Culture of England
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The culture of England is sometimes difficult to separate clearly from the culture of the United Kingdom, so influential has English culture been on the cultures of the British Isles and, on the other hand, given the extent to which other cultures have influenced life in England.
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[edit] Art
English art is the body of art originating from England. Nikolaus Pevsner attempted a definition in his 1956 book The Englishness of English Art.
It has developed over several millennia, to recent movements such as Brit Art, and now encompasses a variety of forms — painting, photography, sculpture and performance art.
It is often considered that English landscape painting typifies the tradition of English art, mirroring as it does the development of the country house and its landscaping.
[edit] Cuisine
England being the first industrialised country in the world, urbanised workers were in many cases cut off from regional food traditions. Some consider that English cuisine has consequently suffered from a widespread image of blandness and lack of distinctiveness. The openness of English diners to exotic dishes has also meant that English cooking does not enjoy as high a profile as other nations' culinary traditions. More recently, a new style of cooking called Modern British has emerged that combines traditional British ingredients with foreign culinary influences.
The Full English breakfast remains an enduring tradition for many, despite the increasing popularity of the continental-style breakfast, or no breakfast at all, for busy workers. Tea and beer are typical drinks. Cider is produced in the West Country, and the south of England has seen the reintroduction of vineyards producing high quality white wine on a comparatively small scale.
England produces a range of cheeses in various regions, including:
- Stilton cheese
- Wensleydale cheese
- Lancashire cheese
- Dorset Blue Vinney cheese
- Cheshire cheese
- Double Gloucester cheese
- Red Leicester
- Blue cheese
- Lincolnshire Poacher
Other foods associated with England include:
- Sunday roast
- Lancashire Hotpot
- Cornish pasty
- Spotted Dick
- Mince Pies
- Fish and chips (and mushy peas)
- Tomato Ketchup
- Clotted cream from Devon and Cornwall
- Yorkshire pudding
- Sausage and mash
- Eccles cake
- Scones
- Shepherd's Pie
- Cumberland sausage
- British Curries
- Other typical British dishes
[edit] Folklore
English folklore is the folk tradition which has evolved in England over a number of centuries. Some English legends can be traced back to their roots, even as far as before the Roman invasion of Britain, while the origin of others is fairly uncertain or disputed. England abounds with folklore, in all forms, from such obvious manifestations as the traditional semi-mystical Arthurian legends and semi-historical Robin Hood tales, to contemporary urban myths and facets of cryptozoology such as the Beast of Bodmin Moor.
Morris dance and related practices such as the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance preserve old English folk traditions, as do Mummers Plays. The utopian vision of a traditional England is sometimes referred to as Merry England.
[edit] Heritage
Though it pre-dates the existence of England as a nation, Stonehenge is believed by many English people to hold an iconic place in the culture of England. Other built structures like cathedrals and parish churches are associated with a sense of Englishness. The English country house and the lifestyle associated for centuries with an élite minority now forms an interest among many people in England as typified by visits to properties managed by English Heritage or the National Trust.
Landscape gardening as developed by Capability Brown set an international trend for the English garden. Gardening and visiting gardens are also a facet of the culture of England for many people. In many places, people gather for festials in May to celebrate "the awakening of the flowers".
- Historic houses in England
- English Heritage Properties in England
- List of National Trust properties in England
[edit] Literature
The term English literature refers to literature written in the English language, or literature composed in English by writers who are not necessarily from England. Writers noted for expressing Englishness, or associated particularly with regions of England, include William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens, Thomas Hardy (Wessex), A. E. Housman (Shropshire), Rupert Brooke, Jane Austen, Arnold Bennett and the Lake Poets (Lake District).
But Joseph Conrad was Polish, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Edgar Allan Poe was American, Salman Rushdie is Indian: all have enriched English literature.
- List of English novelists
- Anglo-Saxon literature
- Elizabethan theatre
- Big six in the romantic literature of England
[edit] Music
England has a long and rich musical history. The United Kingdom has, like most European countries, undergone a roots revival in the last half of the 20th century. English music has been an instrumental and leading part of this phenomenon, which peaked at the end of the 1960s and into the 1970s.
The achievements of the Anglican choral tradition following on from 16th century composers such as Thomas Tallis, John Taverner and William Byrd have tended to overshadow instrumental composition. The semi-operatic innovations of Henry Purcell did not lead to a native operatic tradition, but George Frederick Handel found important royal patrons and enthusiastic public support in England. The rapturous receptions afforded by audiences to visiting musical celebrities such as Haydn often contrasted with the lack of recognition for home-grown talent. However, the emergence of figures such as Edward Elgar and Arthur Sullivan in the 19th century showed a new vitality in English music. In the 20th century, Benjamin Britten and Michael Tippett emerged as internationally-recognised opera composers, and Ralph Vaughan Williams and others collected English folk tunes and adapted them to the concert hall. Cecil Sharp was a leading figure in the English folk revival.
Finally, a new beat out of Liverpool emerged in 1962. The Beatles: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr, became the world's most popular musicians of all time. The "Fab Four" opened the doors for British acts such as The Rolling Stones, The Who, Queen, Iron Maiden, Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd to the globe.
Some of the leading contemporary artists include Kaiser Chiefs, Arctic Monkeys, Robbie Williams, Oasis, Radiohead, David Bowie, Coldplay and Muse.
[edit] Religion
The Church of England functions as the established church in England. Other churches which have started in England include the Methodist church, the Quakers and the Salvation Army.
[edit] Sport and leisure
- See also: Rugby union in England and Rugby league in England
Association football, cricket, rugby union and rugby league are considered to be the national sports of England.
Football maintains a consistent popularity across the country and is often indicative of trends across wider culture in England, such as in clothing and music. The increase in hooliganism amongst football fans in the 1970s and 1980s can be in part attributed to a parallel rise in unemployment. As England, and the United Kingdom as a whole, returned to a more affluent and stable financial position in the late 1990s, violent football culture was transformed in to a culture where families were welcome, and nationalism lost its aggressive edge.
Different sports directly represent the different social classes within England. Rugby league, for instance, is generally seen as the sport of the Northern working class, whereas cricket and rugby union have their origins in the private schools of the 18th and 19th centuries respectively.
However, since the English Rugby World Cup victory in 2003, the sport has seen a revival in widespread popularity across the class system. Likewise, after the Ashes victory of 2005, cricket has regained much of the popularity it had lost throughout the 1990s.
Tennis is also one of Englands major sports, this can be see through one of the most prestigious tournaments in Tennis, Wimbledon being held in England.
