I.Introduction:the Literature of Survival In Canadian literature Atwood sees a common concern with the idea of"survival",and she says we should think of survival as the central symbol of Canadian literature.She describes many ways in which this symbol appears:a concern with "simple"survival in the face of hostile elements --the dangerous natural world in which Canadians find themselves, with huge distances to cross to get help,endless forests to get lost in,hard winters to freeze in,wild animals to attack them. Surviving in these conditions was a hard job for Canadians, native or settler,prior to the 20th century. She says that this idea can extend to concern with"cultural" --the attempt to maintain a Canadian identityI. Introduction: the Literature of Survival • In Canadian literature Atwood sees a common concern with the idea of “survival” , and she says we should think of survival as the central symbol of Canadian literature. She describes many ways in which this symbol appears: a concern with “simple” survival in the face of hostile elements --the dangerous natural world in which Canadians find themselves, with huge distances to cross to get help, endless forests to get lost in, hard winters to freeze in, wild animals to attack them. Surviving in these conditions was a hard job for Canadians, native or settler, prior to the 20th century. • She says that this idea can extend to concern with “cultural” -- the attempt to maintain a Canadian identity