Tag Archives: Alexis de Tocqueville

Alexis de Tocqueville on Lower Canada

17 Wednesday Jan 2018

Posted by in Art, Canadian History

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The First Snow Canadian Homestead, c. 1856 (la Galerie Walter Klinkhoff)

The First Snow | Canadian  Homestead by Cornelius Krieghoff, c. 1856
(La Galerie Walter Klinkhoff, Montreal)

Scene in the Laurentian, by Cornelius Krieghoff

Winter Scene in the Laurentians by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1867 (La Galerie Walter Klinkhoff, Montreal)

I published this article on 21st December 2013. My next post would be difficult to understand without the information provided in my earlier post and another earlier post.

Alexis de Tocqueville on Bas-Canada (Lower* Canada)

We are still in Lower Canada or Bas-Canada. * “Lower” means down the St. Lawrence river, closer to the Atlantic Ocean.  Our images are by Cornelius Krieghoff (19 June 1815 – 8 April 1872) who arrived in New York in 1836, immediately after completing his studies. Although Krieghoff had a brother in Toronto, Canada, but he settled in the province of Quebec. 

However, we are also reading excerpts from French political thinker and historian  Alexis de Tocqueville (29 July 1805 – 16 April 1859), whose two-volume Democracy in America, published in 1835 and 1840, depicts America as it was and, to a large extent, as it has remained: materialistic and much too individualistic.

In 1831, Alexis de Tocqueville and Gustave de Beaumont (6 February 1802 – 30 March 1866), a magistrate and prison reformer, had travelled to North America in order to write a report on prisons in America, which they did.

However, Tocqueville’s curiosity led him to the former New France and induced him to discuss slavery in America.  In fact, it is now somewhat difficult to remember that Tocqueville and Beaumont’s mission was to examine the prison system in the New World.  Tocqueville and Beaumont were in Bas-Canada from August 23rd until September 2nd.  It was a short visit, but Tocqueville’s portrayal of Bas-Canada and the dangers confronting it are exceptionally insightful.[i] 

The Toll Gate, by Cornelius Krieghoff

Winter Landscape by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1849 (National Gallery of Canada)

The Ice Bridge at Longueil, by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1847-1848 National Gallery of Canada

The Ice Bridge at Longue-Pointe by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1847-1848 (National Gallery of Canada)

Lower Canada or Bas-Canada

« Le Canada pique vivement notre curiosité.  La nation française s’y est conservée intacte : on y a les mœurs et on y parle la langue du siècle de Louis XIV. » (Tocqueville)

“The French nation has been preserved there.  As a result, one can observe the customs and the language spoken during Louis XIV’s reign.” (Note 2)[ii] (Corbo’s translation)

« [I]l n’y a pas six mois, je croyais, comme tout le monde, que le Canada était devenu complètement anglais. » (Tocqueville)

In a letter to his mother, dated 7 September 1831, Tocqueville writes that: “not even six months ago, [he] believed, like everyone else, that Canada had become thoroughly English.” (Corbo’s translation)

« Nous nous sentions comme chez nous, et partout on nous recevait comme des compatriotes, enfants de la vieille France, comme ils l’appellent. À mon avis, l’épithète est mal choisie : la vieille France est au Canada ; la nouvelle est chez nous. » (Note 3)[iii] (Tocqueville)

“We felt like we were at home and everywhere people greeted us as one of their own, as descendants of ‘Old France’ as they called it.  But to me, it seems more like Old France lives on in Canada and that it is our country [France] which is the new one.”  Thus, Tocqueville was surprised by realities he discovered in Canada. Compared to his visits to other foreign countries, the visit to Lower Canada was a brief one. (Note 4) (Tocqueville & Corbo.)

The seigneurial system and Religion

He notes that the seigneurial system is, for the most part, a “formality,” and that Religion is central to the community.

“The seigneurial system, which would last until 1854, is more of a formality than anything else, even though it is a source of irritation for some.  But this does not keep the lands from being properly farmed or from prospering.  Religion is central to the community; the clergy holds an important place and proves to be unquestionably loyal to the British authority.” (Corbo)

The Wealth is under English Control

Even though the peasants are prosperous, the real wealth is in the hands of the country’s Englishmen.  The Mondelet brothers, who [sic] Tocqueville met in Montreal on August 24th, as well as the anonymous English merchant he met on August  26th, reveal to Tocqueville that, “almost all the wealth and commerce is under English control.”  On September 1st, Tocqueville confirms in his notes that “the English have control of all foreign trade and run domestic trade without any opposition.” (Note 7)[iv] (Corbo & Corbo’s translations)

Si les paysans sont prospères, la grande richesse, elle, appartient aux Anglais du pays. Tant les frères Mondelet, rencontrés à Montréal le 24 août, que le marchand anglais anonyme de Québec, le 26 août, indiquent à Tocqueville que « presque toute la richesse et le commerce est dans les mains des Anglais. » (Corbo & others)

Predominance of the English Language & Anglicisms

In both cities, “all the signs [enseignes] are in English and there are only two English theatres.” During his visit to the courthouse in Quebec City, Tocqueville observes the predominance of the English language and the mediocrity of the language of French-speaking lawyers, which is riddled with Anglicisms. (Note 8)[v] (Corbo.)

Tant à Montréal qu’à Québec, la langue anglaise domine dans la vie et sur la place publique:  « La plupart des journaux, les affiches et jusqu’aux enseignes des marchands français sont en anglais. » (Corbo & Tocqueville)

So, on 26 August, having visited the courthouse, Tocqueville comes to the conclusion that the French who live in the former New France are a conquered people and that it is an “irreversible tragedy.”

 Je n’ai jamais été plus convaincu qu’en sortant [de ce tribunal] que le plus grand et le plus irrémédiable malheur pour un peuple c’est d’être conquis.

“I have never been more convinced than after I left the courthouse that the greatest and most irreversible tragedy for a people is to be conquered.” (Note 10)[vi] (Corbo’s translation) 

Indians at Snowy Landscape, by Cornelius Krieghoff, c. 1847-1848 (The National Gallery of Canada)

Indians at Snowy Landscape by Cornelius Krieghoff, c. 1847-1848 (The National Gallery of Canada)

Comments

Having expressed pleasure in finding that New France had become Old France, Tocqueville then fears for the future of the French nation he has visited.  He was right.  The French-Canadian habitant was still prosperous, but there did come a point when the thirty acres could no longer be divided.  In fiction as in history, regionalism died.  In his 1938 Trente Arpents, or Thirty Acres, Ringuet, the pseudonym used by Philippe Panneton, chronicled its passing away in a poignant manner.  The habitant had nowhere to go.  Nearly a million French-Canadians and Acadians left for the United States.

RELATED ARTICLES:

“Pour l’amour du bon Dieu ” by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1858 (la Galerie Walter Klinkhoff, Montreal)

Sources and Resources

Tocqueville, Alexis de, Œuvres complètes : œuvres, papiers et correspondances, édition définitive publiée sous la direction de J. P. Mayer, Paris, Gallimard, 1951-2002, 18 tomes en 30 volumes.

