The Concept of Class in UK

8/12/2019 The Concept of Class in UK

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The concept of class in UK. Historians say that the class system has survived in Britain because of itsflexibility. It has always been possible to buy or marry or even work your way up, so that your children(and their children) belong to a higher social class than you do. s a result, the class system has never beenswept away by a revolution and an awareness of class forms a ma!or part of most people"s sense ofidentity. #eople in modern Britain are very conscious of class differences. $hey regard it as difficult to

become friends with somebody from a different class. %ost people say they do not approve of classdivisions. It results from the fact that the different classes have different sets of attitudes and daily habits.$ypically, they tend to eat different food at different times of day, they like to talk about different topicsusing different styles and accents of &nglish, they en!oy different pastimes and sports , they have differentvalues about what things in life are most important and different ideas about the correct way to behave.'tereotypically, they go to different kinds of school. ealth is part of it if you become wealthy, you can

provide the conditions to enable your children to belong to a higher class that you do. %ost working class people, however, use lost of words and grammatical forms in their everyday speech which are regarded as"non standard". *uring the last +uarter of the twentieth century, the way that people wish to identitythemselves seems to have changed. In Britain, as anywhere else where there are recogni ed social classes,a certain amount of "social climbing" goes on- that is, people try to appear as if they belong to as high aclass as possible. $hese days, however, nobody wants to be thought of as snobbish. orking class peoplein particular are traditionally proud of their class membership and would not usually wish to be thought ofas belonging to any other class. Interestingly, a survey conducted in the early //0s showed that the

proportion of people who describe themselves as working class is actually greater than the proportionwhom sociologists would classify as such1 $he lower and middle classes have drawn closer to each otherin their attitudes.

Ethnic identity: the native British. 2ational ("ethnic") loyalties can be strong among the people in Britainwhose ancestors were not &nglish. 3or same people living in &ngland who call themselves 'cottish, elshor Irish, this loyalty is little more than a matter of emotional attachment. But for others, it goes a bit furtherand they may even !oin one of the sporting and social clubs for "exiles" from these nations. $hese clubs

promote national folk music, organi e parties. #eople in 'cotland have constant reminders og theirdistinctiveness. 3irst, several important aspects of public life are organi ed separately, and differently,

from the rest of Britain notably, education, law and religion. 'econd, the 'cottish way of speaking&nglish is very distinctive. modern form of the dialect known as 'cots is spoken in everyday life bymost of the working classes in the lowlands. %any 'cotish 'cot hate the romantic, sentilmental view oftheir country4 the kilts, the pipes,Bonnie #rince 5harlie. $he sight of a man in a skirt makes themfurious.$he people of ales do not have as many reminders of their elshness in everyday life. $heorgani ation of public life is identical to that in &ngland. 2or are there as many well known symbols ofelshness. In addition, a large minority of the people in ales probably do not consider themselves to beespecially elsh at all. In the nineteenth century large numbers of 'cottish, Irish and &nglish people wentto find work there, and today many &nglish people still make their homes in ales or have holiday housesthere. However, there is one single highly important symbol of elsh identity the elsh language.&verybody in ales can speak &nglish, but it is not everybody"s first language. 3or about 607 of the

population (that"s more than half a million people), the mother tongue is elsh. ll children in aleslearn it at school, there are many local newspapers in elsh, there is a elsh television channel and nearlyall public notices and signs are written in both elsh and &nglish.Ethnic identity: the non-native British . $hey look the same,speak the same language,eat the samefood,have the same religious heritage and have the same attitudes to the roles of men and women. %ostnon whites, althoughthemselves born in Britain have parents who born outside it. $he great of immigrationfrom the 5aribbean and the south sia took place between /80 and /98.$he immigrations brought withthem different languages, different religions.%ost of the country:s non whites are British citi ens.


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Being British and... British people feel proud to be British, are not normally actively patriotic. $hey often feeluncomfortable if, in conversation with somebody from another country, that person refers to ;


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The constitution in Britain. Britain is a constitutional monarchy. $hat means it is a country governed by a king or+ueen who accepts the advice of a parliament. It is also a parliamentary democracy. $hat is, it is a country whosegovernment is controlled by a parliament which has been elected by the people. In other words, the basic system isnot so different from anywhere else in &urope. In Britain the official head of state, whether a monarch or a

president has little real power. However, there are features of the British system of government which make itdifferent from that in other countries and which are not ?modern@ at all. iberals, rather than the >abour, were one of the two big parties.

