Through the looking glass

Canadian identity and the War of 1812

Bibliographic Data

ID5699501
AuthorsClaire Turenne Sjolander (University of Ottawa, corresponding author)
Year2014
Volume69
Issue2
Pages152-167
Publication date2014-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal Canada s Journal of Global Policy Analysis (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0020-7020 • E-ISSN: 2052-465X
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0020702014527892
OpenAlexW2092810805
LanguageEN
Citations received5

In 2012, the Harper government launched a national celebration of the bicentennial of the War of 1812, even though few Canadians were aware of the anniversary or of the war itself. While commemorating a largely unknown war might at first seem counterintuitive, this article argues that the focus on the War of 1812 represented an opportunity to engage in the construction of a different Canadian identity. In effect, the narrative surrounding the War of 1812 celebrations permitted the Conservative government to begin to establish a new "warrior identity" in contrast to the "peacekeeping identity" that has been associated with liberal internationalism and the Liberal Party. While liberal internationalism in both the study and practice of Canadian foreign policy contributed to a national identity framed around shared internationalist values, the narratives presented during the War of 1812 celebrations suggest an alternative understanding of the "true" nature of Canadian identity

Aesthetics · Identity (music · Internationalism (politics · Literature · Narrative · National identity · Nationalism · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Spanish Civil War · World War II · Canadian Identity and History · Gender Studies · Law

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