Donna Pennee
PhD, McGill University, 1994
MA, University of Guelph, 1983
BA, University of Guelph, 1981
University College 3432
519-661-2111 ext. 85825
dpennee@uwo.ca
Office Hours: Tuesdays 3:30-4:30 pm
Wednesdays 1:30-3:30 pm
Research
I am an avid fan of Canadian Literatures in English, motivated by a desire to share the search for answers to such questions as: Why is reading literature important to knowing the world? What and how do works of literature tell us about the making of Canada? the experiences and values of settlers from Europe in the nation’s beginnings? the experiences and values of indigenous peoples whose own cultures, like the land, were invaded by the settlers? the experiences and values of more recent migrants to Canada under multiculturalism and globalization? I tackle similar questions in my research but at a more theoretical level (for example, what do literary studies have to offer to policy studies? how is the organization of curricula affected by globalization?). As an award-winning teacher, I engage students through comparative study of literary texts and other types of documents (for example, government websites, newspapers, documentaries, and scholarship). I mentor students to recognize and appreciate the complexities of literary forms and to analyze and celebrate how literary stories produce meaning and other effects alongside other kinds stories of Canada. For an example of how my research and teaching intersect, see my recent essay on Timothy Findley at: or an earlier essay on Margaret Laurence’sThe Stone Angel in Studies in Canadian Literature / Etudes en littérature canadienne 25.2 (2000): 1-23.
