Chapter 4 – Culture & Currents of Thought

Chapter 4 – Culture & Currents of Thought Section 4: The Contemporary Period (1867-NOW)

Part 3: Capitalism, Socialism & Fascism

Background • Industrialization in Canada

• 2nd half of 19th century

• Capital = money needed to start and maintain businesses

• Successful businesses made profit = more capital to invest in other businesses

• This cycle continues = CAPITALISM

Capitalism • Economic system that

focuses on the accumulation of wealth

• Profit

• Invest in businesses and use profit to invest in other businesses

• Private businesses/ factories

• Free competition/ free market

• If a company fails “Too bad!”

Charbonneau Shoe Factory - Drummondville, Quebec around 1910

Capitalism

• Capitalism still exists today

• For the sake of this class focus on the late 1800s to the early 1900s

• Wealthy businessmen investing in factories/other companies

• Banks acted as a way to lend capital to start businesses

Capitalism

• People who represent capitalism: –Elite British business class

– John Redpath

–Banks

–Members of the ‘Montreal Curb Market’ (Montreal Stick Exchange)

–Multinationals Insurance companies Sun Life Insurance

–Multinational = Large company

Capitalism Left: Exterior of the Montreal Stock Exchange building in 1905

Right: Interior of the Montreal Stock Exchange building in 1903

Capitalism • How was capitalism

expressed?

• Architecture: Large buildings owned by large companies

• Wealthy neighborhoods in Montreal: Westmount, Golden Square Mile

• Neighborhoods where you could find factories: Griffintown, St. Henri, Lachine Canal area

• Neighborhoods/ Streets with stores and shops St. Laurent Street

Sun Life Building , Montreal - 1948

Capitalism Left: Construction of the Sun Life Building (2nd stage) in 1923

Right: Sun Life Building in 1931 – Tallest Building in the British Empire at the time

Capitalism

Left: St. Laurent Street , Montreal around 1905 Right: St. Laurent Street, Montreal – early 1920s

How’d the pic

turn out?

Amazing… except

you ruined it

Capitalism

Left: Map of the location of the Sun Life Building Right: Sun Life building in 2007

Uh oh… The toilet's clogged

again….. and overflowing

Capitalism

Left & Right: Photographs of working class homes in Montreal (St. Henri) – around 1903. Often times, more than one family would occupy these homes.

Capitalism

Duplex row housing in a working class neighborhood Gareau Lane- Griffintown, Montreal. 1903

Capitalism

Mrs. Snyder’s Residence. Westmount-Montreal. 1894

Capitalism

Herbert Holt Residence. Golden Square Mile-Montreal. 1890

Background • Great Depression 1929-late 1930s

• Stock market crash after much market speculation

• Mass unemployment during the 1930s

• 1 in 4 eligible Canadians not working

• ~ 25% UNEMPLOYMENT

Unemployed men sleeping on park benches. Montreal Quebec. 1935

Background

Food line at the Young Street Mission. Toronto, Ontario. Early 1930s

Background

This picture is titled: ‘Moving Day’ • Why?

Montreal, Quebec. 1930

Background

Background • Public works projects

–Construction projects that were run by the different governments (federal, provincial or city)

–Gave people (usually men) work with low wages

–Building bridges, renovating infrastructure, building ‘roads to nowhere’ (any type of infrastructure)

Men burying electrical wires on Parc Avenue. Montreal, Quebec. 1935

Background

• Work relief camps

–Camps (looked like sleep away camps) that men would travel to

–Construction projects close to the camps

–Run by the federal or provincial governments

–Roads, bridges, highways, etc.

Background

Men from a work relief camp building a road. Ontario. 1934

Background

Work relief camp. Ontario. Mid 1930s

Background

• Direct aid

–Aid given to citizens by different levels of government

– Food stamps, coupons, tokens for staple foods like milk and bread

– Soup kitchens (sometimes run by community groups and religious organizations)

– Free clothing and haircuts

Background

Background • During / after the Great Depression less trust

in capitalism

• People started to think that Capitalism is flawed

• People/groups thought that there must be ‘a better way’ avoid Great Depression from happening again…

• New IDEOLOGIES & political parties start to emerge worldwide & in Quebec

Socialism • An IDEOLOGY that will defend the ‘Greater Good’

• Interests of the greater number of people takes priority over smaller groups (Example: middle class VS wealthy/upper class)

• An idea eventually defended/promoted by the government

• Governments implement laws/programs to support/protect the general population

• Healthcare, employment insurance, etc.

• New political parties promoted this ideology during /after the Great Depression

Socialism • People/groups that represent Socialism:

– Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) a NEW political party that was founded in 1932

– Albert St.-Martin fought for workers’ rights / womens’ rights even before the Great Depression

– Workers’ Unions

– Lea Roback a woman that fought for workers’ rights / womens’ rights

– Labour Defence League

Socialism

Albert St.-Martin in 1905

Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) billboard – early 1930s

CCF Logo in 1932

Socialism

• How was socialism expressed?

–Political party posters

–Strikes/protests

–Literature (magazine, pamphlets, etc.)

Socialism

Montreal Worker’s strike with Lea Robeck -1937 Labour Progressive Party

Poster – early 1930s

Fascism • An Ideology that promotes tradition,

military force, totalitarianism and extreme ETHNIC nationalism

• Ethnic Nationalism a single race represents a nation

• Single government leader/single political party

• Resemblance to a cult

Fascism • People/groups who

represent Fascism:

–Hitler, Mussolini,

– ‘blueshirts’

–Adrian Arcand

–National Social Christian Party Canadian Fascist Party in 1930s

National Social Christian Party Propaganda poster- late 1930s

Fascism

Adrian Arcand Leader of the National Social Christian Party of Canada

Left: Bunito Mussolini Right: Adolf Hitler Photo taken in 1937

Fascism • How was fascism

expressed?

–Propaganda

• Literature (newspapers, ect.)

• Propaganda posters

–Public displays of fascism (mural in Madonna Della Difesa Chruch in Montreal)

Fascist publication – late 1930s

Fascism

Fascist publications in Quebec – late 1930s

Vault Mural of Benito Mussolini- Italian fascist Madonna Della Difesa Chruch in Montreal

Fascism

Connections to the Progressions of learning

Connections to the Progressions of learning