Language, Culture and Values in Canada at the Dawn of the 21st Century/Langues, culture et valeurs au Canada à l'aube du XXle siècle (review)

HUMANITIES 109 ...... "'''714-'0\ Mol£> that a CO{len:!nce. With such a be a miracle if the or,aCtlce at small institutions mesh with the mission statements and ceived of those institutions? Is the e01l1CamOln in itself those attleIl(lmg enviable record of Lan!Q'uI1Q'e. Culture and Values in Canada at the Dawn 21st ....."""'x ..c,", culture et valeurs au Canada al'aube du XXle under the of Andre Patricia International Council for Canadian Studies and Carleton Univprsiiv Ultlemlatl.onal Council for Canadian Studies held an international at the theme of ..........J.; ....lUJ.;''-; 110 LETTERS IN CANADA 1996 dawn of the twenty-first century. The main objective of the organizing conunittee, consisting ofPatriciaSmart, Andre Lapierre, and Pierre Savard, was to present a forum which would explore some of the most urgent iden- " tity issues as they relate to language, culture, and values. This publication, which contains the original presentations, as well as a comprehensive introduction, has been organized in five chapters, each preceded by a brief text written by the various moderators of the colloquium. Discussion papers are organized under five topics: language and national identity, citizenship and culture, national identity and internationalization, culture change and the rise of new values, and Canada and the First Nations. Leslie Armour's excellent introduction is of particular interest because it appears to have captured the essence of the conference, and gives the reader, even two years after the event, a sense of the excitement and even of the drama that surrotmded a number ofpresentations. Armour was able to bring out the immediacy of the message, as well as the pertinence and significanc.e of each paper. This skilful encadrement gives this volume its direction, and "manages to give the reader a global understanding of the issues raised by the title Language, Culture and Values in Canada at the Dawn ofthe 21St Century. The distinguished contributors (half from Quebec and Canada, including representatives from First Nations, and half from Europe and abroad), brought to the conference and to this volume an international perspective and scope that contextualizes 'Canadian' issues of multiculturalism , pluralism, and nationalism, of cultural and national identity, and indeed of state and nation. The varied points of view, sometimes convergent and sometimes divergent, produced a global impact in their level of applicability. No doubt because of my own cultural and professional background, of the eighteen discussion papers reproduced in this volume, I found the following to be particularly interesting: Stephane Dion's JA la source de l'appui al'independance: l'insecurite linguistique,' Sherry Simon's 'National Membership and Forms of Contemporary Belonging in Quebec,' Francis Delperee's 'Identite nationale et mondialisation / Patricia Armstrong's 'From Caring and Sharing to Greedy andMean?' and George Sioui's 'Canadian Amerindian Nations of the 21st Century.' Even though this conference took place just a few months before the tumultuous October 1995 referendwn and its narrowest of victories for 'federalism,' it is reassuring but also disturbing to note that the issues raised and discussed are as alive and relevant today as they were then. This . volume presents an enlightened, insightful, and very readable review of a complex situation. It remains a significant document on a number ofbuming issues. It is particularly convenient to find in a single publication such a diverse, interdisciplinary, and yet complementaryarray ofarguments and views on the question of linguistic and cultural Canadian values. HUMANITIES 111 The text of this publication, derived from the proceedings of a conference held inFrench and in English, is in French and/or in English. Only the table of contents, foreword, preface, and introduction are translated; otherwise the presentations are published in the language of the presenter. This certainly relates well with the theme of the colloquium, and is also inspirational on a national level. However, at the end of each paper, a brief summary in the other official language of the conference might have been welcomed by some readers. Similarly, although the contributors are evidently acknowledged international experts in their fields, I would have found it useful to have immediate access to some biographical and current bibliographical information, either in a general appendix or at the end of each section. Leslie Armour, in...