西方社会文化 intro to uk

1、The Society and CultureofMajor English- Speaking CountriesEnglish languageOriginAnglo-Saxon Kingdoms of England盎格鲁撒克逊王国Language FamilyIndo-European Language Family印欧語系 Chinese belongs to Sino-Tibetan Language Family 汉藏语系Total speakers500m1.8bNative Language母语: 300 m 400m; Second Language第二语言: 2m1.4b

2、Ranking No. 2No. 1: ChineseRanking of native languagesNo. 3No. 1: Chinese;No. 2: SpanishSpoken Areas 73UK, US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Singapore, the Caribbean Sea area, HK英联邦 (The Commonwealth) 英联邦 (The Commonwealth) 是由英国和已经独立的前英国殖民地或附属国组成的联合体。第一次世界大战后，英国慑于日益高涨的殖民地民族解放运动，调整了同原英帝国其他

3、成员之间的关系。年“英帝国会议”的帝国内部关系委员会提出，英国和已经由殖民地成为自治共和国的加拿大、澳大利亚、新西兰和南非是“自由结合的英联邦的成员”，“地位平等，在内政和外交的任何方面互不隶属，唯有依靠对英王的共同效忠精神统一在一起”。年，威斯敏斯特法案从法律上对此予以确认，英联邦正式形成。年，印度、巴基斯坦各自宣布独立并加入英联邦。年，印度成为共和国，选举了自己的国家元首。从此英联邦成员由需对英王效忠的原则演变为英联邦成员“接受英王为独立成员国自由联合体的象征”，英王是“英联邦的元首”。 英联邦不设权力机构，英国和各成员国互派高级专员代表大使级外交关系。 英联邦现有个成员（年月）。 每年月

4、日为英联邦日。 Commonwealth of NationsvThe Commonwealth of Nations (CN), usually known as the Commonwealth, is a voluntary association of 53 independent sovereign states, almost all of which are former colonies of the United Kingdom. vQueen Elizabeth II, who is the Head of State of the 16 Commonwealth Real

5、ms, is the Head of the Commonwealth, and as such is the symbol of the free association of its members. This title, however, does not imply any political power over such members, and does not automatically belong to the British monarch. In practice Queen Elizabeth heads the Commonwealth in only a sym

6、bolic capacity, and it is the Commonwealth Secretary-General who is the chief executive of the organization. Commonwealth of NationsvThe Commonwealth is primarily an organisation in which countries with diverse economic backgrounds have an opportunity for close and equal interaction. The primary act

7、ivities of the Commonwealth are designed to create an atmosphere of economic co-operation between member nations, as well as the promotion of democracy, human rights, and good governance in those nations. vThe Commonwealth is not a political union, and does not allow the United Kingdom (UK) to exerc

8、ise any power over the affairs of the organizations other members. vEvery four years the Commonwealths members celebrate the Commonwealth Games, the worlds second-largest multi-sport event after the Olympic Games Official languageEnglishHeadQueen Elizabeth II Secretary-GeneralDon McKinnon (since 199

9、9)Date of Establishment 1926 (as an informal British Commonwealth), 1949 (as the modern CommonwealthNumber of Member States 53HeadquartersLondon, England Commonwealth FlagUKNational Flag of UKArea and PopulationAreaPopulationUK244,820 sqkm59,600,000China9,600,000 sqkm1,300,000,000Percentage2.55%4.58

10、%Name of the countryvFull name: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandvShort form: the UK BritainvWrong form: England4 Constituent partsRegionCapital cityEnglandLondon ScotlandEdinburgh WalesCardiff Northern IrelandBelfast History & International PoliticsvBefore WWWII: EmpirevAfter

11、 WWWII: member of the Commonwealth of Nations (53)v1973: member of European Union (25)v1975: member of the Group of Seven (7) G7+Russia (1998) = G8Ethnicity vImmigration: 1950s & 1960svNon-Europeans: 1/20 esp. Indians, Pakistani, CaribbeanReligion vChristian: most peoplevMuslim: esp. immigrantsRegio

12、nal distinctionvScotland: highland vs lowlandvEngland: north vs south The boundary is rather a mental attitude, for the south is on average richer than the north. London vCapital of the UKvLargest city in the countryvPolitical, cultural, financial, economic center.Houses of ParliamentvThe seat of th

13、e British government is in London in the Houses of Parliament, officially the New Palace of Westminster. The current building was built in the mid-19th century and was designed by British architect Sir Charles Barry.History of invasionsvBefore 1st century AD: of many tribal kingdoms of Celtic people

14、v43 AD: by Roman Empirev400 years later: Roman withdrawal, by Anglo-Saxons (King Arthur, 5th Century AD)vFrom late 8th century on: by Scandinavian Vikings (Danes) (King Alfred the Great)v1066: by Normans from France (William the Conqueror Robin Hood)King ArthurvIn 5th century AD, a great leader, uni

15、ted the British, drove the Saxons backvKnights of round table: all his knights would have equal precedenceVikingsvFrom ScandinaviavDanesvKing Alfred the greatWilliam the ConquerorvKing of England (1066-1087) and Duke of Normandy (1035-1087). Supported initially by Henry I of France, he consolidated

