language conflict in canda
The conflict in Canada between the people who speak French and those who speak English can trace its roots to Colonial times. Since Canada was originally a French colony, the majority of the people originally spoke French. In 1760, during the French Indian War, England gained control of Canada. This led to a large number of English speaking settlers who eventually became more numerous that the original French speaking settlers. Two distinct cultural groups evolved the French, mostly in Quebec, and the English in the other provinces. Initially, there was very little conflict between the two societies as they lived under the rule of the English crown. At the time of the Confederation in 1867, most Canadians wanted to establish a distinctive Canadian national identity, a kind of Canadian nationalism. Since the English Canadians were now the majority, they were the dominant forces in creating the political and cultural aspect of the independent Canada. They relied on the democratic government of England and to some extent to those of the United States, which guaranteed equal rights. Their vision of national identity included English as the primary language and the English culture as the standard for all of Canada.
The English majority also developed a romantic vision of the value of a national homeland for the ethnic minorities. This was rooted in the democratic ideals on which Canada is based. Among the more liberal English Canadians, there was a hope that a uniquely Canadian cultural identity could come from the integration of the French and English. As a step toward achieving this. They suggested bi-lingualism, the recognition of both French and English as official Canadian languages. While many of the English Canadians were okay with this ides, the French of Quebec continued to develop their identity as a separate and distinct Canadian culture. In the 1960's political groups in Quebec magnified the past injustices, it soon appeared that Quebec might seek independence. The language issue is not confined to Quebec province. In retaliation for the language regulations passed by the province, local governments in other provinces are passing laws mandating the exclusive use of English. When Sault St. Marie's city council mandated exclusive use of English, Quebec's Premier immediately called the move "utterly deplorable" (qt. In Brimelow, 20). The year before, the same Premier had supported legislation to make Quebec uni-lingual. The effect from this was to further polarize the French and the English over the issue of language. In Canada, linguistic intolerance was part of the culture of the English settlers. Twice before the time of the Confederation, English
Some common words found in the essay are:
English Canadians, French Quebec, Canada Conlogue, French Orange, Confederation English, English Quebec, , English-speaking Canadians, French Canada, Quebec English, national identity, english canadians, french quebec, french english, english culture, canadian national identity, english settlers, english speaking, official language, culture english, exclusive english, vision national identity,
Approximate Word count = 994
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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