Expressive Acts: Celebrations and Demonstrations in the Streets of Victorian Toronto - Softcover

Radforth, Ian

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1487545770 ISBN 13: 9781487545772

Publisher: University of Toronto Press, 2023

Synopsis

In nineteenth-century Toronto, people took to the streets to express their jubilation on special occasions, such as the 1860 visit of the Prince of Wales and the return in 1885 of the local Volunteers who helped to suppress the Riel resistance in the North-West. In a contrasting mood, people also took to the streets in anger to object to government measures, such as the Rebellion Losses bill, to heckle rival candidates in provincial election campaigns, to assert their ethno-religious differences, and to support striking workers.

Expressive Acts examines instances of both celebration and protest when Torontonians publicly displayed their allegiances, politics, and values. The book illustrates not just the Victorian city’s vibrant public life but also the intense social tensions and cultural differences within the city. Drawing from journalists’ accounts in newspapers, Expressive Acts illuminates what drove Torontonians to claim public space, where their passions lay, and how they gave expression to them.

About this title

About the Author

Ian Radforth is a professor emeritus of history at the University of Toronto.

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Toronto Press
• Publication date: 2023
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1487545770
• ISBN 13: 9781487545772
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 250