16、his position in Normandy against hostile neighbors. On the death of Edward the Confessor of England, he claimed the throne, having allegedly gained the agreement of King Harold in 1066. He defeated and killed Harold at the battle of Hastings (1066) and subsequently enforced his rule over the whole k

17、ingdom. Robin HoodvA Saxon nobleman. As he could no longer put up with oppressions from the Normans，he became an outlaw and hid himself with his band of merry men in the forest. From this secret place，he went out to rob from the rich to give the poor.Transference of powervPower was gradually transfe

18、rred from the monarch to the parliament.vCharles I : 1640 attempted to overrule parliament civil war executedvOliver Cromwell: parliament leader, ruled England for 11 yearsvWilliam and Mary came into power, establishing parliaments dominance over the throne.Scotland and WalesScotland v the second la

19、rgest v the most confident of its own identity v a substantial period of history as a unified state independent of the UK Three zonesvHighlands (Uplands )vLowlandsCities vEdinburgh: capital city vGlasgow: largest cityEdinburghvthe capital of Scotlandva historic, cosmopolitan and cultured city.Histor

20、yvnot conquered by the Romans (a line roughly equivalent to the contemporary boundary between England and Scotland, Hadrians Wall)Hadrians WallvDefensive fortification in Northern England. Erected (AD 122-136) on the orders of the Roman Emperor Hadrian. It extended 118.3 kilometres (73.5 miles) and

21、was about 2.3 meter (7.5 foot) thick and 1.8-4.6 metre (6-15 foot) high. Forts were built along its length. Extensive stretches of the wall survive. Battle of Bannockburn vTown and moor in central Scotland, scene of a Scottish victory over the English in 1314. The English army of Edward II, advancin

22、g on Stirling, was intercepted by Scottish troops under Robert I (the Bruce). The Scots held a dominant position above the Bannockburn, while the more heavily armed English were caught in swampy ground. Fighting began at dawn and before noon the English survivors were in flight. Though conflict cont

23、inued for many years, the victory secured Scottish independence from the English, who made no serious effort to regain territory in Scotland. vQueen Elizabeth the First of England, died childless, 1603James the sixth of Scotland, became James the First of England-uniting the two thronesv For another

24、 hundred years Scotland maintained its separate political identity.vScotland joined the Union, 1707by agreement of the English and Scottish parliaments.PartyvLabour PartyvScottish National PartyvConservative Party WalesCardiff, Capital of Walesva city of contrasts. vInnovative architecture sits alon

25、gside historic buildings, vthe bustle of the city centre is only a few strides from acres of peaceful parklands, vthe Welsh culture of dragons and myth blends perfectly with a modern, technology-driven city. va destination that appeals to everyone. Historyv a land of Celtic peoples, a number of smal

26、l tribal kingdoms vconquered by the RomansvUnlike the England it did not fall to the Anglo-Saxon invaders of the 5th century.vWales was brought legally, administratively, and politically into the UK by an act of the British parliament.vIts legal system and its education system are exactly the same a

27、s in England.van important element in Britains industrial revolutionrich coal deposits vvery successful in attracting investment from abroadvno natural boundaryvdominated by England for longer than the other nations of the unionEdward the First named his son the Prince of Wales, and the first son of

28、 the monarch has held that title ever since to try to bring Wales into the British nation.Northern IrelandvOften called Ulster (after an ancient Irish kingdom there)Belfast GeographyvMostly ruralvlow hills vlakes in SWvA rugged coastline ( the Giants Causeway)the Giants CausewayvA rocky promontory m

29、ade up of black hexagonal columns formed by cooling lava millions of years agovLegend has it that the giant Finn MaCool built it to cross the sea to Scotland.History : a long & bloody conflictvConflict results from Irelands colonial past.vFrom the time of Queen Elizabeth I (late 1590s)vNew settlers,

30、 Protestant and loyal to the Queen, systematically took land away from local Roman Catholics.vGreat hatred was thus caused.Conflicts Political troubles related with religionThe conflicts are between Roman catholic-Irish people andProtestants- English peopleConflicts vBritains domination of the Irish

31、 vIrish desires for an independent Irish statevIrish campaign for home-rule (Irish political control of Irish affairs)vIrish terrorist activities vBritish suppressions1916: the Easter RisingvRebels took over Dublins Post Office, forcing the British to retake it by military means.vThe leaders of the

32、rebellion were executed.1919: IRA vIRA: Irish Republic Army vIRA expanded the fightingSinn Fein PartyvSinn Fein: ourselves alonevSinn Fein supports the Irish terroristsvSinn Fein gained most of the Irish seats in the British parliament in Irelandv1921: partition of Ireland 26 southern counties forme

33、d an independent “free state”, 6 NE counties remain a part of UKWhat was the state in Northern Ireland after partition?v-PoliticsvHad its own parliament to deal with Northern Ireland internal affairs, based at Stormont (outside Belfast)v-Conflicts between people v1/3 Republicans -Roman Catholics -indigenous-Irishv2/3 Loyalists (