The Society and Culture of Major EnglishSpeaking Countries

The Society and Culture of Major English-Speaking Countries• 5th century AD 410: Anglo-Saxon invasion - Germanic peoples: theAngles, and the • From the late 8th century on, raiders from

The Society and Culture of Major English-Speaking Countries

• 5th century AD (410): Anglo-Saxon invasion - Germanic peoples: theAngles, and the

• From the late 8th century on, raiders from Scandinavia, the cruel Vikings,threatened Britain's shores The English heroes were truly English (Anglo-Saxon), such as King Alfred the Great

• The next invaders were the Normans, from northern France in 1066

• Next few hundred years: a process of joining together the various parts ofthe British Isles under English rule

What are some general characteristics of Scotland? How did Scotland become part of the union of Great Britain?

• the second largest of the four nations, both in population and ingeographical area

• the most confident of its own identity

• the most rugged part of the UK, with areas of sparsely populated mountainsand lakes in the north (the Highlands), and in the south (the SouthernUplands)

• Scotland was not conquered by the Romans or the Anglo-Saxons

• Scotland began to experience Viking raids in the 9th century, and it was thepressure from this outside threat that led Scottish kings to unify, forming anindependent singular Scottish state

• In 1314, the Scottish defeated the English at the Battle of Bannockburn,leading to 300 years of full independence

• In 1603, Queen Elizabeth the First of England died childless, so James theSixth of Scotland became James the First of England, uniting the twothrones But for another hundred years Scotland maintained its separatepolitical identity

• In 1707 the English and Scottish parliaments decided to form a union based

on agreement Great Britain was established

• The dream of an independent Scotland has not vanished Scotland elects itsmembers of parliament to the London parliament and sends 72representatives to London

The Society and Culture of Major English-Speaking Countries

Question 3

“Ireland has been divided by a long and bloody conflict.” Please

illustrate this point What do you know about the Good Friday Agreement?

Ireland has been divided by a long and bloody conflict:

• From the time of Queen Elizabeth I (late 1590s) the new settlers, loyal tothe British crown and Protestants in religious persuasion, were grantedland, position, and privileges (from Roman Catholic)

• In 17th century, English and Scottish Protestants were sent to NorthernIreland to stop Irish Catholics from causing trouble

• Fighting: English and Scottish Protestants against Irish Catholics

• The Irish Protestants helped the English and Scottish Protestants, so IrishCatholics were defeaded Irish Catholics had to escape to the South(Republic of Ireland)

• In 1801 Ireland became part of UK

• Until 1921 the UK was "The United Kingdom of Great Britain andIreland", not only "Northern Ireland"

• In 1921, Ireland was divided into 2 parts:

- Northern Ireland: belonging to UK

- Republic of Ireland/ Irish Republic: independent

What do you know about the Head of the UK? Why is she said to reign but not to rule?

The Queen reigns but doesn’t rule

In 16th and 17th centuries: a struggle for power between the Monarch and theParliament The Par controlled most of national wealth so the Par won

The Par allowed the Monarch to continue to function but within certain limits/under the Par.’s control

The Queen:

represents Britain at home and abroad;

sets standards of good citizenship and family life

In law, the Queen is:

- head of state

- head of the executive and the judiciary

- head of the Church of England

- commander-in-chief of the armed forces

The Queen’s remaining powers:

- to summon, prorogue or dissolve the Parliament;

- to give Royal Assent/Agreement to legislation passed by the Par.;

- to appoint importain positions;

- to confer honours;

- to remit sentences;

- to declare war or make peace;

but all are under the Parliament’s control or direction

The Society and Culture of Major English-Speaking Countries

• Par is the seat of British democracy

• The House of Lords was created to provide a council of the nobility for theKing

• The Commons was summoned to provide the King with money.Because ofthe financial power, from 17th century, the Commons gained power inmatters of finance as well as of legislation over both the Monarch and theLords.The Commons can force the government to resign by passing aresolution of “ no confidence”

• Parliament’s functions:

- to pass laws

- to raise monney through taxation to enable the government to function

- to examine the government policy, administration and expenditure

- to debate or discuss major political issues

The Prime Minister:

- the most powerful

- leader of the winning/ majority Party in the general election

- appoints about 100 ministers

- chooses about 20 among the ministers to form the Cabinet

What is the importance of general elections in the UK? When do elections occur? Who can stand for election as an MP? What are the main parties in the UK?

