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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 4 page article critique on an essay by Alan Gordon, which describes the shifting perception of Jacques Cartier in Canadian history and the role that this has played. No additional sources cited.
Page Count:
4 pages (~225 words per page)
File: KL9_khgorcan.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
by describing how Cartier was virtually unknown to Canadians prior to the nineteenth century, which is when Cartier himself was "discovered," so to speak, by the historians of that era.
Having introduced his material, Gordon states his premise rather deep in to the essay, which is that he "...will attempt to show how historical heroes are used for political ends"
(Gordon 82). This is an evocative approach, which Gordon explores in a variety of ways. First of all, he discusses how heroes have the power to "unite people in
a political community" (Gordon 82). In doing so, Gordon draws upon the philosophy of Immanuel Kant, as well as the idea of Bill Butler and Thomas Carlyle, who all made
insightful comments on the role that historical heroes play in how a national populace conceptualizes its identity as a specific people with a shared communal past. As Gordon states, "The
hero is a figure that supports the shared hopes, dreams, meanings, and especially memories of a society" (Gordon 82). This argument flows logically into a more detailed discussion of French-Canadian
nationalism, the ideas that it encompasses and Cartiers role in this paradigm. In doing so, Gordon delineates how Cartier came to be perceived within the context of nineteenth century Canadian
politics and by both sides of that political spectrum, conservative and liberal, making it clear that, at first, he was perceived as justifying the "conservative vision of the French-Canadian nation"
(Gordon 83). The article goes on to expand on the various roles that the perception Cartier played in the national consciousness. For example, as well as being the Discoverer
of Canada, he came to be conceived as the "founder of Catholicism in the New World" (Gordon 84). The author then relates how this perception translated within the context of
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