Chapter2&10ThePeopleTheLanguage.doc

Chapter 2&10 The People/ The Languagel I. The Personalities of People in Different Countriesl Different people have different qualities or characters, in other words, different people have their own attitudes. It is difficult to generalize about the British. The characteristics of the people living in different regions and of different social classes vary enormouslyl Americans who are considered as independent, realistic, relaxed and humorousl Frenchmen who are considered as romantic, making life colorful and enjoyablel British who are conservative, well-dressed,cautious, indifferent to irrelevant thingsl Germans who are considered as reserved, conscientious, responsible, and frank l Italians who are considered as enthusiastic, hospitable, casuall Spanish who are considered as optimistic, unrestrainedl Chinese who are considered as industrious and diligent Typical Characters of British PeopleExclusivenessl The best-known quality of the British people and, in particular, of the English people is their exclusiveness. This means, “I am English. You stay away from me. I am exclusive. I am quite happy to by myself, I do not need you. Leave me alone.” It is very difficult to know such a man who does not talk much, never says anything about himself, does not show much emotion and hardly ever gets excited. l Why so? Perhaps there are many reasons. Of these reasons, two are very important. First, it is an island country which is cut off, separated, and isolated from the rest of the world. Second is perhaps a matter of history. The English people are very proud of their history. Conservativenessl The English people are so conservative that they have to wait a long time before they are prepared to try something new. An Englishman is not very interested if somebody in America has a new idea. He is very careful. This is what some British people consider “a long-established tradition” they would be most unwilling to lose. Love of privacyl The right of privacy and personal freedom is unquestioned by the British. Perhaps it is the lack of space that has fostered and maintained their fierce individualism. For them, “My home is my castle. The wind can come in, but the human beings can never come in without my permission.”l When an English man moves into a new house, he often builds a fence around the house to separate himself from his neighbors. Stiff upper lipl It means calm and undemonstrative behavior. The British do no show their feelings very much. They do not show their emotion so some people say that the upper-class English man is like a cold fish that has just come out of the ice.l This reluctance to communicate with others is demonstrate in another case. When you work at a factory, the guy, you work with, may not tell you anything about himself. You may work for years with him, yet you don’t even know where he lives, how many children he has and what his interests are. II. Ethnic Compositionl The United Kingdom has a multinational and multi-ethnic society where its people have diverse origins, predominantly consisting of the English (80%), the Welsh, the Scottish and the Northern Irish stock. Additionally, it is composed of immigrant minorities. British citizens of different backgrounds shar “Britishness”of some sort but with varying identities. So is America. Stage 1: Before the Norman Conquestl Who are the earliest people? The Old Stone Age: Nomads Neolithic: Iberians The Bronze Age: the Beaker Folk The Iron Age: Celtic tribesl Who are the other invaders to form the first foundations of the modern state?55BC: Romans 5thC--7thC: Germanic peoples, including the Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes, who have come to constitute Britain’s present predominant stock. Their language became the foundation of the basic, short, everyday words in modern English. 8thC--9thC: Scandinavians (Danes) 1066AD: French Normansl The earliest invasion is that by the dark-haired Mediterranean race called the Iberians; the last is by the Normans. l The modern Scots and Irish are the descendants of the Gaels of the Celtic tribes, while the Welsh are the descendants of the Britons of the Celtic tribes, who gave their name to the whole island of Britain. l The three great Germanic tribes: the Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes which invaded Britain form the basic of the modern British People. InvadersContributionsIberians?Celts: Gaels BritonsScottish and Irish race and cultureWelsh race and cultureRomansLatin alphabet and civilizationAnglo-SaxonsEnglish race and languageDanesSome peculiarities of dialect in North and East EnglandNormans (French-speaking)Final unification of England. Great administrative progress. Foundation of aristocracy.Stage 2: After the Norman Conquestl Who moved into Great Britain after the Norman Conquest? People, such as Dutch, Jews, Gypsies, Fl。