Border Culture, the Boundary Between Canada and the United States of America, and the Advancement of Borderlands Theory

Konrad, Victor;Nicol, Heather N.

Discussion of "border culture" as a product of both the divisions and the transnational cultural and political relationships apparent in societies that share a geopolitical boundary. Exploration of "borderlands theory" as a means for considering the origins, functions, and development of national borders in a globalizing world. Specific focus on the boundary between the United States and Canada, on what the authors call "the multiple layers of border" - political, social, economic, legal, cultural - and how they are woven organically though communities on each side of the dividing boundary. How borders shape and help us to think about human culture. From the authors: "In the process of globalization it is border culture that ultimately sustains linkages, assures continuity and maintains prosperity between bounded states. In this essay we explore how border culture works, and how the conceptualization of border culture advances our understanding of how borders work. Our approach is to establish a place for the consideration of culture in the more extensive debates about border theory through a focus on the Canada-U.S. border, and how this border advances our knowledge of border culture and border theory."

2011

en

Journal Article

20th century - 21st century, United States, Canada

1

Geopolitics

1465-0045

16