Politicizing Poutine
Ian Alexander Cuthbertson
Humanities Faculty
This blog post originally appeared on
, a delicious mess of french fries, cheese curds, and gravy, has recently been as Canada鈥檚 . Given poutine鈥檚 origins in rural Qu茅bec, these claims shed light on the tensions at play in the ongoing construction of Canadian identity.
Poutine鈥檚 status as Canada鈥檚 national delicacy remains unofficial despite a recent to give poutine the national recognition it deserves.
Yet marketing campaigns aside, poutine is already widely recognized as being Canadian.
Locating (or rather fabricating) a shared national culture is important in Canada, which recently celebrated its sesquicentennial. Canada鈥檚 pre-Confederation colonial history in which French settlers, who eventually claimed a unique identity as Canadiens, were later colonized by English settlers in successive waves after 1763 has resulted in a country long divided along linguistic and cultural lines: a country consisting of .
These linguistic and cultural differences have long fueled nationalist and sovereignist movements in Qu茅bec and in 1980 and 1995 Qu茅bec held referenda to separate from Canada and become a sovereign nation. Although federalists narrowly defeated the separatists, the Canadian government officially recognized Qu茅bec鈥檚 distinct cultural identity in 2006 when parliament passed a asserting, 鈥渢he Qu茅b茅cois form a nation within a united Canada.鈥�
But it would be a mistake to view Canada as a country divided neatly in two. The plight of indigenous or First Nations peoples in Canada continues despite recent to renew a 鈥榥ation-to-nation鈥� relationship, leading some to refer to indigenous communities as Canada鈥檚 . Moreover, Qu茅bec is not the only province to consider from Canada.
Canada has long struggled to assert its own unique national identity and to find shared cultural markers. In 1971 Canada introduced an official of multiculturalism, which has led some critics to that Canada has no distinct culture of its own. In an with the New York Times r, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau remarked that Canada has 鈥渘o core identity鈥� which has led some to whether Canada may be the world鈥檚 first post-national country and others to that Canada does indeed have a culture of its own, no matter what the Prime Minister thinks. Faced with such an identity crisis, is it any wonder that Canadians are eager to identify shared cultural values, practices, and meals?
The problem is that poutine, like many other notable markers of 鈥楥anadian鈥� identity (ice hockey, toques, the Canadian ) originated in Qu茅bec. The dish was either by Fernand Lachance in Warwick in 1957 or else in Drummondville by Jean-Paul Roy in 1964 and although its precise origins are obscure, Qu茅bec鈥檚 claim to having invented Canada鈥檚 purported national dish is undisputed. Even in its brief appearance on the American television program Modern Family, the dish is described as a 鈥淔rench-Canadian delicacy.鈥�
The dish that has been touted as quintessentially Canadian was practically unknown outside of Qu茅bec until the mid 1980s. The first brief mention of poutine in The Globe and Mail, then Canada鈥檚 largest daily newspaper, occurs in 1982 where it is described as a 鈥減late of mystery.鈥� Two years later, poutine is described as an 鈥渦nlikely combination鈥� of cheese curds, french fries and gravy that makes for an 鈥渙dd dish.鈥� Poutine has not always enjoyed its current lauded status, as a cartoon drawn in 1987 by the Montreal Gazette鈥檚 political cartoonist suggests.
So is poutine Canadian or Qu茅b茅cois? As is the case when considering any strategic act of identification, this question misses the point entirely. For those interested in constructing a shared Canadian identity in the face of multiculturalism and in the wake of its colonial history (as well as for those hoping to sell oddly flavoured ), poutine is 鈥渦niquely Canadian.鈥� For Montr茅al chefs like , poutine has instead been by the rest of Canada and remains quintessentially Qu茅becois. In other words, poutine鈥檚 status as either Canadian or Qu茅b茅cois is political. Its contested status is the result of a variety of stakeholders laying claim to a fabricated essence to serve their own particular interests.
, a well-known poutinerie in Montr茅al, provides a history of the (in)famous dish in both and on its website. Both versions describe poutine as 鈥榦ur national dish.鈥� But whereas a Qu茅b茅cois reading the description in French will likely interpret the word 鈥榥ationale鈥� to refer to Qu茅bec, Canadians reading it in English will likely interpret 鈥榥ational鈥� to refer instead to Canada. In this case the restaurant is presumably interested in selling poutine, which perhaps explains its willingness to let both Canadians and Qu茅becois have their poutine and eat it too.