• The election an opportunity to influence future government policy.When Do Elections Occur?

• After a government has been in power for 5 years it has to resign andhold a "general election“

• The Prime Minister can call an election sooner than 5 years (when thegov loses a "vote of no confidence" in the House of Commons

Who Can Stand for Election as an MP?

• Anyone who is eligible to vote can stand as an MP

• If you are not the candidate put forward by one of the main political partiesyou are unlikely to persuade many people to vote for you

The Political Parties

There are three major national parties:

- the Conservative Party,

- the Labour Party,

- the Liberal Democrats (Alliance)

The Society and Culture of Major English-Speaking Countries

Question 7

How are the people in the UK divided into different classes? What are some of the main features in the division? Is the class system similar to that of the US?

• British society: class-structure society consisting of Upper class; Middleclass; Lower/Working class

• British people grow up with a deep knowledge and understanding of theclass system

• Class-divisions are not simply economic, but it is important to come from aparticular kind of family (family background)

• The British class-system is a hereditary aristocracy or based on familybackground The American class-system is based on the finance

Please define “absolute decline and relative decline” in the UK economy What are the reasons for the absolute decline and relative decline?

Absolute Decline and Relative Decline

• By the 1880s the British economy was dominant in the world, producingone third of the world's manufactured goods, half its coal and iron, half itscotton

• From 1945 until the present, the UK economy is usually thought of as one

of decline:

• First, the country had gone heavily into debt in order to finance the war

These debts meant that the UK entered the post-war era with a majoreconomic problem

• Second, the era of empire was over India, popularly known as "The Jewel

in the Crown" of the British Empire, gained its independence in 1947, only

2 years after the end of the war

• Third, Britain was still forced to maintain a substantial and expensivemilitary presence in many overseas locations

• Fourth, although Britain was quite badly damaged by German bombingduring the war, its industry survived comparatively unaffected Britishindustry could continue with its older factories and pre-war products, andgiven its other economic problems

• In fact, this was not an absolute decline: Britain is not poorer, or producingless than it was in 1945, but it is a lot wealthier and more productive than itwas then

• It has in fact been a period of steady economic growth and rapidlyincreasing living standards

• British economy has improved, but other countries have improved morerapidly (from being the 2nd largest economy to being the sixth)

• The UK has experienced economic decline, but this decline is relative tosome other economies rather than absolute

What are the purposes of the British education system? How does the British education system reflect social class?

School is about teaching children "the three R's” (reading, writing andarithmetic) to provide children with literacy and the other basic skills they willneed to become active members of society

British education system also socialises children

Children are taught practical skills; but in school they also learn the rules andvalues to become good citizens, to participate in the community, and tocontribute to the society

Britain is a society in which social class is still very important: class inequalitycan be erased or cont nued according to educational policy The schools yoattend are the marker that identifies your social class

In Bri ain, where you are educated is still very important to your future

The Society and Culture of Major English-Speaking Countries

Question 10:

What do you know about the present British education system? What is the Open University in Britain? What do you think of this system?

Present Education System

• Education in the UK is compulsory, from the ages of 5 (4 in NorthernIreland) to 16

• Parents can choose between sending their children to state schools or toprivate schools

• Since 1993, parents have the right to express a preference for a particularstate school for their children → good schools tend to be for the wealthiermiddle classes

• Independent schools are commonly called public schools

• Up to age 5, children may have some pre-primary schooling in nurseryschools, daycare, or play groups

• Between the ages of 5 to 11, pupils mainly attend state sector primaryschools

• These schools are called co-educational or mixed schools because theyadmit both boys and girls

• From the age of 11 up to around the age of 19, students attend secondaryschools About 90% of secondary schools are comprehensive schools whichadmit children without reference to their academic abilities

