In our increasingly globalized world, accommodating diversity is a “national asset” and many nations admire and aspire towards Canada’s example of a “pluralist society” (Kymlicka 104). In 1971, Canada formally endorsed multiculturalism with the introduction of new legislation aimed at recognizing the diverse racial and ethnic makeup of its peoples. However, the very idea of multiculturalism has profound effects on ideologies of nationalism and identity. To ask what a citizen of a multicultural nation looks like is as difficult as asking what a citizen of planet Earth looks like. Our research team decided to examine the impact of Canadian media in perpetuating certain themes and ideas that, to varying degrees, intimately affect how we identify as a nation:
“environmentalism, nationalism, feminism, First Nations self-governance, Quebec sovereignty, sexual rights, civil rights, protection of Canadian culture, technology, historical revisionism, trauma, migration, institutions, citizenship, postcolonialism, postmodernism, formal innovation, magic realism, globalization, cosmopolitanism, racism, terrorism, community, human rights, biopolitics” (Moss 103).
Canadian literature has seen the emergence and proliferation of these such genres and cross-genres that provide the framework for fostering a more inclusive and increasingly diverse discourse on post-colonial Canadian nationalism and identity. However, we believe that there still exists implicit notions of a prescribed and sometimes stereotypical Canadian identity that fails to fully acknowledge the diversity of the Canadian people. A challenge to all future Canadian storytellers, no matter the medium of expression or personal background, is to create equality among voices and honest portraits of the diverse populations that call Canada home. We believe a multicultural model and inclusionary efforts through storytelling, especially through the sharing of ideas and experiences, can facilitate the revelation of shared assumptions, values and stories in an attempt to convergence on common ground. With these thoughts in mind, our research and dialogue centred around the following points:
- What happens to ethnic identities and cultural voices in the face of globalization?
- In the context of Canadian literature, whose voices are being heard right now? Who decides which voices get the most prominence and why? Whose voices are not heard?
- In the context of Canadian (multi-)culture, which representations of Canada or Canadian stereotypes are reinforced by popular media, advertisements, and government? How do these representations shape individual identity?
One of the inclusionary efforts we examined in our dialogue is the Canada Reads contest, an annual literary contest organized by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and the epitome of the dynamic intersection between media and literature. In this contest, five celebrity Canadians congregate to debate and deliberate over which Canadian novel they believe all Canadians should read. The widespread media coverage of this event has given rise to a phenomenon touted the “Canada Reads effect”, where books featured in the contest become bestselling novels. As Paul Seymour, a member of the “Literature, Language, and Race” (LLR) Intervention Team, suggests:
“The ‘Canada Reads effect’ extends far beyond those who tune into the program. [T]he various formats by which the program is delivered (online via text, video and podcasts) give Canadians every chance to get involved. Such a public debate about literature that exhibits books that touch on issues such as race, gender and inclusion etc., has to be a positive thing. The program, which is meant to inform Canadians about various social and historical issues through fiction and reading, while also entertaining an audience, makes a great venue for a discussion about the future of Canadian literature.”
Later in the discussion, Seymour critiques the validity of the Canada Reads contest in reflecting the diverse genres and voices present in post-colonial literature:
“Whose voices have been left out there? Does a program that is directed by CBC devotees have the power to decide what it means to be Canadian? What role does language play? (There is a separate French version of Canada Reads, Le Combat Des Livres) And what about storytelling and those stories that cannot be published?”
Seymour alludes to the importance of expressing vigilance when addressing issues of multiculturalism, nationalism, and Canadian identity. We must err on the side of caution in order to avoid falling into the pitfalls of cultural appropriation and the stereotyping of certain ethnic groups. As Chris Cheung and Zara Dada argue (respectively), one need not look further than the Tim Horton’s “True Stories” advertisement campaign for evidence of the fine line between inclusion and appropriation:
“… despite the fact that all the Tim Horton’s commercials do contain different voices and stories, they seem to have a common purpose of stirring up Canadian identity. The illusion of inclusion seems dangerous, reminding us [of] the importance of critical thinking.”
