Each winner of the 1971

Governor General's Award The Governor General's Awards are a collection of annual awards presented by the Governor General of Canada, recognizing distinction in numerous academic, artistic, and social fields. The first award was conceived and inaugurated in 1937 by the ...

s for Literary Merit was selected by a panel of judges administered by the

Canada Council for the Arts The Canada Council for the Arts (french: Conseil des arts du Canada), commonly called the Canada Council, is a Crown corporation established in 1957 as an arts council of the Government of Canada. It acts as the federal government's principal in ...

Winners

English Language

*Fiction:

Mordecai Richler Mordecai Richler (January 27, 1931 – July 3, 2001) was a Canadian writer. His best known works are ''The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (novel), The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz'' (1959) and ''Barney's Version (novel), Barney's Versi ...

, ''St. Urbain's Horseman''. *Poetry or Drama:

John Glassco John Glassco (December 15, 1909 – January 29, 1981) was a Canadian poet, memoirist and novelist. According to Stephen Scobie, "Glassco will be remembered for his brilliant autobiography, his elegant, classical poems, and for his translations."S ...

, ''Selected Poems''. *Non-Fiction:

Pierre Berton Pierre Francis de Marigny Berton, CC, O.Ont. (July 12, 1920 – November 30, 2004) was a Canadian writer, journalist and broadcaster. Berton wrote 50 best-selling books, mainly about Canadiana, Canadian history and popular culture. He also wr ...

, ''The Last Spike''.

French Language

*Fiction:

Gérard Bessette Gérard Bessette (25 February 1920, in Sainte-Anne-de-Sabrevois, Quebec – 21 February 2005, in Kingston, Ontario) was a French Canadian writer and educator. Bessette grew up in Montreal and attended the Collège Saint-Ignace. He continued h ...

, ''Le cycle''. *Poetry or Drama:

Paul-Marie Lapointe Paul-Marie is a French masculine given name, and may refer to: * Paul-Marie Boulanger (born 1950), Belgian sociologist * Paul-Marie Coûteaux (born 1956), French politician * Paul-Marie Delaunay (1878–1958), French physician and historian * Paul- ...

, ''Le réel absolu''. *Non-Fiction:

Gérald Fortin Gérald is a French male given name, a variant of the old Géraud and more common Gérard, both equivalent to Gerald in English. People with the name include: * Gérald Mossé * Gérald de Palmas * Gérald Leblanc Less frequently the French name a ...

, ''La fin d'une règine''. {{GovernorGeneralsAwards Governor General's Awards Governor Generals Awards, 1971 1971 literary awards