L'idéologie politique de la revue Cité Libre

Abstract

The Political Ideology of Cité LibreThe most fruitful period in the life of the French-Canadian review, Cité Libre, was during the years 1960 to 1966, which corresponded roughly with Quebec's “Quiet Revolution.” Analysis of the review's political ideology during this period reveals the person, the individual, to be its central concern and the chief principle by which it assessed contemporary events and movements.This emphasis was due, in part, to the personalist philosophy of Emmanuel Mounier and his review, Esprit. To inaugurate a more humane social order, Cité Libre proposed substituting the personal for the collective in so far as the latter is defined in traditional thought. In the same way, the review urged that to inaugurate a more humane politics, social considerations must be substituted for nationalist ones, for nationalism diverts and misdirects people and history itself works in opposition to nationalism. Rejecting the option of an independent Quebec, Cité Libre advocated a state respectful of individuals by reason of its commitment to democracy, federalism, socialism, and world peace.Three levels of political ideology are distinguished in the review: the ideological stand just outlined, the Quebec social situation, and generalized political objectives. Since the period under study, Cité Libre has not had the same biting edge which it once displayed.