Canada and Official Bilingualism

1221 Words3 Pages

Canada is a very different country, unlike any other nation on earth. The country’s people have always been a very inclusive culture and are known around the world as being oddly, overly friendly. This may be only an outward projection as it is not always the case when discussing the relationship between English and French Canada. History tells us that on February 03, 1763, Britain and France signed the Paris Treaty, ending the Seven Years’ War. With Britain as the victor, France agreed to sign over sovereignty of its lands, and its citizens in Canada, to the British Empire (Batailles). For the past 248 years Canada has tried to become one culture, a Canadian culture, but has failed miserably. The Official Language Act of 1969 was a courageous example of the distance this nation would go to enhance its own sense of unity and oneness. After several referendums, accords, and even home grown terrorism, it is apparent that the present course of cultural reform has been a colossal miscalculation. What was meant to unite the people of this great nation may have, in some cases, directly led to its divisions and conflict that are so palpable today.

Many people in Canada still believe in official bilingualism as it is a part of their mutual belief in multiculturalism. Prime Minister Trudeau’s faith that this would help to reform the nation into one great country, by dismantling the barriers between these two cultures exhibited the true grit of this great leader (Collectionscanada). This act was a noble and audacious experiment by a man daring enough to try something different. In theory, this initiative that displayed such tremendous deliberation and wisdom, was seen by many to be absolutely infallible. Trudeau’s philosop...

... middle of paper ...

... which second languages are to be taught. Provincial choices for second language training would be determined by which languages would give the greatest benefit to the region. This direction would lead to “buy in” from a greater proportion of the population across Canada, not specific to certain provinces. How could any intelligent Canadian deny this benefit to their children? It would be looked at as an excellent opportunity for all people in all areas, not a submissive response to heavy handed governmental control. This immigrant country would then grow to speak many languages, internal and external barriers would be removed and the prosperity, both culturally and economically would be unquestionably better. As a whole, the Canadian culture, redefined, would start to emerge for the world to see and would be an example to other countries around the world.

Show More
Related

  • Pierre Trudeau and Quebec

    578 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Just watch me.”Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau said in 1970. He meant it as he fought to keep Quebec a part of Canada. Not only did he do that, he managed to be prime minister for 16 years, as well as being Canada’s youngest leader at the time. He brought greater civil rights to Canadians, Quebec citizens mainly. His charismatic personality matched his innovative ideas, that enhanced Canada for the better. For his entire political career, not only did Canada watch him, the whole world watched him change the country for the better. He made a radical change to Canada by championing the idea of officially implementing bilingualism. Trudeau was a trailblazer from the moment he was elected.

    Read More

  • Explain How Successful Was Confederation At Unifying Canada

    819 Words  | 2 Pages

    To start off, I’ll be writing about the life of people in British North America and its significance towards unifying Canada, as well as background knowledge of conflicts that existed. Life in British North America was changing at an alarming rate. New technology and services were being introduced such as railways and steamships. Industries such as building, producing and farming were being introduced. This was in part due to the many immigrants from Britain and France who’d settled. This was dreadful for the First Nations as their land had been taken away even more so than before. More resources were needed for the growing crowd so trade agreements were made. As more people came, the First Nations were even more distanced from the Europeans. Meanwhile, the French and the British wanted the other’s culture to be erased from the

    Read More

  • A Comparison of Quebec to the Rest of Canada

    1364 Words  | 3 Pages

    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...

    Read More

  • Bilingualism and Biculturalism Within Canada’s Multicultural Framework

    1554 Words  | 4 Pages

    “inquire into and report upon the existing state of bilingualism and biculturalism in Canada and to recommend what steps should be taken to develop the Canadian Confederation on the basis of equal partnership between the two founding races, taking into account the contribution made by the other ethnic groups to the c...

    Read More

  • Wilfrid Laurie: The Seventh Prime Minister Of Canada

    693 Words  | 2 Pages

    Since Wilfrid Laurier is a francophone prime minister, the help he brought to unify English and French speakers was significant. His action of compromising French and English in Canada allows the two cultures to come and prosper together. When Laurier finally triumphed in the 1896 election. The main issue at that period was the Manitoba School Question, a complex tangle of French and English language rights. The Manitoba Schools Question punched all the hot buttons of nineteenth century Canadian politics: it was a French-English issue, a Catholic-Protestant controversy, a conflict over the roles of the federal and provincial governments, and a struggle about the proper relationship between church and the state. It brought down a federal government and its shaky and ultimately short-lived resolution was a major defeat for French language and Catholic educational rights outside the province of Québec. So the action of compromising these two languages effectively solved the problem of disunion in the education system. The Balancing Act Wi...

    Read More

  • First Nations Conflict with the Europeans due to the over hunting of Beavers during the Fur Trade

    729 Words  | 2 Pages

    "Contact & Conflict: First Nations, French, & English in Canada." Canada's First Peoples. N.p., 2007. Web. 17 Mar. 2014. .