In Britain there exist a lot of different parties. $he three biggest ones of the = are the 5onservative #arty, the>abour #arty and the >iberal *emocrats. 3urthermore, there also exist some 2ationalist parties such as Both #laid5ymru (?#arty of ales@) and the '2# ('cottish 2ational #arty), which fight for devolution of governmental

powers some parties in 2orthern Ireland which mostly represent either the #rotestant or the 5atholiccommunities and there are also numerous of very small parties such as the Creen #arty, the 5ommunist #artyand the British 2ational #arty, an extreme right wing party, which is fairly openly racist.

Conservative Party formally the 5onservative and =nionist #arty, is a centre right political party in the =niteingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism . It is the largest single party inthe House of 5ommons with D09 %#s, the largest party in local government . It governs in coalition with the >iber*emocrats , with party leader *avid 5ameron as #rime %inister . 5onservative #rime %inisters led governments for8E years of the 60th century, including inston 5hurchill ( /A0FA8, /8 F88) and %argaret $hatcher ( /E/F/0).'ince /E/4 aggressive reform of education,welfare, housing and many: public service,etc. abour #arty was founded in /00 and overtook the >iberal #artygeneral elections during the early /60s. $he party was in a wartime coalition from /A0 to /A8, after which itformed a ma!ority government under 5lement ttlee . >abour was also in government from /9A t/E0 under Harold ilson and from /EA to /E/ , first under ilson and then Games 5allaghan . $he >abour #artywas last in national government between //E and 60 0 under $ony Blair and Cordon Brown , beginning with ma!ority of E/, reduced to 9E in 600 and 99 in 6008 . Having won 68 seats in the 60 0 general election


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The monarchy and its duties. 3or the evidence of written law only, the ueen has almost absolute power, and itall seems very undemocratic. &very autumn, at the state opening of #arliament, &li abeth II, who became ueen in/86, makes a speech. In it, she says what ?my government@ intends to do in the coming year. nd indeed, it is hergovernment not the people:s. s far as the law it concerned, she can choose anybody she likes to run thegovernment for her. $he same is true for her choices of people to fill some hundred or so other ministerial positions.nd if she gets fed up with her ministers, she can !ust dismiss them.


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T#E #$U%E $F $&"%. uni+ue feature of the British parliamentary system is its hereditary element. =nlike%#s, members of the House of >ords are not alected. $hey are members as of right. In the case of some of them,this Lright: is the result of their being the holder of an inherited aristocratic title. $he House of >ords has little real

power any more. ll proposals must have the agreement of the >ords before they can become law. But the power ofthe >ords to refuse a proposal for a lawis now limited. fter a period the proposal becomes law anyway, whether ornot the >ords agree. &ntitlement to sit in the >ords does not pass to the children of life peers. s a result of the life

peerage system there are more than D00 people in the House of >ords who are not aristocrats and who haveexpertise in political life. $he modern House of >ords is a forum for public discussions, because its members do notdepend on party politics for their position, it is sometimes able to bring important matters that the 5ommons has

been ignoring into the open. $here are two other kinds of peer in the House of >ords who do not have seats there byhereditary right, but because of their position. 3irst, there are the twenty six bishops of the 5hurch of &ngland.'econd, there are the >ords of ppeal, the twenty or so most senior !udges in the land.

$he #ouse of Commons is part of the legislative process of British #olitics . $he House of 5ommons currently has9AE %#"s sitting in it and the 5ommons is seen as a cradle of democracy where even a government with ahuge parliamentary ma!ority can see that ma!ority dwindle. $he principle function of the 5ommons is to scutinisegovernment bills and vote on them therefore having a vital input in to how laws are made in this country. 'omewould argue that one of the most important functions of the House of 5ommons is that it is the most important

political forum in the country where, when in session, it can exchange views between spokes people for theCovernment and the opposition. $he 5ommons has the task of scrutinising the Covernment"s policies andadministration of its policies. $he final task of the 5ommons is the redress of specific grievances. ll %#s, eventhe #rime %inster , are elected by a specific locality (constituency) in which they are the sole representative and linkwith #arliament. It follows that they are seen as having constituency interests and responsibilities. In other words,they ask +uestions or raise matters in debate concerning the problems of their area and constituents.

