Riassunto esame Lingua e cultura inglese I, Prof. Rossi Mario, libro consigliato British cultural identities, Mike Storry, Peter Childs

Chapter 1: Places and peoples: region and nation

Introduction

Britain is a short form of the full name United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the UK). Great Britain includes England, Wales and Scotland. The UK includes England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Scotland and Wales should have a devolution, in fact, the Scottish Parliament and the Welsh Assembly were created in 1999; this gave not independence but increased self-government. Northern Ireland had a self-rule in 1972, and the Northern Irish Assembly and Executive was created in 2000. Most Britons believe Northern Ireland should join a United Ireland rather than be a part of the UK.

Britain’s highest mountain is Ben Nevis (1344 m) in Scotland; Britain’s longest river is the Severn (354 km): rises in central Wales but wanders in England; Britain’s largest lake is Lough Neagh in Northern Ireland. Many British people do not live in the UK. British people have ties throughout the world, particularly with the other 53 member states of the Commonwealth.

To confuse Britain with England can cause grave offence. England is named after the Angles who invaded Britain in the 5th century. Celtic influence is present in Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Cornwall, and this ethnic difference remains the basis on which England is considered to have the least in common with the others. Over the last century and before, the connections created by the Empire have led to the arrival in Britain of many people from the Caribbean, the Indian sub-continent and Africa. The cultural life in Britain is much wider than geographical boundaries might suggest.

County

After the region, the largest area with which the British identify themselves is their country that is a geographical fusion of landscape, culture and administration. Country boundaries partitioned ancient Britain, and three counties in the south (Sussex, Kent and Essex) were Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. Modified in 1975, counties may be ceremonial or administrative and still form the basis of local government in some areas of the UK even though the reorganisation in 1997 changed again the map.

In terms of county types, the most famous grouping in England is the 'home counties' (counties around London) such as Kent, Surrey, Berkshire, Middlesex and Essex. Some counties are known for their countryside: Cumbria's Lake District and Hampshire's New Forest. Others are known for their industry: Lancashire's factories and Nottinghamshire's mines.

Northern Ireland is sometimes known as 'the six counties'. Local government there operates now on the basis of small district and borough councils (example is Antrim that occupies the north-east corner of Ireland). In addition, on the north coast there is the famous Giant's Causeway. This is a promontory of vertical basalt columns formed by a volcanic rift which stretches under the sea to the Hebrides. Irish legend holds that a giant built this as a walkway from Ireland to a cave on the Hebridean island of Staffa, so that he could attack the legendary Scottish hero Fingal. The roof of Fingal's Cave is also formed of straight six-sided rock columns which the two giants supposedly threw at each other. English poets such as Keats and Wordsworth have written about Fingal's cave.

Most of England's 48 counties have an identity, own particular characteristics and distinctive inhabitants. Counties have given their names to famous stretches of countryside, to types of people, to food and even to breeds of animal (Staffordshire bull terrier). Sport and geographic features are significant for their identities. For example, Yorkshire is famous for having one of the 17 county cricket clubs and it is separated from its historic rival Lancashire by the Pennines. Yorkshire is famous abroad for the moors on which the Bronte sisters used to live, but the county is also well known in Britain for a section of the Pennines, the Yorkshire Dales, which was designated a National Park in 1954. These parks are areas of significant natural beauty in England and Wales and are protected under measures.

Actually, most counties are famous for having a strong identity. For example, Yorkshire and the inhabitants of Britain's smallest ex-county, Rutland, were trying to have the county officially recognised again; in 2007 the county was once again recognised as a postal county and then it had become a unitary authority but this sense of local county identity was satirised in a TV series.

In 1975, the Welsh counties were rearranged with others to reduce their number from 13 to 8. The county contains a collection of mainly red sandstone mountains designed a National Park in 1957; along and between the mountains are standing stones, ancient castles and cairns. The forests, mountains and reservoirs of the Beacons provide excellent grounds for outdoor activities such as boating, trekking, cycling... The 1974 counties were themselves abolished in 1996 and since then Wales has been divided into a system of unitary authorities, also known as principal areas.

Scotland has been divided into nine large administrative regions, districts and three island areas, instead of 33 counties. Fife was the only county not to be renamed as a region; it is also nationally and politically significant that off the coast of Fife are the drilling ships and rigs that have been exploring for oil and gas in the North Sea since the 1970s. The regions and districts were themselves abolished in 1996, in favour of unitary Scottish council areas.

City

As of 2010, the UK has 66 cities. City is actually a title of dignity conferred on towns of religious, commercial or industrial importance by statute, royal charter or tradition. Occasionally, new cities are created, sometimes bidding for the status. Britain's cities vary a lot, from the industrial giants Manchester, Glasgow and Newcastle in the north and Scotland to the southern ports such as Southampton and Bristol. There are also cities noted for their cathedrals, such as Hereford, and the heritage cities such as the Roman town of Chester.

