characteristic of that time and place. More importantly, he revelled in the freedom of being Canadian—in the positive aspect of the country’s weak national identity. No heavy burdens of history, no compelling national myths, stood in the way of his perceiving the world. While many Canadians complained about excessive American influence, for example, he liked to say that Canadians enjoyed complete access to American experience with no commitment to American goals.
Early Years
He was born on July 21, 1911, in Edmonton, Alberta, to Herbert McLuhan and Elsie Hall McLuhan. Herbert McLuhan was a genial, easy-going man who had come west with his father and brothers from Ontario to homestead on the
