Quebec Tries To Say Au Revir To Hi

425 Words2 Pages

The article “Quebec Tries to Say Au Revoir to ‘Hi,’ and Hello to ‘Bonjour’” is about Quebec’s conflict of language, and how a new resolution passed by Quebec’s legislators contributes to it. Recently, a resolution was passed in Quebec stating that instead of using the usual “Bonjour hi”, the people should just say “Bonjour” as a greeting. This adds on the already formed debate over the culture/language embraced in the area. The article also talks about how the conflict – which has been going on since Britain won the ‘Seven Years War’ – has people debating whether the government has crossed the line, even though this motion cannot be enforced legally. With this decision, there was much backlash from Quebec’s people – English speaking and bilingual. …show more content…

This includes the concept of lingua franca, diffusion, and non-material culture. The article references how globalization has a long term effect on the French language in Canada. Globalization is defined as the “shrinking” of the world in terms of communication and interaction, this plays a role in the diffusion of the lingua franca of English. Since English is the lingua franca of the world, the language the used around the world to do business and well as communicate with each other, many people will be learning English for better communication with other parts of the world. This article could also relate to the concept of non-material culture. Non-material culture is defined as the parts of culture that aren’t objects. This includes beliefs, norms, values, and language. The language of French is a major part of Quebec’s origin. They are trying to preserve this language so their culture is not lost, because language is the foundation of their customs and traditions. Another concept of human geography A possible solution to this conflict could be for the government to stop over enforcing the presence of French culture. Trying to preserve the French culture in the area, but trying to restrict what people do in their daily lives could be crossing the line. It is the peoples’ job to preserve the culture they wish to keep. They could read, write in it, and teach their younger generations French as well as English. By over enforcing the language, it is causing greater conflict among the