DESCRIBE THE CHANGES IN CANADIAN NATIONALISM/IDENTITY FROM OUR EARLY DAYS AS A NATION TO THE PRESENT DAY
Susan Delacourt, a political journalist, says: “To be Canadian mean to be willing to shrug off your own identity so you can imagine what it’s like to be someone else.” This is the Canada we know now, diverse and multicultural, however it took over a century to get to this point.
Before becoming a nation, Canada was a province, consisting of Canada West, mainly Anglophones who were at the time minorities, and Canada East, mainly Francophones, and ruled by the British. The early vision for Canada was for it to be an Anglophone country, therefore the British tried assimilate Francophones into Anglophone culture by, firstly, making English the only language permitted in the legislature. Contrary to this idea, Louis-Hippolyte LaFrontaine and Robert Balwin decided to set aside their differences (races) and work together in demanding responsible government, in addition to retaining the Francophone culture. They were successful and their vision for Canada was an Anglophone-Francophone partnership. Regardless the Anglophone vision was still more dominant. In 1867 the confederation took place. This was a result of a coalition between John A. MacDonald and George Étienne Cartier, to gain independence from the British and preserve Canada, including the French language and culture. The country Canada consisted of four provinces; Canada East (Francophones), Canada West (Anglophones), Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, with the addition of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick the population of the Anglophones increased, the Francophones became a minority
Land was purchased off the Métis people and treaties negotiated with the people of the First Nations, after which they were moved to reserves, and immigrants were enticed to Western Canada in a bid to create large nation stretching ‘from sea to sea,’ this vision however failed to include the interests of the Métis people and First Nations, also with the influx of immigrants the Francophones also felt their needs were ignored.
Canada
Before becoming a nation, Canada was a province, consisting of Canada West, mainly Anglophones who were at the time minorities, and Canada East, mainly Francophones, and ruled by the British. The early vision for Canada was for it to be an Anglophone country, therefore the British tried assimilate Francophones into Anglophone culture by, firstly, making English the only language permitted in the legislature. Contrary to this idea, Louis-Hippolyte LaFrontaine and Robert Balwin decided to set aside their differences (races) and work together in demanding responsible government, in addition to retaining the Francophone culture. They were successful and their vision for Canada was an Anglophone-Francophone partnership. Regardless the Anglophone vision was still more dominant. In 1867 the confederation took place. This was a result of a coalition between John A. MacDonald and George Étienne Cartier, to gain independence from the British and preserve Canada, including the French language and culture. The country Canada consisted of four provinces; Canada East (Francophones), Canada West (Anglophones), Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, with the addition of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick the population of the Anglophones increased, the Francophones became a minority
Land was purchased off the Métis people and treaties negotiated with the people of the First Nations, after which they were moved to reserves, and immigrants were enticed to Western Canada in a bid to create large nation stretching ‘from sea to sea,’ this vision however failed to include the interests of the Métis people and First Nations, also with the influx of immigrants the Francophones also felt their needs were ignored.
Canada