ISTITUZIONI, STORIA E CULTURA DELLA PRIMA LINGUA SCELTA - LINGUA INGLESE, Appunti di Cultura Inglese I

Scarica ISTITUZIONI, STORIA E CULTURA DELLA PRIMA LINGUA SCELTA - LINGUA INGLESE e più Appunti in PDF di Cultura Inglese I solo su Docsity!  England  Scotland --> form Great Britain  Wales & Northern Ireland United Kingdom= Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales, and England (no Ireland) English and British= not same thing. English: people from England. British: someone who is from England, Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland. = United Kingdom People from Scotland are Scots, from Wales Welsh and from Northern Ireland Irish. Physical features In the past: tensions between rural and urban cultures. Britain: a great diversity of physical features. There are many beauty spots and recreation areas, such as the 15 National Parks in England (like the Lake District), Wales (Snowdonia) and Scotland (the Cairngorms), and other areas of natural beauty - relatively accessible. Britain was originally part of the European mainland. But the melting of the glaciers in the last Ice Age raised sea levels. The country was separated from the continent by the North Sea at its widest, and by the English Channel at its narrowest, points. The shortest stretch of water between the two land masses is the Strait of Dover between Dover in southern England and Calais in France (21 miles, 34 km). The north-east coast of Northern Ireland is separated from Scotland by the North Channel. Britain is divided into highland and lowland Britain. The highest ground lies in the north and west. Much of the lowland area, except for urban and industrial regions, is cultivated and farmed. It consists largely of fields. England covers two-thirds of Great Britain. The most populated areas are the largest towns and cities, such as London and south-east England generally; the West Midlands region around Birmingham; the Yorkshire cities of Leeds, Bradford, and Sheffield; the north- western area around Liverpool and Manchester; and the north-east region comprising Newcastle. Wales highland country, with moorland plateau, hills, and mountains. The chief urban concentrations of people and industry are around the bigger southern cities, such as the capital Cardiff, Swansea and Newport. Scotland divided into three areas. The first is the North-West and Central Highlands, together with several islands off the west and north-east coasts. The second is the Central Lowlands, which contain one-fifth of the land area but three- quarters of the Scottish population, most of the industrial and commercial centres and much of the cultivated land. The third is the Southern Uplands, which cover several hill ranges stretching towards the border with England. The main population concentrations are around the administrative centre and capital of Edinburgh and the formerly heavily industrial area of Glasgow. The climate, isolation, and harsh physical conditions in much of Scotland have made conquest, settlement and agriculture difficult. Northern Ireland shares an island with the Republic of Ireland and since 1921 has had a border in the south and west with the Republic, which has featured strongly in recent Brexit negotiations. The capital Belfast has the biggest population concentration, but Northern Ireland generally has a sparse and scattered population and is a largely rural country. Fisheries Britain ranks seventh among Europe’s leading fishing nations and operates in the North Sea, the Irish Sea and the Atlantic. The fishing industry is significant for the national economy and is centred on ports around the coasts. The industry had been affected by the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) and British government rules, which limited fishermen’s freedom of operation. The need to conserve fish resources and prevent overfishing was stressed. Quota systems operated inside and beyond the zones to restrict fish catches. Wales became part of the English administrative system in the 16th century, through 2 acts of Union in 1536-42. Scotland completely united with England in 1707, Ireland entered the English kingdom in 1801- to prevent an invasion of Great Britain by Napoleon. 1922: The South of Ireland became the Irish Free State and claimed its independence from Britain. It became totally independent (the Republic of Ireland) in 1949. Northern Ireland remained joined politically to Britain: UK was born. What is the capital of Northern Ireland? Belfast. What is the capital of the Republic of Ireland? Dublin. Symbols of United Kingdom UK Royal Coat of Arms Function: identify the person who is Head of State. The arms are used in the administration and government of the country, appearing on coins, in churches and on public buildings. They also appear on the products and goods of Royal warrant holders. The Sovereign's coat of arms has evolved over many years and reflects the history of the Monarchy and of the country. for up to 6 months without applying for a visa (Skilled Worker visa, Health and Care visa, Global Talent visa, Student visa, Graduate visa, etc.) Irish citizens do not require permission to come to the UK. How to become a British citizen You must also: • prove your knowledge of English; • have passed the life in the UK test; • intend to continue living in the UK; • be of good character. How do you prove your knowledge of English for citizenship? • an English qualification at B1 level • a degree taught or researched in English. you would be able to apply for British citizenship. However, a good command of the language is not enough. to become a British citizen, you must sit an exam which tests knowledge of British society, history, and culture. A HISTORY OF ENGLISH LAWS AND GOVERNMENT The Celts and Britannia The first documented settlers were the Celts, who came from continental Europe and occupied the British territories in the VIII-VI century BC. The name ‘Britannia’ was given by the Greeks and the Romans. The first who talked about Britons in detail was Julius Caesar in his De bello gallico, where he talks about two military expeditions led by him in Britain. Rome occupies- Britain. Roman occupation of Britain was not due to Caesar’s campaigns, but to the expeditions organised by Emperor Claudius in 43 AD. Romans occupied today’s England and Wales, facing the strong resistance of the local people. Famous is the courage of Boudicca, queen of the Iceni, who revolted against the Roman oppression and sacrificed her life to defend her people. Now she is celebrated with a monument near Westminster Palace. They built fortifications from the East coast and West coast Hadrian’s Wall and roads. Today’s Scotland and Ireland remained free from the rule of the Romans, and that is where Celtic traditions might continue. Still nowadays, these countries keep maintaining many customs rooted in Celtic culture, not least the language. The Roman invasion also marked the importance of London- quickly became important as a trading centre. Germanic patrimony After the Romans left Britain, three Germanic tribes invaded the land they were the Angles, the Saxons, and the Jutes. German people- organized in clans. • Chief elected by the assembly Witenagemot --> king • laws and customs transmitted orally. The Heptarchy 7th cent. England divided into seven kingdoms. The power of the king was absolute, and the assembly disappeared. - Were uncivilized barbarians - Were pagans - Spoke a Germanic language (four main dialects: Nurthumbrian, Mercian, Kentish, and West Saxon) Saint Augustine of Canterbury 597 sent by Pope Gregory I to convert the Anglo-Saxons. He converted Ethelbert, king of Kent. Political results: the king is now chosen by God. Written legal corpus- Christianity is called the ‘religion of the Book’ King Ethelbert was the first to set a corpus of written laws • No influence from Roman legal system • Germanic customs widely maintained • Centrality of the Church. Germanic tradition A manslaughter must be compensated by money in order to avoid feuds. wergeld > IT “guidrigildo” = “the sum of money worth a man” Wessex It became the most important kingdom of the heptarchy. King Ine (688-726) broadened the borders including territories in Kent and Essex. Ine is also the first legislator in Wessex. Alfred the Great (871-899) With him Wessex knew his period of greatest expansion and power. Alfred can be considered the first king of England. He produced a dombok on the model of the corpus of laws promulgated by Charlemagne. His corpus was also a political response to the recent settlements of Danes in the northern part of England. Alfredian laws Influx of Church more remarkable than in Ine Men’s laws have to follow God’s laws. Not organized in chapters, it is rather a collection of norms and precepts. Main principle: the law must be equal for all. More protection to slaves, girls, widows and orphans, poor. King Alfred’s cultural policy Translation of Latin works and records of accounts coming from the Germanic lore and traditions. One of them is the story of Beowulf, the earliest epic poem in English literature. Ninth century – the Danish occupation During the ninth century, Viking raiders attacked the North-Eastern coasts of England and eventually occupied part of the English kingdom. A peace treaty between the Danish leader Guthrum and the king of Wessex Alfred the Great established the birth of a new political entity, known as Dane lagu, or Danelaw (‘Danish jurisdiction’). 1066. The Norman conquest One of the most well-known dates in English history, England was invaded by Norman army from France. William, duke of Normandy, claimed is right to the English throne, he left Calais. Battle of Hastings, battle on October 14, 1066, that ended in the defeat of Harold II of England by William, duke of Normandy, and established the Normans as the rulers of England. He will be known as William the Conqueror. The story of William is told in The Bayeux Tapestry --> is an embroidered cloth nearly 70 metres (230 ft) long and 50 centimetres (20 in) tall that depicts the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England. The rise of William, Duke of Normandy as king of England determined a revolution in the organisation of the English kingdom. Why? • English nobility and clergy replaced by French people • Latin and Norman as languages of the administration • Introduction of the feudal system The King kept for himself best lands, towns, and forests. The feudal system was established. The Domesday Book (1086) First great census in England, wanted by King William. Aim: to establish the rights of the king to demand taxes during the reign of his son, Edward the Confessor Written in Latin, and Norman, it contains several terms in English, as they had no counterpart in French 1) A national tax on properties (geldum) 2) General benefits of the king 3) Annual incomes of the king’s lands. Henry II (1154–89) He was the first king of the House of Plantagenet. He sent travelling judges round the land to the largest towns. The law they administered became known as ‘common law’--> because it was used everywhere. In other parts of Europe legal practice was based on civil law or canon law of the Church. This was based on custom, comparisons, previous cases and previous decisions. This mixture of experience and custom is the basis of law in England even today. The Magna Charta Signed in 1215 by King John the Unready, it limits the powers of the king. It was destined to the barons, who did not stand John’s oppression anymore. It is considered the founding element of today’s British unwritten Constitution. It determines the foundation of the English Parliament. It was the first public act of the Nation that guaranteed protection to all free men from illegal imprisonment. REMEMBER: Unlike most modern states, Britain does not have a codified constitution but an unwritten one formed of Acts of Parliament, court judgments and conventions. Term parliament comes from a French word which means discussion. These meetings of barons, knights, clergy and two representatives for each city and king were generally called to authorise fresh taxes. Ed I made the meeting of Parliament a more frequent event, his first parliament in 1265, It is considered the first English parliament in the technical sense because it was the first time that representatives to the parliament had been elected, rather than appointed. In addition, it was the first time that both knights and burgesses had attended the same parliament, an arrangement that broadened the groups represented. In 1521 Henry VIII was granted the title of Defender of the faith by the pope Pope Leo X. the titled has been inherited by each succeeding English monarch since its first establishment. Originally the title represented England’s standing under the pope. Henry was granted his title because of the piety he demonstrated to the Catholic Church. The pope recognized the English Monarch as a man of God shortly after he had written the book, ‘Défense of the Seven Sacraments’ against the revolutionary Martin Luther. The union between King Henry VIII and Catharine of Argon was not just out of the love Henry felt for Catharine, it was also a political marriage. The marriage united the Kingdoms of Spain and England. As a queen Catharine was expected to provide a male heir however over a period of ten years she could not do so, Henry waited patiently to no avail. He needed a new queen. This presented an issue; only the Pope could annul a marriage. The poops refusal of Henrys request to divorce represented a change in Henry’s attitude towards the Papacy. No longer was Henry defending the faith of the Roman Catholic Church but was instead he introduced the new reformed Church of England. Consequently, Henry was renounced of his title “Defender of the Faith”. He declaimed himself Supreme Governor of the Church of England. --> Act of Supremacy in 1534. He had the right to appoint bishops, decide on articles of faith. Dissolution of the Monasteries, between 1536 and 1541, by which Henry disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland. From then, the Anglican Church is born. Henry VIII’s three heirs (The Tudors) property» The Bill of Rights was adopted in England, protecting the right to religious toleration. The birth of political parties The Whigs and the Tories were the first political parties in Britain. Both emerged in 1679- 80. The Tories descended from the Royalists; they supported the divine right of monarchy and opposed religious toleration; the Church of England and the landowners sided with them. The Whigs were descendants of the Parliamentarians. They pressed for industrial and commercial development, a vigorous foreign policy, and religious toleration. Their party was supported by many of the wealthy and commercial classes. The first prime minister was the Whig Sir Robert Walpole (1676–1745), who was in power for over twenty years (1721–42). The new king, George II, relied more and more on Walpole and gave him a house in Westminster, 10 Downing Street, which is still the official residence of the prime minister today. The Act of Union (1707) The Scottish Members of Parliament (MPs) voted to join the Union England, Wales and Scotland would be “united into one kingdom by the name