Zugl.: Bielefeld, Fachhochsch., Diplomarbeit

Zugl.: Göttingen, Univ., Diss., 2006

This thesis named "Anti-Americanism and Canadian Cultural Policy (1928-1957)" examines how Canadian federal government cultural policies were influenced by a specific form of anti-Americanism, which reflected concerns over Americanization and cultural absorption by the United States, in this formative period for the development of a distinct national identity during the time of Canada's colony-to-nation transition. The chosen research design is interpretative content analysis of the reports of two Canadian royal commissions commonly known as the Aird Commission (1928-1929) and the Massey Commission (1949-1951). The aim of this thesis is to identify the main factors and incentives for a policy of government intervention in the field of culture and to assess the role of anti-Americanism as a response to what was perceived as American cultural invasion that threatened the development of a distinct Canadian culture. The theoretical framework contains a discussion about different forms of anti-Americanism, with emphasis on its unique nature in Canada, and introduces the concept of cultural imperialism which helps us to better understand Canadian opposition to American cultural influences in the examined period.