Abstract This paper discusses the short story, "The HockeySweater" by a French-Canadian writer Roch Carrier and argues that the main theme of the story is the strained relationship between the Anglophone and Francophone Canadians, told through an allegory. The paper relates that, although Carrier does find that there are common points in the relationship between Francophone and Anglophone Canadians, most of the story is concentrated on the conflicts between the two major Canadian cultures.
From the Paper "The story selected for this essay is "The Hockey Sweater" by a French-Canadian writer Roch Carrier. The essay will argue that the main theme of the story is the strained relationship between the Anglophone and Francophone Canadians, told through an allegory.
"The main protagonist of the story, written in the first-person narrative, is a young boy whose life revolves around school, the church and the skating rink where he plays hockey with his friends from school. This suggests that the author might be writing from his own experiences and points of view. As will be shown later in this text, he lives in the small town in Quebec. The most exciting part of boy's life is takes place at the rink. Everything else is considered punishment. The choice of hockey rink as a center of life, or at least of good life, places the story setting deep in Canadian culture. Hockey as national Canadian sport is a part of both Anglophone and Francophone Canadians' life. Something the two can and do share. Probably the most common dream of all Canadian boys, Francophone or Anglophone, is to be a great hockey player."
Abstract Every nation has a unique way of expressing their most deeply held beliefs and customs through local art, community projects, or organized activities like sports. This paper explains that, in Canada, geography and nature have resulted in the game of hockey being part of the national landscape. The paper further discusses John B. Lee's book, "The Hockey Sonnets", and how it uses the mythology of hockey to express cultural ideologies and dramatic narratives from the viewpoint of the Canadian cultural identity.
Abstract There is no doubt that hockey in Canada is a rich field for the exploration of the most pervasive myths of Canadian culture. Specifically, the poems in John B. Lee's "The Hockey Player Sonnets: Overtime Edition" evoke some of these myths. However, there are significant differences between the myths that are reflected in Lee's poems, and the myths that are alluded to in Richard Gruneau's and David Whitson's "Hockey Night in Canada" and Elizabeth Etue's and Megan K. Williams's "On the Edge". These differences are explored in this essay.
Abstract This paper discusses how ice hockey was once identified as a quintessentially Canadian sport and at the same time a key figure in the domain of masculine sports. However over recent years hockey has garnered strength as an international sport and has expanded its membership to include that of women. The paper further dicusses how att the 2006 Winter Olympic Games, the Canadian women's hockey team won gold whilst their male counterparts failed to reach the medal round. What relevance does this result have for Canada involvement in international competition, and what does it mean for the role of women in traditional male dominated sports?
Abstract In this article, the writer mentions that the labor movement had cemented the concept of leisure time into the middle-class, Canadian mindset permanently. The writer points out that the development of institutionalized hockey in early Canadian life was a way to define the meaning of the sport, understand why it was played, and how these factors contributed to social life and behavior. Further, the writer maintains that hockey played an important part in the formation of early Canadian stuff.
From the Paper "Canadian culture is an elusive concept. The vast geography of the country, coupled with hundreds of years of steady immigration, make any single national phenomenon difficult to define. One cultural factor that many Canadians can agree on is the national sport of hockey. In the book Hockey Night in Canada, Richard Gruneau and David Whitson examine this cultural phenomenon and how it affects the Canadian mindset. The authors state at the beginning of Chapter 2 that "one of the many indicators of hockey's growing importance in Canadian popular culture" was the fierce debate that continues to rage over where in the country the game first originated. The three cities vying for the title seem ... "
Abstract There are a few stereotypical images that spring to mind when one thinks of Canada's national identity, and hockey is inevitably one of them. Is this sport really a part of Canada's national identity, or has it become an empty corporate shell? This paper discusses the book "Hockey Night in Canada", by Richard Gruneau and David Whitson and the message it conveys about the Canadian cultural and national identity.
