawyer gives is elegant. He points out that Canada and the U.K. both have nationalized healthcare systems, and that this allows younger writers to focus on their potential writing careers without having to worry so much about securing healthcare for themselves. They can hone their skills at an age in which their American counterparts are struggling to build their careers, hoping that someday they will be able to spare the time to write.

This reason is good, but I think it falls short. It explains why Canada might be so much better at sci fi writing than the U.S., but it doesn't explain how Canada is so much better at it than the U.K., which also has national healthcare, and has twice the population, but not twice Canada's awards prowess. If socialized medicine is the key to sci fi success, why does the U.K. not regularly kick Canada's ass at the Hugo and Nebula award ceremonies?

I think one powerful factor is education. The U.S. has a balkanized and inefficient education system, determined by local-yokel school boards, riddled with rewritten history, creationism masquerading as science, and sex education which is anything but that. Americans host a strong counter-culture of anti-intellectualism which praises old-world values over the new-world intellectualism of colleges and universities. It is a backward standard which relegates much of the potential writing talent in the U.S. inert, and elects politicians who are nowhere near competent.

Yet even that isn't enough. If one writes off half the U.S. population as being right-wing Luddites (and polls show the figure to be about 45%), that still leaves 164.1 million people who embrace science, education, and proper grammar. That more than over-matches the 104.24 million people in Canada and the U.K., even with healthcare systems taken into consideration.

Why, then, don't the Americans shine more at the sci fi awards galas?

Part of it might be that Canada has been the beneficiary of many Americans who relocated to Canada for a better life. Sawyer's numbers might calculate slightly differently if he excluded the Hugo and Nebula awards given to Americans who fled to Canada in order to evade the Vietnam War draft or simply to attain a better life in a more progressive country. Such big names include Judith Merrill, Spider Robinson, and the cyberpunk master, William Gibson! Slide their awards over into the American column, and the percentage begins to look a little more U.S. friendly.

Yet even this isn't enough to explain the difference. Only three refugee authors who fled to Canada from the U.S., no matter how big the names, doesn't explain how lopsided Canada's success still is otherwise. There must be something more.

I believe the answer to be cultural.

Certain nations take national pride in certain things. Russia, for example, takes pride in having the best chess players, France takes pride in having the best chefs, Germany takes pride in having the best engineers, America takes pride in having the best movies, and so forth.

In Canada, quality science fiction is part of the cultural identity. And that's not just because they live in a nation where snowfall locks them indoors for six months out of every year with nothing better to do than read a good book. They see science fiction as part of who they are.

Canada boasts many science fiction clubs, associations and societies, both national and local. An exact count is hard to quantify, but there seems to be at least as many in Canada as there are in the U.S., despite the differences in population. Canada has its own national convention, awards ceremonies, and accolades. And aside from Los Angeles and New York, the next two biggest cultural centers of science fiction are Vancouver and Toronto.

Science fiction is as much a part of Canada as hockey.

This cultural identity factor explains not only why Canadians are so good at sci fi, but also why the U.K. is disproportionately better at murder mysteries and spy thrillers and costume dramas. It explains why Americans are so much better at horror writing and military-themed novels than their friendlier Canadian neighbors are.

It also explains why Canadians dominate the literary world while Americans dominate the film and television franchise world. Hollywood produces more blockbusters than Vancouver will ever dream of.

So what if some of those blockbusters are based on the writings of Canadian authors? Or have Canadian directors such as James Cameron or Dennis Villeneuve?

And two of the biggest sci fi franchises, Star Wars and Star Trek, are 100% American (even though certain actors, such as James Doohan and William Shatner, are Canadian).

In short, Canada has good reasons for dominating the awards ceremonies. I say, good for them! Let them! Let them revel in the glory of sci fi in the literary world. Let them take home their awards to Canada and display them in the diffused light of their frostbitten windows and smile.

Americans can smile themselves knowing that Canadians are still playing in the sandbox which we first built, and that the success of Canadian novels is measured by how well they are marketed in the U.S. - not the other way around!

Eric

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