of Great Britain” and represented by one parliament. The Scottish Parliament was dissolved, and England and Scotland became one country. It was not a federal union, nor was it an incorporating union that assimilated Scotland into England. Scotland retained its distinct legal, educational, and religious systems, but currency, taxation, sovereignty, trade, parliament, and flag became one. The red cross of St George combined with the blue and white cross of St Andrew, resulting in the ‘old’ union flag. Daniel Defoe “Scotland is now no more than a part of Great Britain in common with other parts of it, of which England itself is also no more.” Scotland and England are both equal components of Great Britain. The Act of Union (1707) The Scottish Members of Parliament (MPs) voted to join the Union England, Wales and Scotland would be “united into one kingdom by the name of Great Britain” and represented by one parliament. The Scottish Parliament was dissolved, and England and Scotland became one country. It was not a federal union, nor was it an incorporating union that assimilated Scotland into England. Scotland retained its distinct legal, educational, and religious systems, but currency, taxation, sovereignty, trade, parliament and flag became one. The red cross of St George combined with the blue and white cross of St Andrew, resulting in the ‘old’ union flag. The new British identity Another childless Protestant queen, Queen Anne, coupled with the fear of a Jacobite pretender, encouraged the union between Scots and English. This new identity was established in reaction to an “Other”, partly real, partly imagined: Papism, French and Spanish supremacy. Great Britain was a free trade area with protection against foreign countries. Declaration of the House of Commons (1710) “As we are Britons it is our common interest and shall be our just endeavour to preserve that union between the parts of Great Britain on which the safety of the whole depends.” “Popery and slavery, like two sisters, go hand in hand…” Britain’s convictions of its own liberties and exceptionalism. Language Before the Act of Union: • the Lowland Scots were speaking a form of English • three out of four Welshmen spoke Welsh. Welsh and Scottish were quite different languages and cultures. Celtic fringe is not really a useful term, or at least not if we are thinking in terms of identity. There was never any question of the Celts uniting against the English. Identities were always more local than national, even within Scotland and Wales. Scotland was split into the Lowlands and the Highlands. Wales was divided by mountains north and south. Communications were better in England, giving the English greater unity and commercial advantage. England’s population 4 times that of Scotland and Wales together. An age of revolutions The last decades of the 18th century were marked by great revolutions: • the Agrarian and Industrial Revolutions. • the American Revolution, when British colonies on the other side of the Atlantic became a new and free nation (USA). • the French Revolution, followed by the Napoleonic conquests. The Agrarian Revolution It took two principal forms: • the widespread enclosure of ‘open fields’ and common land to make larger, more efficient farms; improvements in the selective breeding of cattle(allevamento selettivo di bovini) to produce more meat, and in farming techniques such as crop rotation and mechanisation. These techniques and new settings changed the way of farming. This revolution is connected to the Industrial Revolution. As a result of the introduction of the steam engine by James Watt, new factories were built on the coal and iron fields of Lancashire, Yorkshire, central Scotland, and South Wales. These new factories allowed Britain to manufacture cloth more cheaply than elsewhere, but also put many people out of work. There was a social consequence/ reaction --> Luddism: a group of British workers who between 1811 and 1816 rioted and destroyed laborsaving te xtile machinery in the belief that such machinery would diminish employment. The Perfectionist: book who states that this new technology allowed to become the ruler of all the oceans and seas. The Act of Union with Ireland In 1801, the fear that Napoleon might use Ireland to invade Britain led to the Act of Union with Ireland. The Irish Parliament was abolished, and its members sat in the London Parliament, where they demanded “home rule” (autonomy) for Ireland. The more there was an external threat, the more people spoke about Britain rather than England or Scotland. Other important event that changed the relationship with the Catholic Church dated back to the beginning of 19th century. In 1701: The Act of Settlement specified that monarchs must be Protestant. In 1707 90% of Britons Protestant. Catholics and Jews were frequently discriminated. However, there was a strong culture connection with France and French was spoken by upper classes. By 1800 the sense of embattled exceptionalism was fading, and with-it Christian fundamentalism. Another big change- 1829 Roman Catholic Relief Act which removed the most substantial restrictions on Roman Catholicism in the United Kingdom. It was the culmination of the process of Catholic Emancipation throughout the United Kingdom. The act permitted members of the Catholic Church to sit in the parliament at Westminster. The OTHER gradually shifted from a European Catholic other to a colonial other. The newly created Britain was in a fighting mood. Britain and France were at war during the following periods: 1689-1697 8 years, 1702-1713 11 years ,1743-1748 5 years ,1756-1763 7 years ,1778-1783 5 years, 1793-1802 9 years ,1803-1815 12 years.  Total 57 years out of 126. The British lion engaging 4 powers. Spain, France, America, and Poland. Print shows a lion confronting a spaniel, representing Spain, a fighting cock, representing France, a rattlesnake, representing America, and a pug dog, representing Holland. The wars with France led to: • the foundation of the Bank of England and the creation of the city. • a more efficient nationwide tax system. • the creation of a considerable army, though there was never conscription and Britain was never invaded. The wars forced Britain to become more efficient and more unified. The Napoleonic Wars In 1793 France declared war Britain, who feared an invasion and relied on a stronger navy, decided to fight France at sea. Admiral Horatio Nelson defeated the French-Spanish fleet off Cape Trafalgar on the Atlantic coast of southern Spain in 1805. The total defeat of Napoleon happened in 1815 at the Battle of Waterloo, in Belgium. The British troops, commanded by Arthur Wellesley, the first Duke of Wellington, were able to overcome Napoleon, weakened by his disastrous invasion of Russia. The period which covered the end of the Napoleonic Wars (1811–20) was called ‘the Regency’, since the Prince Regent, later to become George IV, acted as monarch during the illness of his father George III (1760–1820). Changing nature of the monarchy in this period: the growing awareness of the need for a more British, ceremonial, promotional, patriotic monarchy, celebrating domesticity and moral rectitude. Reached a turning point was the reign of George III. The feminisation of the monarchy The new visibility of female monarchs allowed British women to identify. An evident substitution of Catholic Virgin worship. The figure of the Monarch official Head of State, head of the Anglican Church, head of the Commonwealth, Commander-in-chief of the Royal Army, symbol of the unity of the Nation. The duties of the Monarch opens Parliament, approves the appointed Prime Minister, gives royal assent to bills, reads all state papers, meets the PM once a week, gives honours. The Houses of Parliament The Parliament Constitutional title: Queen-in-Parliament. The first occurrence of the term ‘Parliament’ appears in 1236 = meetings of the monarch with nobles and bishops. The term comes from the French parler, and denotes an event arranged to talk and discuss things. The Parliament is bicameral: • House of Lords (or Upper House), made of Lords Spiritual (bishops of the Church of England) and Lords Temporal (nobles, also called peers – hereditary and life peers) • House of Commons, made of people democratically elected at least every five years (MPs). The Parliament has the legislative function, i.e., it makes the laws. It was centralized in 1707. Functions of the Parliament  It makes laws.  It provides money to the Government through taxes.  It examines the government policy, the administration of the country and spending.  It debates political matters. Who is in the House of Lords? And how does it work? Members of the House of Lords bring experience and knowledge from a wide range of occupations. Many members continue to be active in their fields and have successful careers in business, culture, science, sports, academia, law, education, health and public service. They bring this knowledge to their role of examining matters of public interest that affect all UK citizens. The Lords shares the task of making and shaping laws and checking and challenging the work of the government. DOCUMENTARY OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS The executive, that is government is the majority party, and it governs through Parliament, approving laws. Lords, Commons, and the queen must approve a bill in order to make an Act of parliament. Historically, except for emergencies, a Parliament had a maximum duration of five years. The road to a UK law The process of law-making is an expansion of the simple debate structure. Before the creation of new UK law (which may take a few days or many months) and changes to existing law, a government usually issues preliminary documents. A Green Paper is a consultative document that allows interested parties to state their case before a bill is introduced into Parliament. A White Paper is not normally consultative but is a document that details the prospective legislation. A draft law takes the form of a bill. Bills must pass through both Houses and receive the royal assent before they become law. The Commons is normally the first step in this process. The Lords can vote against or delay a non-financial bill. It can propose amendments, and if amended the bill goes back to the Commons for further consideration. This amending function is an important power and has been frequently used in recent years. When the bill has eventually passed through Commons and Lords, it is sent to the monarch for the royal assent (agreement), which has not been refused since the eighteenth century. After this, the bill becomes an Act of Parliament and is placed on the statute-book as representing the law of the land at that time. UK’s main parties The Tories became known as the Conservatives in the early 1830s. They believed in established values and the preservation of traditions; supported business and commerce; had strong links with the Church of England and the professions; and were opposed to radical ideas. The Whigs, however, were becoming a progressive force and wanted social reform and economic freedom without government restrictions. They developed into the Liberal Party, which promoted some enlightened policies in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries but declined from 1918 with the emergence of the new Labour Party. The Labour Party, created in its present form in 1906, became the main opposition party to the Conservatives after the Liberals’ decline and continued the traditional two-party system in British politics. Other parties: The Liberal Democrats (Lib Dems) were formed in 1988 when the old Liberals and a new Social Democratic Party merged into one party. In British politics, we have two parties’ systems: Labour and Conservatives alternate.  The Conservative Party is a right-of-centre party, with right- and left-wing sections. It also regards itself as a national party and appeals to people across class barriers. It emphasizes personal, social, and economic freedom, the individual ownership of property and shares, and law and order.  The Labour Party has historically been a left-of-centre party with its own right and left wings. It emphasized social justice, equality of opportunity, economic planning and the state ownership of industries and services. It was supported by the trade unions (who have been influential in the party’s development), the working class and some of the middle class. Smaller parties are also represented in the House of Commons, such as the Scottish National Party; Plaid Cymru (the Welsh National Party); the Ulster Unionists and the Democratic Unionist Party (Protestant Northern Irish parties); the Social Democratic and Labour Party (moderate Nationalist, largely Roman Catholic Northern Irish party); and Sinn Féin (Republican Northern Irish party). UKIP (UK Independence Party) founded in 1993, and since its beginning, has campaigned to take Britain out of the European Union and the leader is Nigel Farage. The League opposed the signed Maastricht Treaty. In December 2018, Farage stood down from UKIP. He returned to frontline politics by launching the Brexit Party in 2019. Drawing support from those frustrated with the delayed implementation of Brexit by Theresa May's government, the Brexit Party won the most votes in the May 2019 European elections, becoming the largest single party in the European Parliament. The Prime Minister is elected within the political party. The country is divided into 650 constituencies (geographical areas of the country containing about 66,000 voters – although some have more or fewer). Each returns one MP to the House of Commons at a general election. British, Commonwealth and Irish Republic citizens may vote if they are resident in Britain, are on a constituency register of voters, aged 18 or over and not disqualified. Those who are unable to vote in person in their local constituency can register postal or proxy votes. The members of the House of Lords can not vote. The candidate who wins the most votes in a constituency is elected MP for that area. This is known as the simple majority or ‘first past the post’ system. After general election the leader of the political party is asked by the queen to become prime minister. He is the leader of the majority party and the head of the House of Commons • is formally appointed by the Monarch • runs the Government • appoints the Cabinet* Ministers • represents the UK in political matters. British government The UK government is the executive arm of the UK parliamentary system. It serves the whole of Britain and normally comprises members of the successful majority party after a UK-wide general election. It is centred on Whitehall in London where its ministries and the prime minister’s official residence, 10 Downing Street, are located. It consists of some 100 ministers who are chosen from both Houses of Parliament and are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. The prime minister is appointed by the monarch and is usually the leader of the majority party in the Commons. The prime minister was historically the link between monarch and Parliament. This convention continues in the confidential weekly audience with the monarch, at which government