Topic of the conference

Canadian cultures: beyond the past, into the future  

Canada is commonly thought of as a bilingual country, whose bilingualism has given rise to an anglophone and a francophone culture. However, Canada’s cultural landscape is much more complex, being multiethnic and multicultural. Such a complexity requires further investigation.  

The International Conference of the Italian Association for Canadian Studies aims at providing a forum for sharing some critical thinking in order to delve into the cultural, linguistic, artistic, ideological, political, economic implications of such a plurality, as well as its consequences on the construction of identities.  

Canada’s history is rooted in the co-existence of different cultures and people gradually occupying the northern part of the American continent: starting with the Indigenous peoples, who have lived therein since time immemorial, then the francophone and anglophone communities colonizing the country after the XIV century, and the latest, contemporary immigration flows. While such a diversified stratification represents one of the treasures of nowadays Canada, nonetheless it has often led to internal struggles and misunderstandings. As a consequence, the so-called Canadian identity is either seen as homogeneous and cohesive or as the result of a plurality of specific cultural entities.  

The ultimate goal of the International Conference is to offer a fruitful occasion for investigating the complex relationships between Canada’s numerous cultures so as to highlight both positive and negative aspects, such as how their co-existence leads to productive exchanges and cultural dialogue as well as to how it may result in resistance to and refusal of such diversities. 

Attention will be paid to cultural pluralities in contemporary Canada, their historical roots and future projects. Scholars working in the wider field of the Humanities can contribute to the debate in order to offer a better understanding of cultural pluralism in Canada. We encourage intersectional approaches as well as ethnographic, geographic, historical, sociological, legal, literary, linguistic and cultural perspectives. Relevant topics include, but are not limited to, the following: 

• Beliefs, traditions and practices feeding Canadian cultures ; 
• The efforts of intellectuals in taking actions and conceiving policies aiming at the improvement, revitalization, discovery of linguistic and cultural heritages  
• Innovative projects meant to promote better practices in maintaining the relationships between different people and cultural communities 
• The perception of history and traditions as a load of the past or a sparkle of new beginnings 
• Artistic and literary creativity dealing with the recognition of diversity, alterity and cultural plurality 
• The perception of identity across Canadian communities, including LGBTIQ+ communities 
• The social and sociolinguistic behaviors in regard to alterity: hostility, solidarity, cooperation 
• Education and plurality/diversity in Canada 
• The role of cultural associations in the valorization of Canadian cultures 
• Globalization and the development of means of communication fostering the encounter between languages and cultures