Combo’s “This is England” speech quickly becomes political as he attacks the Falklands War for being a waste of proud English soldiers which upsets Shaun since his father died in that war. Combo’s speech changes as he then promises that 'Shaun can salvage something from [his father’s] sacrifice in fighting the "real war" on the streets: the battle for the England of Englishmen’ (Steans, 2013, p. 76) which essentially reduces the value of Shaun’s father’s life to a bargaining piece to convince Shaun that Combo’s idea of national identity and belonging is the only way to honour his dead father. Combo views the Falklands War as being a “phoney fucking war” (Meadows, 2006) but Meadows commented on how the war was surrounded by xenophobic British …show more content…
symbols of national identity grounded in more stable times, particularly through iconography and argot or slang that relates to World War II’ (Snelson & Sutton, 2013, p. 116) helped protect the British sense of national belonging from too much scrutiny due to the high levels of unemployment and Thatcher’s focus on independence through nostalgia. This is England uses the St. George’s Cross in a similar way to mark their commitment to their national identity as Englishmen and to making their nation free from the “Other” that threatens their Englishness. But towards the end of the film, when Shaun takes the nationalistic flag to the sea, which is associated with the National Front, it shows: … the death of the dream: a mythological vision of England and Englishness. At the boundary of the national body, a desolate seashore, [Shaun] hurls the St George's Cross (with its associated nationalist connotations) into the sea. (Steans, 2013, p. 77) This scene of the film shows the clear rejection of an exclusionary vision of nationalism through the imagery of the discarded national flag as it floats away from the nation that Combo has tainted for Shaun. The dangers of extremist national belonging are highlighted in the previous scene where Combo attacked Milky, the only black member of Woody’s gang, hence the film links nationalism and far right extremism to the potential for violence whether
The film gives today’s viewers a historical perspective on how the use of ethnic stereotypes reinforced Griffins theme of nationalism. As stated by Dr.Keeling, this film came about a time of war when there was a need to rally and a need to belong. Griffin used his film Martyrs of the Alamo as an outlet to promote the need for nationalism in the United States. Griffin focuses on creating this feeling of fear when Americans and Mexicans interact in certain scenes. Through out the film this reoccurring theme of fear is seen in many of the battle scenes. One of the most striking scenes is during the battle between the Mexican soldiers and the Americans in the Alamo. Throughout the shot we see both sides rushing toward each other firing their weapons and there is a cloudiness from the dust. As this fight is going on we see a little blonde and blue e...
Rose, Sonya O. Which People’s War? National Identity and Citizenship in Wartime Britain 1939-1945. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.
Sir Winston Churchill’s speech, ‘We Shall Fight on the Beaches’ was a wonderful piece of moving rhetoric. The diction that Churchill uses to deliver his message is not so advanced that one cannot understand him easily, but still manages to portray a sense of Churchill’s deeply intellectual status without being condescending. It is a very inspirational piece, a moving speech, and a powerful call to action aimed to uplift the downtrodden population of Britain at the time. Churchill responded to the need for inspiration with his now-famous speech. His use of rhetoric not only inspired Britain, but was a powerful tool that brought about a final victory over the Nazis.
Matthew Arnold’s “Dover Beach” invites the reader to determine if they, like the speaker, would isolate themselves to preserve their present ideologies; while Wilfred Owen’s poem “Dulce Et Decorum Est” implores the reader to evaluate what they consider to be worthy of glorification. While the two poems are distinctly different in both time period and setting, Arnold’s poem is better interpreted by the extension of the imagery presented in his last stanza by the war setting in Owen’s “Dulce”. The imagery used in “Dulce Et Decorum Est” expands the reader’s understanding of “Dover Beach” by further illustrating the powerlessness of the position one is placed in, and that there is no difference between physical and mental isolation from the realities of change.
...th greedie gulfs unknown, Devoured the devourer to his smart, And made his ships a praie unto the sand That meant to praie upon anothers land. And now, o queene above al others blest, For whom both windes and waves are prest to fight, So rule your owne, so succour friends opprest, (As farre from pride, as ready to do right), That England you, you England long enjoy, No lesse your friends delight, then foes annoy.”
George Orwell’s novel, Coming Up for Air, portrays England at two different times. The story is based around George Bowling in 1939 and his life in the suburbs of London on Ellesmere Road, where all the houses are the same. He is very cynical of the world around him and dreams of his times as a child in Lower Binfield when things were not perfect, but not yet ruined by the Great War. The vision of 1900 England versus England in 1939 creates a sharp contrast in life for George Bowling. In 1939 England is on the verge of another war, and life is impersonal, harsh, and industrial. The reality of 1939 is only accentuated by George’s trip to his childhood home of Lower Binfield, where nothing is the same as he left before the Great War.
