Canadian Culture Vs American Culture

The differences between the United States and our neighbors to the north may seem nonexistent to some, but in my four years being around Canadian citizens I have noticed the cultural image of Canadians. It is a common perception that American and Canadian cultures are the same or similar. Even though saying our cultures are similar is technically not wrong there are definite differences in culture that Americans seem to be ignorant to. Canadian culture is the closest culture to us in the world and yet we still show ignorance towards the cultural divide between us. Living with two Canadians and having a social group consisting of multiple Canadians I have been exposed to the culture and have seen the differences. The thing about living with

Shawn is from Calgary Alberta and has been coming to school in the United States for five years. He started his education at LaRoshe College in Pittsburg Pennsylvania and then transferred to Concordia his sophomore year. Shawn has played lacrosse since he was five years old and now coaches in the summer and for the CUW men’s lacrosse team. Shawn is the son of Fernando and Bonnie Teixeira and has one sister, who lives in Australia. His father Fernando is a Portuguese immigrant who is now a retired police officer in Calgary. The importance of sports was high for Shawn and his family and he was raised in a stern house that demanded respect and was in a way “old fashioned”. Shawn states he is part of the cultural norm and hasn’t really deviated from the cultural norms of Canada. I asked Shawn a variety of questions having to do with culture to try and get a better feel on how Canadian and American culture is

In Canada it is the norm for children to contribute to the house hold at an earlier age. He explained that when they are around 15 they are expected to contribute to paying bills and helping with home expenses. I was taken back by this and started getting confused on whether or not that was the right way to teach children responsibility. In the wake of my confusion is started to think if this is another form of culture shock that I was confused by why they did something that in turn made me think about my own beliefs on the matter. I asked multiple Canadians this question and the answer was a constant, yes, that they had to have some monetary involvement with the house hold. This concept tested my though process on how to develop responsibility and made me think if my parents should have made me contribute more when I was