Preview

Rhytorica Analysis of the Day I Became a Canadin by Al Pittman

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
753 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Rhytorica Analysis of the Day I Became a Canadin by Al Pittman
Rhetorical Analysis of The Day I Became A Canadian by Al Pittman
Cori Bensted

When change is thrust upon us, it can change people with it, but when it does, it’s important to remember where you’re from. The importance of this essay is it depicts a time in history when change occurred to a people who, willing or not, did not see the coming effect it would have. This will cover Al Pittman’s, The Day I Became A Canadian, and his point of view on how changing nationalities belittled his country. This will also examine how his writing, being rhetorical elements like sentence structure and diction, enhances his writing, bringing out more emotion in the reader.
The Day I Became A Canadian is an essay of the day Al Pittman’s nationality changed and the resulting effect that had on him and the people who experienced the same. In the beginning, he saw the changes that were occurring as exciting and he had high notions of the things that would come with it. After he explains how his notions as a child were as unrealistic as the adults during that time. Pittman as a child had expectations of miraculous changes like ideas you would find in a comic book, adults of that time had ideas that their country was changing to better help the people. What they found was a government encouraging them to leave behind their ways and adopted the new. “Then suddenly we became part of a country we hardly knew, and just as suddenly the government exhorted the people to abandon their old ways and adopt the new, to come out of their fishing boat to work in factories, to leave their homes on the island and in the coves to take up residence in the “growth centres” of the new industrial Newfoundland.” Pittman and many others came to the realization that as much as they are Canadian, they have a culture and history of their own, which many others were fighting to keep in the beginning.
Pittman uses two points of view in his essay to give the reader a better understanding. When telling of the

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Our Time Essay

    • 1629 Words
    • 7 Pages

    In the essay “Our Time” by John Edgar Wideman he often takes a break from the narrative to address that he has many problems as a writer. He does this to try to consciously address these problems and hopefully solve these problems. He believes that if these problems are not rectified he would destroy any chance he has at telling a truthful account of his brother’s story. To rectify these problems he employs a variety of unique techniques in his writing. Looking at these techniques it is not always 100% clear how these are fixing his problems. It is also evident that the way he is writing may be going against a lot of things we were taught in school about our writing.…

    • 1629 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    Canadian History Essay

    • 1139 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Today’s relationship between Quebec and the rest of Canada has been relatively steady. Over the years, Québec has certainly developed separately but in association with the rest of Canada. However, without influence from the past, their relationships would not be what it is today. The development of the French and English relationship follows a long and complicated history. Throughout history, tensions between French and English Canada have been evident. Looking back at World War I and II, one of the key issues that divided English and French Canada was conscription. Quebec was against conscription, while English-Canada supported it. However, this is not the only issue that influenced the relationship between Quebec and the rest of Canada. Throughout history, there have been many defining moments which have influenced this relationship. This essay will outline three defining moments. The first one is ‘the October crisis’, which caused a national sense of crisis when a French separatist group kidnapped 2 government officials. Then, the passing of Bill 101 which brought a controversy both inside and outside of Quebec. And thirdly, ‘The Constitution of 1982’ which changed the contract that linked Quebec to the rest of Canada. These three defining moments have greatly helped to establish the character of the relationship between Quebec and the rest of Canada.…

    • 1139 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    expose one by one, several of the current myths about the state of the Canadian…

    • 1109 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    “ Canada is not going to have a national literature in the mode of those European lands where a long history has bound the people together, and we are homogeneous racial inheritance has given them a language, customs, and even a national dress of their own”(Davis 1979).…

    • 539 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Canadian Identity

    • 1219 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The dynamics of Canada’s Laws of tolerance, bilingualism and multiculturalism towards non-British descent have changed since World War II (WW II). During the First World War, a term called “Enemy Aliens” was used towards Canadians of non-British descent who were treated very poorly. Many were sent to internment camps where they had to endure harsh living conditions. Equality was not present at the time. It was nearly 26 years after the end of WWII that a formal Multiculturalism Policy was adopted in 1971. It ensured that all Canadians will have the freedom of belief, opinion and religion. It created a more culturally diverse society which has now become the hallmark of Canadian identity. Another significant development was the introduction of The Official Languages Act 1969 which essentially proclaimed both English and French to be the two official languages of Canada. As a result of these two Acts, Canada has ensured that it is committed to recognizing the rights of minorities in general and of immigrants on non-British descent in particular.…