business is discussed. * The Cabinet is a small executive body in the government and usually comprises about 20 senior ministers, who are chosen and presided over by the prime minister. Since 1945 there have been nine Labour, ten Conservative and one Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition governments in Britain. Some have had large majorities in the House of Commons, while others have had small ones. Some, such as the Labour governments in the 1970s and the Conservatives in the 1990s and 2017, had to rely on the support of smaller parties, such as the Liberals, Ulster Unionists, Democratic Unionists and Liberal Democrats, to remain in power. Most of the MPs in the House of Commons belong to either the Conservative or the Labour Party. This continues the two-party system in British politics, in which political power has alternated between two major parties, except for periods of coalition or minority government, such as 2010–15. Smaller UK parties such as the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP), the Greens and A hundred years later, England started to take things more seriously. By the end of XVI century Sir Walter Raleigh was granted a charter by Queen Elizabeth I to explore and colonise Virginia. Other colonies were set up in Bermuda and in the Caribbean, and there England clashed against Spain, who had the complete control of that area. -> Invincible Armada Little of background Elizabeth I recognized Spain as a main trade rival and enemy. A first open war with Spain was avoided and overseas trade expanded making England a commercial and sea power, then English sea captains were encouraged by the Queen (ex. Francis Drake) in the piracy against Spanish ships and she took a share of the profits. They took ships, slaves, tobacco from America and Africa. An important date is 1588 when the Spanish decided to invade England with their invincible armada but the English defeated it. Supremacy at sea enabled Elizabeth I to lay the bases of England Empire. Chartering seven companies to colonize in the name of trade. Charter- means that Elizabeth authorizes trade companies to travel to different areas of the world and exchange goods and services with local populations. By the end of XVI century Sir Walter Raleigh was granted a charter by Queen Elizabeth I to explore and colonise Virginia. Countries and territories not actually possessed by any Christian prince or inhabited by Christian people. Throughout the 1600s, the British presence in North America grew. In 1620 the Mayflower landed in America. This ship took Puritan pilgrims to the New World so that they could build new settlements (initially in Plymouth) and practise their religion the way they wanted to. In the 1660s and 1670s the British established territories further north and along the eastern coast of America. By the mid XVII century there were thirteen colonies. The Hudson’s Bay Company was formed to explore the lands around the Hudson Bay with its great wealth in furs, timber, and other products. Here the English met Native Americans. They traded with them and made alliances. England and France: the Seven Years War The French did the same thing, and they built up large territories along the Saint Lawrence River. By the mid-1700s England and France were bitter rivals. From 1756- 63 they fought the Seven Years War in Europe, in Asia and in America. By the end of the war England was emerging as the main power in North America. English forces conquered Québec and ruled the lands of Upper and Lower Canada. Relations between the British government and the people who lived in the thirteen Colonies got steadily worse in the 1760s and 1770s. In 1776 a revolution broke out (the American War of Independence). The colonists were helped by the French and defeated the English, becoming the United States of America in 1783. Despite this, English rule continued in the Caribbean and in Upper and Lower Canada. Over the territories next 100 years the various of Canada became the confederation that forms the state of Canada today. The Mayflower has become an icon in the cultural history of the United States. The pilgrims sailed from Plymouth and founded the Plymouth colony in Massachusetts. They were puritans and the King at the time was Charles I Stuart. In 1672 the Royal African company was inaugurated, receiving from King Charles a monopoly of the trade to supply slaves to the British colonies in the Caribbean. We approach the big issue of slavery in the British empire. From the beginning slavery was the bases of the British empire in the West Indies and until the abolition of slave trade in 1807 Britain was responsible for the transportation of African slaves to the Americans. Slavery played a fundamental role for the running of the British colonies. Initially, only war prisoners or criminals were employed to work in the fields. However, the expansion of the territories under British control and the increasing production of goods demanded more manpower. That is how the slavery of African people began. The English empire in Africa developed rather late. English contact with Africa became large scale from about 1740 onwards, at a time when France has already established well- settled colonies. British traders could make huge profits by exchanging manufactured goods for slaves in Africa, and then selling slaves in the West Indies and in North America. They also increased their profits by bringing sugar, tobacco, and cotton back to Britain. So, there was a triangle between Africa, North American and Britain. Extract from the Annual Register showing the extent of trading in slaves, 1758. This ordinary looking document tells a very moving and powerful story. It is just one page of the Annual Register Africa of slaves exported from Africa the Americas. This particular page come from the register for 1758. It lists the ships carrying slaves, when they arrived in Africa, where they are coming from, who owned them etc. The document shows the total number of slaves in this short period. An analysis of the register by historians has shown that the total numbers transported look something like this: By the late 1800s England took control of huge territories in north, central and southern Africa. Slavery was abolished in Britain in 1807 and after this the relationship with Africa changed. Britain followed its tried and tested method of allying with local rulers (also employed in India) and then joining in conflicts between its allies and their enemies. In 1844 Britain took control of the Gold Coast of West Africa. At the same time explorers, and missionaries like David Livingstone were coming into contact with new African peoples and opening up trade routes as well as establishing political alliances. From about 1870 to about 1900 Britain took control of increasingly large areas of West and North Africa. In the 1880s Britain took control of Egypt. North Africa was important because it was on the trade route between Britain and its most valuable territory – India. Egypt was a strategic area because it was on the trade route to India. We are now in the 19th century during the reign of Queen Victoria when the Great Britain ruled over a wide and powerful empire that brought the British in contact with various cultures. In the last decades of the 19th century, they occupied an area of 4 million square miles and more than 4 hundred million people were ruled over by the British. In the 1830s and 1840s Britain became increasingly involved in controlling a larger area of southern Africa. The British came into conflict with the Boers (white Africans descended from Dutch and Belgian settlers). This eventually resulted in the Boer War of 1899- 1902, which brought to the English total control of nowadays’ South Africa. The colonisation of India India, a densely populated place with long established civilizations, had a long history of contact with Europe. The main contact between England and India was in trade. This began to develop during the 1600s, when the East India Company was created, a private company owned by wealthy and important figures in Britain. The Company had the monopoly of trade between Britain and Asia. The main goods traded were cotton, silk, and tea. However, spices and gems were also important products. The officials of the Company were almost like the rulers of a country. The Company had its own armed forces and could negotiate treaties. They worked closely with some Indian rulers, often supporting them in their wars with other rulers. Throughout the 1600s and 1700s the Empire took control of more and more Indian lands. In 1639 the English established control of Madras. In 1661 they gained control of Bombay - a very important port and trading centre. In the 1690s the Company established and developed the port of Calcutta. From there British influence and control spread into the rich territories of Bengal. There is a lot of debate about how the English were able to gain the power and influence they did, because many of the Indian states were extremely well organized and powerful. Britain simply did not have the resources to invade India and conquer it by force. However, British leaders were very effective in choosing which princes to ally with, and which to fight. Wall painting from the head offices of the British East India Company in London, 1778 This painting represents allegorically British dominion over the East through the East India Company. It uses a range of figures to illustrate different aspects of the work of the East India Company. Britannia is sitting on a rock to show how well established the empire was and is guarded world peace. So, the Commonwealth is not a political entity or a federation of countries, like the EU. 54 countries are members of the Commonwealth of Nations. They are situated in Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe, and the Pacific. The Commonwealth is home to 2.2 billion citizens! The Commonwealth countries recognized the Queen as their head. The British monarch is its non-political head and has varying constitutional roles in the different countries. The Queen signs a document at the presence of all the representatives of the Commonwealth countries. The Queen is the symbol of the unity of the confederation. Her power is purely symbolic, but she is very much respected. The prime ministers, or heads of state, in Commonwealth countries normally meet every two years under the auspices of the monarch. Why is the Queen the most prominent figure of the Commonwealth? Because she is the symbol of the free associations of independent member nations. What are the tasks of the Commonwealth? • It provides advice on political, economic, and social issues • It offers technical assistance to the member countries The member states cooperate within framework of common values and goals, which include the promotion of (declared in the charter):  Democracy  Human rights  The rule of law  International peace and security  Tolerance, respect and understanding  Freedom of Expression  Separation of Powers  Good Governance  Sustainable Development  Protecting the Environment  Access to Health, Education, Food and Shelter  Gender Equality  Importance of Young People in the Commonwealth  Recognition of the Needs of Small States  Recognition of the Needs of Vulnerable States  The Role of Civil Society Basic principles Member States are committed to the development of FREE and DEMOCRATIC societies It must promote PEACE and PROSPERITY to improve the lives of all peoples of the Commonwealth. colonies. India and Pakistan became independent in 1947 (leading to the emergence of the modern Commonwealth with the 1949 London Declaration), followed by African territories in the 1950s and 1960s and later by many islands of the West Indies. only a few British colonies, dependencies and protectorates now remain, and these, such as the Falklands and Gibraltar, are scattered widely across the globe. Eventually in 1921 Ireland was partitioned into two parts as a result of uprisings, violence and later political agreement. The 26 counties of southern Ireland became the Irish Free State and a dominion in the Commonwealth. The six counties in the north became Northern Ireland and remained constitutionally part of the United Kingdom. The Irish Free State remained neutral in the Second World War, and in 1949 its Houses of Parliament passed the Republic of Ireland Act, making the Republic of Ireland officially independent and the country withdrew from the Commonwealth. However, under the Act, Irish citizens are treated as though they are Commonwealth citizens and not aliens, giving them for example the right to vote in UK elections if they are resident in Britain. The Commonwealth has nearly a third of the world’s population and a quarter of the earth’s land mass and comprises peoples of different religions, races, and nationalities, most of whom share a colonial history, with struggles for independence from colonialism. One good thing of the Commonwealth is that if you are a citizen of any of the member countries, you can travel in any other without needing a visa. Different countries, one vision • Diverse states – they are amongst the world’s largest, smallest, richest and poorest countries • All members have an equal say – regardless of size or economic stature English in its many varieties remains the common language of the Commonwealth and the prestigious Commonwealth Games (athletics and other sports) are held every four years. British attempts to enter European economic structures from the 1960s reduced the importance to Britain of the organization. There is no longer the old sense of Commonwealth solidarity and purpose, and Britain has little in common with some Commonwealth nations. Do not confuse the Commonwealth of Nations with the Commonwealth Realms! Commonwealth realms are countries that belong to the Commonwealth of Nations but who acknowledge the sovereign of England as their own monarch. Nevertheless, they do not depend politically on England. They have their own governments and make their own laws. Here, too, the Queen has the symbolic role of head of State and of the Anglican Church. There are 16 Commonwealth Realms. for example: Canada, Australia, New Zealand. Technically speaking, all these countries are monarchies. They depend on the Queen in the appointment of the Prime Minister, the signing of the bills, etc. However, it would be physically impossible for the monarch to be in all these places and carry out their duties in first person. Thus, the Queen, with the advice of the current PM of each State, chooses her representative, that is called Governor General. Ex. Governor General of Canada Julie Payette and Governor General of Australia David Hurley. The real power of the countries is run by the PMs who are democratically elected. They have full responsibility for the administration of the country, including the relationships with other countries. The PM of Canada, Justin Trudeau, has decided to contrast the immigration policy promoted by the newly elected President of the United States, Donald Trump, claiming himself and Canada willing to receive all the immigrants expelled from the US. However, the symbolic role of the Queen as head and symbol of the Commonwealth is still very