Individual versus Collective What is it like to be Canadian?

Where have we been? Last day we worked on identity, just on a different spin. The identity that you have with music and tatoos you should have seen that you have an individual identity on what you like, as well as a collective identity with a group of people.

What else? We also looked at the idea of sources and what kind of sources can you use when you are looking for information? A primary resource comes from the horses mouth, were as the secondary source comes from someone else. Always be aware of the bias that sources might have.

What is it like to be Canadian? What do you think is it to be a Canadian?

When you are young As we growing up, we rely on others to help us gain identity. Usually this is done by our parents and family. Think of Christmas, what do you do now, and can you see yourself doing these things when you leave home?

As you get older … When you get to be the age that you are right now, you are making choices on what to so based on what you have traditionally grown- up with as well as what you have been exposed to. When you leave home, you might not do the same things at Christmas that you have done in the past.

Think back … About two generations ago, (my parents, your grandparent or older) many of the choices that they had would have been made for them. In the small towns around the prairies, there would have been constant pressure to conform to what the community wanted you to do with your life.

Your great grandparents would have felt the pressure to follow the collective identity of the community. –Roles of the men and women –Going to church –Following in the family footsteps There was the idea that you did not want to upset the apple cart and go against the rest of the community.

How do you feel? In our community, do you really care about what the rest of the community thinks about you and your life? The bigger question then becomes, do you care about being a Canadian?

The Big Change Not really sure when it happened, but there has been a huge change in how we look at ourselves in the global world. With cable TV, internet, different foods that we have been exposed to, places to shop, we have become a pluralistic society. A pluralistic society is one that is made up of many different groups.

What about this Canadian identity thing? Canada has always welcomed immigrants to the county. As they are welcomed into Canada, we like them to be Canadian, but we also ask them to keep their culture alive in their communities in language and traditions.

The Canadian Identity We have had many different identities over the time that Canada was used as a colony in the 1400’s. –Natives in Canada (wide range of different societies) –British and French ’s –European ’s –Rest of the World present

The identity changes The government has encouraged cultures to keep their lives and culture, but also to help and get their lifestyles out in the rest of Canada. Think of a metropolis of Toronto, a blend of many different cultures, but still Canadian

Canada and the World On a global stage we have really become a world player. –W–World War I and II –E–Economic ties (move from Britain to USA) –N–NATO peace missions –S–Sydney Protocol (endorsed and encouraged by Stephen Harper)