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“Je me souviens”, which when translated to English means, “I remember,” is the provincial motto of Quebec (Eller 1999, 27). The culture of any society is comprised of many factors including the struggles and hardships previous generations prevailed (Valentine 2001). As pointed out by Jack David Eller, author of From Culture to Ethnicity to Conflict, what Quebec remembers is “a history of injustices and ‘humiliations’ that have been likened to slavery or colonialism and which have led one activist to describe the Quebecois as the ‘white niggers of America’” (1999, 27). For this reason, the francophones of Quebec, self-identified as Quebecois, began to feel the need to protect and preserve their culture (Eller 1999, 312). Consequently, over the years, they have assembled to defend and in some cases even invent their own distinctive culture to separate themselves from the rest of Canada which leads Eller to state that “the ethnically conscious of Quebec hold up their history and their culture (or, better yet, the history of slights and assaults, yet survival, of their culture) as the banner of their identity and the source of their claims for and on a state” (Eller 1999, 312, 27).
Presently, the French language is the most often referred to component of the Quebecois culture that is used to distinguish them from the Anglophone majority of Canada. However, that same component acts as a double-edged sword (Eller 1999, 315). Eller argues that while speaking French makes the Canadian francophones different from other Canadians, it also makes them synonymous to Frenchmen and other international francophones. This leads to the question posed by Eller, “Are the French Canadians, then, part of larger “French” nation, or are they a nation un...
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...nal education and institutions” (Smith 2010, 37). Quebecois have developed a vibrant culture of their own, solidly embedded in modernity, which had an evolution evidently distinct from the rest of Canada because of the Conquest, la survivance, and urbanization which historically conscious nationalists will use as the basis to continue to fight for its own state to further develop its Quebecois culture (Bellavance 2013, Salee 1994).
Works Cited
Bellavance, Guy. Quebec Cultural Policies. 16 December 2013. Web. March 2014.
Eller, Jack David. From Culture to Ethnicity to Conflict. The University of Michigan Press, 1999. Print.
Salee, Daniel. Identity Politics and Multiculturalism in Quebec. 1994. Web. March 2014.
Smith, Anthony D. Nationalism. Cambridge: Polity Press, 2010. Print.
Valentine, Harry. The Evolving Culture of Quebec. 15 September 2001. Web. March 2014.
McQuillan, Aidan. “Des chemins divergents: les Irlandais et les Canadiens francais au XIXe siècle.” ed. Wadell, Eric. “Le dialogue avec les cultures minoritaires.” Ste-Foy, QC: Les Presses De L'Université Laval 1990.
As its own state Quebec would have the capacity to act, consolidate and further create their own cultural identity (Heard, 2013). For example, Quebec could foster the national language to be French. By gaining independence from Canada, Quebec can then create their own laws, own immigration rules and levy taxes (Heard, 2013). This would allow Quebec to be completely independent from the rest of Canada, but they would have connecting boarders like the United States and Canada do.
Although Quebec is in Canada, a majority of Quebecers do not identify with the national identity of Canada. Both societies create a sense of identity as well as nationalism (Hiller, 295). Hiller mentions two approaches to assessing Canadian identity; the unitary approach and the segmentalist approach (Hiller, 277). The unitary approach suggests that society consists of people who regardless of their ethnic back ground, identify as belonging to the national society, while the segmentalist approach concentrates on groups and communities that share racial, linguistic, occupational, or cultural similarities (Hiller, 28). While most Anglophones are more unitary or pan-Canadian, Quebec heavily identifies with the segmentalist approach. This dissimilarity of identity perspective may be problematic for the country, at the same time however, it can also be viewed as a struggle where contradictory parties find a way to compromise and reshape Canadian society together (Hiller, 277). Canada’s former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau made it his objective to unite Quebec with the rest of Canada. In 1969 Trudeau’s government implemented Bill C-120, otherwise known as the Official Language act, which made French an...
For nearly two centuries the inhabitants of New France lived their day to day lives
Canada: The Quiet Revolution in Quebec The English-French relations have not always been easy. Each is always arguing and accusing the other of wrong doings. All this hatred and differences started in the past, and this Quiet revolution, right after a new Liberal government led by Jean Lesage came in 1960. Thus was the beginning of the Quiet Revolution.
