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Gwendolyn MacEwen

グウェンドリン・マクイウェン

Gwendolyn MacEwen

Aliases: Gwendolyn Margaret MacEwen

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1941-09-01 （Toronto, Ontario）
Died
1987-11-29 （Toronto, Ontario） age 46
Nationality
Canadian
Languages
English, Hebrew, Arabic, Greek, French
Religion
Unknown
Residence History
Toronto, Ontario (High Park area)

Career

Occupations
poet, novelist, writer
Active Years
1961-1987
Affiliations
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), University of Western Ontario, University of Toronto
Influenced By
Northrop Frye, Robert Weaver
Influenced
Margaret Atwood

Education

Western Technical-Commercial School
Period: 高校中退（18歳）
Country: Canada
High school dropout, autodidact

Awards

Governor General's Award
1969
Work: The Shadow Maker
Category: 詩集
Organization: Governor General of Canada
Result: 受賞
Governor General's Award
1987
Work: Afterworlds
Category: 詩集
Organization: Governor General of Canada
Result: 受賞（追賞）
CBC New Canadian Writing Contest
1965
Category: 詩
Organization: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Result: 受賞
A.J.M. Smith Poetry Award
1973
Category: 詩
Result: 受賞
Borestone Mountain Poetry Award
1983
Category: 詩
Result: 受賞
CBC Literary Competition
1983
Category: 短編小説
Organization: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Result: 受賞
Du Maurier Awards
1983
Category: 詩（金賞・銀賞）
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Shadow Maker

1969 Poetry

Poetry collection exploring magic and mystery. Winner of Governor General's Award.

magicmysteryGnosticism
Adaptations
  • [Orchestral music] The Shadow Maker / Rudi Martinus van Dijk (1977)

Afterworlds

1987 Poetry

Poetry collection on afterworlds. Posthumous Governor General's Award.

deathmystery

Julian the Magician

1963 Novel

Fantasy historical novel blending hermetic philosophies and Christianity.

magichistoryHermeticism

King of Egypt, King of Dreams

1971 Novel

Imaginative reconstruction of Pharaoh Akhenaton's life.

Ancient Egyptreligious reformation

A Breakfast for Barbarians

1966 Poetry

Early notable poetry collection.

magiclife

Bibliography

  • Selah (1961)
  • The Drunken Clock (1961)
  • The Rising Fire (1963)
  • Terror and Erebus (1965)
  • A Breakfast for Barbarians (1966)
  • The Shadow Maker (1969)
  • The Armies of the Moon (1972)
  • Magic Animals (1974)
  • The Fire-Eaters (1976)
  • Trojan Women (1981)
  • The T. E. Lawrence Poems (1982)
  • Earth-Light (1982)
  • The Man with Three Violins (1986)
  • Afterworlds (1987)

Translations by Author

  • Trojan Women (Euripides translation)

Translations of Works

  • Translated into Chinese, French, German, Italian, etc.

Style & Themes

Literary Style
sophisticatedwide-rangingthoughtfuldexterity in versecraft
Recurring Motifs
magicmysteryGnosticsAncient Egyptlife and death

Health

  • alcoholism
    晩年
    Caused health problems leading to death at age 46

Legacy

Regarded as one of Canada's greatest poets, unique for sense of magic and mystery. Park named after her, biography and documentary produced.

Archives

  • University of Toronto Canadian Poetry Online

In Popular Culture

  • Tribute in Margaret Atwood's short story 'Isis in Darkness'
  • One-woman play 'Alien Creature: A Visitation from Gwendolyn MacEwen' by Linda Griffiths
  • Documentary 'Shadow Maker: Gwendolyn MacEwen, Poet' by Brenda Longfellow

Trivia

  • First poem published at age 17
  • Dropped out of school at 18 to pursue writing
  • Married poet Milton Acorn (1962-1964)
  • Opened Trojan Horse coffeehouse with Niko Tsingos
  • Gwendolyn MacEwen Parkette named in Toronto