Abstract This paper looks at how hockey, arguably Canada's most popular sport, is so engrained in Canadian culture that Canadian identification with it begins at an early age. The paper points out how, along with Richard Gruneau and David Whitson, the authors of "Hockey Night in Canada: Sports Identities and Cultural Politics", Canadian youth over the decades have grown up with a fairly stylized and masculine ideal of the sport and its place in Canadian society.
Abstract This paper presents a positive review of John Lee's poems in "The Hockey Player Sonnets: Overtime Edition", describing them as a rich reflection of myths that will be familiar to many Canadians. As such, they would make a pleasant and even nostalgic read for many people. The writer of the paper explains that, although the poems don't have the same effect on her as they would on someone who grew up with the particular heritage discussed by the poems, they do contribute to her understanding of the myths surrounding the game of hockey in Canada. The paper also notes that the poems offer a variety of perspectives on the myths and evoke a number of clear pictures of a particular lifestyle.
Abstract This paper takes a look at the amount of violence in professional hockey, focusing primarily on the case of Todd Bertuzzi and Steve Moore. This paper goes on to discuss the debate such violence has caused within the world of sport.
From the Paper "The Todd Bertuzzi-Steve Moore incident in the National Hockey League's 2003-2004 season provoked widespread debate in both the sports world and among the general public about the role of violence in professional hockey. In this incident Bertuzzi, in retaliation for an aggressive hit by Moore on one of Bertuzzi's teammates, attacked Moore and accidentally broke his neck. While there was no paralysis, Bertuzzi was indefinitely suspended and Moore was said to be considering lawsuits against Bertuzzi, Bertuzzi's team, and the NHL in general."
This paper discuses the ways in which the poems in John B. Lee's book "The Hockey Player Sonnets: Overtime Edition" contribute to the mythology of hockey as a quasi-religion.
Abstract This paper argues that the poems in John Lee's "The Hockey Player Sonnets: Overtime Edition" are myths not because they attribute hockey to divine intervention or planning but rather because they contribute to establishing a man--made spiritual world, a religion of hockey for Canada. The author points out that the poems contribute to the mythology of Canadian hockey in that they are a system of hereditary stories, which explains the rationale for social customs and observances. The paper relates that the mythology of hockey is clearly a male mythology even though females have been trying to join it for some time. The author concludes that this idealized world of Canadian hockey is very well mirrored by Lee's poems so that they, in themselves, contribute to the hockey mythology of Canada. The paper quotes some of the poems from this book and analyzes them.
From the Paper "This is a regrettable state of affairs for all those women who would like to be more included in hockey. However, the fact of the matter is that most mythology has been male - male mythology created by males for other males. Consider the very earliest mythology, Homer's "Odyssey" and "Iliad". Both of these are stories of male endeavours - lyrical hymns to the traditionally male pastimes of war and conquest, rape and pillaging. The only role the women play is to stay home and wait, as Penelope does so very well. The fact that this mythology was exclusively male does not mean it is not mythology."
Abstract This paper explains that Chapter 1 of Gruneau and Whitson's "Hockey Night in Canada: Sport, Identities and Cultural Politics" offers the reader an introduction to the subject of hockey and the politics of culture. The author points out that the organizing theme of the chapter is the key question: "What has hockey got to do with culture?" The paper relates that the authors do not answer definitively this question; however, they do offer an excellent overview of the various ways in which the reader can approach the question. The author states that it is important to the framework of the book that the definition of culture includes sports, such as hockey. The paper states that the author now understands that there are many legitimate ways in which hockey can be deemed as culture. The paper includes quotations.
From the Paper "Gruneau and Whitson give notice of this theme when they kick off their chapter with the apparent irony of Yevgeny Yevtushenko saying that Phil Esposito was Canada's greatest poet. In case the reader fails to see the irony, they describe the physical, hyper-masculine world of hockey, contrasting it with the "vaguely effeminate character" of poetry. They also make the point that the average macho hockey player would be loath to be associated with poetry - and by the same token, the average intellectual would be loath to be associated with the (perceived) low-brow world of hockey."