According to an EU publication, the first five things that spring to mind when someone thinks of the UK are Shakespeare, the BBC, the Beatles, royalty and London, the capital. Within London, there is a 'square mile' of offices and banks simply known as 'the City' and is the financial hub of Britain's business activities. London has the largest population of any city in Europe (nearly 8 million in 2011) and it is one of the best-known cities in the world, but in many ways it is different from the rest of the UK. London fashions show different clothes and styles of the past, shops sell from military armour to body jewellery, and musical styles are eclectic. London now represents because its 'conglomerate nature' echoes the cultural diversity of the hold Empire. To reflect London's particular interests and identity, the position of Mayor was revived in May 2000.

Britain's culture is represented everywhere in London from the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square and the Royal Academy of Arts in Piccadilly to the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden and the National Theatre on the South Bank. Museums in central London are: Museum of the moving image (MOMI) which celebrates film and televisions and British Museum, which was the world's first public museum and currently is Britain's second most visited tourist attraction. British Museum serves as a reminder of Britain's imperial history, and yet it is only one of around a hundred major museums in the capital. Then we have: Museum of the Jewish East End and the Museum of Eton Life, Sherlock Holmes Museum and the Florence Nightingale Museum; they represent the variety of Britain's lucrative cultural heritage industry.

Tradition is still celebrated all year round (the Lord Mayor of Westminster's New Year's Parade) and the past is often used for commercial profit or for charity: 'punks' are likely to be arts students looking to supplement their grants by simulating a Britishness for photographers.

To many people outside the capital, London is seen as a collection made of buildings, landmarks, and monuments such as Buckingham Palace, St Paul's Cathedral, the Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and Piccadilly Circus. However, London is best seen as a patchwork of distinct districts stitched together, for example, the Parliament at Westminster, the museums, shops and galleries of the West End, the City, the exhibition area around Earls Court and the famous suburbs from Richmond in the west to Greenwich on the east.

Nevertheless, it is the tourist attractions that survive in the popular imagination as representative of London such as the London Bridge that was bought in 1960 by wealthy Americans who had it taken apart and rebuilt in Arizona.

Less well-published characteristic of London and other British cities is the rise in the number of homeless people sleeping on the streets, or in makeshift back garden temporary accommodation. Housing in the capital is very expensive, in London and elsewhere, 'inner-city' areas are generally less well than the suburbs. Lifestyles are different too: in the inner cities, the neighbourhood and street in which people live impinge more on their sense of identity than they do in the suburbs where people's home and garden are major preoccupations and sources of pleasure. Inner-city regeneration has become a central policy for successive governments since the war and since the 'riots' broke out in the early 1980s violent crashes between police and protesters against the government's race, housing and employment policies.

Until recently, the capital city of Northern Ireland was most famous throughout the world for its violence. Between 1968 and the end of the millennium, Belfast had made the front pages of British newspapers for its sectarian killings; the Falls Road (Catholic) and the Shankhill Road (Protestant) became notorious throughout Britain. Thanks to the Celtic Tiger economic boom of the early years of the new century, the Northern Ireland Tourist Board has been active in bringing visitors back to the country through a publicity campaign including newspaper and television advertisements. Northern Ireland's difference from the rest of Britain is illustrated by the fact that Belfast is the country's only industrial city.

The capital of Scotland is Edinburgh, cut across by the famous Royal Mile. It is smaller than Glasgow; Glasgow is one of the 'coolest' city in Britain while Edinburgh is probably more famous for its annual summer Festival and Fringe that are both summer festivals devoted to drama, film, literature, music and dance. They claim to be the largest arts festival in the world.

Cardiff, in Welsh, in the county of South Glamorgan, is the capital of Wales and its largest city. Built on a site originally developed by the Romans in the first century, the city stands alongside the river Taff. In the late decades of the 20th century, both coal industry and Cardiff docks declined (they used to export more coal than any other port in the world). Now Cardiff's docklands have been renovated. Cardiff is also home to two strong Welsh passions: rugby union and singing. Since 1946, Cardiff has also been the base for the National Opera, the oldest of Britain's regional opera companies (the others are Scottish Opera and Opera North). A new opera house was being commissioned for the inner harbour of Cardiff Bay but, after difficulties, a Wales Millennium Centre to house an international arts and cultural complex opened instead. The impressive new sport stadium even staged the English FA Cup Final for several years while Wembley Stadium in London was being rebuilt.

