As part of a series of articles on major personalities who have furthered the cause of tolerance in Canada, Tolerance.ca® presents the world-renowned Montreal philosopher Charles Taylor, 2007 winner of the prestigious Templeton Prize. Mr Taylor co-chairs the Québec Commission on reasonable accommodations created by the Charest government in February 2007.He is considered one of the most brilliant minds to come out of Quebec and Canada. Named Grand Officer of the Ordre national du Québec, awarded a Gold Medal for Achievement in Research by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Charles Taylor has forged a reputation that extends far beyond Canada's borders. Some even place him within the limited circle of the ten most important contemporary philosophers. His work covers a range of interests, from language philosophy to identity issues. He has lectured in a number of countries and was consulted by President Vaclav Havel when Czechoslovakia split into two countries in the 1990s. Yet all these tokens of recognition have not prevented Charles Taylor from displaying a disarming amiability and simplicity in interview. A sign of greatness, one must admit.
Born in Montreal in 1931, to a francophone mother and an anglophone father, Taylor spent his childhood at the bridge of two major cultures, against the backdrop of the social and economic crises that dominated the 1930s and 1940s.
Did his upbringing predispose him to a reflection on tolerance and a search for compromise? He admits it was a strong influence. "My interest in the philosophy of language comes from my status as a bilingual citizen. At a very young age, I realized that differences in language condition different visions of the world. People perceive the world from another viewpoint depending on the language they speak. That opened my eyes to cultural differences and the crucial importance, in my case, of a degree of coexistence between our country's two major cultures," he notes with a smile.
The Path of Philosophy
After earning an undergraduate degree in history at McGill University in 1952, Taylor was awarded a prestigious Rhodes scholarship and travelled to England for a Master's degree in political science, philosophy and economics at Oxford University.
But it was to philosophical thought that he was particularly drawn. He undertook a PhD at the venerable English institution under professor Isaiah Berlin, who became a strong influence on his thought, then completed his studies in Paris with a stint at the École normale supérieure. In addition to Isaiah Berlin, his influences included nineteenth-century German philosopher W.G. Hegel and language theorists Herder and Humboldt.
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What is tolerance?
"It's an ambiguous notion that's very hard to grasp. It can be used in a pejorative sense to express the attitude one adopts towards people one doesn't like: we say we 'tolerate' them. But I think there's another, more virtuous way to define it, one that implies we try to understand the other and find what is interesting in him."
Charles Taylor |
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Throughout his career, Taylor has pursued his reflections on the clash of cultures and the need for cohabitation. A central notion, that of "recognition," borrowed from philosophers Rousseau and Hegel, serves as the basis for his theory on the vital necessity for cultures to be recognized and accepted for what they are by others, as is the case with individuals.
In the view of Guy Laforest, a professor at the political science department of Laval University and organizer of a symposium on Charles Taylor, the Montreal philosopher has made an invaluable contribution to the mutual understanding of national identities in Canada. "Taylor is one of those thinkers who always seeks to understand the position of the other and elucidate his own in order to reach an agreement."
Politics and Trudeau
On returning from Europe in 1961, Taylor embarked on a career as professor at McGill University, then at the University of Montreal from 1963 to 1971. In 1976, he was appointed to the prestigious Chichele Chair of Social and Political Theory at Oxford University, returning in 1981 to teach at McGill until 1993.
While he always loved teaching, Taylor was also tempted by politics in the early years of his career. On four occasions between 1962 and 1968, he unsuccessfully ran in the federal elections as a candidate for the New Democratic Party (NDP). In 1965, he came up short in the riding of Mount Royal against a good friend of his: Pierre E. Trudeau.
Up to a certain point, the two intellectuals, who first met in the 1950s, symbolize the internal rifts that Quebec has experienced over the past forty years. United in their bicultural origins and ideals of social justice, they nonetheless took strongly opposing positions on nationalism and the place Quebec should hold in the Canadian federation. Taylor recalls spending many hours debating the issue with the former Canadian prime minister. "We were never in agreement. He was very hostile towards nationalism. I believe there are healthy nationalisms and others that are less so. That is why I was willing to imagine a multinational society for Canada, in which one nation is encased in another. To Trudeau, that was not only illogical, but very dangerous."
The Role of Nationalism
Today, Taylor continues to believe that a democratic society must take into consideration the legitimate identity demands of cultural groups. Of course, Western societies are founded on the supremacy of law and recognize all citizens as equal. But Taylor argues that we must also take the particular social and historical contexts of States into account.
"You can't tell Quebecers or Danes to turn their backs on their national identity. Politics must be adjusted to account for reality. A nation like Quebec is based as much on democratic political principles as it is on a certain history of the French-Canadian nation, considered by the majority of Quebecers to be absolutely fundamental. Nationalist sentiment can indeed go against democracy because it can lead to attempts at affirmation that run counter to the rights of minorities. It's not only a force for good. Nonetheless, a healthy nationalism is inevitable for certain political structures."
The Challenge of "Living Together"
Storrs McCall, a former classmate at McGill University, notes that while his friend is very sensitive to Quebec's demands, he remains an ardent federalist: "He believes that Quebec plays an absolutely essential role within the country and that without it, Canada could not really exist." In the 1980 referendum, Taylor took a clear stand in favour of the NO side. During the second referendum campaign in 1995, however, he was much more reserved, notes Guy Laforest. "After the failure of the Meech Lake Accord, which he had supported, he said that the Canadian constitution was morally dead in Quebec. He recognized that as a result, in 1995, the situation was more complex."
"I believe we must create new forms of multinational coexistence. Canada has already gone so far in that direction that I would consider it a defeat if the country split up. I have many friends, in Sri Lanka and elsewhere, who are struggling to find solutions to their national problems. It would be very bad news for them if Canada, a rich country that has lived in peace for centuries, broke up," comments Taylor. Nonetheless, he is encouraged by the progress made by both sides in the Quebec-Canada dialogue.
"Intelligent, tolerant, simple, open to difference, attentive to others, warm…" McCall and Laforest are effusive in their praise of the eminent thinker. "He's a charming and passionate person whom it's hard not to like," enthuses Laforest. "When he criticizes a thinker or anyone else, he always tries to start from that person's best qualities. That's a sign of real generosity."
Translated by Christine York.
First published on April 20, 2004. Updated : September 15, 2007.