Two Sides of the Fence: A Comparative Analysis of Parc-Extension and Town of Mont-Royal
Schinazi, V.R. (2001). Two Sides of the Fence: A Comparative Analysis of Parc-Extension and Town of Mont-Royal. In Gauthier, L., Saxton, T., & Cohen, C (Eds.), Stories from Montreal: Ethnographic accounts of Life in North America’s francophone metropolis (pp. 43-60). Montreal, Canada: Trickster Publications.
Choosing the topic for research is an expression of a person’s fascination for the subject. This fascination is nothing more than the culmination of perceived peculiarities about someone or something that constantly intrigues the individual. In my case I was taken aback by the astounding differences found in the neighbouring districts of Parc-Extension and the Town of Mont-Royal. Call it fate or serendipity, but all it took was a wrong turn on l’Acadie Boulevard to prompt my curiosity about the differences in lifestyle between these two areas. The sight of the fence that separated the calm, quiet and spatially organized environment of the Town of Mont-Royal from the noisy and crowded setting of Parc-Extension was enough to offend me. I had never come across such a variation in land use within such a short distance. Intrigued by this phenomenon, I set out to investigate the reason for this spatial segregation. The study of the different lifestyles required that I go beyond a simple observation of the resident’s daily activities and find a way to experience life as a fellow resident.