$he position of a British Prime 'inister (#%) is in direct contrast to that of the monarch. lthough the ueenappears to have a great deal of power, in reality she has very little. $he #rime %inister, on the other hand, appearsnot to have much power but in reality has a very great deal indeed. $he ueen is obliged to give the !ob of #rime%inister to the person who can command a ma!ority in the House of 5ommons. $he traditional phrase describeshim or her as the first among e+uals. But in fact, the other ministers are not nearly as powerful. $he #rime %inistersurrounds himself with Lyes: people F those who simply accept the wishes of the #rime %inister and rarely getinvolved in robust discussions at 5abinet meetings. $he #rime %inister also has control over the 5abinet


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(eographical identity. sense of identity based on place of birth is, like family identity, not very common orstrong in most parts of Britain and perhaps for the same reason. #eople are !ust too mobile and very few live in thesame place all their lives. $here is +uite a lot of local pride, and people find many opportunities to express it. $his

pride, however, arises because people are happy to live in what they consider to be a nice place and often when theyare fighting to preserve it. identity is associated with a county. $hese are the most ancient divisions of &ngland.lthough their boundaries and names do not always conform to the modern arrangement of local government, theystill claim the allegiance of some people. %any &nglish people see themselves as either "northerners" or"southerners". $he fact that the south is on the whole richer than the north, and the domination of the media by the

affairs of >ondon and the south east, leads to resentment in the north.

&eligious and political identity. In comparison with some other european countries, and with the one notableexception of 2orthern Ireland, neither religion nor politics is an important part of people:s social identity in modernBritain. 'ome people who are regular churchgoers and the very small minority who are active members of political

parties feel this sense of belonging strongly. Keligious Identity is a specific type of identity formation . #articularlyit is the sense of group membership to a religion and the importance of this group membership as it pertains toone:s self concept . Keligious identity is not necessarily the same as religiousness or religiosity . lthough thesethree terms share a commonality, religiousness and religiosity refer to both the value of religious group membershipas well as participation in religious events. Keligious identity, on the other hand, refers specifically to religious

group membership regardless of religious activity or participation. Identity politics are political arguments thfocus upon the self interest and perspectives of self identified social interest groups and ways in which people"

politics may be shaped by aspects of their identity through race, class, religion, gender, sexual orientation ortraditional dominance. 2ot all members of any given group are necessarily involved in identity politics.

&eligion in UK. $he vast ma!ority of people in Britain do not regularly attend religious services. %ost people inBritain cannot strictly be described as religious. However, this does not mean that they have no religious or spiritual

beliefs or inclinations. 'urveys have suggested that three+uarters of the population believe in Cod and between athird and a half believe in concepts such as life after death, heaven and hell. $he official religion of&ngland is 5hristianity , as practised by the 5hurch of &ngland ( nglican). $he nglican 5hurch apparently hasmuch the largest following in &ngland, appearances can be deceptive. %any others are christened, married and