Netherland, the other name of Dutch, has a national flag. The movie was held in that country as a story tells that Hazel Grace and Gus would meet their favorite novel’s author. The flag occurs in the scene when Hazel, her mother and Augustus just arrived in Netherland. It is on a boat or ship that brings the tourists’ sightseeing above the river.
... supremacist gang, to rioting in an Asian owned grocery store, to finally brutally murdering someone. We observe as family ties become increasingly strained in every way, the viewer can easily conclude that Derek’s racism as well as his eventual influence on his younger brother ultimately contributed to their own downfall. As controversial as this movie maybe for the offensive language and brutal violence, it is a movie that deserves to be seen, and even discussed. It really provides insight into some factors within society that cannot be contained by the law or even deterred by even the harshest punishments. Even though American society is becoming more modernized as time goes by in terms of tolerance, racism will unfortunately always be prevalent in society and inevitably it will also lead some individuals to violently express their distorted mentalities.
... to evoke patriotic and nationalistic emotions in order to serve as a defense for the decisions America makes and the actions it takes. While action and drama might be the overwhelming themes in the film, there are definitely shades of American propaganda that can be found within the plot.
World War I, fought between major European superpowers, was an event that shook the world. The first global war was a shock to all, but was experienced differently by everyone. For Richard Lindsay Mackay, World War I was a time for him to fight bravely for his country as he experienced the horrors of war. He wrote in his journal whenever he had the scarce opportunity for down time. He wrote accounts mentioning the pain of making a homemade cross for his comrade’s grave, the brutality of only getting five hours of leisure time, which he used for sleep, and not even being able to recall if he ate something one day. However, despite his hardships as a soldier, he enthusiastically wrote about travelling to London and hearing the popular song Destiny Waltz that symbolized bravery in wartime (Mackay). Like Mackay, people back home in belligerent countries also associated wartime with consumer goods, such as music. In fact, many British citizens noticed an increase in American-made goods available in their country. As many men fell in war, America rose as a new superpower, creating situations that would lead to a more homogenous society. American domination of the world market from 1914 to 1930 started the “Americanization” of Britain’s culture through increased American influence and the simultaneous disdain for traditional Victorian society by the new generation of British youth.
“We fight each other for territory; we kill each other over race, pride, and respect. We fight for what is ours. They think they’re winning by jumping me now, but soon they’re all going down, war has been declared.” Abuse, Pain, Violence, Racism and Hate fill the streets of Long Beach, California. Asians, Blacks, Whites and Hispanics filled Wilson High School; these students from different ethnic backgrounds faced gang problems from day to night. This movie contains five messages: people shouldn’t be judgmental because being open-minded allows people to know others, having compassion for a person can help people change their views in life, being a racist can only create hate, having the power of the human will/goodness to benefit humanity will cause a person to succeed at any cost and becoming educated helps bring out the intelligence of people.
Let’s face it, in The United States, we do not understand cricket, we do not understand tea, and we certainly do not understand hidden emotions. Of course there is more to Britain than these cultural icons, just like America is not just made of cowboys from “Dallas” and loud egotistic tourists. However in the year 2000, there are still several myths surrounding the British culture that are very much alive today.
England, England is a satire written by Julian Barnes at the end of the 20th century (1998) in a post-modernist environment in which the USA has become the first world power putting England aside. Inside the novel we can see how Barnes analyze the defects and lacks of his own country; it is about a harsh criticism of the ‘Englishness’.
Introduction Despite its long-prophesied demise the nation remains the most pertinent form of collective identity nowadays. The basic propositions of the nationalist doctrine, namely that the world is divided into nations and that the nation is the only legitimate source of political power, are accepted as uncontested principles which guide the development of social and political life. Not only does the organization of the world in nation-states seem ‘natural’ but the whole perception by each individual of the surrounding world is based on the distinction between the ingroup, namely the nation, and the foreigners, those belonging to other communities, the ‘others’. The double-edged character of national identity, namely its capacity of dening
The debate about British Identity has been prominently featured in recent years as a public concern. The foundation of British Identity was based on the act of union in 1801 between England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland that created Great Britain. Heath and Roberts describe this identity as “a relatively recent construct and was gradually superimposed on earlier national identities of English, Welsh, Scottish and Irish” (2008:4). The four nations were unified mainly because of the political and economic project of the British Empire that developed a shared agenda and The Second World War which melted the distinctive differences between the constituent nations (Ward, 2004). According to Colley, the interests that unified the nations do not exist and even if they do” they are less distinctive” (1992). Although there is identification with Britishness, it is noticeable that Britons hold a stronger allegiance to their primary nation. The British Identity is decreasing as many writers suggested, and this is due to many different trends and influences such as globalization, immigration and communication (Heath and Roberts, 2008). This essay highlights some of the reasons of the decline in the British national identity and the rise of the consentient nation’s sentiment. This is approached by firstly considering the internal factors of the devolution of power to Scotland and Wales, and secondly the external factor of immigration and will analyze the relationship between age and identification with a nation.