Francis Dupuis-Déri's article "The History of the Word 'Democracy' in Canada and Quebec: A Political Analysis of Rhetorical Strategies" aims to examine the semantic evolution of the term "democracy" and its political implications in Canada and Quebec. Dupuis-Déri is interested in understanding how various political actors strategically deploy the concept of democracy to advance their agendas and shape political discourse. In doing so, he also details the evolution of the word through politically stressing times, for instance the 2 World wars, the Cold war. As well as how the word has been melded and changed overtime to fit the political desires of each political party. Dupuis- Déri, is specifically interested in exploring how the meaning of …show more content…
This idea has always changed over time. Francis devotion-Deri is known for his works speaking on the issue of Democracy from a Canadian perspective, specifically condemning the founding fathers for what he describes as anti-democratic. In this description of the history of “democracy” and the part it has played in Canadian history, this tone of falsehood of democracy is used. Despite this, Francis devotion-Déri presents a logically structured argument with coherent conclusions, demonstrating a comprehensive understanding of the political context and providing detailed background information. While effective initially, his argument becomes repetitive after addressing the first few topics, potentially leading to a loss of reader engagement towards the end of the article. Despite this drawback, devotion to a common goal is essential, Sincere-Déri effectively expresses his ideas and offers thorough explanations, particularly in acknowledging the challenges facing democracy in Canada and Quebec. However, the continued repetition throughout the article affects its form, style, and …show more content…
Many readers similar to Dupuis-Déri criticize and seek to point out the many flaws.Anthony Downs, in "The Public Interest: Its Meaning in Democracy," gives an interesting perspective to democracy, and navigates the intricate landscape of it, delving into its complexities rather than merely its flawed implementations. Downs and Dupuis-Déri differ greatly in their arguments, Downs recognizes the elusive nature of defining democracy and its ideal form. In doing so, he underscores the significance of processes like elections and public debates in facilitating collective decision-making. Moreover, he delves into the ethical underpinnings of pursuing the public interest, grappling with notions of fairness, justice, and equality. He effectively highlights the role of ethical principles in steering decision-making processes and ensuring that policies align with the common good for citizens. Through his examination, Downs sheds light on the inherent challenges and trade-offs intrinsic to democratic governance. Dupuis- Déri focuses solely on the challenges with Canada and Quebec becoming a democratic led civilization. Downs argument is more effective in this manner as he highlights the flaws but realizes the power democracy potentially has for the government.Dupuis-Déri delves into the nuanced dynamics of linguistic diversity and multiculturalism, particularly emphasizing their significance
Although, Quebec’s population share many similar characteristics amongst one another it is not essential to decide “the people” (Heard, 2013). To be considered a state you must represent all the people in it. Quebec prefers independences for the reason of a commonality
The Quebec referendum that was held in 1995 was a second round of vote that was meant to give the residents of the Quebec province in Canada the chance to determine whether they wanted to secede from Canada and thus establish Quebec as a sovereign state. Quebec has had a long history of wanting to secede from Canada, considering that it is the Canadian providence that is predominantly inhabited by the French-speaking people, whose political relationship with the rest of the Canadian provinces, mostly inhabited by the English-speaking people has been characterized by conflicting ideologies . Thus, the 1995 referendum was not the first political attempt to have Quebec gain its own independence. The discussion holds that the Quebec 1995 referendum would have had both positive and negative implications. Therefore, this discussion seeks to analyze the political consequences that would have f...
...r votes elect individuals who will represent their values and interests. While many will argue between whether a minority or majority government better represents Canadians, this essay has shown that regardless of the type of government, the Prime Minister is able to use his power to control his MP’s, media, and opposition members in order to fulfill a personal or hidden agenda. The sheer manipulation that is possible by a Prime Minister completely undermines the transparency and accountability of true democracy.
Janda, K., Berry, J., Golman, J., & Hula, K. (2009). The Challenge of Democracy: American
... A successful strategy in the accommodation of national minorities within a liberal democracy could be founded upon mutual trust, recognition and sound financial arrangements. However, a certain degree of tension between central and regional institutions may remain as a constant threat in this complex relationship since they entertain opposing aims. The federal governments determination to protect its territorial integrity, and its will to foster a single national identity among its citizens clashes with Quebec’s wish to be recognized as a separate nation and decide upon its political destiny and to foster its distinct identity (Guibernau pg.72). Moreover, if the ROC and the federal government can come to an agreement on terms that satisfy the majority and an identity that encompasses the heart of a country; Canada will continue to exist with or without Quebec.
