Misconceiving Canada: The Struggle for National Unity

By: McRoberts, Kenneth

This book begins by exploring the deep historical roots of the conception of Canada that Trudeau and his colleagues tried to change. The book then moves on to examine how successive governments tried to re-examine the relationship between Quebec and the rest of the country. McRoberts examines the role of the Trudeau government, official bilingualism, multiculturalism, the Mulroney era, and the failures of both the Meech Lake and the Charlottetown Accords. The final chapter of the book examines the 1995 Quebec referendum with its near victory of the Yes vote, which can only be seen as proof of the failure of the Trudeau strategy, and the current federal government's failure to deliver meaningfully on promises made during the referendum.

The conclusion begins with a review of this critical reassessment of the strategy and its consequences for Canada. It then maps out some of the routes to resolving the crisis that become available once that strategy is abandoned: formalizing asymmetry within Canadian federalism, revising language policy on a territorial basis, recasting Canada as a multinational confederation, and so on. Whether any of this can be done, however, is an open question.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195412338
• ISBN13: 9780195412338
• Release Date: June 1997
• Publisher: Oxford University Press Canada
• Length: 412 Pages
• Weight: 1.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Required Reading for All Canadians & the Less Fortunate

Mention the word "constitution" or any phrase with that word in it, and any Canadian above the age of 6 years old either will get a glazed look in his eyes or will fall asleep in 5 minutes or less. One reason is that for most Canadians, constitutional discussions either are so abstract or so swamped in minutiae that any such discussion is a sure-fire cure for insomnia. Anothr reason is that the emotional roller-coaster that most Canadians have experienced in the last 25 years or so renders the topic of "constitution" a very raw nerve that Canadians would prefer not to touch; they would sooner choose dental surgery without the benefit of novocaine.It is regrettable, therefore, that these perfectly human, understandable and reasonable reactions would probably prevent many (if not all) Canadians from reading this excellent book by Kenneth McRoberts about Canadian history, politics, society and (yes) constitutional development. It is sufficiently detailed to raise, answer and explain many questions and concerns about how Canada got to where it found itself at the end of the 20th century. Yet, the details do not slow down the book's momentum. In fact, Professor McRoberts' clear and detailed style keeps one wide awake while making such supposedly esoteric topics like the compact theory, federal-provincial division of powers, bilingualsim, biculturalism and multiculturalism, etc. perfectly and readily understandable. His chronicle of events and individuals, of successes and failures, of near successes and near failures, and of the thoughts, feelings, hopes and fears of ordinary Canadians should be required reading for all high school and university students (whether or not they are taking a history course), for all Canadians who care about Canada, its people, its potential and its future, and for all non-Canadians who wonder why such a nice bunch of folks like Canadians with such a nice country as Canada periodically have come close to destroying their country.