A look on the Canadian Identity as a Canadian citizen and what it means to me.

Essay by BluenotesBabyHigh School, 12th gradeA, December 2002

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I can remember, a few years back, having a conversation with a teenage American while on vacation in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. He asked me where I was from and when I told him, "Canada," he simply smirked and looked away. I asked him what he thought about Canadians and he replied, "Why does it matter what I think? Don't you know who you are?" I was quite surprised with his response because I thought I knew who I was, so I simply stated "I am Canadian". Although, now that I think about it, simply stating that I am Canadian doesn't stand up against anything unless you know who Canadians are. I think that pinpointing the Canadian identity is similar to looking for a needle in a giant haystack. There's so much to look through before it can even be determined that the Canadian identity does, in fact, exist. It is not possible to say that any single aspect of Canadian life can give tribute to or be labeled as the Canadian identity. Ask any Canadian or foreigner for that matter, and you will see that this is so. A hockey fan will say that we are famous for being excellent hockey players, and that is our identity. A landscape artist will claim that it's our rolling wheat fields, Rocky Mountains and beautiful bodies of water. A railroad conductor will say it's our vast land and immense size that give us our identity. A monarchist will proudly state that we are still an important part of the British Commonwealth. Finally, a patriot may proclaim that our identity is a clean, beautiful, free country. These are all very true of course, but because the opinions of the Canadian population vary, our identity as Canadians is completely subjective.

The Canadian identity must...