1.4 Assignment
For this assignment you will be responding to a satirical video which critiques an agreement that Canada has recently ratified with China.
Background on the Agreement
The Canada-China Foreign Investment and Promotion and Protection Agreement was ratified in 2014 by the Canada's Conservative Government led by Prime Minister Stephen Harper. This agreement was promoted by the Canadian Government as being good for the Canadian economy. It was highly supported by Canadian companies who want to make investments overseas.
You should understand that this is not a free trade agreement per se. Its purpose is not to govern trade but to remove barriers to Canadian businesses investing in China and vise versa.
It was criticized by several groups in Canada when it was first discussed in the media in 2014. Some have argued that the agreement was not made public but kept secret for good reasons. They have said that China got a far better deal than Canada. Canadian law professor Gus Van Harten has argued that Chinese companies will be able to sue the Canadian government if anything gets in the way of their profits. This would include environmental standards and First Nations rights.
Your assignment
Watch the short video below, which is a work of satire meant to critique the FIPA agreement with China. It is made to be humorous but with a serious intent.
Your response will address the following question:
How effective is this video as a work of satire?
You will need to understand that satire is a type of critique that ridicules a target which it believes to be harmful to society. In order to respond to the video, you will need to identify the target of the satire as well as the techniques used to ridicule the target. You should also comment upon how well the video informs the viewer of the issue. Finally, you will determine how effective this video is at satirizing the Canada/China FIPA.
Write your response as a one to three paragraph response which you will upload below.