'"Gender, genre and nationality"': Alice Munro's forging of her short story way

Abstract:In the first part of this article, I argue that Alice Munro, in her early career, was disadvantaged by her gender, by her Canadianness, and by her commitment to short fiction. She has overcome most of the obstacles and prejudices she faced in the 1950s and 1960s, and is regarded as one of the world's finest contemporary writers. In the latter part of my article, I discuss the distinctive qualities of her narrative art, maintaining that they have become Munrovian hallmarks and are enhanced in her chosen form, the short story.