Alexis de Tocqueville, Correspondance familiale, Œuvres complètes, t. XIV, Paris, Gallimard, 1998) in Œuvres complètes.

Habitant, by Cornelius Krieghoff (note the ceinture fléchée) (la Galerie Walter Klinkhoff)

“Va au Diable” by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1858 (note the ceinture fléchée), (la Galerie Walter Klinkhoff, Montreal) 

Our habitant says “For the love of God,” knocking at his lawyer’s door, and “Go to the Devil,” as he leaves.  He is wearing a hat called une tuque and his ceinture fléchée.

Love to everyone and a Happy New Year ♥
____________________

[i] Claude Corbo, in the Encyclopedia of French Cultural Heritage in North America.  As indicated, Corbo is at times the narrator and, at times, a translator. 

[ii] Alexis de Tocqueville, Correspondance familiale, Œuvres complètes, t. XIV, Paris, Gallimard, 1998, p. 105. (Note 2)  

[iii] Alexis de Tocqueville, Correspondance familiale, Œuvres complètes, t. XIV, Paris, Gallimard, 1998, p.129. (Note 3)

[iv] Alexis de Tocqueville, Œuvres 1, p. 210. (Note 7)

[v] Œuvres 1, p. 210. (Note 8)

[vi] Alexis de Tocqueville, Œuvres I, p. 205. (Note 10)

The video has been removed.

The Valley of the Cariboo, by Cornelius Krieghoff,

The Valley of the Cariboo by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1856 (la Galerie Walter Klinkhoof)

© Micheline Walker
31 December 2013
WordPress
 

La Saint-Jean-Baptiste & Canada Day

06 Monday Jul 2015

Posted by in Canada, History, Rebellions

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Mackenzie House 2012 (photo © by James Marsh).

William Lyon Mackenzie’s house on Bond Street in downtown Toronto.

Canada’s National Holiday

On Wednesday, July 1st, Canadians celebrated their National Holiday. As for the citizens of Quebec, they celebrated their National Holiday on 24 June which is Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day, the former Saint-Jean. The date on which Saint-Jean-Baptiste is celebrated is on or near the summer solstice or Midsummer Day, the longest day of the year. This year, the summer solstice occurred on the 22 June.

Midsummer Dance by Anders Zorn, 1897 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Midsummer Dance by Anders Zorn, 1897 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As for Canada Day, it is celebrated on the anniversary of Confederation, the day Canada became a Dominion of Great Britain: 1st July 1867. I have written posts telling the story of Confederation and have listed them at the foot of this post.

Although the people of Quebec do not celebrate Canada day, the province of Quebec was one of the four initial signatories of the British North America Act. Quebec’s Premier was George-Étienne Cartier, named after George III, hence the English spelling of George, i.e. no final ‘s’. The other three provinces to join Confederation on 1st July 1867 were Ontario, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

The Discrepancy: Quebec and Ottawa

As you know, a large number of Québécois are nationalists and many advocate the separation, to a lesser or greater extent, of the Province of Quebec from the remainder of Canada. This explains why Quebec, one of the first four signatories of the British North America Act, does not observe Canada Day.

It could be argued that the province of Quebec was Lower Canada risen from its ashes, land apportioned by Britain itself, under the terms of the Constitutional Act of 1791, to the descendants of the citizens of New France defeated by British forces on 13 September 1759 at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham.* The battle had claimed the life of both its commanding officers: Louis-Joseph de Montcalm, aged 47, and  General James Wolfe, aged 32, but it had lasted a mere fifteen minutes. 

*The Battle of the Plains of Abraham is thus called, i.e. Abraham, because it was fought on land belonging to Abraham Martin.  

The Greater Loss to Quebecers 

  • 1759, the Battle of the Plains of Abraham
  • 1840, the union of Upper and Lower Canada

Of the two, first, the loss of Lower Canada’s motherland, ceded to Britain in 1763, and, second, the Act of Union of 1841 which followed the Rebellions of 1837-1838, the greater loss may well be the loss of Lower Canada. One cannot know the fate awaiting Nouvelle-France had France won the Seven Years’ War (1856-1763), called the French and Indian War in North America. Under the terms of the Treaty of Paris, signed in 1763, France chose to keep its sugar-rich Caribbean colonies, as well as the islands of Saint-Pierre et Miquelon, off the coast of Newfoundland. 

However, Quebec had been granted a period of grace after the Treaty of Paris, signed in 1763. The citizens of the former New France knew they had become a colony of Britain, but they had yet to feel the full impact of their condition as British but ‘conquered’ subjects.

A Reprieve

  • the Treaty of Paris
  • the Quebec Act of 1774
  • the Constitutional Act of 1791
  • betrayal

There had been a reprieve. First, France negotiated the cession of Nouvelle-France. Britain would not deprive its new subjects of their language, their religion, their property and their seigneuries. It didn’t. Second, by virtue of the Quebec Act of 1774, the citizens of the former New France had become full-fledged citizens of a British Canada. Third, less than two decades after the Quebec Act of 1774, 17 years to be precise, the Constitutional Act of 1791 had divided the vast province of Quebec into Upper and Lower Canada.

Whatever its purpose, the Constitutional Act of 1791 created Lower Canada and, in the eyes of Canadiens, Lower Canada was their country, or terroir, which they were now losing. Therefore, if one takes into account the loss of Lower Canada and the determination to assimilate Canadiens, the Act of Union of 1841 was betrayal on the part of Britain, not Upper Canada.

(Courtesy The Canadian Encyclopedia)
(Charles William Jefferys)
(Photo credit: Wikipedia [2])

William Lyon Mackenzie
Toronto Marching down Yonge Street
Battle of Saint-Denis, Quebec
Battle of Saint-Eustache (Quebec)

Twin Rebellions

  • similar motivation
  • Mackenzie and Papineau as allies
  • patriots and  patriotes

The Rebellions of 1837 and 1838 occurred in both Canadas: Upper and Lower Canada. These could be perceived as twin rebellions orchestrated by Louis-Joseph Papineau (7 Oct 1786 – 25 Sept 1871), in Lower Canada, and William Lyon Mackenzie (12 March 1795 [Scotland]-28 August 1864 [Toronto]), in Upper Canada.

However, Papineau and William Lyon Mackenzie were not fighting against one another. Both Papineau and Mackenzie were “patriots” and allies. Their common  motivation was to be granted a responsible government and, consequently, greater democracy.

Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that the citizens of Upper Canada were English-speaking Canadians living on British soil. As for the citizens of Lower Canada, they were a conquered people, former French subjects, living on British soil and realizing that they had been conquered. Not all of Lower Canada’s rebels were Canadiens. One was Dr Wolfred Nelson (10 July 1791 – 17 June 1863), a patriote and a future Mayor of Montreal.[1]

The majority however were descendants of the citizens of a defeated Nouvelle-France. In short, the rebels of Upper Canada differed from the rebels of Lower Canada. The patriots and the patriotes were not on an equal footing, so it is somewhat difficult to speak of the rebellions as twin rebellions. They weren’t, at least not entirely and not according to a reality of the mind.