buried in nglican ceremonies but otherwise hardly ever go to church. $he 5hurch in ales is also nglican. In'cotland the official 5hurch is the #resbyterian 5hurch of 'cotland. Britain is a multi faith society in whicheveryone has the right to religious freedom. lthough Britain is historically a 5hristian society, people are usuallyvery tolerant towards the faiths of others and those who have no religious beliefs.. $here arelarge Hindu , Gewish, %uslim and 'ikh communities, and also smaller communities of BahM:N, Buddhists , Gains, anOoroastrians, as well as followers of new religious movements. nglicanism represents a compromise between#rotestantism and 5atholicism. Its stated doctrine, which re!ects the authority of the #ope and other importantaspects of 5atholic doctrine, is #rotestant. But its style, as shown by its hierarchical structure and its forms ofworship, is rather 5atholic.5 $HI5I'%. fter the establishment of #rotestantism in Britain. 5atholicism was for a time an illegal religionand then a barely tolerated religion. 2ot until 80 was a British 5atholic hierarchy re established. #artly becauseof its comparatively marginal status, the 5atholic 5hurch, in the interests of selfpreservation, has maintained agreater cohesiveness and uniformity than the nglican 5hurch. 2ot having had a recogni ed, official role to play insociety, the 5atholic 5hurch in Britain takes doctrine and practice a bit more seriously than it is taken in countrieswhere 5atholicism is the ma!ority religion.$his comparative dedication can be seen in two aspects of 5atholic life.3irst, religious instruction is taken more seriously in 5atholic schools than it is in nglican ones. 'econd,manypeople who hardly ever step inside a church still feel entitled to describe themselves as L nglican:.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Identity_formationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Identity_formationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-concepthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religiosityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politicalhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_egoismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_egoismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_egoismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_Interest_Grouphttp://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/religion/christian.htmhttp://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/religion/hinduism.htmhttp://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/religion/jewish.htmhttp://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/religion/Islam.htmhttp://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/religion/buddhism.htmhttp://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/religion/buddhism.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Identity_formationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-concepthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religiosityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politicalhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_egoismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_Interest_Grouphttp://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/religion/christian.htmhttp://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/religion/hinduism.htmhttp://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/religion/jewish.htmhttp://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/religion/Islam.htmhttp://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/religion/buddhism.htm


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Education in UK . $he British government attached little importance to education until the end of the nineteenthcentury. It was one of the last governments in &urope to organi e education for everybody. Britain was leading theworld in industry and commerce, so, it was felt, education must somehow be taking care of itself. 'chools and othereducational institutions (such as universities) existed in Britain long before the government began to take an interestin education. hen the pupils from these schools finished their education, they formed the ruling Plite, retaining thedistinctive habits and vocabulary which they had learnt at school. $hey formed a closed group, to a great extentseparate from the rest of society. &ntry into this group was difficult for anybody who had had a different education.'chools funded by the government are called Lstate schools: and education provided in this way is known as Lstateeducation:. $his distinguishes it from Lprivate education:, which comprises Lindependent schools:. 'ome

independent schools are known as Lpublic schools:.$&()*+,)T+$* . It is a characteristic of the British system that there is comparatively little central control oruniformity. &ducation is managed by three separate government departments4 the *epartment for &ducation and&mployment is responsible for &ngland and ales alone F 'cotland and 2orthern Ireland have their owndepartments. 5entral government does not prescribe a detailed programme of learning or determine what books andmaterials should be used. It says what schoolchildren should learn, but it only offers occasional advice about howthey should learn it. %ost schools develop a sense of distinctiveness. %any, for example, have their own uniformsfor pupils. %any have associations of former pupils. =niversities, although financed by the government, have evenmore autonomy.

E"UC)T+$* BE $*" %+ TEE*. t the age of sixteen people are free to leave school if they want to. ithBritain:s enthusiasm for continuing education, far fewer sixteen year olds go straight out and look for a !ob thanused to. $here has been a great increase in educational opportunities for people at this age or older in the last+uarter of the twentieth century. bout half of those who stay in full time education will have to leave their school,either because it does not have a sixth form or because it does not teach the desired sub!ects, and go to a 'ixth form5ollege, or 5ollege of 3urther &ducation. n increasing number do vocational training courses for particular !obsand careers. $he independence of Britain:s educational institutions is most noticeable in universities. $hey maketheir own choices of who to accept on their courses. $here is no right of entry to university for anybody.=niversities normally select students on the basis of level results and an interview. $hose with better examgrades are more likely to be accepted.

$;#&' ancaster, 'ussex and arwick. $hey have accommodation for most of their students.

T#E 'E"+) . British people watch a lot of television. $hey are the world:s third biggest newspaper buyers- only

the Gapanese and the 'wedes buy more.


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3amily , Buckingham #alace , Houses


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also in the same year Forbes ranked him as one of the most powerful celebrities in the world in the 3orb5elebrity 00 .

#attinson began modelling when he was twelve years old, but the number of !obs began to decrease only four yearslater. In 600 #attinson landed the coveted role of &dward 5ullen in the film Twilight , based on 'tephenie %eyer"s

best selling novel of the same name.

The Concept of Class in UK

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