Great Canadian Speeches

A collection of the most powerful and moving oratory that Canada has to offer.

Throughout history, men and women of great eloquence have persuaded their contemporaries to build nations, to make war and create peace, to sway judges and juries, to celebrate the accomplishments of the living, and to mourn for the dead.

Canada has had more than its share of great orators, individuals who have used their rhetorical powers to explore important issues faced by our nation: Confederation, relations between peoples, human rights, the economy, culture, our international relationships, particularly with the United States, but also our role in the larger and developing world.

Great Canadian Speeches is a thought-provoking collection of the finest speeches in Canadian history, among them:

• Sir John A. MacDonald making a case for Confederation, while silver-tongued Joseph Howe argues against it;
• Louis Riel pleading his case to a Regina jury in 1885;
• Nellie McClung demanding the vote for women;
• Dr. Norman Bethune urging Canadians to support the Republican cause in Spain;
• Pierre Trudeau and Rene Levesque facing off in the 1980 Quebec referendum;
• Thomas Homer-Dixon pondering Canada's future in an increasingly unstable world.
• David Suzuki addressing environmental challenges
• Jean Chretien on the Trade Tower bombing
• Justin Trudeau's "Je t'aime papa"
• Stephen Lewis' talk on AIDS and the west
• and many more.

Great Canadian Speeches is an eminently readable, thought-provoking oratory for anyone who treasures our country's history and literature.