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Titel
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London (exam 26)
Shortage of labour in Britain after World War II and and increased ease of international movement pulled a large number of immigrants from the former British Empire to Britain and to London. Back then all "colonial subjects" were given the right to freely reside and study in Britain and many did: Approximately three million people arrived in the late 1940s-1970s. Later the tides turned and racial tension rose - culminating perhaps in 2018 with the "Windrush scandal" and the wrongful deportation of 83 people of Caribbean descent who had helped rebuild e.g. London after WW2.
In this topic about London, we will look into some of the main aspects that makes London an outstanding capital - its diversity and its historic places and landsmarks.
Other keywords that can be related to the topic (depending on the texts students have analysed) : Diversity, inequality, the British class system, the educational system, the monarchy (are royals celebrities under constant surveillence?), private/public/independent education vs. "the maintained schools" in the state system, social heritage, social mobility, the working poor (who work full-time jobs but still find it hard to make ends meet), the elite, the "old boy" network. university fees, Jafaican (or "multicultural London English"), the British identity, The North vs. the South (the South is economically much better off than the North).
We will also practise literary analysis and relate it to the requirements of a potential oral exam in English. For that end, students will analyse different texts about London in groups and present their results to the class.
Shared texts and tasks:
Inequality in London:
a) George the Poets: My City (peom).
George the Poet -My City -by deuce films -director Rob Ryan (youtube.com).
History and landmarks
• History London in 24 min.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=Ripfp7CeXwyNYDpe&v=6-xs_mXiANM&feature=youtu.be
Multicultural Britain:
A Marriage Made in Hounslow (fictional text about an arranged marriage).
Laura Clark: ''Jafaican' Is Wiping Out Inner-City English Accents' (Daily Mail (non-fiction, 2006)
PIERS MORGAN. "Spare me your 'patriotic' crocodile tears, Harry - you DIDN'T have to quit. You chose to ditch the Queen, the monarchy, your military comrades and your country… to become a royal Kardashian and keep Meghan happy". The Daily Male, 20 January 2020.
(Class text (Being British). Welfare and state: Being British, pp. 46-48 (differences class).
Individual texts analysed in groups:
1) Wealthy Londoners call in Christmas decorators for up to £80,000 | Christmas | The Guardian (article).
2. Francesca Baker, London Short Fiction: Not Enough. Source: London Short Fiction: Not Enough | Londonist
London Short Fiction: Not Enough | Londonist
3. Sexism, vandalism and bullying: inside the Boris Johnson-era Bullingdon Club | Boris Johnson | The Guardian (possibly also an excerpt from the Riot Club (film).
4: Posh Kids Go To State School | School Swap: The Class Divide E1 | Our Stories: Posh Kids Go To State School | School Swap: The Class Divide E1 | Our Stories (45 min.). And info about Welfare and Class, from: Being British by Jan Erik Mustad, Jørgen Sevaldsen og Ole Vadmand. Gyldendal, 2014. 46-48
At the end of the topic we will analyse the following text as a preparation for watching , "Ved det Grønne Bord": Fay Schopen: “Yes, I Love Keeping Up With The Kardashians. Don’t dare try to shame me.”, (Opinion column from The Guardian on October 13, 2017).Meldgaard, Andrea, Ida Marie
Watch and share - different videos students watch individually and share in groups:
b) Video: Sadiq Khan: The Rise of London’s Muslim Mayor
f) https://www.britannica.com/video/Overview-British-Empire/-249695 (short video about British Empire).
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