Environmental History course: Sixth class: The Environment and the Formation of Canada

Earlier this week we had the sixth meeting of my fall term Environmental History course. Our topic was concepts of nature in relation to the formation of the Canadian nation.  I chose two episodes to consider: encounters between Europeans and Indigenous peoples in the early 1600s; and the role of science in constructing the notion of Canada as a transcontinental nation.  The key readings were Ramsay Cook's essay, "Making a Garden out of a Wilderness," and excerpts from Suzanne Zeller's book, Inventing Canada: Early Victorian Science and the Idea of a Transcontinental Nation.

In my own lecture I only provided some context; the greater part of the class was devoted to analysis of primary sources, including those used by Cook and Zeller in their histories. This reflects one of the chief "design principles" for my course: that as much of the class time as possible will be devoted to "doing" history -- either out in the field, or through careful reading of primary sources.  So I distributed several short readings, such as the Jesuit Relations and other sources from the early 1600s, as well as popular discussions of science in Canada during the 1800s. Through close reading and discussion, the students had the opportunity to practice the imaginative work involved in understanding the ideas and attitudes of these authors.

And here's the slides from the class: