Evaluate the Claim That Britishness Is a Matter of ‘Shared Values’, Ideas or Ways of Life
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- Date Submitted: 05/11/2014 03:03 AM
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Evaluate the claim that Britishness is a matter of ‘shared values’, ideas or ways of life.
The aim of this essay is to evaluate to what extent Britishness is a matter of ‘shared values’, ideas or ways of life. I will do this with particular focus on a range of short pieces of writing from varied sources such as that at government and independent levels. Britishness is not entirely about symbols and a flag, to be British implies sharing a place of residence. Although these residents of Britain will exhibit an array of different identities according to their background, Britishness can also be used to refer to the characteristics that bind and distinguish British people and forms the basis of a national identity or explains British culture. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the correct name for the country, whereas Great Britain alone does not formally include Northern Ireland, the adjective ‘British’ usually includes everyone. Britishness does not have a singular meaning and it has been constructed through a number of ideas. For some, Britishness refers to the relationship between people and place, other people will make historical connections, such as that of the Monarchy or see the political influences that shape the country. Many people believe the term directly relates to a shared culture, shared values, ideas or ways of life. People in the United Kingdom share a national identity, though this for many is not something they are particularly content about. A person may wish not to be associated with a stereotypical view like English people drink excessive amounts of alcohol, though have no problems with the portrayal that British people are polite. Being British, as mentioned, suggests that people share a place of residence, though it is also sometimes treated as a racial category, that means belonging to the ‘British race’ or being Caucasian. At other times it has been treated as an ethnic identity, and such ideas of race, termed...
The aim of this essay is to evaluate to what extent Britishness is a matter of ‘shared values’, ideas or ways of life. I will do this with particular focus on a range of short pieces of writing from varied sources such as that at government and independent levels. Britishness is not entirely about symbols and a flag, to be British implies sharing a place of residence. Although these residents of Britain will exhibit an array of different identities according to their background, Britishness can also be used to refer to the characteristics that bind and distinguish British people and forms the basis of a national identity or explains British culture. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the correct name for the country, whereas Great Britain alone does not formally include Northern Ireland, the adjective ‘British’ usually includes everyone. Britishness does not have a singular meaning and it has been constructed through a number of ideas. For some, Britishness refers to the relationship between people and place, other people will make historical connections, such as that of the Monarchy or see the political influences that shape the country. Many people believe the term directly relates to a shared culture, shared values, ideas or ways of life. People in the United Kingdom share a national identity, though this for many is not something they are particularly content about. A person may wish not to be associated with a stereotypical view like English people drink excessive amounts of alcohol, though have no problems with the portrayal that British people are polite. Being British, as mentioned, suggests that people share a place of residence, though it is also sometimes treated as a racial category, that means belonging to the ‘British race’ or being Caucasian. At other times it has been treated as an ethnic identity, and such ideas of race, termed...