Understanding Canadian History
Art history contributes to our understanding of Canada's history. Urban
history, art history, and material history documented events as they unfurled.
Demographic concentration, architecture, economics, and cultural aspects are
well documented in the above disciplines of history.
Art itself is about people and their expressions of hope and meaning. Their
impressions and thoughts are transported to their respective canvases. For the
most part, these forms of history are less biassed and they tell the story as it
actually was. A tour of the National Gallery showed that art comes in many
forms: landscape paintings, portraiture, carvings, sculptures, metal work,
among others. Viewing the types of artwork and when they were produced, showed
an evolution of various artists' styles as well as an evolution in the Canadian
people. The early "aristocratic" settlers in Canada were mostly interested in
Dutch and European art and not Canadian landscape paintings. It was perhaps
living in the dreary cold land which discouraged them to hang a rendering of it
on their walls. In addition, early Canada had no actual "Canadian" artists of
any popularity. A new country would take years to produce such artisans.
Portraiture captured the essence of the early peoples, whether European or
Aboriginal. Clothing, tools, jewellery and muskets attested to the Canadian
lifestyle in the early days. Landscape art detailed the growth of civilisation
around the country. Development in housing, business, industry, and architecture
could be seen by comparing two paintings of the same area, though painted fifty
years apart. Count the church steeples in the paintings to find an increase in
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...awa's founding fathers and their contributions to the country. Even the
city's location also tells a story. Ottawa was built on the Ottawa river at a
time when the only practical method of transportation was by boat. Hundreds of
years ago, the principle construction materials were lumber and stone. The
stone was quarried on the shores of the Ottawa river and the lumber was cut and
floated down river for milling, all for ease of transportation and the lowest cost.
For a nation to have an identity, it must have a history. Urban, art, and
material histories all lend hands to understanding Canadian history by providing
a chronology of sorts. The records of our past don't always have to be written
and documented. For the most part, history surrounds us in the form of urban,
art, and material histories and will continue to do so for the years to come.
The strike was generally non-violent. The majority of the strikers were reformist, ("revolutionary socialism", which believes that there must be a revolution to fundamentally change a society.) not radical. They wanted to amend the system, not destroy it and build a new one.
Is Canada a nation or has its control just switched empirical hands? As Professor Hutcheson asked, did Canada go from "Colony to Nation or Empire to Empire?" This question has greatly influenced Canada's changing identity since her birth as a British colony with Confederation in 1867 to the present day. The purpose of this essay is to critically analyse the shifting Canadian identities between the years 1890 to 1960. The objective is to illustrate Canada's transforming identity by using the novels The Imperialist by Sara Jeanette Duncan, Barometer Rising by Hugh MacLennan, and Fifth Business by Robertson Davies and to connect the stories of each of these works of fiction to the varying political, economic, and social issues of their times. Each book is written by a prominent author, and portrays an accurate reflection of the demanding political, economic, and social concerns throughout the late nineteen and first half of the twentieth century of Canadian history. All of the novels reflect Canada's peripheral view of the world, as opposed to a central point of view, because throughout its history Canada has always been perceived as a secondary player. As George Grant says in his literary piece Lament for a Nation, Canada is "a branch plant society" , meaning Canada is controlled by another power. The essential question is where has Canada's loyalties traditionally lay and how has this shaped the Canadian identity. The Imperialist by Sara Jeanette Duncan, written in 1904 reflects a very British influenced Canada. At this time, Canada is still a British colony under British rule, and the people of Canada are very content to consider themselves British. The novel predominately ill...
The post-war time was a period where major changes were occurring. After being involved in two international conflicts, Canada was ready to reestablish their economy. During this time, Canada had started working on ways to become stronger and reputable. It is evident that Canada had matured through the post-war era. Canada’s economic progress left a positive impact on the growth of the country as consumerism became popular, and economic ties with America became stronger. Moreover, the removal of racial and ethical barriers contributed to Canadian social affairs such as the huge wave of immigration and the baby boom. The Canadian government also had become more aware and involved in issues impacting Canadian citizens. Canada as a whole started identifying itself as an independent nation and participating in events that brought a positive reputation amongst them. These economical, social, and legal changes helped Canada mature into the country it is today.
Throughout the history of Canada the indigenous population of the country have been voiceless. They have been both suppressed and oppressed by the Federal and various Provincial governments within Canada. Many organizations tried to provide a voice for the native population but failed in their attempt. These organizations eventually merged together to become what is now known as The Assembly of First Nations. The Assembly of First Nations gives voice to the issues and problems facing the different components of the aboriginal community in Canada.
How can you write about a culture whose history is passed on by oral traditions? Better yet, how can you comprehend a culture’s past which a dominant society desired to assimilate? These two questions outline the difficulty in understanding the historiography of Canada’s Aboriginal peoples. In 2003, Paige Raibmon published her article, “Living on Display: Colonial Visions of Aboriginal Domestic Spaces.” Her work, although focused on Canada’s colonial “notions of domesticity,” presents the role of Aboriginals as performers to European notions of indigenous culture and identity. Early social historians believe that Aboriginals’ place in history is in their interactions with European Jesuits. A decade later, historians argue Aboriginals exemplify a subordinate culture fighting against assimilating and hegemonic forces. More recently, social historical perspective shows Aboriginals as performers of the white-man’s constructed “authentic-Indian.” Obviously, there is disparity between historians’ viewpoints but each decade’s published histories concur with James Opp and John Walsh’s concept of local resistance. Using Raibmon’s paper as a starting point, a chronological examination of select histories reveals an evolving social historiography surrounding historians’ perceptions of Aboriginals’ local resistance attempts.
