Who Killed Canadian History?

by J.L. Granatstein and Jack L. Granatstein

Book Overview

Canada is one of the few nations in the Western world that does not teach its history to its young people and to its new citizens. The result is a nation that does not understand and respect its past.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0002557592
• ISBN13: 9780002557597
• Release Date: January 1998
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Length: 156 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Granatstein is right on;but it is not only our history!

In reality it is not the history of our land that is boring;but the people who have led our institutions and the agendas of those who have been installed in them. It's natural to compare ourselves to the Americans and their history,but that is pointless because as soon as they were able they drove out the European control by Revolution and set about to create One Nation with their own principles. That was not the case here.We continued to be colonies and preferred to be led by the mother country mentality of England and France through Peace,Order and Good Government.Therefore, since these two countries were never in agreement,why would one expect that creating a country based on the principles of both of them end up with a Nation which would be united throughout. Hence,having gotten off on this approach ,we have always confronted our devevopment issues with a strong determination that above all else compromise would rule. There was a glimmer of light after the two World Wars that we might get on with creating One Nation that was for all of us,but those deep seated divisions only became enlarged. Take something as basic as our flag;rather than unison ,every province now has their own,where most did'nt even have one and Quebec has given it little notice,other than a great lack of disinterest,to put it mildly. So, rather than working towards unity we compromised with the misguided concept of Bilnguialism and Biculturalism.All that has done is to emphasize the past differences and drive us further apart.If that wasn't bad enough,we dreamed up the idea that since the Americans believed in the melting pot to create One Nation;we cound'nt do that,we went the Multicultural route and encouraged retention of the very ideas that these new arrivals were leaving behind. Now we wonder "Who Killed Canadian History?" There,s little doubt that the leftist ideologies that permeate our government and government agencies has carried us down this road. The idea that "we know what's good for you" and don't bother yourself,we'll take care of you is firmly entrenched.What ever happened to the idea that it is my responsibility, particularly since I'm paying for it.I am entitled to have a say. The book very well outlines the problem.He shows that Political Correctness ,an oxymoron,by the way;is rampant,but doesn't dwell on how it became so established. As a matter of fact he even suggests that the solutions should come from the same educational establishments that created the the problem. I don't think so !The only way out is to take that establishment totally apart,get rid of the vast majority holding these destructive agendas and rebuild the whole system from the bottom up. Education should be universal using a merit,performance based,voucher system where the people who pay for the education have some say on how their resources are to be spent.This will not be offered by the establishment;but must be wrestled away from them to get education out of its quaigmire

Learn why you never learned...

A friend of mine is a History Major at the local univeristy, and she had the distinct pleasure of having taken a class with Prof. Granatstein before he retired. She passed this book to everyone she knew, and I was lucky to get my turn with it early.Canada has a rich and diverse culture, and its history is often scoffed (indeed, I can remember my family, all of us immigrants from England, saying, "Canada doesn't *have* any history.") This notion is wrong, and yet, it perpetuates.Why?Well, the question of who killed Canadian History is what Granatstein tackles in this book. It is a quick read, but one you'll re-read, and is a pithy and witty account of how fragmented our educational system is on the concept of teaching Canadian History. There are relevant facts scattered throughout this book, and statistics that made me, for one, ashamed of the Canadian educational system. Granatstein speaks of changes that need to be made on both the educational system front and in post-educational institutions, and has put together a book that sincerely, and objectively, points out why Canadian History is so lost. Who Killed Canadian History? We, the Canadians, did. It's time to turn that around.

The State of Canadian History Today!

A very impressive book! Prof Granatstein has done a marvelous job presenting the changes the presentation of Canadian History has undergone in the past 30 years. I was particularly impressed with his treatment of various "schools of thought" which have come to dominate - ie post-structuralist, feminist, social/marxist, etc... He recognizes that these schools have made valuable contributions to the study of Canada's History, but points to some of their major shortcomings - chiefly their inability to provide a cohesive narrative for our last 300 years. While these interpretations can be extremely enlightening, they lose their effect when the reader has no foundation or "story" to compare them against - a foundation that used to be provided in the elementary and high school years. The only regret I had after reading the book was that it was so short - it would have been nice to see Granatstein develop and back-up his thesis in greater depth. But it's still a must read for all Canadians!

Who Killed Canadian History?

I read this book and thought why is this not required reading for every Canadian High School student. It explains why we seem to have no sense of who we are and try to please every group in our society , in detriment to our identity as a nation. Looking at history in politically correct terms does not give anyone a sense of who we are and where we are going. It proves you can not change history using todays politically acceptable language and have any substance in the text. Loved this thought provoking book! Wake up CANADA before we lose our total identity!

Excellent and thought-provoking.

Should be required reading for every Canadian, and for any American who thinks that 'multiculturalism' is a good idea.