“These types of advertisements appropriate our individual and collective stories of immigration and identity by inserting “Tim Hortons” itself as the site and source of such monumental and personal events… When Tim Horton’s resorts to depicting a stereotypical idea of Canadianness in order to appeal to the Canadian consumer, they inherently contribute to the revision of ideologies concerning our national identity.”
Much like the ‘Canada Reads effect’, commercialism capitalizes on widespread media exposure to influence discourse on Canadian nationalism and identity. How can we mobilize the public to respond to less popular and marginalized or stigmatized Canadian literary voices? Logan Phillips, author of the poem “Vancouzy High as Fuck”, chooses to reappropriate the essence of the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, and in doing so, aligns with Lutz’s appeal to “step outside and see [our] own culture as alien” (32). Through his prose, Phillips invites us to engage in dialogue on the social, economic and political identity of the marginalized populations facing gentrification and globalization. From a first-hand perspective, the anthology V6A provides a diverse array of literary responses to living in the Downtown Eastside. Works in the collections are not only emotionally engaging and entertaining but also compel readers to empathize with the struggles, discomfort, and unfamiliar perspectives that appear within them. In a similar vein, Amber Dawn, author of How Poetry Saved My Life, invites us to “re-imagine Them and Us” (Chamberlin 137) by explicitly examining the intersections between sex work, gender–norms and queer identity and implicitly examining the intersections between literature and orality as she magically laces poetry into intimate confessional narratives, resisting the rigidity of labels, categories and genres.
Fred Wah’s Diamond Grill works also to push forcibly against the dichotomy of “Them and Us” (137), by adding to the idea of the “hyphen” or the hyphenated identity that straddles multiple intersections, fusing differing “races” and cultures into one. Catherine Trites (LLR) realizes, “I think we forget, sometimes, as focused as we are on breaking down the ‘Us and Them’ binary, that people exist outside of those binaries as well – in the ‘and’ or the ‘hyphen of hybridity’”. Wah hits hard with the idea that at times, “Them and Us” (137) can be seen as opposing forces and thus placing identities onto varying levels of the cultural and racialized colour hierarchy. In certain grounds, Wah is able to utilize his hyphenated identity and reach out across the divide. Yet at times, his mixed-raced identity becomes the divider. It is interesting then to connect this to the idea of Canadianness.
Often scholars and politicians attempt to define what it means to be Canadian. Tim Horton’s “True Stories” campaign shows how popularized ideas of identity are able to bring people together. By selecting common tropes of Canadianness and branding them under positive ideas of unity, respect, and perseverance, Tim Horton’s is able to essentially create the “ideal Canadian”. To those that subscribe to the ideal, the advertisements bring feelings of nostalgia and national pride. However, it is vital to also extend this identity towards those that do not or can not fit into the identity of the “true, North, strong and free Canadian”. It is once again necessary to raise the question of how multiculturalism fits in with the “ideal Canadian”? Is Canada a culture, a nation, or both? Is Canadian identity connected to certain binaries of “race” and ethnicity? And can these binaries be broken apart and exist on their own?
We also touch on the role of oral and multimedia approaches to public engagement in several of our research sources, in particular through hyperlinks to Vancouver poets reading their works (Elaine Woo, Amber Dawn) and also in the “Story Exchange” component of Stuart McLean’s Vinyl Café radio show. But as Maya Sandiford from LLR points out, “because [McLean’s] show ‘is exclusively broadcast in English,’ many Canadians who speak different languages do not have the opportunity to contribute and share their stories,” and nor would they be able to access other unilingual oral resources online, due the difficulty of providing automated translation for such media. We often hear comments directed at those who struggle with English like “You’re in Canada. Learn to speak English.” But the power of orality is unique, both as “a means of accessing collective memory or innate human truth,” and through its “innate connect[ion] with cultural knowledge” (MacNeil n.p.). Put in other words by Walter Ong, orality is “close to the human life world” (Ong 15). Addressing the balance between the immediacy and appeal of oral culture and the challenges we face in rendering it globally accessible is important when we consider the potential public impact of a piece of literature.