Town

British towns are still varied, from the seaside towns, market towns, country towns, tourist towns to the post-war 'new' towns. Some coastal towns such as Blackpool and Bournemouth are known as seaside resorts, and these are extremely popular with British holidaymakers, although overseas tourists are more likely to visit historic towns such as Roman Colchester or Shakespeare's Stratford. Other popular spots are spa towns such as Buxton. Many northern towns are retained by southerners the unfair image of industrial decline they gained between the wars, while market towns still suggest the traditions of the English countryside.

Towns do not have the large cultural life of cities or the close-knit community feel of small villages, but they combine aspects of each, providing a balance that many people feel is preferable to the bustle of the urban areas or the relative isolation of the countryside. Each county also has a 'county town' which traditionally was the seat of county government. County towns can often be inferred from their names, such as Lancaster (today a city) in Lancashire and Shrewsbury (still a town) in Shropshire.

Traditional English towns retain many of the architectural signs of the 19th century. Many towns still have magnificent municipal buildings and impressive corn exchanges still stand in many country towns. Every sizable British town has a central park such as Stratford Park in Stroud, and each town is different its development of terraced housing, shops, factories and schools around church, railway station, market, town hall and square will be familiar.

Many modern towns arose because of the New Towns Act of 1946. However, of the total of 33 new towns the most well-known example is Milton Keynes in north Buckinghamshire. The intention was always to plan modern towns for modern living in every aspect by blending industrial and residential areas with full leisure facilities and by separating traffic from pedestrian through a network of underpasses and walkways. However, Milton Keynes was not built up from nothing: it was designed to unite 13 existing villages, which are now enclosed by sweeping 'bypass' roads. Despite its image of cleanliness and hi-tech living, much of the large town remained underdeveloped.

Most British towns have their own distinctive characteristics or annual events that promote a local cultural identity, for example, the two Welsh towns of Hay (a small town which has become the book trade capital of Britain; shops are antiquarian or second-hand booksellers; club, university and schools trip are usually arranged) and Brecon in the county of Powys. Hay has developed a prestigious annual literature festival while Brecon is known for the jazz festival.

However, we must also note that the look of larger modern British towns has been influenced by the United States. A largely consumer culture has been imported from across the Atlantic and modern buildings reflect this: shopping complexes, multiplex cinemas, theme parks, out-of-town supermarkets, Disney stores and fast-food restaurants, some of them drive-ins. Most cities and towns in Britain can be expected to have a number of fast-food outlets such as Burger King, a range of clothes shops like Gap, a Tesco or similar supermarkets, a Super Bowl, cinema complex, leisure centres with computerised workout gyms and hoardings that advertise the American dream. Milton Keynes is an example of all of this.

The planners' aim has been to emulate the values and facilities of the ideal American town: efficiency, convenience, easy access, cleanliness and even air-conditioning, plus such unBritish aspects as indoor gardens, straight roads and parking for hundreds of cars. In this, the designers have probably succeeded.

Village

Little international influence will be found in Britain's villages, some of which can be described as rows of cottages in country fields between hedgerows and small streams. In the last 60 years, many people have moved back to rural areas, resisting the trend started by the industrial revolution, but the dominant migration is towards cities. Villages in Britain are traditionally associated with a close-knit society centred on a hall, which serves as a kind of community centre, a market, parish church, pub and a 'green', which is a grass area for fairs, shows, cricket matches and other sporting events, or public gatherings.

Village's life is linked to ownership and family history and is synonymous with community symbolised by church-going, jumble sales, charity collecting, fetes and flower shows. However, village life is changing. A modern phenomenon is the commuter village: a village that has good transport links for office workers to travel by road or rail to the major cities, such as London; sometimes the journey takes several hours. Many city workers live in villages for the peace and quiet, the clean air, scenery and wildlife. The other city workers come out to the countryside and villages at the weekends or just in the summer for holidays. They are sometimes resented by the local villagers because they may force up property prices and they also pose a threat to the continuity of village life as happened in Wales. Village populations have also changed because more and more people are retiring to the countryside from the city. Historically, village work has been based around a farming community, but the size of the agricultural workforce decreases year by year. Britain now has nine counties that are classed as rural and about a quarter of the villages in these areas still have no food shop, post office or doctor's surgery, as showed an article of The Times in 2001.

Village's life and styles are known thanks to several radio serials such as:

• 'The Archers' of the BBC in 1950: broadcast during the week for 15 minutes – twice a day; the on-going saga revolves around the Archer family at Brookfield farm and portrays a close-knit village community in which everyone interacts with everyone else. Episodes are full of domestic incident and minor moral dilemmas, but there are emotional scenes and revelations than in the television soaps. The programme has always aimed to reflect realistically the concerns and interests of a village community;
• 'Hanbury' in Worcestershire: a programme that includes real people, the most noted of whom have been several members of the royal family;

In 1989 the Post Office issued a set of commemorative stamps to mark the...