AT THE CROSSROADS - NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR COMMUNITIES IN A CHANGING INTERNATIONAL CONTEXT

This essay examines the changing relationship between the small commun ities (outports) of Newfoundland and Labrador and the broader internat ional context. The essay covers three time periods. Following a brief discussion of the changing nature of community studies, the first part outlines the essential characteristics of historic communities, inclu ding the salt cod fish trade, a dispersed settlement pattern, small-sc ale and intimate society, and the importance of oral tradition. Fallin g as it did on the heels of the Great Depression, World War II irrevoc ably changed Newfoundland and Labrador. Part two describes the role of outport people in the construction of wartime military bases. Soon af ter, the material benefits of Newfoundland's Confederation with Canada in 1949, resettlement, and the intensification of the fishery led to unexpected consequences. Part three discusses Newfoundland and Labrado r in the wake of the 1992 Cod Moratorium. The Moratorium has increased emigration and accelerated efforts to diversify the economy. Outport communities, and the academic study of them, are both at an uncertain crossroads.