After all the upheaval in Canadian publishing in the last 60 years, The Massey Lectures remain as one of its greatest traditions. It is a series of five lectures given in Canada and aired on the CBC by a noted writer, exploring issues of urgency for our citizens.
In 2008, just before the financial crisis, Margaret Atwood was the lecturer. Her book was called Payback: Debt and the Shadow Side of Wealth – almost prophetic. The five lectures are embodied in a book published by the distinguished Indie press Anansi and always timely and important.
This year’s lecture is given by novelist, poet, philosopher and Giller Prize Winner, Ian Williams and it is called, What I Mean to Say: Remaking Conversation In Our Time. We live in a time when polarization, fed by social media, fake news, and economic and social factors are threatening to take human discourse into a dark maze of non-communication. Almost lost, we are sometimes afraid to speak our opinion or run for political office. Book bannings are on the rise, yes even in Canada. Incidences of racism, homophobia, transphobia continue to grow.
Williams believes that our increased contact with difference is urging us to actively negate our relationship with each other and that we must address the deterioration of civic and civil discourse. Many issues fray “into endless threads of consideration”. People might do well to listen, instead of waiting their turn to speak. True back and forth conversation is the therapy.
Williams has spent time in the minds of various culture creators from Aristotle to Atwood and for me, this deep learning amplifies the boundaries of what it is to be human. For him, the musical line of much of Bach is a true conversation. In Bach’s Double Violin Concerto, one violin speaks for four bars, the other replies for four bars. They mimic, they quibble, they exchange, they switch positions. A true conversation.
This reminded me of our recent extended family Thanksgiving Day dinner discussion. Over a dozen adults stayed at the big kitchen table while the kids ran around and did important things like play. We were all relaxed after a wonderful meal and amiably began adult conversation. We broke the golden rule about not talking about politics, religion or money and for an hour we dipped into charged issues, like the war in Gaza, climate change, enforced vaccination. We followed each other’s ideas with humour and interest. Lots of disagreement but no rancour.
At the end, my mid 40’s nephew who is from Toronto, thanked everyone and said that he was so thrilled to be able to say what he thought to a group of people and not have to self censor. He has not been able to do this in the last 5 years. Williams would say that conversation is the therapy.
Ian Williams will be at The Bookshelf Cinema Tuesday Nov. 12 at 7 pm. Tickets are $15. Regular and $12 for students and are available in the bookstore and at the door. Ian will be in conversation with Guelph resident and human rights activist Pat Case. It should be a most lively and interesting evening, so hope to see you there.
