| Summary: | The extraction and transportation of bitumen from northeastern Alberta's oil deposits, known as the tar sands, is a contentious topic in Canada and around the world. Frequently portrayed in Canadian news media, the project is both lauded as a major contributor to the Canadian economy and derided for its degradation of the environment and infringement on First Nations territory and way of life. Understanding that places are ever-changing configurations shaped by multi-scalar processes and opposing visions, this thesis examines how the discourse of the tar sands in the news contributes to national place-making in Canada. Using content analysis, I consulted fifty randomly selected articles from one of Canada's top daily newspapers, The Globe and Mail, to understand how the project is discussed nationally. I use relational place theory to parameterize the competing frames used to define Canada as a place. Postcolonial theory is used to further unpack the epistemological legacies and discursive practices through which place is constituted. I found that more nationalist framings of Canada promoted by the government and industry—Canada as democratic/responsible and Canada as modern—featured most prominently in the sample; however, counter-frames that question Canada's inherent benevolent and responsible nature offer a small, yet strong opposition to these hegemonic national myths. Therefore, the tar sands represent more than a debate over resource development, but a debate over the nature of the country itself. Submitted Note: A Thesis submitted to the Department of Geography in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. Degree Awarded: Spring Semester 2016. Date of Defense: March 18, 2016. Keywords: Canada, content analysis, nation-state, place-making, postcolonialism, tar sands Bibliography Note: Includes bibliographical references. Advisory Committee: Mary Lawhon, Professor Directing Thesis; Joseph Pierce, Committee Member; Kristin Dowell, Committee Member.
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