As cultures mingle and diversity increases, issues concerning nationalism and identity are unlikely to subside. Conversely, the expansion of genres will see literary scholars responding with increasing urgency to the predominant colonizing and stereotypical narratives in order to “re–imagine Them and Us” (Chamberlin 137) and converge upon common ground. We have seen a variety of intervention themes in our research literature. Is the solution to: merely listen without judgment? Imagine ourselves in the shoes of the “other”? Reappropriate our culture and identity through active discourse? Communicate interfusionally, weaving oral culture through written discourse? Redefine the rigidity of labels and genres? Engage in a national-level discourse on what it means to be Canadian? Our group feels slightly intimidated by the sheer scale of the issues at hand; there are so many questions and so many complications to resolve. Engaging in discourse, especially discourse concerning marginalized and stigmatized issues, is a necessary step to unlocking the key to harmony. While the Tim Horton’s campaign features prepared scripted stories and ideal archetypes, we believe they have one thing right, something that Canada Reads and Stuart McLean also share in common: many voices are invited to have a chance to speak. There is power in our testimonies, but there is also power in dialogue. The various avenues and media portrayals may not be perfect ways to express our identity as a nation, but they are not final either. Identity is amorphous, not static. There are always new voices, new stories and old stories that are new to some. We believe that it is the very diversity in the themes of discourse surrounding nationalism and identity that serve as a powerful platform for dismantling what local Mik’maq scholar Marie Battiste has called the “cognitive prisons” (xvii) of colonialist and stereotypical literary canons and ideals.
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Works Cited
Battiste, Marie. Introduction: Unfolding the Lessons of Colonialization. Reclaiming Indigenous Voice and Vision. Ed. Marie Battiste. Vancouver: U of British Columbia P, 2000. xvi–xxx. Print.
Bookshelfvideos. “Amber Dawn.” YouTube, 1 May 2013. Web. 19 April 2014.
“Canadian Multiculturalism: An Inclusive Citizenship.” Government of Canada, 2014. Web. 18 April 2014.
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Canada Reads 2014, Days 1 – 4. CBC, March 2014. Web. 29 March 2014.
CBC Radio. “The Vinyl Café Story Exchange.” CBC, 2014. Web. 4 April 2014.
Chamberlin, Edward. If This is Your Land, Where are Your Stories? Finding Common Ground. Toronto: AA. Knopf. 2003. Print.
Cormack, P. “`True Stories’ of Canada: Tim Hortons and the Branding of National Identity.” Cultural Sociology 2.3 (2008): 369-84. Print.
Hawley, Kevin. “Tim Hortons “Lilian”.mov.” YouTube, 17 Feb. 2011. Web. 19 April 2014.
Lutz, John. “First Contact as a Spiritual Performance: Aboriginal — Non-Aboriginal Encounters on the North American West Coast.” Myth and Memory: Rethinking Stories of Indigenous-European Contact. Ed. Lutz. Vancouver: U of British Columbia P, 2007. 30-45. Print
Kymlicka, Will. “Marketing Canadian Pluralism.” The Comparative Turn in Canadian Political Science. Eds. Richard Simeon, Robert Vipond, Jennifer Wallner, and Linda White. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2008. 99-122. Print.
Moss, Laura. “Introduction: generous and grounded connections.” Canadian Literature 204 (2010): 103. Canadian Periodicals Index Quarterly. Web. 23 March 2014.
MacNeil, Courtney. “Orality.” The Chicago School of Media Theory. Uchicagoedublogs. 2007. Web. 16 April 2014.
Ong, Walter J. Orality and Literacy. New York: Routledge, 2002. Print.
Sandiford, Maya. “Annotated Bibliography – Comments.” De/colonized Voices. UBC Blogs, 11 April 2014. Web. 16 April 2014.
Seymour, Paul. “Annotated Bibliography – Comments.” De/colonized Voices. UBC Blogs, 11 April 2014. Web. 8 April 2014.
Trites, Catherine. “Annotated Bibliography – Comments.” De/colonized Voices. UBC Blogs, 11 April 2014. Web. 8 April 2014.
Wah, Fred. Diamond Grill. Edmonton: NeWest, 1996. Print.
Woo, Elaine. “Elaine Woo.” Elaine Woo, nd. Web. 6 April 2014.
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