The Rebellions in Lower Canada

  • different intensity
  • repressive measures, harsher

There were two rebellions in Lower Canada. The first took place in 1837 and the second, in 1838. The rebellions in Lower Canada were more intensive than their equivalent in Upper Canada.[2] Six battles had been waged in Lower Canada. Repressive measures were therefore much harsher:

“[b]etween the two uprisings [in Lower Canada], 99 captured militants were condemned to death but only 12 went to the gallows, while 58 were transported to the penal colony of Australia. In total the six battles of both campaigns left 325 dead, 27 of them soldiers and the rest rebels. Thirteen men were executed (one by the rebels), one was murdered, one committed suicide, and two prisoners were shot.” (Peter Buckner, “Rebellion in Lower Canada,” The Canadian Encyclopedia.)

Most importantly, as we will see below, Lord Durham had recommended the assimilation of Canadiens, which was devastating to the people of Lower Canada. In Upper Canada, three men were hanged and William Lyon Mackenzie fled to the United States. He lived in New York until he was pardoned in 1849. Louis-Joseph Papineau also fled to the United States and then sailed to France. As for Dr Wolfred Nelson, he was unable to flee and was exiled to Bermuda. It was a brief period of exile.

Dispossession

  • Act of Union of 1840-1841
  • Lower Canada, the homeland of French-speaking subjects

Clearly, for the former citizens of Lower Canada, the Act of Union of 1840-1841 was dispossession. During the years that preceded the Rebellions, it had occurred to Louis-Joseph Papineau, the leader of the Parti canadien, that Lower Canada should seek independence from Britain. Although Nouvelle-France had been ceded to Britain, by virtue of the Constitutional Act of 1791, Lower Canada belonged to Britain’s French-speaking subjects. Britain could not help itself to the vaults of both Upper and Lower Canada, its North American colony.

Lord Durham

Lord Durham (Courtesy The Canadian Encyclopedia)

Lord Durham’s Report

  • an ethnic conflict
  • a United Province of Canada
  • the assimilation of French-speaking Canadians
  • a responsible government
  • Tocqueville: a nation

It should be pointed out that  in the Report John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham  submitted after he investigated the rebellions in the two Canadas, he concluded that the Rebellions were an ethnic conflict, which is not altogether true nor altogether false. The rebellions were a quest for responsible government which Lord Durham himself proposed in his Report. The motivation was the same in  both Canadas: responsible government.

However, in his Report, Lord Durham proposed not only the Union of both Canadas, but also recommended the assimilation of French-speaking Canadians whom he viewed as a people possessing “neither a  history nor a literature.” Never were French-speaking Canadians so offended! The Act of Union of 1841 created a United Province of Canada.

Moreover, when  the United Province of Canada was created, the land apportioned English-speaking and French-speaking Canadians made French-speaking Canadians a minority. It should also be noted that the United Province of Canada  was not granted a responsible government, which had been the reason why the two Canadas rebelled and one of Lord Durham’s recommendations.

The time had come for both Canadas, now united, to be mostly self-governed. During a trip to Lower Canada, Alexis de Tocqueville noticed and noted that the French in Lower Canada had become what I would call a nation, but a conquered nation that had yet to enter the Industrial Age and whose people had not acquired the skills they required to leave their farms, or thirty acres, trente arpents, the acreage provided to the settlers of Nouvelle-France.

Alexis de Tocqueville in Lower Canada

  • a nation, but a nation conquered

In 1831, Alexis de Tocqueville (29 July 1805 – 16 April 1859) and Gustave de Beaumont (16 February 1802 – 30 March 1866) took a little time off from their duties in the United States, to visit the inhabitants of France’s former colony, believing they had become British, or  assimilated, which was not the case. Their language, religion, land and seigneuries had not been taken away from French-speaking Canadians. They were  a nation, albeit a conquered nation.

Canadiens wanted news of “la vieille France,” old France, but there was no “vieille France,” not after the French Revolution. What was left of vieille France, Tocqueville and Beaumont found in Lower Canada. According to Tocqueville, the villain in the loss of New France was Louis XV of France. Louis XV had abandoned France’s colony in North America.

It is astonishing that, in 1831, a few years before the Rebellions and during a brief visit to Lower Canada, Tocqueville should express the opinion that the “greatest and most irreversible misfortune that can befall a people is to be conquered:”

Je n’ai jamais été plus convaincu qu’en sortant [de ce tribunal] que le plus grand et le plus irrémédiable malheur pour un peuple c’est d’être conquis.

(See RELATED ARTICLES, below.)

The above is significant. In the wake of the Acte d’Union, Antoine Gérin-Lajoie wrote his plaintive “Un Canadien errant,” dated 1842. Moreover, as mentioned above, French-speaking Canadians had begun creating a “literary homeland,” (la Patrie littéraire) the name given to the  period of French-Canadian literature during which French-speaking Canadians set about proving Lord Durham wrong, which they did successfully.

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Baldwin and Lafontaine (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Robert Baldwyn and Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine

  • Robert Baldwin and Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine
  • ‘Assimilation’ cancelled (1842)
  • Responsible government achieved (1846)

Matters would also be redressed ‘politically,’ so to speak. In 1842, shortly after the Act of Union was passed (1840-1841) Louis-Hippolyte LaFontaine (4 October 1807 – 26 February 1864) was elected Joint Prime Minister of the United Province of Canada, a position he shared with Robert Baldwin whose jurisdiction was the western portion of the United Province of Canada. Lord Durham’s proposed assimilation of Britain’s French-speaking subjects  was never implemented.  Finally, although it would not happen immediately, the Baldwin-LaFontaine team would achieve the objective pursued by the rebels of 1837 and 1838, responsible government, which meant greater democracy.

LaFontaine resigned one year after his appointment as Prime Minister because Britain was not delivering on responsible government. However, in 1848, James Bruce, the 8th Earl of Elgin, who had been named governor general of the United Province of Canada in 1846, asked Lafontaine (also spelled LaFontaine) to form a responsible government.

“LaFontaine thus became the first prime minister of Canada in the modern sense of the term. During this second administration, he demonstrated the achievement of responsible government by the passage of the Rebellion Losses Bill, despite fierce opposition and violent demonstrations. His ministry also passed an Amnesty Act to forgive the 1837-38 rebels, secularized King’s College into the University of Toronto, incorporated many French Canadian colleges, established Université Laval, adopted important railway legislation and reformed municipal and judicial institutions.” (Jacques Monet, S. J., “Sir Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine,” The Canadian Encyclopedia.)

Confederation

So a mere twenty-six (26) years after passage of the Act of Union, Quebec, under the leadership of George-Étienne Cartier, entered Confederation. Sir George-Étienne Cartier asked that Quebec retain its recently-acquired Code civil and that primary education remain compulsory. These requests were granted.