Canada is a strong and independent country made up of thirteen unique provinces and territories. However, it took great efforts for Canada to become the united nation it is today. The British colonies were facing many problems. One solution for these issues was for the colonies to come together and form one county or nation. There were a number of different factors that pushed the colonies of British North America towards confederation. Due to political deadlock, economic challenges and pressure from the United States, confederation was absolutely necessary for the well-being and progress of Canada.
In the Thunder Bay, the outdoors is not simply someplace you visit, it is a way of life. The area provides quality opportunities for adventure enthusiasts of all ages and skill. With the regions history there are many great options for learning and exploring. With records of fur trade dating back as early as 1683, the Thunder bay area has a rich history of people, places, events and culture.”Trading and supply boats routinely passed Thunder Bay on their way to outposts at Mackinaw, Sault Ste. Marie, and Green Bay. In 1679, LaSalle's GRIFFON became the first major European vessel to pass by Thunder Bay, and many others were to follow”(NOAA). It is the gateway to Canada's Great outdoors.
Before a person is well recognized in society, they need to go though a lot of trouble, discrimination, and change to get there. No one judges them by their individual merit. This also applies to countries. The government of a country is always trying to get themselves in a higher position around the globe. This is done so they are well established for their good qualities. Canada is also a name in the list of such nations. Recognition was really hard for Canada to get because of the fact that it is one of the younger countries. Over the years, Canada has really shaped as a nation politically, economically, and socially. These three factors have affected the nations past, affecting the present, and will definitely affect the future. For instance, three examples of such events from each section of the course are: The Person’s Case, the Baby Boom, and lastly, The Montreal Massacre.
Discuss and compare the interaction of nationalism and building style in three buildings or periods. What is the role of innovation and or appropriation in the representation of national identity and political ideology?
It was once stated by F.R.Scott “ There are two miracles in canadian history. The first is the survival of French Canada, and the second is the survival of Canada.” His quote came to reality as of Canada grew to be a stable and secure country where everyone would want to be. Yet to accomplish this, many obstacles and events occurred such as the Spanish Succession war in 1713 , the seven years war in 1763, the constitutional act in 1791 and finally the Act of Union in 1841. First in 1713, the Spanish Succession war occurred where the British took control of Acadia. Soon after that, in 1763 the Seven Years War ended where the British took over New France and was later renamed British North America. Before the British most of the colonies were
“ Canada 's national obsession seems to be its own identity.” For many years Canada has feared the increasing influence of its North American neighbors on its culture - the United States . It has become a matter of growing concern for the people of power and influence in Canada to maintain their separate cultural identity and to promote their own cultural norms. Gaetan Tremblay presents his views on this topic and does this from the perspective of a person living and working in Quebec.
Organizing a topic as diverse as Canadian history into periods is challenging. Canadian history spans hundreds of years, covers events from varying points of views, and contains dimensions of culture, theme, and politics. To understand how to organize history logically into periods, it is helpful to refer to Canadian history sources.
The confederation of Canada, a process which took over a century long, with many notable events and people who were involved in forming what we know as Canada today. The confederation all started in 1763, with The Royal Proclamation. Britain decided that pacifying First nation was the best alternative to a costlier war. This proclamation created a boundary between the First Nations and the British Colonies. In the next 50 years or so, the Quebec Act, which revoked the Royal Proclamation, and Treaty of Paris, which recognized British North America to independently exist, and the Constitutional Act, happened. Although these were major events in Canada’s history, The War of 1812, was one of the most notable events that lead to Canada’s Confederation.
A century ago, Canada was under control by the British Empire. The battles we fought the treaties we signed and the disputes we solved all helped us gain independence from our mother country “Britain”. Canadians fought a long battle protecting others, and from these battles we gained our peaceful reputation and our independence from Britain. Canada became a nation on July, 1st 1867. Although we were an independent country, our affairs and treaties were all still signed by Britain. In the next years Canada would establish its own government, and lead its own affairs. Many important events led to Canada’s independence, one of the earliest signals that Canada wanted to establish autonomy was the Chanak affair of 1921. In addition the battle of Normandy, which occurred on June 6 1944, contributed to the autonomy of Canada. The Suez Canal Crisis, which took place in the year 1956, earned Canada a place in the media spotlight, displaying Canada as a peaceful country that deserves the right to be independent. One of the final steps that aided with Canada’s independence from Britain was the Canada Act of 1982. Independence from Britain steadily increased throughout the 20th century because of political decisions made in Canada.
Learning about history helps us learn about the humanities own reflection and what’s good or bad about it. This is just like a diary , people and by people I mean historians , just wrote what they saw and what seemed to cause a major change in society and we just happen to be reading it a couple of years later. I believe that historians actually wrote historical truth because it makes sense and it has been scientifically proven