LOSS, MEMORY AND CULTURAL IDENTITY IN THE DOMINION OF NEWFOUNDLAND

Newfoundland and Labrador reluctantly joined the Canadian Confederation in 1949. It is not well known that a process of renewing and strengthening its place within Canada noted the profound impact of loss in its history, suggesting that unresolved and insufficiently addressed issues of loss lie at the heart of some of its most profound struggles as citizens of Newfoundland and Labrador. This paper brings together ideas and concepts focused on issues of cultural loss and memory within the context of Newfoundland and Labrador in the twenty century. These ideas and concepts revolved around issues of Englishness versus Canadianness same as Dominionship versus Provinceship. Parallelisms that could be counterparted by those outstanding such as: wildlife, and natural resources; migration and diaspora; languages and dialects; communities and resettlement; wars and tragedies; architecture and heritage; cultural representation and identities; nationhood and governance; marginalization and difference; faith and spirituality; and, home, place, and displacement. As an illustrative example, the work by Elizabeth Goudie Woman of Labrador will be considered. A memoir in which in eighty years, the author witnessed radical changes to Labrador, such as the construction of an airport at Goose Bay during the Second World War. Where once there had been pride and contentment in a harmonious relationship with the land, displacement and despair came as the wilderness was overtaken by military and industrial projects. One of her greatest triumphs was her steady pride in Labrador, her “country,” and her ideal of peace among neighbours.