leonard's significance to canadian identity

[tomato]

hello everyone
i am a new fan of leonard cohen and so i decided to do a history essay on his significance to the canadian identity andi am finding it a lot harder than i thought i would.
if anyone has any ideas then please reply!
that would be greatly appreciated!
thanks

[lizzytysh]

Welcome to the Forum, tomato! It at least sounds like you're sincerely trying to effectively address your very interesting topic choice. I'm not Canadian, but I was surprized when I first heard that Leonard was Canadian. But then, I was even more surprized to hear that he lives in the U.S., L.A. of all places. His living on Hydra met well with my image. I didn't really feel that he should be pinned down to a particular ethnicity or nationality, however. I was very willing to let him be Leonard Internationale. Hmmm.....his impact on the Canadian identity in history class. Is it meant to be from a sociology, psychology, or literature perspective?

[tomato]

thanks for the reply!
yeah i agree that leonard is more of an international artistic icon for everyone. but since it is a canadian history class i am supposed to touch on that although part of my essay will be about how he has spread from just canada to all over the US and Europe as well. Basically i am to touch on all the aspects of canadian identity, and there are no restraints. some of my points so far are that there were not many international artists from canada at the time , and how canada is kind of in the shadows of the united states and since he was an international musician he raised above that and made himself known.
its a hard topic though so i would appreciate the help

[lizzytysh]

Hi tomato ~

At least you're leading in with some substantive ideas. Rather than just handing us your project. I hope some Canadians, who are familiar with other artists from there during that initial time will lend a helping hand. I don't know when your paper is due, but if you have time, you can go to Jarkko's main page and in the left-hand column find various resources to read. In addition, you can go to Marie Mazur's site for more articles. Just a day of reading might help you tremendously. Yes, he has risen above it, but is still not as well known as we would like him to be. How did you discover him? You already like him and that's great! You've chosen a complex man for a complex topic. It'll be great for a paper, though, if you have enough time. Of course, he's still held on to Montreal to a degree.

~ Elizabeth

[tomato]

i have heard a lot of leonard because my dad really likes him, but i never really ACTUALLY listened to him, becuase i was never interested but i was reading these lyrics my dad had lying around and i really like them!
when i asked him whos they were he said they were leonard cohen's.
I don't have too much time to read though i have read some of his poems. i have found the thesis to my essay though.
it is that leonard cohen is a well known canadian who has touched the world on a global level and is internationally reclaimed. stuff like that. Basically i just ramble on for 100 words!
hope it turns out
if you have any more ideas though feel free to post!
anyone really! i would love the help!

[tomato]

sorry did i say 100 words? i meant 1000
biggg difference

[John the Shorts]

Shwmae Tomato

Welcome to the forum. I hope you're not here only for the length of your assignment.

There are several links on the files page that could be useful. Perhaps you could start with the words of "Un Canadian Errant"?

JTS (How long do you have to create this 1000 word essay?)

[witty_owl]

G'day Tomato. Given that this is a history project I think you should familiarise youself with Leonard's early work as this is where he began to gather his world wide following. As for his Canadian identity- how much of a following does he have in Canada these days? Is he popularised as a national icon?
Another thought Perhaps make a reference or comparison to other Canadian singer/songwriters or authors who have made an international impact with their work. E.G. Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Steven Stills, Gordon Lightfoot, Bruce Cockburn and Charles De Lint.
Happy writing,

[tom.d.stiller]

Hello tomato.

Welcome to the forum. At least to me Leonard is an important part of what forms the perception of Canada in the world, though he really is more of an international icon...

Will you let us read your paper once it is finished? When is it due?

Tom

[September_Cohen]

it is said at the back of STRANGER MUSIC that Cohen lives at the edges of us all

[lizzytysh]

Hi Tomato ~ I think the quote that September has referred to would be an excellent one for beginning or ending your paper. Its truth resonates worldwide.
~ Lizzytysh

[Joe Way]

Tomato,

Both Louis Dudek and Irving Layton (both excellent Canadian poets) were early influences on Leonard. If Vern Silver is checking out the forum, he can give you some excellent background info.

Joe