English Canadians and Quebecois Nationalism

The author examines the reaction of Quebec Anglophones to the Quebec independence movement (circa early 1970s). In terms of overt political preferences, the author notes that English Quebecers display a high degree of unanimity in their opposition. However. with respect to a more subtle dimension, such as sympathy for French-Canadian nationalism, he contends that English Quebecers display a wide range of variation. He argues that those at upper socio-economic levels are the most sympathetic, because of their higher education and greater awareness of the inequalities between French and English, not because they are less threatened. Some further structural sources of sympathy are discussed by the author, and he presents a few theoretical propositions concerning variations in dominant group sympathy toward subordinate group nationalism. Overall, the author provides an examination of the belief system of a dominant minority in a context of ethnic stratification.

Master's Thesis

McGill University

Montreal

1974

vii-137p.

en