"Contact & Conflict: First Nations, French, & English in Canada." Canada's First Peoples. N.p., 2007. Web. 17 Mar. 2014. .
• "French Language in Quebec and is it changing?." - Online Party of Canada. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Feb. 2014. .
Generations of native people in Canada have faced suffering and cultural loss as a result of European colonization of their land. Government legislation has impacted the lives of five generations of First Nations people and as a result the fifth generation (from 1980 to present) is working to recover from their crippled cultural identity (Deiter-McArthur 379-380). This current generation is living with the fallout of previous government policies and societal prejudices that linger from four generations previous. Unrepentant, Canada’s ‘Genocide’, and Saskatchewan’s Indian People – Five Generations highlight issues that negatively influence First Nations people. The fifth generation of native people struggle against tremendous adversity in regard to assimilation, integration, separation, and recovering their cultural identity with inadequate assistance from our great nation.
Patriquin, M. (2014, April 11). The epic collapse of Quebec separatism. Retrieved May 15, 2014, from Maclean’s website: http://www.macleans.ca/politics/the-epic-collapse-of-separatism/
There exists an ever-looming threat of Quebec secession, as the province pushes for greater autonomy, recognition as a distinct nation within Canada, and greater representation on the federal level. The federal government’s relationship with Quebec is one that exhibits the “paradox of federalism” as described by Lawrence Anderson in ‘Both Too Much and Too Little: Sources of Federal Instability in Canada’, the simple truth that in federations “federal institutions can prevent secession by satisfying some of the institutional demands of those who might desire more significant decentralization but they also provide institutions to those that might be in conflict with the center that can be used to mobilize for alteration…” He argues that the government of Quebec, due to it’s focus on autonomy and protection of identity, would be the province best equipped to secede with “minimal disruption”. In this, a shortcoming of strong regional autonomies in federations is made apparent: in attempts to accommodate diversity the nationalist regions are granted the institutional framework for secession. A push in the reverse, towards less regional autonomy may have similar results, however. As the federal government moves towards centralization to avoid this paradox, they are perceived as invalidating the terms of the federation, and nationalistic pushes for autonomy still
Quebec, “La Belle Province”, is a unique province within the Canadian federation. This uniqueness doesn’t come as a result of the beautiful landscapes or the widespread corruption in the province. Rather, Quebec’s distinctiveness stems from the complexities surrounding its national identity. These nuances intertwine with the already complicated political, economic, and social layers constitute the Quebecois intricate fabric.
acquired by Great Britain in the Treaty of Paris of 1763. The mass majority of
Many people across the globe argue that nationalism within Canada is simply not feasible. It is said that we as a people, differ so greatly with our diverse cultures, religions, and backgrounds that we cannot come together and exist together as a strong, united nation. In his book, Lament for a Nation, George Grant tells the reader that “…as Canadians we attempted a ridiculous task in trying to build a conservative nation in the age of progress, on a continent we share with the most dynamic nation on earth. The current history is against us.” (1965) Originally directed towards the Bomarc Missile Crisis, the book argues that whatever nationalism Canada had was destroyed by globalization as well as the powerful American sphere of influence. Although it is true that the book was initially written as a response to the events that took place in the late 1950s, many of the points are still valid today.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. “ Culture of Quebec.” Online at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Quebec , consulted on February 9, 2004.
Since the very beginning of the colonization of Canada in the late 15th century, there has been a dispute and anger between the British and the French. This arguing is also present in the ongoing conflict between the French-speaking region of Quebec and the rest of Canada. The conflict has been discussed in the Canadian parliament and this is also the origin of the idea that Quebec should be an independent nation. The first part of the essay will cover the general history behind the dispute between Quebec and the rest of Canada. Then the essay will go on to discuss the positive and negative sides of a possible separation. The final part of the essay will compare the situation in Canada with the separation of Pakistan and East Pakistan in the 1970’s. Then go on to conclude whether or not a secession is possible for Quebec. Therefore, my research question is; is there a possibility that the province of Quebec could separate from the rest of Canada?