    Read More

  • Quebec

    2106 Words  | 5 Pages

    Quebec has struggled with a need to be maitres chez nous “masters of their own house” (Young, 1998). Many attempts at resolving Quebec's issues has resulted in tensions from both sides. Because Quebec has a strong national identity, and do not define themselves as strictly Canadian, Quebec is seen as difficult, unyielding and discontented. Quebec's separation perhaps is inedible and the future of Canada questionable. Canada without Quebec will bring about many complications and whether there is a rest of Canada (ROC) after Quebec a major challenge. Western alienation and the lack of representation in federal affairs will be a factor; moreover, past actions and historical events may have turned Canada into a time bomb, and the deterioration of the provinces the only sulotion. How First Ministers react to Quebec's sovereignty regarding economic factors, political structure, and constitutional issues will be of great importance. Whether emotional issues will play a major role in decision making is subjective; however, it is fair to say that it will be an emotionally charged event and it could either tear apart the ROC or fuse it together. Placing emphasis on investigating what keeps Canada together is perhaps the key to Canada's future, and salvaging a relationship with Quebec.

    Read More

  • Assimilation In Canada

    533 Words  | 2 Pages

    Our government’s predecessors have attempted to eradicate Canada’s first people, which is not only an insult to the indigenous people of the past, but to the present. This country did not start off as a joint endeavor of the two general groups of people that inhabited it during its birth, but decimation and forced assimilation of great traditions and people. The assimilation of a great culture, the destruction of oral histories, and the forced loss of language destroyed the chance trust. Only by teaching disgust towards that type of attitude and action, by not excusing it or attempting to justify, will begin a new age of

    Read More

  • Quebec Separatism

    1400 Words  | 3 Pages

    Canada is known by outsiders to be a very peaceful country. But if you ask any Canadian they well tell you that is unfortunately not the case. For there is a large ongoing conflict between Canadians. The conflict is between the French and the English, or more specifically between Quebec and the rest of Canada. As a result of this conflict, along with some wrongdoing and propaganda. Quebec has considered and has gone as far to hold referendums over Separatism (Surette,2014). Separatism is that the province of Quebec separates from the rest of Canada to form its own country. Which would have immense effects on indubitably Quebec but also the rest of Canada (Martin, 2014). This report will focus on the root causes and origin of Quebec Separatism, the current state of Quebec Separatism and finally how we as a society can act towards Quebec Separatism.

    Read More

  • William Lyon Mackenzie King

    607 Words  | 2 Pages

    Quinlan, Don, Doug Baldwin, Rick Mahoney, and Kevin Reed. The Canadian Challenge. N.p.: Oxford University Press, 2008.

    Read More

  • Multiculturalism In Canada

    1020 Words  | 3 Pages

    Multiculturalism policy was first adopted in Canada in 1971, which reaffirms the dignity and value of all its citizens regardless of ethnic origins, race, religious affiliations, or language. Part of this policy, Canada confirms the rights of all the aboriginals along with the recognition of two official languages. Indeed, multiculturalism has great importance since its main purpose is to give equal treatment to all the citizens (Daniel, 2010). It ensures that all individual citizens could still maintain their identities, and have pride with their ancestry. Through this initiative, the Canadian government was able to give their citizens a feeling of self-confidence, making them more open to their diverse cultures. The multiculturalism policy

    Read More

  • Canadian Nationalism

    1878 Words  | 4 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Canadian Unity Essay

    1539 Words  | 4 Pages

    Canada is an example of a nation with the question of a country wide unification among all its citizens on the table since the time of confederation in 1867 and even a few years prior. What some these factors that make Canada different from areas around it? How can a country that dominates such large land mass and that bares such vast cultural differences, be united? Can Canadians ever come to agreement upon the values they hold to be important? The debates of these questions continue to plague Canadian parliaments, especially when examining the differences between Canada and the province Quebec. Even though many argue and hope for Canada’s unity in the future, the differences in political socialization and culture present throughout the country creates a blurry vision of Canadian harmony and makes it extremely difficult to realistically vision Canadian unification. Is that, however, a bad thing?

    Read More

  • Bilingualism Should Not Be Continued

    980 Words  | 2 Pages

    Bilingualism, a very controversial topic to debate in today’s United States. People generally define bilingualism as the ability of using two languages that individuals have. However, this is not the reason why that bilingualism becomes such a debatable issue. In this case, bilingualism is defined as the government’s use of languages other than English for public services in order to support the immigrants’ lives in the United States. People who support bilingualism want the government to continue having this kind policies. They think that bilingualism helps immigrants to assimilate into the American culture and moreover, it will unify everyone who are on this land. Although bilingualism provides some kind of benefits toward immigrants, they cannot solve the problems in the deep root. Bilingualism should not be continued in the U.S. Why? It reduces the immigrants’ incentive to learn English, threatens national unity, and costs so much.

    Read More

  • Canada Multiculturalism

    1434 Words  | 3 Pages

    Multiculturalism is a significant fabric of Canadian society that defines its unique identity among the rest of the world. Enactment of the Canadian multicultural policy (1971) affirmed government position and recognition of multiculturalism as a vital element of Canada. It is imperative to understand that multiculturalism is a static concept that keeps changing overtime and has a multidimensional entity. Canadians have always and will continue to revise the concept of multiculturalism to suit the ever expanding needs of Canadian society. In this paper, I will evaluate the reasons behind Canada’s adoption of multicultural policy and assess whether the policy should be maintained or not. I will defend the thesis that Canada’s multiculturalism

    Read More

More about Canada and Official Bilingualism

Open Document