Confederation had the immense benefit of returning to Canadiens their former Lower Canada. They regained a territory or patrimoine (a homeland), however mythical. And they have bestowed on their patrimoine its National Day, la Saint-Jean-Baptiste.

At the last meeting of the Liberal Party of Quebec, Premier Dr Philippe Couillard, stated that Quebec was a patrimoine to Québécois and Canada, their country.

My kindest regards to all you and apologies for being away from my computer and late in every way. Yesterday was Independence Day. Belated wishes to my American readers. Next, I will write about an award. ♥

RELATED ARTICLES

____________________

[1] See Lower Canada Rebellion, Wikipedia.
[2] Ibid.

Canada’s National Anthems

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© Micheline Walker
5 July 2015
(revised 6 July 2015)
WordPress

Koiné Languages and Créole Languages

19 Sunday Jan 2014

Posted by in Beast Literature, France, Mulatto

≈ Comments Off on Koiné Languages and Créole Languages

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American Flamingo, by John J. Audubon, Brooklyn Museum

American Flamingo by John J. Audubon, Brooklyn Museum (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Famous Créoles

There are several famous Créoles. John James Audubon was born in Les Cayes, Saint-Domingue. Saint-Domingue is the current Haiti. Joséphine de Beauharnais, the first wife of Napoleon I, was also a Créole. She was born in Les Trois-Îlets, Martinique. Although Célestine Musson De Gas, Edgar Degas’ mother, was a Créole, Edgar was born in Paris, France and, therefore, Degas is not a Créole.

John Singer Sargent‘s controversial  “Madame X” was Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau. Virginie Gautreau was a Créole (people) from Louisiana. She was born in New Orleans, but moved to France at the age of 8. Virginie and Joséphine de Beauharnais may have been exposed to créole (the language), but they spoke French, a standard or koiné language. (See Créole Peoples, Wikipedia)

The Cotton Exchange, by Edgar Degas, 1873

The Cotton Exchange by Edgar Degas, 1873 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Colonialism and the development of natural languages

Colonialism led to the growth of languages called natural languages, many of these languages are créole languages. Créole languages are spoken by people inhabiting former French colonies as well as the former colonies of Spain and Portugal. (See Créole Language, Wikipedia)

The Development of créole (language)

The development of Créole languages is related to the Atlantic slave trade. Slaves created a language based on the language spoken by slave owners yet somewhat different. In his Uncle Remus‘ stories Joel Chandler Harris used an eye dialect to represent a Deep South Gullah “dialect,” the English spoken by Uncle Remus, Harris’ narrator. Reading Harris is not easy. Deep South Gullah is also a natural language, as is créole, except that it is based on English. Joel Chandler Harris has been discussed and will be discussed again in a forthcoming post. There are many French Créole languages, Louisiana, Martinique and Guadeloupe constituting three locations where it has been preserved.

Such is also the case with créole languages based on Spanish and Portuguese. Criollo is Spanish and crioulo, Portuguese. The word “créole” is derived from the Latin creare: to create. (See Creole language, Wikipedia.)

My goal was to include a discussion of prominent black persons, such as Toussaint L’Ouverture and mulattos. My post was too long. They will be discussed in a forthcoming post, perhaps today.

Quebec

The Wikipedia entry on French Créole languages includes French as it is or was spoken in Quebec among créole languages. That is problematical. Alexis de Tocqueville (29 July 1805 – 16 April 1859), and Gustave de Beaumont (6 February 1802 – 30 March 1866) were able to communicate fluently with the citizens of the former New France. There were a few slaves in New France, but I doubt that they had to create a language slave owners would understand.

Alexis de Tocqueville

In 1831, when Tocqueville visited Bas-Canada (Lower Canada), the French nation he discovered spoke 17th-century French.[i] “The French nation has been preserved there. As a result, one can observe the customs and the language spoken during Louis XIV’s reign.”

« Le Canada pique vivement notre curiosité. La nation française s’y est conservée intacte : on y a les mœurs et on y parle la langue du siècle de Louis XIV. » (Tocqueville)  

However, as Tocqueville noted, anglicisms were entering the French spoken in Bas-Canada.

« Tant à Montréal qu’à Québec, la langue anglaise domine dans la vie et sur la place publique : ‹ La plupart des journaux, les affiches et jusqu’aux enseignes des marchands français sont en anglais. ›» (Corbo & Tocqueville)

In both cities, “all the signs [enseignes] are in English and there are only two English theatres.” During his visit to the courthouse in Quebec City, Tocqueville observes the predominance of the English language and the mediocrity of the language of French-speaking lawyers, which is riddled with Anglicisms. (Corbo)

“Joual”

French-speaking Canadians or Québécois sometimes speak “joual,” which is the “joual” way of saying “cheval” (horse). Shame on them! I have also noticed that some of my Acadian students spoke French more intelligibly than others. But they spoke French. Acadian author Antonine Maillet was awarded the Prix Goncourt for her Pélagie-la-charrette (1979). The Goncourt is the most coveted literary prize for authors writing in French.

Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau, better known as

John Singer Sargent’s Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau, better known as “Madame X,” was a Creole from New Orleans. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

‘

The Créole people and the créole language

Créole people: the common denominator is the place of birth, not colour or mixed racial origin.

Créoles can be white people born in a French colony, or black and mulatto people inhabiting French colonies mainly. However, créole is also spoken by the descendants of Spanish or Portuguese settlers born outside Spain or Portugal, in a Spanish or Portuguese colony. According to Britannica, a Créole was “originally, any person of European (mostly French or Spanish) or African descent born in the West Indies or parts of French or Spanish America (and thus naturalized in those regions rather than in the parents’ home country).”[ii]

As for créole languages, they are natural languages, as is African-American English. Joel Chandler Harris‘ Uncle Remus speaks African-American English, a Gullah English. According to Britannica, créole languages are “vernacular languages that developed in colonial European plantation settlements in the 17th and 18th centuries as a result of contact between groups that spoke mutually unintelligible languages.”[iii]

Consequently, Créole people do not necessarily speak a créole language.  For instance, Edgar Degas‘ mother, Célestine Musson De Gas, was a Créole from Louisiana, but Edgar was born in Paris. He is not a Créole. Similarly, the first wife of Napoléon I, Joséphine de Beauharnais, was a Créole. Joséphine was born in Martinique, a French colony, although she was white, she may have been familiar with a créole language. However, both Edgar Degas and Joséphine spoke French, a standard language or koiné language. A koiné language is a standard language or dialect (English, French, Spanish, etc.) that has arisen as a result of contact between two or more mutually intelligible varieties (dialects) of the same language.” (See Koiné language, Wikipedia.)[iv]

Quebec women caught speaking créole: Language Watchdogs Alerted

Recently, the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF), the Quebec Board of the French Language, received a complaint because two women were speaking créole, in the workplace, rather than French.

http://montreal.ctvnews.ca/creole-speaking-hospital-workers-elicit-warning-from-oqlf-1.1597784

RELATED ARTICLES:

