Thursday, April 1, 2010

British Customs and Culture


In the CountryReports.org section about British Customs and Culture, many aspects of life are talked about such as eating, fashion, family, religion, and sports and recreation. A typical family eats about three meals a day with breakfast generally being at seven AM, lunch at one PM, and dinner/tea at six PM. Breakfast is usually eaten at home; lunch is typically eaten at a cafĂ© or restaurant near the person’s office; dinner is eaten at home usually unless the family is eating at a restaurant for a treat. The article says this about fashion: “Typically, men wear a suit and tie or smarter trousers and shirts. A woman wears a jacket and skirt/trousers, although it is increasingly common for employers to encourage more comfortable working conditions, which affects personal attire. Young people (men and women) tend to wear jeans and T-shirts” (Country Reports). The average British family has one or two kids. Most families with children are two parent families and usually both parents work. There are still elements of the British class system, which consists of upper- inherited titles, land, and social privileges, middle- industrialists, professionals, businesspeople, and shop owners, and lower- agricultural, mine, and factory workers. The class system is diminishing due to multiculturalism and a changing economy. British people prefer to live in houses. Many houses are narrow and joined by rows of terraces. Country houses have a garden encircling them. The law in the U.K. provides for freedom of religion, although England and Scotland have established churches: The Church of England which is Anglican and The Church of Scotland which is Presbyterian. 72 percent of citizens of the U.K. consider themselves to be Christian. 16 percent do not have a religion, and 12 percent had some other type of religion such as Judaism (0.05 percent) or Hinduism (one percent). England’s national game is Cricket, but soccer (football), rugby, horse racing, tennis, and motor sports are also popular. Kids typically play soccer, cricket, or rugby.
This article applies to my topic because it is important to know about the culture before moving to the U.K. or really, moving anywhere. I learned some new things from this article, and some things I already knew. I didn’t know about the religion demographics, which were interesting. Many things that the website mentioned about British culture I already knew. I didn’t disagree with anything per say, but I didn’t think that the article talked enough about the things that makes the United Kingdom different from the United States. Also, the author said many things about England. I wasn’t sure if he or she was making the common mistake of saying England as if it is the same thing as the United Kingdom or if he or she was talking about England in particular. I think it is great that different sports are common in the U.K. than the U.S. Although I am not really into sports, I would much rather watch a soccer (football) match than an American Football game. It was a great article for general information, but I think I will need to do further research about this.
"Customs and Culture." CountryReports. CountryReports, 2010. Web. 1 Apr 2010. http://www.countryreports.org/people/aboutThePeople.aspx?Countryname=&countryId=251.

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