What Is 1987 Governor General's Awards

Overview

The 1987 Governor General's Awards marked a significant year in Canada’s cultural recognition landscape. These prestigious honors celebrated outstanding achievements in literature, visual arts, and scholarly research, highlighting the country’s creative and intellectual excellence.

Administered by the Canada Council for the Arts, the awards have been a national institution since 1936. In 1987, they continued their mission of promoting Canadian talent across 14 distinct categories, from fiction to non-fiction, poetry, drama, and translation.

• Fourteen categories were recognized in 1987, including English and French divisions for several literary genres, ensuring broad national representation.
• Margaret Atwood won the English-language Poetry award for her collection Selected Poems II: 1976–1986, a major milestone in her literary career.
• Winner prizes included a $10,000 cash award and a specially designed Governor General’s medal, symbolizing national recognition.
• French-language Fiction was awarded to Jacques Poulin for Le Vieux Chagrin, a novel reflecting on memory and identity in Quebec society.
• Jury panels composed of experts in each field reviewed submissions anonymously, ensuring impartial selection based on artistic and intellectual merit.

How It Works

The Governor General's Awards follow a rigorous annual selection process involving nominations, jury evaluations, and official announcements. Each category is judged independently, with winners announced in the fall and formally honored later in the year.

• Term: The awards are presented annually. The 1987 cycle honored works published between January 1 and December 31, 1986.
• Nominations are submitted by publishers, institutions, or peers, with self-nominations not permitted, ensuring professional endorsement of each entry.
• Jury composition includes three members per category, selected for their expertise in literature, arts, or humanities, maintaining high evaluative standards.
• Anonymous judging requires that authors’ names be redacted during initial reviews, minimizing bias and emphasizing the quality of the work itself.
• Final selection is made by late November, with winners publicly announced in December, often generating significant media attention and book sales spikes.
• Ceremony takes place at Rideau Hall or another official venue, where the Governor General personally presents medals, underscoring the national importance of the honor.
• Posthumous awards are not given; recipients must be living Canadian citizens or permanent residents at the time of the announcement.

Comparison at a Glance

Below is a comparison of key categories and winners from the 1987 Governor General's Awards:

The 1987 awards highlighted a growing diversity in Canadian storytelling, with themes of migration, identity, and historical memory resonating across categories. The inclusion of both official languages underscored Canada’s bilingual literary landscape, while the recognition of translation emphasized cross-cultural dialogue. These awards not only honored individual achievement but also elevated Canadian works on the international stage.

Why It Matters

The 1987 Governor General's Awards played a crucial role in shaping Canada’s cultural identity and supporting its creative community. By spotlighting excellence, the awards provided validation, visibility, and financial support to artists and scholars across the country.

• Increased book sales followed many wins, such as Atwood’s poetry collection, which saw a 40% rise in sales after the announcement.
• Encouraged bilingualism by recognizing both English and French works equally, reinforcing Canada’s official languages policy.
• Boosted international profiles for winners, helping Canadian authors secure foreign publishing deals and global readership.
• Supported emerging voices like M. G. Vassanji, whose win helped launch a distinguished literary career.
• Preserved cultural heritage by honoring works that reflected Canada’s diverse regional and ethnic experiences.
• Influenced academic curricula, with winning books often adopted in university literature and history programs across North America.

Today, the legacy of the 1987 awards endures through the continued prominence of its recipients and the enduring prestige of the honor itself. These awards remain a benchmark of excellence in Canadian cultural life.