The Dream of Nation

by Susan G. Mann

Essential reading for an understanding of contemporary Quebec, The Dream of Nation traces the changing nature of various "dreams of nation," from the imperial dream of New France to the separatist dream of the 1980 referendum. Susan Mann demonstrates that these dreams, fashioned by elites in response to the recurring question of how to be French in North America, proposed an ever-elusive unanimity. She discusses how social, economic, and political pressures, as well as changing populations, invariably thwarted one dream and provided the makings of another. A work of pioneering scholarship and remarkable synthesis, The Dream of Nation weaves together two of the dominant ideologies of the twentieth century: nationalism and feminism. A new preface contextualizes the 1982 edition and outlines the different contours of Quebec's latest thoughts on sovereignty.

360 pages, Paperback

First published July 25, 2002

About the author

Susan Mann is a historian, member of the Order of Canada, president emeritus of York University, author of A Dream of Nation: A Social and Intellectual History of Quebec, and editor of The War Diary of Clare Gass, 1915-1918.

Reviews

[Katja Labonté · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars. I picked this up at my adult ed centre English class's library because of the cover. But the title (or rather sub-title) instantly got my attention. Being the bilingual daughter of a Québécois father and Albertan mother (with my father having anglophone grandparents and my mother having francophone great-grandparents, because that's Canada), my heritage has always been something hard for me to grapple with. Now, in my twenties, I've come to embrace my Québécois heritage... but I wanted to understand it better.

And this was the perfect book, because it explains the history of Québec from the conquest to the 1980 referendum, with the more neutral view of an anglophone Québécoise. It was absolutely fascinating to trace the history of my province socially and politically, seeing how it created the people I live with today, and how the Canada-Québec issues came to be.

I found it very well written: dense, thorough, but never boring, with a good writing style that carried a lot of dry humour. I did find the book itself hard to read, because the font is so small and dark and dense, with very big, thick paragraphs; but I enjoyed it despite how long it took me to finish. Overall, it's a very specific book, but I definitely recommend it to Canadians, Québécois, and anyone interested in the political history of this province.