strong and very much felt by the population and the political leaders of the union. THE MEDIA AND INFORMATION IN THE UK The print media in the UK began to develop in the 18th century. (Newspapers and magazines) The Tatler founded by Richard Steele, and The Spectator --> founded by Joseph Addison: they started their daily publication in 1709 and 1711. They fought for liberal principles and the right to cover parliamentary debates. From 1772 newspapers were allowed to send their reporters to attend Parliament sessions and write about them. The Times began in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register, adopting its current name in 1788. The growth of literacy after 1870 provided the owners of the print media with an increased market. Newspapers and magazines, which had previously been limited to the middle and upper classes, reached a wider readership. They were used for news and information, but also for profit and entertainment. Most of these newspapers were quality papers (‘The Times’, ‘The Daily Telegraph’): catering for a relatively small, educated market at a time of mass illiteracy. Vs Popular papers (‘Daily Mail’, ‘Daily Mirror’): In 1896, Alfred Harmsworth produced the Daily Mail, which was targeted at the lower middle class as an alternative to the ‘quality’ dailies. Harmsworth then published the Daily Mirror in 1903 for the working-class ‘popular’ market. Both the Mail and the Mirror were soon selling more than a million copies a day. In the nineteenth century, the growth and diverse composition of the population conditioned the types of newspaper that were produced. The first ‘popular’ national papers were deliberately printed on Sundays. They were inexpensive and aimed at the expanding and increasingly literate working class. Qualities and populars were also historically distinguished by their format. Popular were tabloid or small-sheet while qualities were broadsheet (large-sheet). This distinction has disappeared in recent years as more broadsheets have become tabloid, ‘compact’ (The Times) in format. Only the Financial Times and the Daily Telegraph are still broadsheets. The early twentieth century was the era of mass-circulation papers. There was fierce competition between them as they fought for bigger shares of the market. The Daily Mirror was the largest-selling national daily in the early twentieth century. It supported the new Labour Party and was designed for quick and easy reading by the industrial and increasingly politicized working class. Battles are still fought between dominant proprietors, since newspaper ownership is concentrated in a few large publishing groups, such as Rupert Murdoch’s News UK (which has large media holdings in Britain, Australia, and the USA) and Trinity Mirror. The success of the early popular press was due to growing literacy; a desire for knowledge and information (as well as entertainment) on the part of the working class; and increased Royal Charter and has a Trust that is responsible for supervising programmes and that comprises trustees who are appointed by the Crown on the advice of government ministers and constitute an independent element within the organization of the BBC organization. The trust chooses the director-general, who controls the daily operations of the BBC. The BBC is under pressure from government and critics. It has struggled to maintain its position as a public service broadcaster, funded by the licence fee, at a time of competition from independent rivals. The BBC is not a state organization, controlled by the government. However, it is not as independent of political pressures as many in Britain and overseas assume. Its charter must be renewed by Parliament and government can, and does, intervene in the showing of programmes which are alleged to be controversial or against the public interest. The BBC trustees, although independent, are government appointees. Governments can also exert pressure upon the BBC when the licence fee comes up for renewal by Parliament. The BBC tries to be neutral in political matters, to such an extent that all political parties have complained that it is prejudiced against them, being either too liberal/critical or too conservative. Historically, the BBC (with its monopoly on radio) was affected by the invention of television, which changed British entertainment and news habits. The BBC now has two main terrestrial television channels. The ITV Network is the biggest commercial television network in the UK, has 15 regional licences and provides television to viewers across the country. The licence-holders cooperate with each other to some degree, commission and schedule television programmes and provide regional programming. EDUCATION IN UK British education today operates on three main levels: schools, further/adult education, and higher education. Schools are divided into state (maintained from public funds) and independent (privately financed) sectors (the latter mainly in England). Education: free for all from 5 to 18  94% of UK students receive free education from public funds (called State Schools)  6% attend fee paying schools (called Independent or Public Schools) Historical background 1870- State become more actively involved in education. The Elementary Education Act of 1870 was the first of several acts of parliament passed between 1870 and 1893 to create compulsory education in England and Wales for children aged between five and 13. It was known as The Forster Act after its sponsor William Forster. More recently, in 1944, an Education Act (the Butler Act) reorganized state primary and secondary schools in England and Wales (1947 in Scotland and Northern Ireland) and greatly influenced future generations of schoolchildren. State schooling became free and compulsory up to the age of 15 and was divided into three stages: primary schools (5–11 years), secondary schools (11–15) and post-15 education. All 3 levels were universal and free. But there is no common educational organization for the UK, and England, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Scotland have somewhat different school systems. Uniforms are the distinctive mark of each school or college, public or State. Its function is to give students a sense of identity and pride of belonging to a given institution and community. In many cases, this identity is also internal, i.e., it regards classes inside the same school. This aspect is very much felt, so that it has entered the general imagery. Think about the Harry Potter saga and the Houses that compose Hogwarts school. School year divided into 3 terms: Autumn / Spring / Summer Holydays: Summer: 6 weeks Christmas: 2 weeks Spring: 2 weeks End of October: 1 week Mid-February: 1 week End of May: 1 week The education in the UK follows two steps: primary education (5-11yrs) secondary school (until 16, 17 or 18 yrs). Following the 1944 Act, most state secondary schools in England, Wales and Northern Ireland were effectively divided into grammar schools, secondary modern schools, and technical schools. They used to be distinctions. The placement of pupils/students in this secondary system depended upon an. The eleven- plus examination was adopted by most LEAs; consisted of intelligence tests which covered linguistic, mathematical, and general knowledge; and was taken in the last year of primary school at the age of 11. The Labour Party and other critics maintained that the eleven-plus examination was wrong in principle, was socially divisive. Labour governments from 1964 were committed to abolishing the eleven-plus, selection and the secondary school divisions. These would be replaced by non-selective ‘comprehensive schools’ to which all children were automatically transferred after primary school. They provided schooling for children of all ability levels and from all social backgrounds in a local area on one school campus. Over 87 per cent of secondary pupils in England attend comprehensive schools or new alternatives such as ‘free schools’ and academies. So-called public schools (private, not state), such as Eton, Harrow, The King’s School, Canterbury, and Winchester, are the more famous of the independent schools. Today, such schools are often boarding establishments. After the 1944 Education Act, English students who gained a place at an institution of higher education were awarded a grant from their local education authorities (LEAs). This grant system meant that higher education was free for many students, except those whose parents were expected to contribute means-tested amounts to their children. In 1998, a Labour government replaced the student grant with tuition fees and maintenance loans during their study period. Students start to pay back their tuition fees and loans after graduation when they are employed and reach a salary level of £25,000 (2017). Consequently, most students now have to finance their own higher education without free state grants, some have financial difficulties, and may have to take part-time employment. Scottish students living in Scotland receive free tuition from the Scottish government. However, students from England, Wales and Northern Ireland studying in Scotland are charged tuition fees by Scottish universities, which are similar to those charged in their own countries. 4 types of universities • ancient universities (Oxford and Cambridge) • the “redbrick” or civic universities (created between 1850 and 1930) • universities founded after the Second World War and in the 1960s • the ‘new universities’ created in 1992 when polytechnics and some other colleges were granted university status Universities are independent institutions created by Royal Charter, enjoy academic freedom, appoint their staff, award their own degrees, and decide which students to admit. But they are in practice dependent upon income from student fees and government money. BREXIT Brexit is the term used to refer to the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union (EU) and is a shortened version of British Exit. On June 23, 2016, the UK decided to officially sever ties with the EU. This monumental decision came as the result of a referendum— or public vote of nearly all citizens of voting age—in which more than 30 million people voted. In favour and against Brexit Pros the UKIP (UK indipendence party) pushed for leaving the EU and was not supported by the Prime Minister, David Cameron. Members of the UKIP argued that Britain’s participation in the EU was a restrictive element for the country. The party’s main arguments centred around regaining border control and reclaiming business rights against the EU policy of open borders. It was argued that if the UK separates itself from the EU, the fees due to the EU can be used to benefit the UK. Cons The Liberal and the Conservative Parties along with the Prime Minister were strongly in favour of remaining with the EU. After the results of the referendum, the Prime Minister resigned and was replaced by another Conservative, Theresa May. Neutral The Labour Party had an ambiguous stance on Brexit. Their leader, Jeremy Corbyn, was heavily criticised during and after the 2016 referendum for his lukewarm support for the Remain campaign. The referendum A public vote (known as a referendum) was held on 23 June 2016, when 17.4 million people opted for Brexit. This gave the Leave side 52%, compared with 48% for Remain. More than 30 million people voted. England voted for Brexit, by 53.4% to 46.6%. Wales also voted for Brexit, with Leave getting 52.5% of the vote and Remain 47.5%. Scotland and Northern Ireland both voted to stay in the EU. Scotland voted Remain by 62% to 38%, while 55.8% in Northern Ireland voted Remain and 44.2% Leave. The UK stopped being a member of the European Union (EU) after 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020. The process of Brexit For the UK to leave the EU it had to invoke Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty which gives the two sides two years to agree the terms of the split. Theresa May started this process on 29 republic and representative democracy. The government is regulated by a system of checks and balances defined by the U.S. Constitution----> A system of checks and balances places limitations and controls on the power and responsibility of each branch of government. In the American federalist system, citizens are usually subject to three levels of government: federal, state, and local, as claimed in the Tenth Amendment. Ex. The president nominates federal judges, but the Senate must confirm their appointment. The federal government is composed of three branches- in line with the colonial tradition. No person can occupy more than one branch at the same time. Elections do not occur at the same time. The areas that elect them and the lengths of their terms of office are different. Separating the branches prevents the concentration of power in any one and creates cooperation and tension between them. 1. Legislative The bicameral Congress, made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives. It makes federal laws, declares war, approves treaties, has the power to raise taxes, and has the power of impeachment, by which it can remove sitting members of the government (ex. President Clinton in 1998). The impeachment was created to prevent the concentration of powers. The impeachment trial of Bill Clinton, the 42nd president of the United States, began in the U.S. Senate on January 7, 1999, and concluded with his acquittal on February 9. After an inquiry between October and December 1998, President Clinton was impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives on December 19, 1998; the articles of impeachment charged him with perjury and obstruction of justice. 2. Executive The President is the commander-in-chief of the army, can put the veto on legislative bills before they become law, and appoints the members of the Cabinet (subject to Senate approval) and other officers (like federal judges), who administer and enforce federal laws and policies. He can also pardon people accused of federal crimes. 