Essay Topics

Compare and contrast the Constitution Act 1867 with the Constitution Act, 1982

Essay Topics

(1) Compare and contrast the Constitution Act 1867 with the Constitution Act, 1982. What constitutional visions flow through these documents? What do these documents say about the political culture of the country at their time of passage? How has that culture changed from 1867 to 1982?

Sources: See Outline. See also Alan Cairns, Charter Versus Federalism: The Dilemmas of Constitutional Reform, Alan Cairns, Disruptions: Constitutional Struggles from the Charter to Meech Lake. Also check back issues of the Canadian Journal of Political Science 

(2) Assess the nature and working of constitutional conventions in the Canadian constitution. How do conventions arise, why are they obeyed, and what role do they play in the practice of political life? Should such conventions be codified into formal constitutional law?

Sources: See Outline. See also: Andrew Heard, Canadian Constitutional Conventions, and Andrew Heard, “Recognizing the Variety Among Constitutional Conventions”, in Canadian Journal of Political Science, 1989. See also, Peter Russell, et al., Federalism and the Charter, The Patriation Reference, #62, and Patrick Monahan, Constitutional Law.

(3) Compare and contrast the Constitution Act, 1982 with the Charlottetown Accord of 1992. What constitutional visions flow through these documents? What accounts for the successful implementation of the former and the failure of the latter? What does the difference in visions say about the changing constitutional norms, mores, and aspirations of this country over that decade?

Sources: See Outline. See also, Alan Cairns, Charter Versus Federalism: The Dilemmas of Constitutional Reform, Alan Cairns, Disruptions: Constitutional Struggles from the Charter to Meech Lake, Kenneth McRoberts, Patrick Monahan, The Charlottetown Accord, The Referendum, and the Future of Canada, M.S. Whittington, G. Williams, Canadian Politics in the 21^st Century, 5^th ed., chs. 4, 15, James Bickerton, Alain Gagnon, Canadian Politics, 2^nd ed., chs. 19, 20.

(4) Analyze the 1995 referendum in Quebec. Assess the positions of the Yes and No sides and why they developed these positions. What does the division of Quebec between sovereignist and federalist visions say about the political-constitutional culture of Quebec? Asses the outcome of the referendum and the implications this result had for Quebec and Canada. Did this referendum result “resolve” anything or is the Quebec issue of on-going concern?

Sources: Same as for #3, plus, David Schneiderman, The Quebec Decision, Richard Fidler, Canada Adieu? Quebec Debates its Future, Robert Young, The Secession of Quebec and the Future of Canada, Allen Buchanan, Secession: The Morality of Political Divorce from Fort Sumpter to Lithuania and Quebec, David Bercuson, Barry Cooper, Deconfederation: Canada without Quebec.

(5) Assess the current federal-provincial balance of power. Is there a proper relationship between the federal government and the provinces or does this relationship need to be “rebalanced”? If so, how? Should federal powers be decentralized to the provinces, and the role of the federal government in socio-economic policy-making and taxing power reduced or, does the federal government actually need to be strengthenedSources: See Christopher Cochrane, Perry Rand Dyck, Kelly Blidook, Canadian Politics: Critical Approaches, 8^th ed., 2015, Bickerton and Gagnon, Canadian Politics, 5^th ed., 2014, Whittington and Williams, Canadian Politics in the 21^st Century, 7^th ed., 2008,  ed., ch. 4, Herman Bakvis, Grace Skogstad, Canadian Federalism: Performance, Effectiveness, Legitimacy, 2002, Samuel L. Laselva, The Moral Foundations of Canadian Federalism, 1996, F. Leslie Seidle, Seeking  a New Canadian Partnership: Asymetrical and Confederal Options, 1994, Donald Lenihan, Reclaiming the Middle Ground, 1995. See also contemporary media web sites, like CBC In Depth.

(6) Critically assess the role of the monarchy in Canada. Why has this institution persisted in Canadian history and does it still have a purpose in modern Canada?  Does the monarchy deserve to continue in Canada or would Canada be better off if it was abolished, to be replaced by a “made-in-Canada” head of state? And do the Queen’s representatives in Canada, the Governors General and Lieutenant Governors still have important political roles to play in the life of Canadian constitutional politics? If so, how would this change if Canada became a republic?