The volume comprises nine essays by prominent Canadianists from Austria, Germany and Canada who investigate in comparative fashion the problems of emigration / immigration to and integration in North America and some European countries, especially Austria and France. They inquire how this challenge has been met in Canada since the official adoption of multiculturalism and reflect on the possibility of Canada serving as a model for Europe. While contemporary novels by immigrants to Canada provide evidence of successful integration, ethnic autobiographies remind us of the existence of problems and prejudices in former times. The tensions experienced in the course of a transcultural transfer are shown to be a potential source of inspiration, with authors of Caribbean background providing fruitful examples. The waves of immigration from Austria are also described as is the specific approach to the challenge of immigration in the province of Quebec, through the adoption of the concept of interculturalism. Both the problems linked to immigration in France and the issue of the millions of undocumented immigrants from Latin America in the USA are considered.

Prof. Dr. Fritz Peter Kirsch ist Romanist und beschäftigt sich v.a. mit den französischsprachigen Literaturen Kanadas. Dr. Waldemar Zacharasiewicz ist em. Professor für Amerikanistik an der Universität Wien und leitet das Zentrum für Kanadastudien.