3. Judicial The Supreme Court and lower federal courts. Their judges are appointed by the President for life terms with Senate approval, interpret laws and reject or change those they find unconstitutional. The Congress The House of Representatives has 435 voting members, each representing a congressional district for a two-year term. House seats are proportioned among the States by population every ten years. According to the last census held in 2010, seven States have the minimum of one representative, while California, the most populous State, has 53. It all depends on population. The Senate has 100 members with each State having two senators, elected to a six-year term. Its main function is law making, financial bills began here. The USA does not have a parliamentary government. US PARTIES The United States has operated under a two-party system for most of its history. For elective offices at most levels (from members of Congress to the President), primary elections choose the major party nominees who will be voted in the general elections. Since the general election of 1856, the major parties have been the Democratic Party, founded in 1824, and the Republican Party, founded in 1854. In the American political culture, the centre-right Republican Party is considered “conservative” and the centre-left Democratic Party is considered “liberal”. Until recently, the major parties were also distinct because of their strength in different regions of the nation. Traditionally, the States of the Northeast and West Coast and some of the Great Lakes States, known as “Blue States”, are relatively liberal. The “Red States” of the South and parts of the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains (like many rural areas) are relatively conservative. In the current United States Congress, the House of Representatives and the Senate are controlled by different parties. The Senate currently consists of 50 Republicans, and 48 Democrats with 2 Independents who caucus with (support) the Democrats. The House consists of 211 Republicans, 219 Democrats and 5 Vacant. The President of the Senate is Kamala Harris (D); the Speaker of the House is Nancy Pelosi (D). The ideological centre of the Republican party supports a small federal government, states' rights, minima business regulation, low taxes, and private solutions to social problems. Democrats are more in favour of government management of the economy, a public social safety net and unions. More democrats have favoured civil rights, affirmative action programs, gun control, abortion rights and equal rights for the LGBT population. More Republicans have favoured reducing government spending and balancing the federal budget. The President The election of the President and Vice President of the United States is an indirect election in which U.S. citizens vote for members of the Electoral College, known as electors. These electors, in turn, vote for the President and the Vice President. The current President, Joe Biden, is the 46th in the history of the United States. Joseph Robinette Biden, Jr., represented Delaware for 36 years in the U.S. Senate before becoming the 47th Vice President of the United States under the Presidency of Barack Obama. At age 29, President Biden became one of the youngest people ever elected to the United States Senate. The president must be born in the US, at least 35 years old, and a resident of the US for 14 years. The price of his independence is having no guarantee of majorities in the House of Congress, the difficulties of lobbying for support in an institution of which he is not a part and the limits put on his powers by the system of checks and balances. Presidential duties arise from constitutional clauses, congressional delegation, or circumstances. The most important extra-constitutional duties are acting as chief of the state and party leader. He is the administrative head of the nation- he must carry out the laws written by Congress. In a system of checks and balances with branches sharing powers, the president's power is not to command but to persuade- to convince other political actors that what the president wants is what they want. The president's military power is one of several factors that strengthen the position as foreign policy leader, he has four major organizations to support conduct in foreign affairs: the Departments of State and Défense, the CIA and the National Security Council. The Vice President The current Vice President, Kamala Harris, was born in Oakland, California to parents who emigrated from India and Jamaica. She graduated from Howard University and the University of California, Hastings College of Law. She is the first woman, the first Black American, and the first South Asian American to be elected Vice President, as was the case with other offices she has held. 2020 USA Presidential elections The 2020 United States presidential election was scheduled for November 3, 2020. It was the 59th quadrennial presidential election. Voters selected presidential electors, who in turn voted (in this case on December 14, 2020) to either elect a new president and vice president or re-elect the incumbents Donald Trump and Mike Pence respectively. The series of presidential primary elections and caucuses were being held from February to June 2020. Trump became the presumptive Republican nominee after securing a majority of pledged delegates. 29 major candidates launched campaigns for the Democratic nomination, which became the largest field of candidates for any political party. Former Vice President Joe Biden became the presumptive Democratic nominee when Senator Bernie Sanders suspended his campaign. Several events related to the 2020 election were altered or postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Congressional elections: Elections for Congress take place in different subdivisions: congressional districts, each of which chooses one member of the House of Representatives, and states, each of which selects two members of the Senate. Congressional elections take place every 2 years, when all members of the House of Representatives and one-third of the Senate face re-election. The U.S. Constitution is very clear about who can be elected as a member of the House or Senate. A House member must be a U.S. citizen of at least seven years’ standing and at least twenty-five years old. Senators are required to have nine years’ standing as citizens and be at least thirty years old when sworn in. House members are elected by the voters in their specific congressional districts. There are currently 435 congressional districts in the United States and thus 435 House members, and each state has a number of House districts roughly proportional to its share of the total U.S. population, with states guaranteed at least one House member. Two senators are elected by each state. The House of Representatives has developed a stronger and more structured leadership than the Senate. Because its members serve short, two-year terms, they must regularly answer to the demands of their constituency when they run for election or re-election. Even House members of the same party in the same state will occasionally disagree on issues because of the different interests of their specific districts. Thus, the House can be highly partisan at times. A SHORT HISTORY OF THE USA The Independence and the Constitution The American Revolution 1775-1783: French evolution was 14 years after, and the American revolution is considered a model. The Mayflower and the Pilgrims North America was colonized by Britain from the early 17th century. On September 6, 1620, a group of English religious dissenters, the Pilgrim Fathers, left Plymouth to find a safe place where they could live and profess their religion. On November 9 they landed in America. Their first settlement constituted the origin of the colony of New England. After much trouble and many losses, they succeeded in establishing a living colony. The “First Thanksgiving” was celebrated by the Pilgrims after their first harvest in the New World in October 1621. Nowadays, Thanksgiving takes place on the fourth Thursday in November. Families and friend eat roast turkey. British colonisation of America • Colonisation determined many waves of emigration, which involved every social and religious category. • The British established a flourishing commercial network with the colonies. However, with the Navigation Acts (1651), we see a great restriction of colonial trade. • Only English ships would be allowed to bring goods into England, and the North American colonies could only export their commodities, such as tobacco and sugar, to England. This gave Britain more and more power in North America. --> The French and Indian war ended in 1763; • French Canada was definitively conquered. To cover the huge expenses of war, Britain imposed heavy defence taxes. British relationship with the Colonies From the beginning of colonisation, the British established a flourishing commercial network with the colonies. In 1606, King James I had given permission to the Plymouth Company and the London Company to establish permanent settlements in North America. The first permanently settled English colony on the continent was the Colony and Dominion of Virginia, established in 1607. The thirteen Colonies They can be divided into 3 groups: New England colonies Province of New Hampshire, established in the 1620s. Province of Massachusetts Bay, established in the 1620s Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, established 1636 Connecticut Colony, established 1636. Middle colonies Province of New York, established in 1686 Province of New Jersey, established in 1664 Province of Pennsylvania, established in 1681 Delaware, established in 1664. New York used to be dutch colony. Southern colonies Province of Maryland, established in 1632, Colony and Dominion of Virginia, established in 1607, Province of Carolina, established in 1663, divided into the Province of North Carolina and Province of South Carolina in 1712 Province of Georgia, established in 1732. British rule over the Colonies Britain was gaining more and more power in North America. The Seven Years war ended in 1763 and shortly after French Canada was definitively conquered. To cover the huge expenses of war, Britain imposed heavy taxes. Nevertheless, the American colonies did not intend to accept these impositions passively. Their motto became: NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION. King George III He was the reigning king during this period. He tried to gain as much as possible from the colonies to cover the expenses of the wars conducted in America. He considered the colonies as a real property of the British crown. In the words of the Victorian author George Trevelyan, the King was determined “never to acknowledge the independence of the Americans”. The Stamp Act and the Tea Act In order to get money, the king raised some taxes that the colonists found ignominious: • Stamp Act (1765) -The act, which imposed a tax on all paper documents in the colonies. • Tea Act (1773): It was intended to benefit the East India Company by giving them the exclusive right to sell tea in the colonies, creating a monopoly which the colonists perceived as another means of “taxation without representation”. In addition to granting the monopoly of the American tea market to the East India Company, they were also exempt from paying British duty by directly shipping the commodity to the American colonies. The Boston Tea Party 16 December 1773 Boston- flash point of opposition. On 16 December 1773, colonists in Boston, Massachusetts, boarded three ships full of tea sent by the East India Company and threw the tea into the Boston Harbour. They did so to protest the Tea Act, passed by the Parliament of Great Britain, which practically granted the East India Company a monopoly on tea distribution in the American colonies. The colonists were required to pay a tax on this tea because of the Townshend Acts. One of the first effects of the Boston Tea Party was the passage of strict new laws known as the "Coercive Acts, also known as the Intolerable Acts, in 1774 " which were intended to punish the colonists. The Coercive Acts closed Boston to merchant shipping, established formal British military rule in Massachusetts, made British officials immune to criminal prosecution in America, and required colonists to quarter British troops. The colonists subsequently called the first Continental Congress to consider a united American resistance to the British. The Boston Tea Party was also a major catalyst leading to the start of the American Revolutionary War. From 1774 to 1789, the Continental Congress served as the government of the 13 American colonies and later the United States. The First Continental Congress, which was comprised of delegates from the colonies, met in 1774 in reaction to the Coercive Acts. Fifty-six delegates from all the colonies except Georgia drafted a declaration of rights and grievances and elected Virginian Peyton Randolph as the first president of Congress. Patrick Henry, George Washington, John Adams and John Jay were among the delegates. THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 1775-1783 GEORGE WASHINGTON One of the Founding Fathers Commander-in-chief of the Continental Army President over the Continental Congress for the drafting of the Constitution. THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE JULY 4, 1776 It was the first formal statement by a nation’s people asserting their right to choose their own government. When armed conflict between bands of American colonists and British soldiers began in April 1775, the Americans were ostensibly fighting only for their rights as subjects of the British crown. By the following summer, with the Revolutionary War in full swing, the movement for independence from Britain had grown, and delegates of the Continental Congress were faced with a vote on the issue. In mid-June 1776, a five-man committee including Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin was tasked with drafting a formal statement of the colonies’ intentions. The Congress formally adopted the Declaration of Independence—written largely by Jefferson—in Philadelphia on July 4, a date now celebrated as the birth of American independence. “These United Colonies are, and of right ought to be Free and Independent States.” The first signer of the Declaration John Hancock was the first signer of the Declaration. Famous is what he said just before signing the parchment: ‘I will sign it large so that George III might read it without his spectacles’. Nowadays, in the US ‘John Hancock’ is synonym of ‘signature’. The opening paragraphs of the Declaration The introduction opens by stating the purpose of the document–to declare the causes that compel the colonists to separate themselves from the British Crown. The second paragraph contains the philosophy upon which the declaration is based, stating that “all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights,” that men institute governments in order to secure these rights, and that when government attempts to remove these rights, the governed have the right to rebel. 1. Governments are created to secure certain unalienable rights, rights that are granted, not by government or man, but by God. This is called an appeal to Natural Law. It is apparent the founding fathers felt that God should play an important part in the government of man; they do not, however, go into detail on the nature of that God. This, as repeated nearly a decade later in the Bill of Rights, is up to the individual and a right which, also, cannot be taken away by government. 2. When government takes away these rights, the governed have just cause to overthrow or separate themselves from that government. The thought that people had a right to overthrow government was revolutionary, although the premise had been stated by philosophers in the past–John Locke, for example. The Declaration contends that although the right to rebel exists, human nature dictates that people will not do so over light and transient causes, choosing rather to suffer than rebel in most cases. Great Britain is guilty of attempting to take away the aforementioned God given rights; therefore, the colonists are justified in separating themselves from Great Britain. Thomas Paine and Common Sense The revolutionary leader Thomas Paine wrote a pamphlet, called Common Sense, where he advocates the independence of the thirteen colonies from Great Britain. Written in clear and persuasive prose, Paine used moral and political arguments to encourage common people in the Colonies to fight for independence. It was published anonymously on January 10, 1776, at the beginning of the American Revolution, and became an immediate they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.’ 