Research Statement on the Impact of the American Culture to Canadian Cultural

Historically, Canada has been subjected to various concludes such as that of the British and the French. From as early the 1500s, European explorers, traders, and fishermen from England, Ireland and France helped form the basis of Canadian polish. Now in the modern era, there is an some other rundown in the list of ethnical work ons affecting the Canadian society. This pagan treat comes in the form of the coetaneous the Statesn subtlety.American influence is clearly visible but not richly ack at presentledge by most Canadians. Several volume think that this is an implied inclination but there is as well as a great number who call covering that this is explicitly manifested in the Canadian civilization. Proximity and the migration of lot, ideas, and capital were deemed to be the piddle of Americas immense influence on Canadians (Canada culture).This study objective lenss to show the predicament of the Canadian culture in relation to being associated to the American close. Public perception of the get together States as a global bolide in politics, economics and culture has produced a very potent American culture wherein in this case, Canadians give unconsciously embraced it as demonstrated in their fondness for Hollywood, U. S. landscapes and American vernacular (Kellogg, 2004).Determining the starting point, extent and effect of the American influence on Canadian culture will provide an generous amount of information that would explore the ways in which American influences energize challenged Canadas heathenish determine and asks whether Canada is able to maintain its own identity. The period cover would start from post-modern era to present. The time frame relatively represents the age of globalisation when culture is intensified and amplified to meet the clamor for innovations.Generally, Post modernism is a movement of ideas arising from, but in addition critical of elements of modernism. This definition embodies the present as severate of the American culture. Understanding gloss It is important to pull in and identify aspects of culture that leads to its pervasion across geographical and political boundaries. It is equally important to understand the roots of cultural disparity and differences that often places two civilizations, though geographically contiguous, at subtle levels of contradict and confrontation.The cultural spectrum holds antithetical shades for a person, a society and a nation, accordingly helping each of them to suck in and adapt to a common identity that is defined and shaped by culture. In the process of evolving this collective identity, culture transcends its traditional bil permit of providing an nub set of beliefs, customs, norms, values, ethics, traditions, moral, social and legal codes, perceptions, and philosophy, to flex the overall physical cloth for the society to function.Culture attains a real form, rendering a three dimensional living space for stack to experien ce its living force (Mahant and Mount, 2002). Culture is strongly related with geographical setting of a place, religion, ethnicity, and race, explaining why different countries have different cultures, and also why places on seashore treat common elements of culture that is quite different from culture of mountainous places.The influence of culture on ways a person thinks, acts, perceives the environment and models his/her chemical reaction is very strong and virtually indelible, determining every aspect of world behavior and giving rise to cultural identity in addition to individual and national identity. Although the classic rational choice framework says that people are independent in choice of their behavior and approach towards events, its seen that at subtle levels the structural model provided by culture acts as final determinant in predicting a person, a society and a nation.Although culture is dynamic, evolving and continuously upgrading itself, in essence, these chang es occur deep down the context of cultures own timeframe (Mahant and Mount, 2002). One of the most important contribution of culture to pitying civilization is the orientation provided towards other cultures, making the culture in caput receptive, tolerant, indifferent or outright hostile towards different cultures. Societies are seldom mono-cultural, displaying a range of cultural traits, achieved through generations of trades, contact, and cross cultural mixing.However, although for people belonging to a particular culture, their culture would hardly seem complex, the cultural realities are hidden beneath the surface, difficult to observe and discern from outside. These improper understanding and imperfect perceptions of culture often give rise to conflict when different cultures are required to meet or come across. pagan Dialogue and Imprinting between regular army and Canada In recent times, the Canadian cultural policy has blastn an inward looking approach in order to mi nimize influence of United State Culture composition supporting Canadian cultural elements.The empty talk of cultural protectionism is familiar-aimed towards protecting Canadian cultural, its sovereignty and identity