• These schools provide a general education Pupils can study everythingfrom academic subjects like literature and sciences, to more practicalsubjects like cooking and carpentry

examination called "the 11-plus"

• After 5 years of secondary education, (at about age 16) English, NorthernIrish and Welsh students sit their GCSE exams (General Certificate ofSecondary Education)

• Based on these results, pupils can have a number of choices: to quit schooland find a job; or to sit exams for university entrance; or to concentrate onvocational training

• Pupils who hope to attend university carry on their academic study in thesixth form for a further two years and then sit A-levels exams (GeneralCertificate of Education-Advanced)

• Most pupils try to achieve 3 or 4 A-levels in the subjects they are mostproficient at

• Pupils who decide not to go to university may choose to take vocationaltraining

• The vocational equivalent of A-levels are GNVQs (General NationalVocational Qualifications), which provide a broadly based preparation forwork or for taking further vocational

The Open University offers a non-traditional route for people to take universitylevel courses and receive a university degree People can register withouthaving any formal educational qualifications

The Society and Culture of Major English-Speaking Countries

Question 11:

How did the British Empire end? How is the British foreign policy formed?

The age of imperialism was over

• On the one hand, the British could no longer afford to maintain its empire;while Britain had won the war, it had paid a terrible price in terms of livesand in terms of economic destruction

• On the other hand, the British realised that countries should be granted theindependence and left to run their own affairs

• The end of the great British empire was surprisingly rapid

• In the 1940s, many countries were granted independence and left theCommonwealth, refusing to recognise the British monarch as the head oftheir new states

How Foreign Policy is Made

• The Prime Minister and Cabinet decide on the general direction of Britain'sforeign policy

• The main government department involved is of course the Foreign andCommonwealth Office (FCO)

• The Ministry of Defence is responsible for ensuring Britain's defence andmanaging Britain's involvement in its military treaty commitments

• The Department of Trade and Industry is concerned with formulatinginternational trade policy and managing British commercial relations withother countries

• The Treasury makes decisions on how much money other departments canhave each year

The Society and Culture of Major English-Speaking Countries

Question 12:

What do you know about the first white colonists in America? Why did they go there?

The Settlement in Virginia

• In 1606, the first white Americans left England

• The first English permanent settlement was founded in 1607 in Virginia

• When the colonists settled down, they did not grow food A few laborersstarted to dig for gold and look for other riches while those Englishgentlemen were idle, doing nothing

• Unfortunately, nothing was found → they ran into the shortage of food

• When the second group of men were sent with supplies, only 38 of the firstarrivals were dead → Jamestown was in a great crisis

• When Captain John Smith took the leadership, he imposed discipline bymaking everyone work

• A few years later, another colonist, John Rolfe began to experiment with theWest Indian Tobacco and this plant grew well in Virginia soil → Theybecame successful by selling tobacco to Europe

• John Rolfe married the princess of an Indian tribe chief → friendshipbetween the white and the Indians (native people)

• In 1619, two important events took place in Virginia:

- On July 30, 1619, in the Jamestown church, the delegates elected fromvarious communities in Virginia discussed the enactment of laws for thecolony

- A month later, a Dutch ship brought in over 20 black slaves

What do you know about the Puritans in New England? In what way did Puritanism influence American culture?

Puritan New England

• In 1620, English puritans who separated themselves from the Church ofEngland took the ship Mayflower and left for North America → theylanded in New England

• They thought that the Church of England was too catholic and wanted to

"purify" the church, hence the name "puritans"

• Puritans were convinced that human beings were predestined by Godbefore they were born

• Puritans believed that everyone had a calling, which was given by God

• The success of one's work or the prosperity in his calling was the sign ofbeing God's elect Therefore, everyone must work hard, spend little andinvest for more business Working hard and living a moral life were theirethics

• The Puritans believed that governments should enforce God's morality

→ They strictly punished drunks, adulterers…

• The American values such as individualism, hard work, respect ofeducation owe very much to the Puritan beliefs