Book Review: "Sorry, I Don't Speak French - Confronting the Canadian Crisis that Won't Go Away" by Graham Fraser (2006)

Here, the Globe and Mail's Graham Fraser, a bilingual anglophone, tackles the most sacred of cows. His conclusion is simple and one that we should expect from such a charter member of the Ottawa establishment - we should all learn French not because it will make Quebec feel more loved or because it will improve our employment prospects, but rather, just because it's the good, Canadian thing to do (notwithstanding - there's that word again - the fact that a lot of folks have other priorities in life like school, careers, community, and family, among other interests).

Fraser realizes that the concept of bilingualism doesn't work as well as its initial champions had hoped, but he is still a strong believer in it and concludes by warning that if more English Canadians don't become bilingual, it will eventually cost us the country. (I'm not too sure about that, personally.)

For my taste, he spends too much discussing how bilingualism policy came to be pre-Trudeau. More pages should have been devoted to subjects like intermarriage between francophones and anglophones. Another issue which needs to be addressed is how the quality of French taught in language schools is often completely different than the vrai francais of the Quebecois people. Other issues he could have tackled with more depth would be a statistical analysis of workplace bilingualism and the effect it has had on hiring and promotions within various government departments, and also, the role of American media culture in undermining opportunities for learning French within English Canada. I mean, wouldn't you rather watch Friends than a Quebec soap opera? Let's see ... Aerosmith or Eric Lapointe? I'm sorry, you don't know who he is? Didn't think you would, actually.

This is an interesting book but it doesn't go nearly far enough. I believe there is a way to recognize the need to demonstrate respect for French Canadians through bilingualism, but that depends first on being 100% honest about how dysfunctional it is right now. Fraser doesn't do that, but by pulling his punches, at least he won't lose any friends in either the newsroom, academia, or Liberal and Red Tory circles.

Overall rating: 5/10