____________________
[i] Claude Corbo, Encyclopedia of French Cultural Heritage in North America. As indicated, Corbo is at times the narrator and, at times, a translator. 
[ii] “Creole.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 17 Jan. 2014. <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/142548/Creole>.
[iii] “creole languages.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 17 Jan. 2014.
<http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/142562/creole-languages>.
[iv] “koine.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 17 Jan. 2014.
<http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/321152/koine>
 
 
Joseph Boulogne, Chevalier de Saint-George (c. 1745 – c. 1799)
11th Concerto, in G Major, Opus 7, No. 2, Largo
Orchestre de chambre de Versailles
Bernard Wahl & Anne-Claude Villars
The painting is a detail from Jean-Honoré Fragonard‘s  “Progress of Love: the Meeting”  
LindoroRossini

Portrait_of_Chevalier_de_Saint-George

© Micheline Walker
19 January 2014
WordPress
 
 
Monsieur de Saint-George, Portrait de Mather Brown & William Ward.
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Colonization & The Revenge of the Cradles

11 Saturday Jan 2014

Posted by in Art, Canadian History, French-Canadian Literature

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Barns, by Clarence Gagnon, 1926

Barns by Clarence Gagnon, 1926 (National Gallery of Canada)

Demographic Growth in Québec

During the one week  (1805 – 16 April 1859) Alexis de Tocqueville spent in Bas-Canada (Lower Canada),[i] he marveled at the fact that there was still a French nation in North America. In particular, he “noticed the demographic growth of the French Canadians, their numbers almost ten times what it was when the colony was handed over to Great Britain.”[ii] There were about 70,000 Francophone Roman Catholics in 1763, the year New France became a British colony. In 1831, the population of Lower Canada was 550,000 (See Canada under British Rule, Wikipedia). However 8,000 United Empire Loyalists, including 300 slaves, had settled in the Eastern Townships.[iii]

Tocqueville feared for the future. French-Canadians were mainly habitants and quite prosperous but, on 1st September, 1831, Tocqueville confirmed in his notes that “the English have control of all foreign trade and run domestic trade without any opposition.” (Note 7)[iv] In other words, what would happen to the French nation he was so pleased to have visited? They were habitants, lawyers, doctors, priests and teachers who were members of a religious order). Until the 1960s, Nuns also administered hospitals.

So although there were shops, general stores, and several small businesses in Lower Canada, large businesses and factories belonged to the anglophone population. However, la revanche des berceaux, the revenge of the cradles, a very high birthrate, played a significant role in the survival of the francophone population of Canada and North America. The men “colonized” and women gave birth to a large number of children who reached adulthood. But Tocqueville also commented on the motherland’s neglect of its subjects in New France.

The Abandonment of New France

The Lower Canada visited by Alexis de Tocqueville had grown into a small nation due, to a large extent, to a very high birthrate. However, given the manner in which they greeted Tocqueville and Beaumont, I would suspect the small nation he visited had chosen to view itself as “conquered” rather than abandoned, thus “resisting” its fate. Yet, as Tocqueville stated, they had been abandoned, which constituted “one of the greatest ignominies of Louis XV’s shameful reign.”       

Dans une lettre du 26 novembre 1831, commentant la politique française du XVIIIe siècle concernant la Nouvelle-France, il écrit de l’« abandon » de ces sujets français qu’il est « une des plus grandes ignominies du honteux règne de Louis XV ».[iv] (Corbo)

In a letter dated 26th November 1831, he criticizes France’s dealings with its North-American colony during the 18th century, referring to the “abandonment” of loyal subjects of the French Empire. Then he adds that it was “one of the greatest ignominies of Louis XV’s shameful reign.” (Corbo)

Louis XV by Hyacinthe Rigaud in 1730

Louis XV by Hyacinthe Rigaud, 1730 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Conquest or Abandonment

It is not uncommon for Québécois to speak of “la conquête” and to look upon the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, fought on 13 September 1759, as the British military victory that undid New France.  In fact, in his account of his visit to Lower Canada, Alexis de Tocqueville himself used both the words: “conquis” (conquered) and “abandon,” (abandonment) referring to France’s lost colony.

The Battle of the Plains of Abraham was decisive. At the conclusion of a war, battles are tallied up. However, I would suspect that the Battle of the Plains of Abraham did not carry much weight in the minds of persons drafting the Traité de Paris (1763). When the Traité de Paris was negotiated, France had lost the Seven Years’ War (1756 – 1763), or French and Indian War. Moreover, the Seven Years’ War had been an international conflict.

Consequently, having lost the war, France had to cede some of its colonies and it ceded New France, “quelques arpents de neige” (a few acres of snow) (Voltaire‘s Candide 1759, chapter 23), as well as the eastern part of French Louisiana to Britain, keeping its sugar-rich Caribbean colonies (Guadeloupe and Martinique) and two small islands, Saint-Pierre et Miquelon, off the coast of the current Newfoundland, a pied-à-terre for its fisherman in the North Atlantic.

It follows that Tocqueville’s description of the cession of New France is, to a large extent, as he stated: “one of the greatest ignominies of Louis XV’s shameful reign.” New France was abandoned. However, I should think that it was in the best interest of the abandoned nation to redress horrific events by considering itself a “conquered,” rather than abandoned people. Doing so could be called damage control. Careful wording can constitute a form of resistance.

Evening on the North Shore, by Clarence Gagnon

Evening on the North Shore by Clarence Gagnon, 1924 (National Gallery of Canada)

A Laurentian Homestead, by Clarence Gagnon,1919

A Laurentian Homestead by Clarence Gagnon, 1919 (National Gallery of Canada)

The “Royal Proclamation” of 1763

It would have to be resistance.  New France was not ceded unconditionally. It kept its religion, its language and its seigneuries. Habitants remained on their thirty acres, and French Civil law was respected, to a reasonable extent. Here is an excerpt from the Treaty of Paris:

“His Britannick Majesty, on his side, agrees to grant the liberty of the Catholick religion to the inhabitant of Canada: he will, in consequence, give the most precise and most effectual orders, that his new Roman Catholic subjects may profess the worship of their religion according to the rites of the Romish church, as far as the laws of Great Britain permit. His Britannick Majesty farther agrees, that the French inhabitants, or others who had been subjects of the Most Christian King in Canada, may retire with all safety and freedom wherever they shall think proper, and may sell their estates, provided it be to the subjects of his Britannick Majesty, and bring away their effects as well as their persons, without being restrained in their emigration, under any pretence whatsoever, except that of debts or of criminal prosecutions: The term limited for this emigration shall be fixed to the space of eighteen months, to be computed from the day of the exchange of the ratification of the present treaty.” (See The Treaty of Paris, Wikipedia.)  

Résistance

However, once the Traité de Paris was signed, on 10 February 1763, how long could anyone expect England to keep its promises? The small nation Tocqueville and Beaumont visited was a British colony and, as such, its future as a French-language nation was imperiled. It is relatively easy to assimilate 70,000 inhabitants.

