The title
of this article is a bit deceptive since it is more focused on various
aspects of the monarchy in the UK rather than speculations as to what happens
once the Queen is no longer among us. Do
you agree that having royalty is about having a story and a subject of
gossip? Are they simply figures to
project our own desires, resentments and values upon? What are the advantages of royalty? How would Slovakia look with royalty? Or do we already have something that serves a similar
function? Caputova?
Hi. Welcome to the blog for my IB English B class at Jur Hronec High School in Bratislava, Slovakia. Below you will find links to other websites and discussion questions. My students are required to comment on one of these postings every month and also respond to each other's comments. Feel free to add your two bits, but be aware that all comments are monitored before being posted.
Filip, firstly, I have to disagree with your claim that the royal family is viewed badly by the majority of British people. In a recent article I saw, poll results show that the percentage of Britons in favor of the monarchy never falls below 65%, suggesting that the majority is still supporting the royal family even with all their scandals.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, you make a point that since the members of the royal family have experienced many scandals, their role of being a good representation of Britain has been compromised, resulting in many Britons not liking them. This might be only my personal belief, but I think Brits and many other people like the drama surrounding the British monarchy, at least a little. Take for an example the making of the series The Crown, watched and liked by millions of people.
What is more, the influence of the royal family on how British people are perceived is somewhat undeniable, just as you suggest with the example of their “posh” accent. However, I have to wonder to what extent is the royal family actually responsible for some other stereotypes connected to British people. God forbid people assuming that Brits are bad people because of them; like you mention in your statement. Furthermore, regarding royal scandals damaging the way people see Brits, I do not think that because Prince Charles was unfaithful to his wife then that is what people are now going to assume about other British people as well. This might also be only my experience, but I have never met a foreigner stereotyping Brits based off the actions of the royal family.
I don’t think that having royalty is only about having a subject of gossip, rather I see it as an unavoidable aspect of being a very prominent public figure. Yes, people want to know more about them. However, no matter what information you give the media, they make it to a story that will sell, even if it does not make sense, just like you mention with them being lizards. You rarely hear about the beneficial contributions of the royal family; however, you hear about naked Prince Harry dancing in Las Vegas for months. It is because people like the drama. Makes the royal family appear more human and likeable in some cases, at least in my opinion. So no, I do not agree that it is primarily because of the scandals that some Brits don’t like the royal family and are subjects to stereotypes because of it.