Abstract This paper explains that John B. Lee's poem, "Hockey Heart" reflects the Canadian spirit towards hockey, not simply as a sport for the nation, but as a way of life. The paper goes on to discuss the significance of the opening line of the poem, how Lee is able to capture the very personal relationship to hockey that each Canadian has even though it is an activity held dear by all Canadians, and the effective use of images in the poem. The paper concludes that Lee's poem "Hockey Heart" is like a national anthem, in that it is identifiable to those who had played and loved hockey.
From the Paper "Lee's hockey player however is the most committed boy of the bunch: he is "always the last to leave" a game. In each Canadian child hockey player's mind, they are the most passionate about the sport, and usually the most adept, committed player. However, Lee's hockey player is revealed here to be not only a committed player but the most romantic and dedicated one. The fact that he is the last to leave shows that he is the one who lags around after the game, reflecting on the game, his performance and his love of the sport."
An exploration of the part of hockey in the composition of Canada's national identity, focusing on a program broadcasted by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).
Abstract The paper looks at multi-ethnicity in Canada and at what unifies this nation. It focuses on the sport of hockey as an important component of the country's national identity. It looks at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and its struggle for identity, claiming that when it broadcasted its first ?Hockey Night? in Canada, it found it's "true being". The paper explores the origin and importance of CBC's ?Hockey Night? to national unity. It explains how the program crossed the boundaries of young and old, rich and poor, urban and rural, French and English, east and west. The paper also discusses the controversial aspect of the program's time slot, overlapping the national news. The status of the program as a source of education is mentioned and the paper concludes with a review of the contribution of CBC's ?Hockey Night? to the national identity of Canadians.
From the Paper "Canada is comprised of many different cultures, spread over a vast geographical region. The only way for all these different types of people all over Canada to create a cohesive united nation to dwell on the similarities, which are shared amongst the majority. Cultural identity, it could be said can found when a whole nation can share in and care about a similar subject. For Canada this sense of national identity is represented by the sport of hockey. In any social or academic setting where the topic of discussion is Canadian identity the lists always begin with peacekeeping and multiculturalism and always come back to hockey. Some may say hockey is only a symbol of Canadian identity, and is no different then a moose, a beaver, or long winters. Hockey however has more then a symbolic animal because hockey gives a spirit of unification and it is here where our country has celebrated some of its greatest victories and most horrifying defeats. The love of the sport of hockey may not be shared by all Canadian citizens, but it is certainly been loved and adored by many since its beginnings in Montreal in 1875."
Abstract The paper discusses ho,w although Canada is a liberal society based on equal rights, hockey is traditionally seen as a sport for men, since it involves power, violence and brute force. The paper first looks at Canada's long history of sexist thinking and women's growing role in hockey today. The paper then discusses the success of Canada's Olympic women's ice hockey team that indicates that traditional, sexist notions of women in sport are finally being overturned.
Outline:
Introduction
Women and Hockey Conclusion
From the Paper "Though the popular media is now making moves towards supporting and encouraging women's participation in ice hockey, it is true that the sport in Canada has a long history of sexist thinking. Sports observers have even acknowledged that women were certainly a late inclusion in the world of "masculine" sports. Such voices include Gruneau and Whitson (1994), authors of the book "Hockey Night in Canada". Gruneau and Whitson acknowledge that women have painstakingly made their way in the hockey arena after fighting decades of repression and sexist stereotyping. As the authors attest, it was more than a hundred years after hockey was born that women were finally recognized as potential players."
Abstract This paper will present hockey as a Canadian myth. The term "myth" however, will have a particular meaning, defined presently. The discussion will include popular Canadian culture as well as the meaning of Hockey stardom for the players, young players emulating them and aspiring to the NHL, and the meaning of hockey myths for the general populace.
