Culture and Currents of Thought

Amerindians developed of lifestyle

10,000 BCE

The Amerindians developed a lifestyle adapted to the conditions of the environment around them. Some are nomadic and others are sedentary they both have close ties and live in harmony with it. Aboriginal peoples had a great respect for their environment because they were able to survive because of it. Aboriginal people were animist. This belief, that everything that exists in the universe has a spirit, includes animal, objects, plants, stars and even thunder and the wind.

Divine right of kings

1608

Absolutism is a political ideology according to which the ruler was said to receive his or her power directly from the god's representative on earth. The king and the church therefore have strong ties. Since the king represents god on earth nobody could contest or challenge the will of god. Gallicanism promotes the submission of the church to the king and not to the pope in rome. So the church must follow what the king says.

Catholicism

1615

The catholic church had the most influence on ideas and culture. It was responsible for education, hospitals and health care, the poor and orphans and converting the amerindians. The church used its influence suppress multiple forms of artistic expression that did not conform to religious boundaries.

Founding of the College des Jesuites

1635

This is an elite boys school. At the time it was not common for girls to attend school.

Founding of ville marie by the société de notre dame de montréal pour la conversion des sauvages de la nouvelle france

1642

It was founded for religious reasons to try and convert the aboriginals. Religion had an important role in the cultural life in new france for the French Canadians.

Founding of the Grand seminaire de Québec

1663

This a school to train young boys to become priests.

Publication of the catéchisme du diocèse de Québec

1702

To make sure that the dogma of the catholic church was followed the clergy printed the catechism which is a book that explained that faith and practices of the catholic church.

British imperialism

1760

In Canada many partisans believed that canada should maintain and reinforce its ties to Great Britain. They were proud to be in the british empire and saw no need to be more independant.

The création of the montreal gazette newspaper

1764

The arrival of the printing press in the settlement allowed the publications of newspapers and brochures, thus promoting the dissemination of liberal ideas. William Brown and Thomas Gilmore are the founders of the Quebec Gazette .

Rise of liberalism in lower canada

1780

The change of empire was characterized by the rise of liberalism in the colony. Liberalism is a political ideology to which all individuals have equal and fundamental rights including protection from the abuse of the monarch's power. The liberals put great importance on: religious, economic, cultural rights and political freedoms. Liberals say that everyone has the right to live and be safe, have freedom and be able to own private property.

French Canadian nationalism

1826

French Canadians wanted to preserve their culture. Henri Bourassa became the main spokesman of french canadian nationalism. His ideas were: Canada should have more autonomy and become more independent from Great Britain, The provinces should have more autonomy with canada, minorities should have their rights respected and french and english canadians should be equal and form one nation.

Ultramontanism

1840

This means extremely religious. The clergy rediscovered it's vigor. Ultramontanism affirmed the primacy of the spiritual power of the church over the state. It promoted lots of religious practice (praying, fasting etc) The church wanted to be in charge of education, health care and social work. In 1870, the pope in considered infallible which means he is never wrong. There was also a list of books called the index, books that were prohibited by the church since they contradicted their teachings

Bill on Public education

1841

The government weakened the control of the clergy on education by adopting the bill on public education. It gave the government the mandate to coordinate and supervise the public education system. They created school boards and developed a new curriculum.

Anticlericalism

1844

This means against religion. Certain liberals did not want the church to intervene with the political and social sphere of the province. They want society to be more modern and develop outside the influence of the clergy. They do not want the “old ways”

Rise of capitalism

1870

This is private businesses earning profits. The businesses wanted to make as much money as possible. There were two parts to capitalism: The capitalists, who were mainly English business owners (bourgeoisie) and the labour, who were french Canadians. The french did not like capitalism because there was an Inequality between capitalists and the labour and there were low wages and bad living conditions. The english were making all the money and the french were doing all the work.

Agriculturalism

1888

Nationalists believe that urbanization and industrialization will jeopardize the foundation of the nation (catholic faith, french language, rural life, big families). So, in response to this, several nationalists developed an agriculturalist ideology that promotes rural life. Agriculturalism promoted the rural life and the agricultural way of life. The church persuaded canadian so settle in undeveloped regions. Cure Antoine Labelle is the spokesman for agriculturalism.

Rise of feminism

1893

Woman get the right to vote in fédéral and provincial elections. After WWII, feminism became more demanding. Woman claimed political rights and objected to the traditional version of society in which men dominated. Multiple years later woman had the right to use the birth control pill, therefor having more control of their bodies. Finally, women's salaries increased, working and living conditions improved and leisure time increased.

Rise of the cooperative movement

1900

Cooperatism allows the pooling of savings of small investors. It is an economic system that encourages the pooling of resources and a shared management style as wella as shared profits. Each person that is a member of a cooperative is a part owner, therefore everyone is equal. The goal of cooperatism is to help everyone.

Birth of fascism

1921

Fascism is an ideology that first appeared in europe after the First World War. This ideology promotes tradition and totalitarianism, as well and extreme nationalism. They believe in the instauration of only one political party. This party is led by a leader and must all obey him. It is based on the idea that some nations were superior to others. An example is Adolf Hitler.

Rise of socialism

1930

a political ideology born in europe & criticized capitalism and the industrial development. Socialists denounced the concentration of wealth in the hands of a few and defended the interests of the majority, in particular by defending a fairer distribution of wealth. They advocated state intervention in order to protect business from private ownership. The CCF was founded, its a political party that is proposing several reforms including greater control of the public services by the government.

Growing american influence

1945

Higher salaries allowed for the purchasing of goods, which until then had been unaffordable. Working-class families could buy appliances that make housework easier. Quebec society will be greatly influenced by American culture (music, television, radio, cars)

Rise of secularism

1948

After World War 2, the power of the church was strongly contested. Many believed in the separation of Church and State. Rural life and respect for the church’s authority, a growing number of citizens, intellectuals in particular, felt let down by this dominant ideology. They believed that religion should be a private except in spiritual affairs. In their opinion, education and society services should be run by the state.

Rise of québec nationalism

1966

With the Quiet Revolution and the rise of new Quebec nationalism, the traditional and conservative values of French Canadian nationalism were abandoned. Quebec nationalism now focused on promoting the French language, guarding the provinces areas of jurisdiction and having its people recognized as a distinct society.

Aboriginalism

1972

This is when the aboriginals began to assert their conception of the nation. They want respect for their rights and for Canada to consider their point of view, interests and cultural characteristics. They want their culture and territory protected.

Neoliberalism

1980

This is an ideology that advocates a laissez-faire approach to the economy and calls the state interventionism into question. Local international groups come together and demand: the reduction in state intervention in areas of public life, free markets to encourage economic trade and individual responsibility.