What principles and ideals lie at the heart of a free democratic society? Canadians take pride in their country’s values of tolerance, inclusion, and respect, and over Canada’s guaranteed freedom of expression, including the right to vote (Thevenard & Orend, 2015). In democratic Canada, “all eligible citizens have the right to participate, either directly or indirectly, in making the decisions that affect them” ("Democracy Defined"). Voting, in essence, ensures all citizens receive an equal opportunity to express their views by selecting and supporting a political party of their choice. Such an approach provides freedom of expression for all eligible citizens, allowing for the political party with the most votes to take over the ruling.
David Kilgour and John Kirsner (1988), “Party Discipline and Canadian Democracy”, retrieved February 22nd, 2011 from http://www2.parl.gc.ca/sites/lop/infoparl/english/issue.asp?param=126&art=777.
Different states have various ways of ruling and governing their political community. The way states rule reflects upon the political community and the extent of positive and negative liberty available to their citizens. Canada has come a long way to establishing successful rights and freedoms and is able to do so due to the consideration of the people. These rights and freedoms are illustrated through negative and positive liberties; negative liberty is “freedom from” and positive liberty is “freedom to”. A democracy, which is the style of governing utilized by Canada is one that is governed more so by the citizens and a state is a political community that is self-governing which establishes rules that are binding.
Heath, Joseph. "The democracy deficit in Canada." University of Toronto. homes.chass.utoronto.ca/~jheath/democracy.pdf (accessed October 17, 2013).
Yuniesky Betancourt. The man has become something of a joke of late, but that isn't really his fault. Sure, he's not a great professional baseball player, and his 2009 season was terrible by literally every metric, but it isn't his fault that Dayton Moore made a bad decision and decided to trade for him. Similarly, it isn't his fault that the Mariners will be paying him a million dollars in 2010, and another million in 2011. Over the course of his career, assuming that when his contract runs out in 2011 and his 2012 option is declined and whatever club might have him buys him out for 2 million, the guy looks to make about 17.4 million dollars. Now of course he isn't worth that amount to a ballclub, but that is a nice chunk of money; more than most can reasonably hope to earn in a lifetime. It has the potential to ensure his family's future for many generations, and his agent probably deserves some kind of accolade for landing him such a great deal.
May, E. (2009). Losing Confidence: Power, politics, and the crisis in Canadian democracy. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart.
Democracy in the United States became prominent in the early to mid 19th century. Andrew Jackson, the 7th president of the United States, was inaugurated in 1829 and was best known as the person who mainstreamed democracy in America. Because he came from a humble background, he was the “genuine common man.” (Foner, pg. 303) He claimed he recognized the needs of the people and spoke on behalf of the majority [farmers, laborers]. However, critics of Jackson and democracy called him “King Andrew I” because of his apparent abuse of presidential power [vetoing]. These critics believed he favored the majority so much that it violated the U.S. constitution, and they stated he was straying too far away from the plan originally set for the United States. Because of the extreme shift of power to the majority, the limiting of rights of the few [merchants, industrialists] and the abuse of power under Jackson’s democracy, the foundational documents set in the constitution was violated, and the work of the preceding presidents were all but lost.
In Canada’s democratic government, voting is a powerful way for citizens to communicate their values. The leader who is chosen reflects the power of the Canadians’ values. Thus, to the government, every vote matters, assuring Canadians that their opinions matter. Today, Canada recognizes voting as a fundamental right for all of their citizens. The Canadian Charter of Rights effectively protects this right of all Canadians, even minorities, through section 3. “Every citizen of Canada has the right to vote in an election of members of the House of Commons or a large legislative assembly and to be qualified for membership therein”. This ensures equality for vote to all Canadians. Equality is to allow all Canadians equal opportunity, even if they are of different race, religion, gender and etcetera. However, in the past, this fundamental right has not always been accessible to all. In fact, voting was considered a privilege where citizens had to qualify to have the ability to vote. The rules were so strict that only eleven percent of the past population of Canada could have voted, compared to today’s seventy-eight percent. Many of these rules of who could vote and who could not were very unjust. This was especially seen in minority groups who did not have the franchise, the right to vote.. In this essay, it will be seen that the inequalities to vote made racial exclusions, religious exclusions and gender exclusions more pronounced. It will be seen that the government treated certain races with intentional discrimination creating a lack of an opportunity to vote. As well, the government showed prejudice to certain religious groups, denying these groups their ability to vote. And, finally, it will be seen that views against women aided ...
The political culture that defines American politics shows that despite this compromise, America is still very much a democratic society. The very history of the country, a major contributor to the evolution of its political culture, shows a legacy of democracy that reaches from the Declaration of Independence through over two hundred years to today’s society. The formation of the country as a reaction to the tyrannical rule of a monarchy marks the first unique feature of America’s democratic political culture. It was this reactionary mindset that greatly affected many of the decisions over how to set up the new governmental system. A fear of simply creating a new, but just as tyrannic... ...
In making this argument this essay seeks to five things. Firstly, to define democracy within the contemporary context offering the key characteristics of a modern re...