The Hybrid Monumental Symbols of Canada's Warrior Nation Moment
The Hybrid Monumental Symbols of Canada’s Warrior Nation Moment by Ian Alexander Mortimer A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts In Canadian Studies Carleton University Ottawa, Ontario © 2014 Ian Alexander Mortimer Abstract Since its majority re-election in 2011, the Harper government has led a project of re-branding of Canadian identity. This study focuses on three militaristic symbols from this project as important cultural texts unto themselves. All three share a Hybrid Monumental form, articulating a narrative of Canada as a Warrior Nation. They communicate a monumental vision of Canada as being defined by war and sacrifice for the nation. However, they are all polysemic symbols, hybridized through the layering of established symbols of Canadian identity within their representation, tempering their monumental messaging. These Hybrid Monumental symbols are the product of a mutual commitment amongst the Harper Government and key stakeholders to market themselves as iconic brands, in an attempt to forge a connection with a shared target audience. These symbols serve as markers of the reality of the adoption of iconic branding and marketing as a primary political strategy. This reality has created an environment where not even Canadian soldiers’ deaths are immune from being co-opted and collapsed into brand marks, used to target certain customers and hopefully secure their votes, while remaining ambiguous enough to allow the brand’s image to shift and move on when the market conditions change. ii Acknowledgment Thank you to professors, Peter Hodgins, for your guidance, humor and confidence in me, Peter Thompson, for your encouragement and enthusiasm, Richard Nimijean, for inviting me to share my ideas with your students, and Aleksandra Bennett, for showing me I could do this in the first place.
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