1868, defining national citizenship and forbidding the states to restrict the basic rights of citizens or other persons. The first Presidents of the United States The President of the United States is the elected head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces. The president is indirectly elected to a four-year term by the people of the United States. Forty-six persons have served as President since 1789. For the moment, we will see the most important Presidents before the Civil War. George Washington (1731-1799) He served as President from 1789 to 1797. He was the first President of the United States. He was given this office as being the most important figure in the creation of the United States. He had served as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and, later, had presided over the 1787 Convention that drafted the United States Constitution. The current Capital of the US is named after him. Farewell address: to avoid political and military alliances while cultivating trading relations with other countries. John Adams (1735-1826) He was the second President and served from 1797 to 1801. Like George Washington, he was among the Founding Fathers. He Signed the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Thomas Jefferson (1743- 1826) He was the Third President and served from 1801 to 1809. He was among the Founding Fathers, and he was the main author of the declaration of Independence. Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) He served as sixteenth President from 1861 to 1865. During his presidency, the American Civil War broke out. He was assassinated in 1865, after the end of the War, by John Wilkes Booth, a sympathizer of the opposite faction. He is universally recognised as one of the greatest Presidents of the United States. Memorials in Washington, D.C. --> Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial From the War of 1812 to modern time The 14th of July 1776 The Declaration of Independence is approved. American birthday. Parades, fireworks etc. barbecues, picnics. War of 1812 The War of 1812 was an armed conflict between the United States and the British Empire. The British restricted the American trade since they feared it was harmful for their war with France. RESTRICTION OF TRADE AGAIN. They also wanted to set up an Indian state in the Midwest in order to maintain their influence in the region, which is why Native Americans fought on the side of the British. American was not an empty state, there were local peoples, which we call native Americans, so at this stage of history they supported the British. Since Canada was a British colony back then, Canadians were also British allies. The Americans objected to the British Empire restricting their trade and snatching their sailors to serve on British ships. They were also eager to prove their independence from the British Empire once and for all. During the war, both sides suffered many losses and even the White House was burned down in 1814. At Baltimore, resistance was strong: American militia defeated the veteran British troops, Fort McHenry resisted the mighty British fleet, and Francis Scott Key penned the words of the powerful national anthem. Contrary to American expectations, Canada remained British and eventually developed its own national identity, partly from pride over repulsing U.S. invasions. In 1814, Napoleon’s defeat allowed sizable British forces to come to America. Robert Ross captured Washington (August 24) and burned government buildings, including the United States Capitol and the Executive Mansion (now known as the White House). The British justified this action as retaliation for the American destruction of York (modern Toronto), the capital of Upper Canada, the previous year. The British assault on Baltimore (September 12–14) foundered when Americans fended off an attack at Northpoint and withstood the naval bombardment of Fort McHenry, an action that inspired Francis Scott Key’s “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Ross was killed at Baltimore, and the British left Chesapeake Bay to plan an offensive against New Orleans. What led to the War of 1812? The commercial restrictions that Britain’s war with France imposed on the U.S. exacerbated the U.S.’s relations with both powers. Although neither Britain nor France initially accepted the U.S.’s neutral rights to trade with the other—and punished U.S. ships for trying to do so—France had begun to temper its intransigence on the issue by 1810. That, paired with the ascendance of certain pro-French politicians in the U.S. and the conviction held by some Americans that the British were stirring up unrest among Native Americans on the frontier, set the stage for a U.S.-British war. The U.S. Congress declared war in 1812. Another big war, very important for the destiny of the country was the The American Civil War (1861-65) This was the last war fought on US soil. Substantially, it saw the States of the North against the States of the South. The Civil War can be considered the first modern war: • millions of fire weapons were produced in factories. • troops moved from one side of the country to the other by train. • Leaders and generals could communicate at the speed of light using the telegraph This was also the first war with a huge number of casualties: 592,000 soldiers died and around 1,000,000 were wounded. This war anticipates what would happen in Europe around fifty years later. What are the causes of the Civil War? There was a big economic, but also cultural difference between the States of the North and those of the South. Economically speaking, the North was far more advanced than the South. The Northern States owned the 85% of all the U.S. industries and more than the 70% of the railroad lines. ECONOMY BASED ON INDUSTRIES AND FACTORIES. The South, in turn, was still heavily bound to agriculture and the production of cotton, tobacco, and other crops. However, the main reason that brought to the war was the question of slavery. As we have seen, slaves were brought to America since the beginning of the colonization, and this practice was widespread in all the colonies. Slavery became an established practice when the production of tobacco and cotton developed. And rural activities were peculiar of the Southern States. The beginning of the America identity- during the 19th century America grew as a nation, expanding his territory to Atlantic and Pacific Ocean. It developed an America identity, it also found expression in literature and arts. Puritanism it was the religious faith of the first settlers- the pilgrims’ fathers. The ethic of hard work to improve each individual social and financial situation. Liberty and hard work go together in this development of the America identity. As the 18th century progressed, more immigrants moved to America. Melting pot. New America dominated by 2 forces: The East and the West. Another big division growing gap between the North and the South- based on plantation and slavery. However, historians have shown that the question of slavery in the South was relatively limited. In 1850, in fact, less than one-tenth of the white people owned slaves. This matter affected only the great plantations owners. 8,000 planters owned 50 or more slaves; 254 owned 200 or more and only 11 planters, the richest and most powerful ones (also politically) owned 500 or more slaves. What was felt as a moral problem in the North, represented an economic and political problem for the Southern States. Growing crops was the only relevant economic activity there, and the institutions of those States were controlled by the richest plant owners. Some attempts of revolt against slavery had been done in the course of time. John Brown was a leading figure in the abolitionist movement. He believed that armed actions against slaveholders and government officials were the only way to get some results. “Here, before God, in the presence of these witnesses, from this time, I consecrate my life to the destruction of slavery!” He believed in arm action. Brown advocated for the movement, traveling all over the country to raise money and obtain weapons for the cause. In 1859 he launched an attack on slaveholders, as well as a United States military armoury, at Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia), using armed freed slaves. He hoped the attack would help lay the groundwork for a slave revolt. In the end, the raid ended in failure and John Brown was hanged. The real event that triggered the war was the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States in 1860. In the 1860 presidential election, Republicans, led by Lincoln, supported banning slavery in all the U.S. territories, something which the Southern states viewed as a violation of their constitutional rights. Before Lincoln’s presidential inauguration, seven slave States with cotton-based economies decided to call for a secession. The first six to declare secession were Georgia, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, and Texas. South Carolina joined shortly later. Eight remaining slave States continued to reject calls for secession. In February 1861 at However, this fact did not stop the reunification process. The abolition of slavery was sanctioned by the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. Even as former enslaved people fought to assert their independence and gain economic autonomy during the earliest years of Reconstruction, white landowners acted to control the labour force through a system similar to the one that had existed during slavery. Black codes were restrictive laws designed to limit the freedom of African Americans and ensure their availability as a cheap labour force after slavery was abolished during the Civil War. Though the Union victory had given some 4 million enslaved people their freedom, the question of freed blacks’ status in the post-war South was still very much unresolved. Under black codes, many states required Black people to sign yearly labour contracts; if they refused, they risked being arrested, fined, and forced into unpaid labour. Outrage over black codes helped undermine support for President Andrew Johnson and the Republican Party. The restrictive nature of the codes and widespread Black resistance to their enforcement enraged many in the North, who argued that the codes violated the fundamental principles of free labour ideology. After passing the Civil Rights Act (over Johnson’s veto), Republicans in Congress effectively took control of Reconstruction. The Reconstruction Act of 1867 required southern states to ratify the 14th Amendment—which granted “equal protection” of the Constitution to former enslaved people—and enact universal male suffrage before they could re-join the Union. The 15th Amendment, adopted in 1870, guaranteed that a citizen’s right to vote would not be denied “on account of race, colour, or previous condition of servitude.” During this period of Radical Reconstruction (1867-1877), Black men won election to southern state governments and even to the U.S. Congress. However, white southerners showed a steadfast commitment to ensuring their supremacy and the survival of plantation agriculture in the post-war years. Support for Reconstruction policies waned after the early 1870s, undermined by the violence of white supremacist organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan. O Captain! My Captain! Walt Whitman, 1866 It is a symbolic poem in which Captain refers to Abraham Lincoln and the Ship refers to the USA. The poem describes the victory of the Union after the end of the Civil War and the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. In the first stanza, Whitman calls upon the Captain (Lincoln) of the Ship (USA) that ‘fearful trip’ (dreadful Civil War) has come to an end. The people have won the victory at last, which they quested for i.e. the victory of the union. Poet tells the captain that port (home) is very near and now he can hear temple bells and the cries of the enthusiastic people who are eagerly waiting for him. The enthusiasm increases as the ship reach near the port. Keel has been thrown off the ship so as to keep ship stable. In the next lines, this enthusiasm is replaced by gloom. The captain is dead now and blood is oozing from his body. This makes the poet exclaim ‘O heart! Heart! Heart!’ The captain, who was supposed to be praised by the people for his peerless bravery is now lifeless and motionless. In the second stanza, Whitman tries to talk to the captain, who, he knows well, is dead. This technique of talking to the dead is called apostrophe. Poet calls him father because, for him, Lincoln is not just a military leader but the father of the nation and laments over his loss. In the 3rd stanza, we find the duality of emotions. Whitman experiences the euphoria of their victory but at the same time laments over the death of Lincoln, which is a big loss for the nation. What future for the U.S. after the Civil War? Notwithstanding the enormous number of dead that the war left behind and the need to reconstruct a political and economic unity between the North and the South, the last quarter of the nineteenth century saw a huge industrial development of the United States, which were on the way to become the leading country in the world. The First World War Although the U.S. did not take part to either World War from the beginning, their intervention was decisive in determining the victory of one part over the other. In the First World War (1914-18), U.S. involvement was triggered by the Germans’ attacks to U.S. targets. 1. sinking of the Lusitania, which was carrying 128 U.S. citizens, in 1915. 2. Black Tom Explosion, a sabotage of an ammunitions supplies in Jersey City, New Jersey by German saboteurs on July 30, 1916. 