In the case of the “Royal Proclamation,” Canadiens, as they called themselves, were little less than a man away from possible assimilation. That man was James Murray (21 January 1721, Scotland – 18 June 1794, Battle, East Sussex), the Governor of the province of Quebec.

“In October of the same year  [1763], London issues its « Royal Proclamation », thus allowing French-speakers to practice their religion. But Great Britain lets governor Murray know of its plans to found Protestant schools to assimilate the population. The proclamation also wants to replace the old French civil code of law by the British Common Law. Governor Murray judges this measure unrealistic and decides to keep the French civil laws.”[v]

Allow me to quote the Canadian Encyclopedia with respect to Governor James Murray:

“A member of the landed gentry, he supported the agrarian, French-speaking inhabitants over the newly arrived, English-speaking merchants. He was reluctant to call a legislative assembly, promised in the ROYAL PROCLAMATION OF 1763, because he feared that Canadians would be barred from it on religious grounds.”

 
The "Seven Year War" or French and Indians War

The Seven Years War or French and Indian War (blue: Great Britain, Prussia Portugal, Britain, with allies; green: France, Spain, Austria, Russia, Sweden with allies.) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Alexis de Tocqueville: 1831

When Alexis de Tocqueville visited Lower Canada in 1831, the 70,000 inhabitants, “abandoned,” in 1763, had become a small nation, which delighted him. The habitants The were in fact quite prosperous, but Tocqueville noted that “the English ha[d] control of all foreign trade and r[a]n domestic trade without any opposition,” which was alarming.[vi] What would the habitant do once his thirty acres could no longer be divided? 

Village dans les Laurentides, Clarence Gagnon, 1925 (National Gallery of Art)

Village dans les Laurentides (A Village in the Laurentides) by Clarence Gagnon, 1925 (National Gallery of Art)

Colonization & the “Revenge of the Cradles”

Tocqueville’s fears were legitimate.  Many habitants did leave for the United States, when Canadiens ran out of land.  As I wrote in earlier posts, nearly a million French Canadians and Acadians would move to the United States during a period of Canadian history named l’Exode: the exodus.  They could not find work in Canada.  However, many chose to “make land,” faire de la terre, (Chapter 4, Maria Chapdelaine).  The leader of this movement was a priest, le curé Labelle   (24 November 1833 – 4 January 1891).

Le curé Labelle [vii] proposed that French Canadians go north, to the Laurentides, Abitibi-Témiscamingue and the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, and turn unfriendly soil into arable land.  Le curé Labelle saw colonization as a realistic option, which it was, to a lesser or greater extent.  When Louis Hémon (12 October 1880 – 8 July 1913), a visitor from France, travelled to the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, the habitants, now called cultivateurs, were colonizing and the Francophone population of Quebec had grown to approximately 2 million inhabitants. Once again, a visitor from France was looking at an expanding nation. Hémon noticed a demographic victory and a will, on the part of the people of Quebec, to remain what they had always been.

Louis Hémon: 1913

Shortly after Louis Hémon arrived in Canada, he went to the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean area. He worked at Péribonka during the summer and fall and then spent the winter of 1912-1913 writing his novel: Maria Chapdelaine.  In his short novel, Louis Hémon captured a Quebec that was not about to die. After sending his novel to a publisher, Hémon started travelling west and was killed by a train, at Chapleau, Ontario. His novel was published in 1914 and proved an enduring success. Louis Hémon had seen not only a small nation, but a people who were a testimonial: “un témoignage.” Hémon did not express doubts concerning the survival of the small nation he was visiting: Quebec. “These people belong to a breed (race) that does not know how to die.” (See Chapter 15 of the novel.)

 Ces gens sont d’une race qui ne sait pas mourir.

Conclusion 

The growth of a population of 70,000 inhabitants, in 1763, to half a million, in 1831, when Alexis de Tocqueville visited Lower Canada, was perhaps due to an already high birthrate called the revanche des berceaux, the revenge of the cradles. It was not a trivial phenomenon. When Louis Hémon went to Péribonka, in 1912-1913, and spent the winter months writing Maria Chapdelaine, the francophone population of Quebec had risen to 2 million inhabitants. Three films are based on Maria Chapdelaine and we owe its first English translation to W. H. Blake.

Information: online publications, etc.

Canada under British Rule, Wikipedia (demographics).
Maria Chapdelaine is the Project Gutenberg [EBook #4383]
Maria Chapdelaine is the Project Gutenberg [EBook #13525]
It is also a Wikisource publication EN.
Voltaire‘s Candide is the Project Gutenberg [EBook #19942]
The illustrations I have used are by Clarence Gagnon (1885 -1942), but they are not necessarily the ones Clarence Gagnon created for Maria Chapdelaine. These can be seen at the McMichael Gallery, in Kleinburg, Ontario. (Please click on McMichael Gallery to see the Maria Chapdelaine collection).
 
 
Going Home from Church, by Clarence Gagnon, 1926

Going Home from Church by Clarence Gagnon, 1926 (NGC)

RELATED ARTICLES

____________________
[i] Claude Corbo, Alexis de Tocqueville’s visit to Lower Canada in 1831, in the Encyclopedia of French Cultural Heritage in North America.
Tocqueville and Beaumont first visited Niagara Falls and then found their way to Bas-Canada. They were in Lower Canada from the 23rd of August to the 2nd September 1831.
[iii] In Upper Canada, the Act Against Slavery was an anti-slavery law passed on 9 July 1793.
[iv] Claude Corbo, op. cit.
[v] République libre: Le Bas-Canada (1763 – 1867).
[vi] Claude Corbo, op. cit. 
[vii] A miser is featured in Les Belles Histoires des pays d’en haut, a radio and television series based on Claude-Henri Grignon‘s (8 July 1894 – 3 April 1976) Un homme et son péché (1933).
Clarence Gagnon (1885 -1942) (déjà vu)
Johannes Brahms, Intermezzo, Op.117, No. 2                                                                         
 
 
Paul Robeson (9 April 1898 – 23 January 1976)
“Un Canadien errant”  
  
 
In the Laurentians, by Clarence Gagnon, 1910 (NGC)

In the Laurentians by Clarence Gagnon, 1910 (NGC)

© Micheline Walker
10 January 2014
WordPress 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Alexis de Tocqueville on Lower Canada

01 Wednesday Jan 2014

Posted by in Art, Canadian History

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The First Snow Canadian Homestead, c. 1856 (la Galerie Walter Klinkhoff)

The First Snow or Canadian Homestead by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1856
(La Galerie Walter Klinkhoff, Montreal)

Scene in the Laurentian, by Cornelius Krieghoff

Winter Scene in the Laurentians by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1867 (La Galerie Walter Klinkhoff, Montreal)

Alexis de Tocqueville on Bas-Canada (Lower* Canada)

We are still in Lower Canada or Bas-Canada. * “Lower” means down the St. Lawrence river, closer to the Atlantic Ocean.  Our images are by Cornelius Krieghoff (19 June 1815 – 8 April 1872) who arrived in New York in 1836, immediately after completing his studies. Although Krieghoff had a brother in Toronto, Canada, he settled in the province of Quebec. 