    • 1219 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    On July 1st, 1867, a new country was born. From then on, she has been through moments of glory, pride and warmth, and moments of darkness, defeat and helplessness. All these moments have made Canada the nation as it is. A nation’s identity is not only forged in moments of victory, but also is defined in moments of adversity. There are no historical events that better formed the Canadian national identity than Vimy Ridge, or the October Crisis.…

    • 706 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Many people came to Canada because they thought it was a country of opportunity to them. If you were to look into Canada’s history, you might say Canada was not a land of opportunity for all groups. Gender, race, religion and education were all very important aspects that shaped Canada’s history. These four categories weren’t respected and treated with care. This is why gender, race, religion and education are still a problem within our country today.…

    • 793 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    On July 1st of 1867, the passing of the British North America Act indicated that Canada had become a nation. Before Confederation, what we know as Canada today was merely a bunch of scattered British colonies. When the colonies united to form the Dominion of Canada, they were able to depend upon themselves for economic and security reasons. Because they traded goods amongst themselves without tariffs and depended on each other for protection, an initial sense of unity was formed within the new Dominion. This also led Canada to reduce its reliance on Britain and thus became more independent. Canada's main affairs may have been controlled by Britain at that time, but this event served as a prelude to Canada's growing nationhood and has spurred this young nation to take its first steps in building its own identity.…

    • 674 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Badeaux, Guy , Mike Duffy, and Charles Gordon. Portfoolio '88: the year in Canadian caricature.…

    • 1064 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Pierre Trudeau’s governments’ policies of multiculturalism lead to the mosaic of cultures Canada is today. Trudeau accepted the multicultural policy during his term in office, which stated that despite racial and ethnic background or religion etc. you can participate as a true member of society. For example, both French and English Canadians at various times believed that their own cultural identities were of greater importance than the latter. The French did not want to accept the English culture and the English did not want to accept the French culture. They believed that in the process of embracing other cultures they would lose their own. Trudeau stated, “They (French, English and immigrants) will be encouraged to share their cultural expressions and values with other Canadians and so contribute to a richer life for all of us.”2 Similar to the way many people think today, Trudeau wanted a more open-minded Canada and a more culturally diverse country. In this way Pierre Elliot Trudeau also believed greatly in the concept of immigration, he stated, “the reason Canada is so good is not in spite of its diversity, but because of its diversity.”3 He believed, “immigration is one source of Canadian prosperity and more must be done to preserve it. We have a tremendous need to bring in more skilled people”.4 Pierre Elliot Trudeau believed in immigration as a good thing. He believed that it helped the economy…

    • 821 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Throughout Canada’s history, there have been many events that have defined us a nation. Some of the most important events have happened in the 20th century. The first one was Canada’s participation in the battle of Vimy Ridge because it showed that we are a very strong and brave country. The second event was the actions of Lester B. Pearson, as he showed the world that Canada is a very peaceful and independent country. The final one was the Canadian Constitution of 1982, as Canada showed that we are an independent and multicultural country. Three 20th century events that defined Canada as a nation were Canada’s participation in the battle of Vimy Ridge, the actions of Lester B. Pearson, and the Canadian Constitution Act of 1982.…

    • 941 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    “Pierre Elliott Trudeau .” The Prime Ministers of Canada. 7th Floor Media, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2010.…

    • 824 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Daniels, Harry W. We Are The New Nation, (Ottawa: Native Council Of Canada, Ontario, K1P 5L6, 1979)…

    • 3732 Words
    • 15 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Second, not only is the Americanization happening in the aspect of social identity, but it also flows over into national identity. What can be said about the national identity of Canada? First thought that comes to most peoples’ minds is that of the mounted police, beavers, ice hockey, and wide land mass. In fact, our national identity has been brought about by the American way of life. This buying spree essentially started when Walt Disney purchased the Mounted Police’s image o it could be displayed…

    • 719 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Focussed Topic: Prior to the first half of the twentieth century, Canada was nothing more than a British colony, but that changed as the nation went through a building block of events towards full autonomy.…

    • 1157 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays