English Culture - What is it?

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Uncle_DaveO
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 05:02 PM

For the moment, forget about England.

"A culture" is an amorphous concept, an abstraction from the totality of what goes on and is thought and said in its particular area.

Now add England back into the discussion: When we say "the English culture" we are talking about all the mess of things that make up life and thought in England, the normal way that life is lived and expected and believed to be lived in England, as opposed, say, to the German culture, which is ditto with respect to Germany, or ditto for Italy.

People often toss the word "culture" around when they mean what they think is the best of a particular culture--such as poetry, opera, painting, sculpture, etc. The things that folks think give them bragging rights. I tend to refer to this as "culchaw", don't y' know.

But "culchaw" is only a very restricted sample of the culture in which it exists.

Sooooooooo, "English culture is"--English.    Now, don't you feel enlightened?

Dave Oesterreich

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: VirginiaTam
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 03:54 PM

English Culture is anything cultural that happens in England

Undefinable, bloody expensive and peculiarly managed in Essex. Oops! Shut my mouth. My bread and butter. Gonna get myself sacked.

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:57 PM

Blah blah blah.

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:56 PM

A lack of braggadocio is important.

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Lizzie Cornish 1
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:36 PM

"A Korma for me, if you're ordering.. :0) "

Please. (sorry, forgot that part)


Good manners, that used to be something England was known for, part of our culture, not sure what's happened to that though.

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Lizzie Cornish 1
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:34 PM

"A Place Called England on Albion Heart?
I believe she requested for it to be removed.
I see the audio clip has been taken off . . ."



Nope, Maggie never asked for the lyrics to be removed. And I never had an audio clip of her on there. I did ask her once if she'd think about activating her songs on Myspace, so that people could play them on other pages, but she prefers to not do that. Fair enough. The only link I have on there about her, goes through to Maggie's myspace page, so that some folks may find her music for themselves. Every little helps, as they say.


"Balti and Tikka masala.."

And chips Lox, gotta have the chips, it's England, after all, chips with almost everything. A Korma for me, if you're ordering.. :0)

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:26 PM

Eep!

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: The Borchester Echo
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:25 PM

A Place Called England on Albion Heart?
I believe she requested for it to be removed.
I see the audio clip has been taken off . . .

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: GUEST,lox
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:20 PM

Balti and Tikka masala

both invented in england.

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Art Thieme
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:20 PM

Yogurt has more active culture!!

Art Thieme

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Lizzie Cornish 1
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:19 PM

Yes, I know Maggie's song well, Diane. I have it on the Albion Heart page, as you know.

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: The Borchester Echo
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:17 PM

A Place Called England

I rode out on a bright May morning like a hero in a song
Looking for a place called England trying to find where I belong
Couldn't find the old flood meadow or the house that I once knew
No trace of the little river or the garden where I grew

I saw town and I saw country, motorway and sink estate
Rich man in his rolling acres poor man still outside the gate
Retail park and Burger Kingdom, prairie field and factory farm
Run by men who think that England's just a place to park their car

But as the train pulled from the station through the wastelands of despair
From the corner of my eye a brightness filled the filthy air
Someone's sown a patch of sunflowers though the soil is sooty black
Marigolds and a few tomatoes right beside the railway track

Down behind the terraced houses in between the concrete towers
Compost heaps and scarlet runners, secret gardens full of flowers
Meeta grows her scented roses right beneath the big jets' path
Bid a fortune for her garden, Eileen turns away and laughs

Rise up George and wake up Arthur, time to rouse out from your sleep
Deck the horse with sea green ribbons, drag the old sword from the deep
Hold the line for Dave and Daniel as they tunnel through the clay
While the oak in all its glory soaks up sun for one more day

Come all you at home with freedom whatever the land that gave you birth
There's room for you both root and branch as long as you love the English earth
Room for vole and room for orchid, room for all to grow and thrive
Just less room for the fat landowner on his arse in his four-wheel drive

For England is not flag or Empire it is not money and it is not blood
It's limestone gorge and granite fell, it's Wealden clay and Severn mud
It's blackbird singing from the may tree, lark ascending through the scales
It's robin watching from your spade and English earth beneath your nails
         
So here's two cheers for a place called England, sore abused but not yet dead
A Mr Harding sort of England, hanging in there by a thread
Here's two cheers for the crazy Diggers now their hour shall come around
We shall plant the seed they saved us, common wealth and common ground

(Maggie Holland)

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Lizzie Cornish 1
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:13 PM

Maybe, maybe it's a big secret then...like the Masons.

Aha, now I think I'm on to something!

So, it's secret, it involves badgers, petri dishes, and feeding your habit, instead of wearing it, which means that some kind of spell must be involved to make your habit come to life..

Gasp! Black magic?

Midnight Badgers & Black Magic, high up on Glastonbury Tor, with Druids and Policemen..

Who'd have thought it?

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Lizzie Cornish 1
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:09 PM

Noooooo...

I vill say zis only vonce... :0)

ALL I wanted to find out is exactly WHAT English Culture is *supposed* to be. If so many people are apparently getting it wrong, then what the heck *is* it?

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Steve Gardham
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:08 PM

Very diverse. In fact as diverse as British Culture and just about any other culture.

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Nerd
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 02:01 PM

In comes I, Badger, Badger is my name. I come to, er, stir the shit about English Culture at Merry Christmastime.

Sorry, couldn't resist. I'll get me pelt....

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: MartinRyan
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:58 PM

Fascinating! This appears to be a badger-baiting thread without a badger!

Regards

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Lizzie Cornish 1
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:47 PM

Hmmmmmm....I've never fed my habit, I hang it up.

Besides, I'd never wear it at Glastonbury, too many Druids around..

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Musket
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:46 PM

English culture is...

A good export, but a bit of a paper tiger...

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: The Borchester Echo
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:42 PM

singing madrigals

"Fair" lizziecornish I saw sitting all alone
Feeding her habit down by Glastonbury Tor
The Gloucestershire constabulary knew not
They knew not whither she was gone
But just hoped she had.
Up and down, up and down she wandered and wandered and wandered
Till WAV hove (or hied) into view . . .

Oh jeez losing the will to . . .

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Lizzie Cornish 1
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:38 PM

>>>This needs to be moved to BS

It's already IN the BS section, from which it's been deliberately taken out and repeated here. For what purpose? (Don't tell me, I can guess.) >>>



Nope, it was mentioned in a thread in the BS section, that was all. I haven't moved the entire thread up here, just that quote because I found it interesting and realised it would merit a thread of it's own.

Put it in BS if you'd prefer, I don't mind. Strange that no-one's asked for the Norah Batty one to be moved down there, as that's nowt to do with music either, but er...there you go.

I started it because I really am interested to hear views of how different people perceive culture. Nothing more, nothing less.

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: GUEST,JM
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:36 PM

"English Culture is anything cultural that happens in England."

Correct.

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Chris Green
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:25 PM

I don't know and I'm rapidly getting to the stage where I couldn't care less! All this thread's going to do is spew up more contentious bollocks from a minority of deluded pricks who still think four-fifths of the globe is pink and we should all be strumming citterns and singing madrigals.

Rant over.

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: caitlin rua
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:24 PM

>This needs to be moved to BS

It's already IN the BS section, from which it's been deliberately taken out and repeated here. For what purpose? (Don't tell me, I can guess.)

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Don Firth
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:24 PM

Isn't "culture" something that grows in a Petri dish?

Don Firth

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: peregrina
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:22 PM

Liking to complain in the wrong place with no intention of making a difference.


The activity is rehearsed about the weather and then applied in other spheres.

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: SINSULL
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:16 PM

This needs to be moved to BS

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: GUEST,Shimrod
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:13 PM

A stiff upper lip and a straight bat, of course!

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:08 PM

English Culture is anything cultural that happens in England.

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: caitlin rua
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 01:04 PM

. . . being discussed to death in other threads.

We know who is going to say what, because they already have, at length, repeatedly.

How about giving it a rest now?

Subject: RE: English Culture - What is it?
From: Gervase
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 12:51 PM

greatly to be desired.

Subject: English Culture - What is it?
From: Lizzie Cornish 1
Date: 15 Dec 08 - 12:48 PM

I've moved this up, from another thread, as I thought it may get lost in that one.

From Diane:

"If there were any god (however busy), he / she / it would surely have proscribed the sanctimonious Daily Mail and all the anti-intellectual, middle-England, moronic mediocrity it encapsulates. Small wonder that its readership harbours such ludicrous notions of what English culture is. "




"English culture is..............