essay
Reconstituting a Lebanese village society in a Canadian city
arabic speaking communities in american cities • Staten Island, N. Y. • Published In 1974 • Pages: 39-52
By: Sweet, Louise Elizabeth.
Abstract
Based on her field work in rural Lebanon (1964-1965, 1969-1970) and participant observation of a picnic, a community gathering, and a visit among Arab-Canadians at an airport in Edmonton, Alberta, Sweet argues that Lebanese rural customs and etiquette continue to structure the behavior surrounding group encounters in Canada. What she calls 'pre-industrial bonds' survive in the immigrant community to affect social behavior in spite of acculturation. The reason for this, she argues, is because of the corporate individualism and class system of Canada which 'downgrades those without proper Canadian British language, or skills, or education, or economic resources, and so inhibits movement out of the lowest levels of the working class, invites no one to give up his close family and clan life for the industrial alternatives: vagrancy and welfare. (p. 50)'
- HRAF PubDate
- 1999
- Region
- North America
- Sub Region
- Regional, Ethnic and Diaspora Cultures
- Document Type
- essay
- Evaluation
- Creator Type
- Ethnologist
- Document Rating
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- Analyst
- Ian Skoggard ; 1998
- Field Date
- 1966-1972
- Coverage Date
- 1966-1972
- Coverage Place
- Edmonton, Alberta
- Notes
- Louise E. Sweet
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 52)
- LCCN
- 73088936
- LCSH
- Arabs--Canada