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Book Reviews 141 other scholars of the period who may choose to probe these margins and broaden our understanding ofthe complexity and contradictions of this period. In the United States, collections like Not June Cleaver: Women and Gender in Postwar America, 1945-1960, edited by Joanne Meyerowitz, pursue alternative directions that are only just being taken up in Canada. For students just discovering this period as history, Owram offers a perceptive examination ofthe angst and restlessness of its youth that gave the 1960s an identity all its own. ROBERT RUTHERDALE University of British Columbia Honour and the Search for Influence: A History of the Royal Society of Canada. CARL BERGER. Toronto: University of Toronto Press 1996. Pp. xii, 167. $45.00 cloth, $14.95 paper Thirty years ago Carl Berger introduced the field of Canadian intellectual history by analysing the ideas of Sir John George Bourinot. With his new book, he returns to this late Victorian gentleman not to revisit his place in the world ofhistorical thought, but to examine critically the history of the institution Bourinot was instrumental in creating. F~mnded in 1882, the Royal Society of Canada was supposed to play an important role in the heady work of nation building. By recognizing publicly the accomplishments of Canadian intellectuals and promoting through a single national institution the intellectual life of Canada, the society would draw intellectuals together, encourage greater public awareness of the value of intellectual work, and help advance the spiritual and moral progress of the nation. The title of this book was undoubtedly chosen with great care. From its inception, the Royal Society was caught up in celebration and public promotion, honouring the cultural production of its members, while searching for a way to convince others (and especially those in government) that intellectuals could play a significant role in the process of state formation. To achieve these goals, Bourinot and the Marquis of Lorne set out to professionalize the Canadian thinking classes. Officially they drew their inspiration from the Royal Society of London and the Institut frarn;:ais; but at a more plebeian level they were deeply indebted to all those other conservative Victorians - the clergy, the physicians, and the lawyers - who had banded together to protect and advance their own professional interests. The Royal Society was composed of educated gentlemen who could be counted on to share regular opinions about the character of intellectual life. The internal affairs of the society were kept private - closely guarded by its own members - while its public 142 The Canadian Historical Review role was sanctioned (and in this case underwritten) by the state. In effect, the life of the mind in Canada was to be nurtured by a society that was selective, self-perpetuating, and dependent on the authority and the financial wherewithal of the party in power. History of a certain kind has always served an important function for an institution that has had continually to convince others of its own importance. Here it is a mark of fine scholarship indeed that Berger has not only stepped behind these self-congratulatory notions, but also drawn the very need to construct an official history into his own analysis . Indeed by focusing upon the distance between public role and private practice, he is able to illuminate the internal workings ofthe society and raise some deeper questions about the life ofthe mind in Canada. Three important themes run through this richly textured study. The first highlights the important role of science and scientists in the life of the institution. Under the superintending providence of Principal William Dawson, science was placed at the centre of the new society in point of fact, Daniel Wilson was sceptical about even allowing the arts (let alone with separate sections for French and English) to come into the society in the first instance. From this position, scientists played a leading part in the society's affairs and were able to influence Canadian public policy to some degree. Second, this study traces a major shift in the construction of the intellectual. In its early years, membership in the society was distinguished by a wide range of occupations. Large numbers of civil servants, clergy, and journalists were...

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