3. At Lyndhurst, New Jersey, a similar act of sabotage was held on January 11, 1917, which destroyed another ammunition storage that was destined to the Allies. For the U.S., this was the last drop. They entered the war on April 6, 1917, considering it a crusade to make the world ‘safe for democracy’, a ‘war to end all wars. They proved fundamental for the victory of the Coalition (Britain and the British Empire, France and Russia, later Italy and the United States). The ‘Great Wall Street Crash’ (1929) In 1929 the American stock market collapsed. It was known as the ‘Great Wall Street Crash’, since Wall Street was (and is) the home of the New York Stock Exchange. It marked the end of the prosperous Twenties and the beginning of the Great Depression. Thousands of businessmen were ruined, and millions of common people who had invested their savings in shares found themselves facing debt and ruin. Factories shut down, banks crashed, goods were produced but no longer sold. In 1932 Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945) became president and promised the Americans a ‘New Deal’ of reforms. The three aims of the New Deal were ‘relief, recovery, reform’. The federal government spent billions of dollars on relief for the unemployed, on public works and on the conservation of natural resources. The Second World War (1939- 1945) On this occasion, too, the U.S. were officially neutral. However, the famous attack of Pearl Harbour (Hawaii) by Japanese kamikazes in 1941 had such a powerful impact on the Americans that the U.S. decided to enter the war. We all know how it ended: on 6th June 1944, D-Day (D for Deliverance), the Allies touched down on the coasts of Normandy and managed to liberate France. In August 1945 US President Harry Truman (1884–1972) ordered the dropping of the atomic bomb on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The end of the war The U.S. had a fundamental role in the post-war reconstruction of Europe as well, with the so-called Marshall Plan. The US signed an agreement of mutual defence with Western Europe, the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, known as NATO. This was in addition to the United Nations Organisation (1945), which replaced the League of Nations created after the First World War. Countries tried to get together. The 1960s Another American president, the Democratic John Fitzgerald Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas on 22nd November 1963; his death put an end to the social hopes his election had awakened. His vice president, Lyndon Johnson, took over the presidency and managed to carry forward some reforms. He persuaded Congress to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibited discrimination of all kinds based on race, colour, religion or national origin. Leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr. fronted the African- American Civil Rights Movement, adopting Gandhi’s philosophy of non-violent resistance. The ‘Black Muslims’, led by Malcolm X, advocated separateness from the whites and the assertion of racial identity through a return to African roots. Both Malcolm X and Martin Luther King were assassinated. Martin Luther King’s famous ‘I Have a Dream’ speech (1963) «When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir This note was a promise that all men would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of colour are concerned. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.’». November 2008 marked a unique moment in American history: on a popular wave of renewed enthusiasm, the Democratic nominee Barack Hussein Obama, a young African American, became the 44th US president and the first ever black American to hold the office. He was re-elected for a second term in 2012 and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009. “I make this statement mindful of what Martin Luther King said […]– ‘Violence never brings permanent peace. It solves no social problem: it merely creates new and more complicated ones.’ As someone who stands here as a direct consequence of Dr King’s life’s work, I am living testimony to the moral force of non-violence.' A process still active- Kamala Harris. THE AMERICAN PEOPLE Immigration, Native Americans Women and Minorities Capitolo 3-4 Americans’ (and the immigrants’) core idealism, pride, and naivety are embodied in Emma Lazarus's sonnet ‘The New Colossus’, which is displayed inside the base of the Statue of Liberty Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, With conquering limbs astride from land to land; Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame. industries, such as lumber, linen and woollen mills and shipbuilding, opened small shops, got involved in trading or became craftsmen. Their society was much more middle-class. However, in the South, there were large plantations due to the mild climate and fertile soil. The original intention of the first southern colonies was profit. The first settlers in Virginia, for example, were fortune seekers looking for gold and trade routes. When those ideas failed, they turned to farming. They had enough capital to buy large sections of land, which formed the basis of a plantation economy based on large crops of cotton, tobacco, and indigo. The plantations were like mini societies where slaves or indentured servants did most of the work. There wasn’t much opportunity to develop a middle-class. The question of slavery so divided the United States that it eventually led to conflicts, which would end in the Civil War. The third wave: New Immigrants 1890-1930 New immigrants: they were part of a new wave of immigrants in the 1880s that were mostly from southern and eastern Europe. There were fewer skilled laborers, and they were generally poorer than those who arrived earlier. They brought new cultures and religions to the U.S. Most found work in cities in the new industries of the time. Immigrant mobility increased with the introduction of large steam-powered ships. The expansion of railroads in Europe also made it easier for people to reach oceanic ports. On the other hand, the Chinese Exclusion act in 1882 prohibited Chinese laborers from entry. The promised land began to seem less and less promising as immigrants were stuffed into tenement buildings in over-crowded cities and forced to work in factories under deplorable conditions. Nevertheless, immigrants poured into the United States where at least they felt that they had a chance. This wave continued until the Great Depression and World War II. Ellis Island In 1892, the famous Ellis Island opened; the first federal immigration station provided a gateway for over 12 million people. Ellis Island is a small island in New York Harbour, within the shadow of the Statue of Liberty. It was designated as the site of the first Federal immigration station by President Benjamin Harrison in 1890. Prior to 1890, the individual states (rather than the Federal government) regulated immigration into the United States. Ellis Island opened on January 1, 1892. The Great Pause: 1915-1965 The Immigration Act of 1924 (or Asian Exclusion Act) enacted quotas on immigrant numbers, restricting groups from countries in Southern and Eastern Europe, and virtually all immigrants of Asian origin. The Great Depression, and subsequent World Wars also complicated immigration matters as many came to seek refuge in the United States. The fourth wave: 1965-Present --> The Immigration and Naturalization Act of 1965 overturned all previous quotas based on national origin. Family unification and an increase in skilled labour were two major aims of this act. This decision significantly impacted the U.S. demographic makeup in the following decades, as more immigrants of Latin, Asian, and African descent entered the country. They come to the US to escape communist dictatorship and civil wars. They are looking for economic opportunity. the fourth wave of immigration is a mixture of Asians (Koreans, Vietnamese, Cambodians, Chinese and Japanese,) and Hispanics, people who speak Spanish. The Asians, as a rule, are successful. The Asians’ success can be explained by two factors. First, many of them, particularly the Chinese and Koreans arrive with money and invest it wisely. They often start businesses and shops and work long hours. Secondly, family honour is an important factor, and their children study hard, get into good universities and get good jobs. Hispanics have not been as successful as the Asians. They are often poor when they arrive and for some reason do not stress the importance of education. In addition, a number of them are illegal and can be exploited. They often work for less money and will not complain about the working conditions for fear of being caught and deported. However, it looks like Mexican Americans are starting to get established and working their way into the middle class. although this wave is predominantly Latino and Asian, it is also the most diverse wave the USA has seen. Another striking feature of the table is the Mexicans’ rise in prominence from a mere 6 percent in 1960 to a presence approaching a third of the entire group in the present wave of immigrants. Assimilation policy It stresses on the denial of ethnic difference and the forgetting of cultural practices in favour of Americanisation. One language should dominate over all the possible cultural differences among ethnic groups. But, with the application of this policy, “whiteness became the privileged grounding and metaphor for the empty abstraction of US citizenship.” (Singh 2009) The policy of assimilation was an attempt to destroy traditional Indian cultural identities. Native Americans, African Americans, and immigrants from all over the world were seen as a threat to this vision until they were brought within this definition of ‘Americanness’ (i.e., assimilated) or totally excluded from the society. What happened to Native Americans? Native America tribes with different habits and systems. Some of them are well known. They occupied all territory. From the moment English colonists arrived in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607, they shared an uneasy relationship with the Native Americans (or Indians) who had thrived on the land for thousands of years. At the time, millions of indigenous people were scattered across North America in hundreds of different tribes. Between 1622 and the late 19th century, a series of wars known as the American Indian Wars took place between Indians and American settlers, mainly over land control. American Indian Wars Also known as First Nations Wars, this is the collective name for the various armed conflicts fought by European governments and colonists, and later the United States and Canadian governments and American and Canadian settlers, against various American Indian and First Nation tribes. These conflicts occurred in North America from the time of the earliest colonial settlements in the 17th century until the 1920s. The Indian reservations from the beginning of the European colonization, Europeans often removed native peoples from lands they wished to occupy. The means varied, including treaties made under considerable duress, forceful ejection, and violence, and in a few cases voluntary moves based on mutual agreement. The first reservation was established in southern New Jersey on 29 August 1758. Proclamation of 1763 With Treaty of Paris, March 1783.The British recognised US independence. Boundaries were determined, allowing for American expansion to the West. The thirteen original states expanded, and the border was signed by the Mississippi river. The passage of the Indian Removal Act of 1830 marked the systematization of a U.S. federal government policy of forcibly moving Native populations away from European-populated areas. One example was the Five Civilized Tribes (the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole), who were removed from their native lands in the southern United States and moved to modern-day Oklahoma, in a mass migration that came to be known as the ‘Trail of Tears’. Some of the lands these tribes were given to inhabit following the removals eventually became Indian reservations. 5 Tribes forced to move in one area. They suffered this removal. Another important episode is the Sand Creek massacre (1864) On November 29, 1864, the Colorado civil army responded to a series of Indian attacks on white settlements by attacking a Cheyenne and Arapaho encampment on Sand Creek in south-eastern Colorado. Under orders to take no prisoners, the militia killed and mutilated about 200 of the Indians, two-thirds of whom were women and children, taking scalps and other horrible trophies of battle. The Indians at Sand Creek had been assured by the US Government that they would be safe in the territory they were occupying, but anti-Indian sentiments by white settlers were too strong. Elwell S. Otis, The Indian Question (1878) He was a United States Army general who served in the American Civil War, Indian Wars. Like all savage people, the Indian has not the slightest conception of definite law as a rule of action. He is guided by his animal desires. He practices all forms of vice, and even to a great extent those crimes which are pronounced as against nature. He takes little thought except for the present, knows nothing of property in the abstract, and has not therefore any incentive to labor further than to supply immediate wants. Instead of making an effort for moral improvement he strives to strengthen his vicious propensities. […] These deficiencies, together with that spirit of communism which is prevalent among all tribes, and which is due as well to an undeveloped idea in regard to property, as any desire for common ownership, make the reception and understanding of our American civilization very improbable. WWI: When Natives became Americans. In 1919, President Woodrow Wilson granted citizenship to all Native Americans who had served in World War I. About 10,000 men had enlisted and served, which is a high number in relation to their population. Despite this, in many areas Native Americans faced local resistance when they tried to vote. In 1924, President Calvin Coolidge signed the Indian Citizenship Act, which made all Native Americans born in the United States and its territories American citizens. Before this act, around two-thirds of Native Americans were already U.S. citizens, through marriage, military service or accepting land grants. The Act extended citizenship to “all non-citizen Indians born within the territorial limits of the United States.” Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “Indian New Deal” In 1934, the Indian Reorganization Act was passed as part of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal programs. The New Deal helped the lives of Native Americans: it moved away from assimilation and more towards autonomy: • Ownership of “Reservation Land” given to the Native Americans • Native American lands would belong to the entire tribe • Native Americans could attend school on reservations • Tribes can elect tribal councils to govern reservations remained man's institutions and, as a result, benefactors established separate women's colleges in that region. The Second World was a watershed in American higher education. To ease the return of veterans to civilian life, Congress passed the so-called GI Bill in 1944. Under the Act, the federal government paid tuition and living costs for veterans in higher education. Within 2 years, half the people in collage were veterans, many of them form working-class families with little education. So, mass education started as a right and not a privilege. Race and school desegregation: attempt to establish racial balance in schools. African Americans were often treated differently than whites in many parts of the country, especially in the South. In fact, many state legislatures enacted laws that led to the legally mandated segregation of the races. In other words, the laws of many states decreed that blacks and whites could not use the same public facilities, ride the same buses, attend the same schools, etc. These laws came to be known as Jim Crow laws. Although many people felt that these laws were unjust, it was not until the 1890s that they were directly challenged in court. From 1955 to 1974, the court tried to desegregate America's public schools. It settled on bussing, the practice of transporting students to schools within or outside their local school districts as a means of rectifying racial segregation. This bus experiment failed, and there was a new segregation. Affirmative action and the schools From the 1960s, the federal authorities fought the effects of prejudice and the related problems of poverty through involvement in educational programs. The Government efforts were collectively called Affirmative action. In 1963, Congress began providing money for college and universities buildings. In 1964 it decided that federal funding was available only to educational institutions that proved they did not discriminate based on race, religion, or national origin. The Higher Education Act in 1965 helped minority and 'disadvantaged' students get college loans. Affirmative action programs of President Johnson to improve women's and minority groups' access to education were also important. Structure of education in the United States There are age requirements for Free and Compulsory Education. Education is free for all from 5/6 to 18/21. 