However, we are also reading excerpts from French political thinker and historian  Alexis de Tocqueville (29 July 1805 – 16 April 1859), whose two-volume Democracy in America, published in 1835 and 1840, depicts America as it was and, to a large extent, as it has remained: materialistic and much too individualistic.

In 1831, Alexis de Tocqueville and Gustave de Beaumont (6 February 1802 – 30 March 1866), a magistrate and prison reformer, had travelled to North America in order to write a report on prisons in America, which they did.

However, Tocqueville’s curiosity led him to the former New France and induced him to discuss slavery in America.  In fact, it is now somewhat difficult to remember that Tocqueville and Beaumont’s mission was to examine the prison system in the New World. Tocqueville and Beaumont were in Bas-Canada from 23 August until 2 September  It was a short visit, but Tocqueville’s portrayal of Bas-Canada and the dangers confronting it are exceptionally insightful.[i] 

The Toll Gate, by Cornelius Krieghoff

Winter Landscape by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1849 (National Gallery of Canada)

The Ice Bridge at Longueil, by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1847-1848 National Gallery of Canada

The Ice Bridge at Longue-Pointe by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1847-1848 (National Gallery of Canada)

Lower Canada or Bas-Canada

« Le Canada pique vivement notre curiosité. La nation française s’y est conservée intacte : on y a les mœurs et on y parle la langue du siècle de Louis XIV. » (Tocqueville)

“The French nation has been preserved there. As a result, one can observe the customs and the language spoken during Louis XIV’s reign.” (Note 2)[ii] (Corbo’s translation)

« [I]l n’y a pas six mois, je croyais, comme tout le monde, que le Canada était devenu complètement anglais. » (Tocqueville)

In a letter to his mother, dated 7 September 1831, Tocqueville writes that: “not even six months ago, [he] believed, like everyone else, that Canada had become thoroughly English.” (Corbo’s translation)

« Nous nous sentions comme chez nous, et partout on nous recevait comme des compatriotes, enfants de la vieille France, comme ils l’appellent. À mon avis, l’épithète est mal choisie : la vieille France est au Canada ; la nouvelle est chez nous. » (Note 3)[iii] (Tocqueville)

“We felt like we were at home and everywhere people greeted us as one of their own, as descendants of ‘Old France’ as they called it.  But to me, it seems more like Old France lives on in Canada and that it is our country [France] which is the new one.” Thus, Tocqueville was surprised by realities he discovered in Canada. Compared to his visits to other foreign countries, the visit to Lower Canada was a brief one. (Note 4) (Tocqueville & Corbo)

The seigneurial system and Religion

Tocqueville notes that the seigneurial system is, for the most part, a “formality,” and that Religion is central to the community.

“The seigneurial system, which would last until 1854, is more of a formality than anything else, even though it is a source of irritation for some. But this does not keep the lands from being properly farmed or from prospering. Religion is central to the community; the clergy holds an important place and proves to be unquestionably loyal to the British authority.” (Corbo)

The Wealth is under English control

Even though the peasants are prosperous, the real wealth is in the hands of the country’s Englishmen. The Mondelet brothers, who [sic] Tocqueville met in Montreal on 24 August, as well as the anonymous English merchant he met on 26 August, reveal to Tocqueville that, “almost all the wealth and commerce is under English control.” On 1st September, Tocqueville confirms in his notes that “the English have control of all foreign trade and run domestic trade without any opposition.” (Note 7)[iv] (Corbo & Corbo’s translations)

Si les paysans sont prospères, la grande richesse, elle, appartient aux Anglais du pays. Tant les frères Mondelet, rencontrés à Montréal le 24 août, que le marchand anglais anonyme de Québec, le 26 août, indiquent à Tocqueville que « presque toute la richesse et le commerce est dans les mains des Anglais. » (Corbo & others)

Predominance of the English Language & Anglicisms

In both cities, “all the signs [enseignes] are in English and there are only two English theatres.” During his visit to the courthouse in Quebec City, Tocqueville observes the predominance of the English language and the mediocrity of the language of French-speaking lawyers, which is riddled with Anglicisms. (Note 8)[v] (Corbo)

Tant à Montréal qu’à Québec, la langue anglaise domine dans la vie et sur la place publique : « La plupart des journaux, les affiches et jusqu’aux enseignes des marchands français sont en anglais. » (Corbo & Tocqueville)

So, on 26 August, having visited the courthouse, Tocqueville comes to the conclusion that the French who live in the former New France are a conquered people and that it is an “irreversible tragedy.”

Je n’ai jamais été plus convaincu qu’en sortant [de ce tribunal] que le plus grand et le plus irrémédiable malheur pour un peuple c’est d’être conquis.

“I have never been more convinced than after I left the courthouse that the greatest and most irreversible tragedy for a people is to be conquered.” (Note 10)[vi] (Corbo’s translation) 

 

Indians at Snowy Landscape, by Cornelius Krieghoff, c. 1847-1848 (The National Gallery of Canada)

Indians at Snowy Landscape by Cornelius Krieghoff, c. 1847-1848 (The National Gallery of Canada)

Comments

Having expressed pleasure in finding that New France had become Old France, Tocqueville then fears for the future of the French nation he has visited. He was right. The French-Canadian habitant was still prosperous, but there did come a point when the thirty acres could no longer be divided. In fiction as in history, regionalism died. In his 1938 Trente Arpents, or Thirty Acres, Ringuet, the pseudonym used by Philippe Panneton, chronicled its passing away in a poignant manner. The habitant had nowhere to go. Nearly a million French-Canadians and Acadians left for the United States.

RELATED ARTICLES:

“Pour l’amour du bon Dieu,” by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1858 (la Galerie Walter Klinkhoff, Montreal)

Sources:

Tocqueville, Alexis de, Œuvres complètes : œuvres, papiers et correspondances, édition définitive publiée sous la direction de J. P. Mayer, Paris, Gallimard, 1951-2002, 18 tomes en 30 volumes.

Alexis de Tocqueville, Correspondance familiale, Œuvres complètes, t. XIV, Paris, Gallimard, 1998) in Œuvres complètes.

Habitant, by Cornelius Krieghoff (note the ceinture fléchée) (la Galerie Walter Klinkhoff)

“Va au Diable” by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1858 (note the ceinture fléchée), (la Galerie Walter Klinkhoff, Montreal) 

Our habitant says “For the love of God,” knocking at his lawyer’s door, and “Go to the Devil,” as he leaves. He is wearing a hat called une tuque and his ceinture fléchée.

____________________

[i] Claude Corbo, in the Encyclopedia of French Cultural Heritage in North America.  As indicated, Corbo is at times the narrator and, at times, a translator. 

