John Ralston Saul
Culture and Foreign Policy
Republished with permission

It is difficult to imagine how a department called Heritage or 'Patrimoine', could contribute to a youthful, energetic culture, let alone to the foreign policy aspects of it.

The department of culture and/or communications was rebaptized Heritage/ Patrimone by a government devoted to stripping the federal government of most cultural activity except the responsibility for such things as museums. And, indeed, the words heritage and patrimoine both indicate that culture is in the past, inoffensive, devoted to simplistic patriotic activities, and preferably made up of bricks and mortar.

It may appear picky to focus on the mere name of a department. But the name indicates intent. That is why concepts such as Newspeak and propaganda have been important in the 20th Century. And names affect the expectations of the public served, as well as the civil servants' understanding of their mission. It would take little effort to restore a name - such as Culture and Communications - which reflects the purpose of the department.

John Ralston Saul is an essayist and novelist. He is the author of many books, including The Doubter's Companion - A Dictionary of Aggressive Common Sense, Voltaire's Bastards: the Dictatorship of Reason in the West, and Paradise Eater, which won the Premio Letterario Internazionale in 1990. Mr. Saul has a Ph.D. from King's College, London.