assuring shelf space for Canada in a world completely occupied by Americanism assuring a zone of creative independence to Canadians where their tales would be theirs alone. This introvert attitude is also promoted with an aim to counter the market dominance of American products, their selling strategies, , their discriminatory policies against Canadian goods and their challenge to Canadian sense of independence, unity, and identity (Mahant and Mount, 2002).It is no wonder that this logic is also forwarded as an argument for protecting and promoting cultural diversity. Such rhetoric have come repeatedly off Canadian politicians, cultural leading and taken up fervently a large section of Canadian media. (Acheson and Maule, 1999, 329-48). However, these maneuvers lack a historical perspective of US and Canada relation that dates back to the earliest days of colonial settlements. At the time when United States of America achieved its independence in 1783, it comprised of thirteen principle colonies, comprising most of people, and habitable split of the region at the time.What was left of British northeasterly America contained a large territory with scant but primarily English speak population as a direct topic of the American innovation when most of the loyalist fled there (Maule, 2003). This predominantly English culture implied that this region, which would be later, organized as Canada would bear a close relationship with its politically and economically advanced neighbor. The binding thread of English language and resembling English culture provided both Canada and USA a common cultural platform, specially in a huge and isolated landscape.The cultural interaction between two countries took place at same frequency and within the same context, and it filled Canadians with a sense of creation and recognition of a joint cultural space where events in United States did not take place across the border, rather across the boundary wall (MacKinnon, 1973). The jot of continuous cultural space permeated through most of 19th century, as people across border established close links and in-migration between the two nations took place with a greater ease than intra-state last in many countries.Naturally, owing to its superior size, population, vastly greater prudence and industrial prowess, USA took the role of big-brother between two nations and for the initial days, Canadians were perfectly content in following USA as a role model for practically all aspects of their life (Maule, 2003). Hence it is no admiration that education, political agreement and social structure of Canada closely toed on US lines (MacKinnon, 1973). By the beginning of 20th century, US media, press and charge were largely dominating their Canad ian counterparts.Reports citing surveys conducted in the period 1920-26 state that Canadian readership for US magazines, books and newspapers had gone on all time high, leaving john British and even their own publications by several degrees (Acheson and Maule, 1999, 329-48). Meanwhile, with emergence of interrogative picture and wire slight broadcast, Americanism, its ethics and its values found a very much quicker and shorter route to penetrate Canadian horizons. The cultural extension of USA in Canada was of sufficient strength to mould its business interests to the interest of United States commercial enterprises (Maule, 2003).However, Canadian identity received a major pressurize post the Second World War, where their armed legions had distinguished themselves. Cultural issues now took centerstage and several commissions instituted by Canadian administration were unanimous in their recommendations for establishing councils that would cope development of Canadian art, liter ature, medical specialty, and aesthetics, independent of the drug laden bohemian US pop culture. By 1957, Canadian brass had established the council for art and music and opened Canadian public library.The political relation even took several relatively draconian measures, such as levying tax on popular American magazines in order to divert the readership as well advertisers to Canadian publications. The political relation also invested in establishing a network of universities and colleges with independent curriculum than their US counterparts (Peers, 1969). Protecting Canadian Culture Canadian culture has always been preventive towards its earlier British root, and although there is a continuous influx of people from around the world in Canada, the essential Canadian values hung close to colonial memories for a considerable time(Dean and Dehejia, 2006).Naturally the completely un-conventional and un-orthodox American value musical arrangement and cultural symbols had always posed a threat to traditional values and cultural system of Canada. Further, the inner progress towards nationhood since 1960 has permeated a feeling of nationalism in Canada, where, coming out of British cultural dominion, they attempted to rove themselves as a national group (Fulford. 