[ii] Alexis de Tocqueville, Correspondance familiale, Œuvres complètes, t. XIV, Paris, Gallimard, 1998, p. 105. (Note 2)  

[iii] Alexis de Tocqueville, Correspondance familiale, Œuvres complètes, t. XIV, Paris, Gallimard, 1998, p.129. (Note 3)

[iv] Alexis de Tocqueville, Œuvres 1, p. 210. (Note 7)

[v] Œuvres 1, p. 210. (Note 8)

[vi] Alexis de Tocqueville, Œuvres I, p. 205. (Note 10)

Bruce Springsteen sings My Hometown to pictures by Cornelius Krieghoff

The Valley of the Cariboo, by Cornelius Krieghoff,

The Valley of the Cariboo by Cornelius Krieghoff, 1856 (la Galerie Walter Klinkhoof)

© Micheline Walker
31 December 2013
WordPress
 

The Debt-Ceiling Crisis: the Aftermath

05 Tuesday Nov 2013

Posted by in United States

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Alexis de Tocqueville

Alexis de Tocqueville (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Alexis de Tocqueville

I started writing a post concerning US President Barack Obama‘s demotion as most powerful man in the world. He has been replaced by Russian President Vladimir Putin (b. 7 October 1952). But I stumbled upon Alexis de Tocqueville‘s De la démocratie en Amérique, Democracy in America,[i] and could not stop reading. Tocqueville was 25 when he travelled to North America. His two-volume (1835 and 1840) Democracy in America is a surprisingly mature work for so young an individual. Tocqueville also wrote on the Bas-Canada (Lower Canada). That book, if it is a book, I have to read and will.  

Forbes

According to Forbes, American President Barack Obama (b. August 4, 1961) is no longer the most powerful man in the world. Russian President Vladimir Putin has taken his place. In my opinion, President Obama does not mind ranking below Russian President Putin, but it is not a good sign. It seems that the debt-ceiling crisis may have harmed the President. However, it also harmed his country.

During the debt-ceiling crisis, Mr Boehner, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, looked almost as powerful as the President of the United States, but not smarter. Mr Boehner used the wrong weapon. One does not make raising the debt ceiling conditional upon the President not implementing the Affordable Care Act. The debt ceiling had to be raised.  It therefore seems silly on the part of Mr Boehner to have used raising the debt ceiling to fight the Affordable Care Act. In fact, intellectually, Mr Boehner was outranked by President Obama. However, I doubt that intellect and moral superiority carry weight in Washington.

image

Photo : Illustration Tiffet

Alexis de Tocqueville (1805-1859) regarderait le prochain Sommet sur l’enseignement supérieur en nous rappelant que, « s’il y a des peuples qui se laissent arracher des mains la lumière, il y en a d’autres qui l’étouffent eux-mêmes sous leurs pieds ».

 

 

 

Le Devoir
le 4 novembre 2013
Montréal
  
 

In his two-volume Democracy in America, Alexis de Tocqueville (29 July 1805 – 16 April 1859) noted that

“[m]ore than just imploding any traces of old-world aristocracy, ordinary Americans also refused to defer to those possessing, as Tocqueville put it, superior talent and intelligence. These natural elites could not enjoy much share in political power as a result. Ordinary Americans enjoyed too much power, claimed too great a voice in the public sphere, to defer to intellectual superiors. This culture promoted a relatively pronounced equality, Tocqueville argued, but the same mores and opinions that ensured such equality also promoted, as he put it, mediocrity. Those who possessed true virtue and talent would be left with limited choices.”  (See Alexis de Tocqueville, Wikipedia.)

Arrogance & Selfishness

Could Mr Boehner’s sixteen-day siege be a sign of the mediocrity Tocqueville noted? Congress turned a deaf ear to Christine Lagarde, the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund. She warned America’s lawmakers that “they risk[ed] pushing [the] world into a recession.” It would be my opinion that Congress should have paid attention to her warning. Not doing so was arrogance on the part of Mr Boehner and extremist Republicans, and it led to losses.

Moreover, Mr Boehner’s goal was to keep as much money as possible in the pockets of his wealthy constituents and, perhaps, in his own pockets. That was not edifying.  It could be that the wealthy spend millions avoiding to pay their fair share of taxes. They are showing an irresponsible form of individualism, not to mention abysmal ignorance concerning nationhood. To a certain extent, we are our brother’s keeper and should therefore pay our taxes.

Normally, I oppose individualism and collectivism when discussing avoidance of the needs of a community. But the word selfishness is fine.

Credit Rating

It appears, moreover, that the US will lose its AAA credit rating on Standard & Poor’s rating scale. (See the Huffington Post.) It was downgraded after the 2011 debt-ceiling crisis and this could happen again. In the end, Congress approved a raise in the debt ceiling. In other words, the US did not default on its obligations. However, this last debt-ceiling crisis revealed what seems a large flaw in the system. One pays one’s debts and one raises the debt ceiling if it’s too low. Besides, because of President G. W. Bush’s recklessness, the US owes China a fortune. So the debt is huge. These are not comforting circumstances. I suspect nevertheless that, once again, President Obama will be blamed.

An Executive Order

President Obama could, perhaps, have issued an executive order, but it may be that he did not want to do so until he had exhausted other options. It may also be that he and his administration could not act unilaterally. Moreover, he has faced systematic obstructionism, from day one, and keeps being made into a scapegoat. So he may have wanted the people’s elected representatives to make that particular decision and face the consequences.

So there were repercussions to this long confrontation.  President Obama both won and didn’t win.  It was a Pyrrhic victory because the crisis revealed a crude society, what Tocqueville termed “mediocrity” in America. Extremist Republicans may wish to hide their rich constituents’ money, but are doing so quite literally at any cost: 24 billion $. It makes no sense.

http://swampland.time.com/2013/10/17/heres-what-the-government-shutdown-cost-the-economy/

Tocqueville on Russia and America

According to Tocqueville:

“There are now two great nations in the world, which starting from different points, seem to be advancing toward the same goal: the Russians and the Anglo-Americans… Each seems called by some secret design of Providence one day to hold in its hands the destinies of half the world.”

It seems he was able to read into the future.

Le Devoir

Coincidentally, Tocqueville is featured in today’s Devoir, a Quebec newspaper, its finest.

http://www.ledevoir.com/societe/le-devoir-de-philo/371675/tocqueville-au-sommet-sur-l-enseignement-entre-soupirs-et-inquietudes

Conclusion   

I will not post the article I intended to post.  The above sums up what I wanted to say. The United States is harming itself and may be losing its status as superpower. However, there is a little more to write on the “Manifest Destiny” and “American Exceptionalism.” For instance, the “Manifest Destiny” is not entirely American. Nationalism is, to a large extent, a product of 19th century Europe.  In fact, it’s also a romantic concept.

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[i] Democracy in America is Project Gutenberg [EBook # 815], Volume 1 and [EBook # 816], Volume 2. It can also be read under Democracy in America (Penn State).

The music is American composer Samuel Barber‘s (9 March 1910 – 23 January 1981) Adagio for Strings (1936)

The Statue of Liberty

— The Statue of Liberty

© Micheline Walker
5 November 2013
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