1990). Under these circumstances an usurpation of US cultural values was seen as a threat to the dissilient Cultural nationalism and Canadian cultural-value system.Despite instituting these measures, Canadian government could not ingest complete immunity by ever growing American influence through its beaming pop culture, movie world and non-conservative attitude towards system of values and ethics. The presence of an active, forward, and rather intruding American culture let Canada to retain at to the lowest degree five different types of measures to protect its culture were still in place. The first of these measures known as Cancon regulations have been extant since 1930s and by 1990s they fo rmed a essential if slenderly erratic part of the principle measures in place to check American Culture.Under the provisions of Cancon regulations, its compulsory for Canadian private broadcasters to show at least 60 percent Canadian content during evening prime time,. Although in practice, the duration is considerably lower than what is stipulated, yet it has ensured that at the least almost Canadian content is broadcasted. but most show considerably less than these figures would suggest (Kellog, 2004). As a direct consequence of cancon regulation surveys conducted in May 2000 reveal that 35 percent of all music play on Canadian radio stations is Canadian with some quota also for primarily instrumental music.To ensure Canadian presence in telecasting programs, the government has introduced a a point system that measures Canadian-ness of programs in toll of the proportion of Canadians involved (Mahant and Mount, 2002). Although these measures did not necessarily reflect the accu rate picture, uncomplete assured Canadian-ness of content, they have remained effective from a general point of berth in keeping Canadian culture afloat (Kellog, 2004). The second kinsfolk of measures have consisted trade protection to Canadian broadcasters and media.Although, with introduction of WTO rules and regulations, many of these regulations have disappeared, yet the remnants continue to provide a structural security to Canadian broadcasters (Dean and Dehejia, 2006). In the third set of measurements, Canadian government took steps to append investment in Canadian media and broadcast industry. The government recognized that cultural performance in Canada is linked with ownership and control. These investment policies have allowed the stripe of American bookstore chains and media industries from comprehensive takeover of their Canadian counterparts.Though the government has allowed limited foreign investment in the cultural industries, the center of its guidance has rema ined on promoting and nurturing Canada based cultural entities (Mahant and Mount, 2002. Under the fourth set of measurement, government decided to directly subsidize Canadian Cultural entities. The subsidies have become central to Canadian policies to protect, and encourage Canadian cultural values, entities, art and music, especially after NAFTA and WTO have led to elimination of a number of other protective measures (Mahant and Mount, 2002).For example, according to a 1997 ruling, WTO stipulated that the postal subsidies enjoyed by Canadian magazines would be regarded as an illegal subsidy. Therefore, government has provisioned systems of direct grants and subsidies as a result of which nearly all the forms of Canadian cultural entities, ranging from from book publishing to films to readings by writers and art exhibits enjoys measures of government subsidy and supported (Mahant and Mount, 2002). The serious intents of Canadian government can be estimated from the fact that in 1996 -97 government spent more(prenominal) than $5.6 billion dollars in cultural subsidies and grants Apart from these measures, the Canadian government has also established a number of ad hoc measures, rules and regulations to protect its heritage and Culture. This ad hoc approach has been necessary especially since WTO and NAFTA have continued to pressurize and impede governments efforts to protect Canadian cultural industries and sectors (Mahant and Mount, 2002. Certainly these measures diluted, if not ended, US cultural dominance on Canadian social space.However, US media, riding upon its buoyant economy and its technological enterprise continued to bedazzle the world, and it was little surprise that, its culturally closest neighbor, Canada could hardly escape their affect. As the era of globalization, Internet and social networking has dawned upon the world, it is inevitable that Canadian cultural distinctions would at some point of time reflect the values and ethics promoted by a US dominated world (Mahant and Mount, 2002). References Blackwell, J. D. and Blackwell-Stanley, L. C.. Canadian Studies A calculate to the Sources.Retrieved February 12, 2008, from http//www. iccs-ciec. ca/blackwell. htmlculture Canada culture. Retrieved February 12, 2008, from http//www. university- world. com/canada/canada_culture. html Kellog, A. (2004). Despite American culture creep, Canadian values remain. Edmonton Journal. Retrieved February 12, 2008, from http//www. gaiecoute. com/default. aspx? scheme=2150. Large Canada Urban Areas Population and density 2001. Statistics Canada2001 McGregor, G. The Beaver Bites Back American Popular Culture in Canada David H.Flaherty and bluff E. Manning (eds. ). 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