24 states and the District of Columbia require students to attend school until they turn 18. In Massachusetts, children as young as 3 years old are considered to be of school age. So, local control over schools is traditional in the US. The Constitution makes no mention of education. Age requirements vary. Public and private schools 90% receive free education from public funds, and only 10% attend fee paying schools (4/5 are parochial schools). US education follows 3 stages: Elementary school or grade school (from 5/6 and for 6 years) Middle school or junior high school (for 3 years). High school (students between 16 and 18 years old). School holidays Thanksgiving: 2/3 days (end of November). Christmas: December 23 to first weekday in January Winter break: 1 week (February or March). Spring: 1 week (April). Summer: 10/11 weeks Total: 180 school days/year The prom: formal school at the end of the year. Holidays for colleges or universities SAME Colleges and universities What is the difference between ‘college’ and ‘university’? U.S. university or college follows high school, or secondary school. A college in the U.S.A. is not a high school or secondary school. College and university programs begin in the thirteenth year of school, when a student is 17 or 18 years old or older. A two-year college offers an associate's degree, as well as certificates. A four-year college or university offers a bachelor's degree (BA or BSc). Programs that offer these degrees are called “undergraduate” schools. A “university” is a group of schools for studies after secondary school. At least one of these schools is a college where students receive a bachelor’s degree (B.A.). The other schools in a university are “graduate” (also known as “postgraduate”) schools where students receive advanced degrees. Therefore, a university offers both the bachelor’s degree and graduate degrees such as the master’s (M.A.) and doctorate (Ph.D.). A clear majority of colleges and universities in the US are private, but ¾ of high-school graduates choose public institutions. You can earn a bachelor’s degree at either a college or a university. However, students in the U.S.A. prefer to use the word “college” rather than the word “university” when they talk about four-year undergraduate programs and the bachelor’s degree. They use phrases like, “going to college” and “a college degree” when they talk about undergraduate programs at either a college or a university. Most “colleges” are separate schools. They are not located in a university. Some colleges are part of a university and are located on the university campus. (The “campus” is the school buildings and surrounding area). A few colleges offer graduate programs in selected subjects. However, it is usually universities that offer graduate programs. So, Americans use the word “university” and not “college” when they talk about graduate study. The Ivy League is an American collegiate athletic conference comprising eight private research universities in the North-eastern United States. Ex. Harvard, Columbia. What are the chances for students to go to university? University committees examine the high school grades of future students and choose the best. Students, in turn, send their application to several universities, to have better chances to be accepted. If you are very good, you can obtain a bursary or study grants to cover the huge costs (a whole cycle of study may cost over40.000$!). Sport grants If you are very good at sports, you have big chances to study in a prestigious university. Sport is an essential part of universities’ activity, and they attract the most promising students and put them in their teams. Generally, the districts organize their schools into kindergarten for five-years-old, elementary schools for 6 to 12 yo, middle schools or junior highs for pupils from 13 to 15 and high schools for students between 16 and 18 years old. The overall structure of education has several variants progressing from kindergarten through to doctoral degrees. THE MEDIA IN THE USA Main sources of political news and information: • Television • Internet • Newspapers • Radio • Other people and social media. 1791: First Amendment guarantees freedom of the press Media as the «Fourth Estate», an appellation that suggests the press shares equal stature with the other branches of government created by the Constitution. Considered guardians of US democracy, but growing criticism about the way news are managed, there a lot of fake news. Most newspapers, magazines, publishers, radio and TV stations are private. Decline of traditional media (i.e., newspapers), this is true all over the World. U.S. media have travelled a long road since the first newspaper was published in Boston, Massachusetts in 1690 (and banned by the British). Paper was a unifying force in the fight for independence. They wanted an independent press and journalism. The first relatively comprehensive newspaper, James Franklin’s New England Courant, was published in Boston in 1721. Within 50 years, magazines also began appearing in several major American cities (since 1741). New magazines emerged after 1825; from 1852 paperback books (novels) were sold as supplements to newspapers. The first modern American newspaper was the New York Herald, in 1835, helped by the telegraph. The New York Tribune and The New York Times followed. In 1900 newspapers became the primary means of communication. The first modern tabloid was the NY Daily News in 1919. Newspapers started to depend on advertising as the main source of income. Large chains dominated the media business. Investigative journalism, called muckraking became a feature of the print industries. The advent of commercial radio at the beginning of the 20th century ended print's monopoly of the media in America, giving nationwide and, later, global audiences unprecedented access to live audio programs. Television entered the scene in 1939 and became dominant after World War II. The early 21st century saw great advances for the internet and other digital media. Satellite technology has allowed U.S. TV networks, especially cable networks, to reach overseas audiences anywhere on the globe. Interactive media, fuelled by the advance of digital technology and the growing convergence of the computer, telephone and cable television, represent the principal trend of the end of the 20th and the beginning of the 21st centuries. Freedom of the media 1st Amendment: Congress shall not make any law that limits freedom of speech or the press. But freedom from «prior restraint» is not absolute. Press as watchdog over official actions. The media have often pursued an adversarial line towards public authorities and individuals (publishing official secrets, reavealing classified documents, exposing corrupt practices). Tabloid newspapers, TV news channels and independent blogs today probe the private and official lives of public figures. Famous example The Watergate scandal The Watergate scandal was a political scandal in the United States involving the administration of U.S. President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon's resignation. In 1971 the New York Times begins publishing the Pentagon Papers - the Défense Department's secret history of the Vietnam War. The Washington Post will begin publishing the papers later that same week. The Washington Post also disclosed the Watergate scandal. On June 17, 1972, some men working for the Committee to re-elect President Nixon broke into the Democratic Party’s headquarters in the Watergate, a hotel- belonging to the same family and find the linguistic elements they share. These features must have belonged to the ancestor language. As we all know, the first place where English was spoken is Britain. But was English the first (or the only) language spoken by the people of Britain? As already mentioned briefly in one of the first classes, Britain remained isolated from the rest of the civilised world (which pivoted around the Mediterranean Sea at those times) until the I century B.C., when Julius Caesar and the historian Tacitus started talking about this island called Britannia. Caesar started the occupation of the island in 55 B.C. and faced the resistance of local peoples, of Celtic origins, who spoke a language that is the ancestor of nowadays Welsh or Irish. So, neither the first settlers nor the new occupiers spoke any form English. Actually, they did not spoke a Germanic language at all. To hear a Germanic person, speak in those places we must wait until the 5th century (officially in 449 A.D.), when three Germanic peoples – the Angles, the Saxons, and the Jutes – coming from Northern Germany and Denmark, occupied the South-Western regions of Britain. From then on, that part of the island was known as Engla-land, ‘land of the Angles’. They settled in that region and established seven kingdoms, known as heptarchy. How can we know about the language they spoke? The Latin alphabet got to Britain after the process of Christianisation begun by St. Augustine, who was sent by pope Gregory the Great. Augustine reached Kent and converted king Æthelberht in 597. With the introduction of the Bible, we also had the diffusion of written culture, in a country that had been characterised by oral customs. In fact, Anglo-Saxons used to transmit laws, traditions, and literary works (poems) orally. Actually, they knew a form of writing, which was used in very limited contexts: the runes. The Franks Casket (7th cent.) example of runes, it is a box made of whalebone, carved on the sides and top in relief with scenes from Roman, Jewish, Christian and Germanic tradition. Runes were widely used in Anglo-Saxon England, as demonstrated by the many monuments and manuscripts with runic inscriptions. However, runic elements were also introduced in the Latin alphabet, to express sounds that were not present in the Latin language. 2 elements were mentioning: Ƿ (wynn), used to express the labiovelar approximant [w] and þ (thorn), used to express the voiceless linguolabial fricative [θ]̼. Place-names provide intriguing evidence about the developing relationships between the British and the Anglo-Saxons. There are large numbers of Celtic place-names in England like Arden, Avon, Exe, Leeds, Severn, and compound names with a Celtic component: cumb/comb (deep valley); dun (hill fort) lin (lake) and several words for ‘hill’ (torr, pen, crug, bre, mamm). Ex. Berkshire; Bray; Bredon; Cambridge; Lancaster; Leicester; Lincoln; Manchester; Doncaster. Chronological divisions in the history of English The commonly accepted, traditional periodization divides English history into three periods: • Old English (OE) or Anglo-Saxon, begins with the beginning of writing (end of the 7 th century) and ends with the Norman Conquest (1066); • Middle English (ME)begins with the Norman Conquest and ends on the introduction of printing (1475); • New English (NE) or Modern English. It lasts to the present day. Old English The tribal dialects gradually changed into local or regional dialects: West Saxon, Kentish, Mercian, and Northumbrian. With the rise of the Kingdom of Wessex, the West Saxon dialect prevailed, and most written records of this period have survived in this dialect. OE was a typical Old Germanic language, with a purely Germanic vocabulary, and few foreign borrowings. OE was an inflected or “synthetic” language with a well-developed system of morphological categories, especially in the noun and adjective. Old English retains the flexive system of Germanic (in turn inherited from Indo-European), but with some simplifications. • masculine, feminine, neuter are kept but we have four cases instead of the five of Germanic (and the eight of Indo-European): nominative, accusative, genitive, dative. So, Old English is a synthetic language. Syntax --> Old English had a high syntactic freedom of words within a sentence, due to the high grade of inflection. Old English basic order was SOV, but also SVO, OVS, VSO were present. Ex: gif þu sie Godes sunu Se tu sia figlio di Dio. Alfred the Great (849-899) He is acknowledged to be the first English monarch. King of Wessex, he stopped the Danish invasion of England. With the ‘Alfredian Renaissance’, the Wessex variety of Old English became the standard for all England. King Alfred’s cultural policy: promoted translation of Latin works, and the records of accounts coming from the Germanic lore and traditions. One of them is the story of Beowulf. Beowulf It is the earliest epic poem in English literature. It talks about Beowulf, a Swedish hero who came to Denmark to free the realm of king Hrothgar from a monster called Grendel. The account goes on with an aged Beowulf who, become the king of Sweden, has to defend his kingdom from a dragon, waken up by one of Beowulf ’s servants who entered the dragon’s den and stole a cup from his treasure. Beowulf kills the dragon, but he dies too.  An aristocratic military society is described.  The narrative of the poem is made up of a series of type-scenes – battles, banquets, funerals, voyages.  The narration is objective. • The main theme is the nature of heroic life.  The didactic aim is the celebration of heroic values.  The language is vivid, and the style is elevated. Beowulf: a national epic The oldest surviving poem written in Anglo-Saxon more than 1200 years ago. The poet is unknown. It deals with a time following the initial invasion of England by Germanic tribes in 449 (5th-6 th cent.). The date of composition is unknown probably composed as an elegy for a king who died in the 7 th century and written down in the 11th century. Settings Denmark--> ruled by King Hrothgar. Here the first actions of the poem take place. Heorot--> where Beowulf confronts the monster Grendel. the misty lake where Beowulf fights against Grendel’s mother. The land of the Geats in Sweden where Beowulf confronts a fire-breathing dragon. The Plot It is divided into three sections: 1 Beowulf, the war leader of the Scandinavian Geats, fights against Grendel, the monster, = which stands for evil and succeeds in killing him in Heorot. 2 The hero fights against Grendel’s mother she represents evil. Beowulf manages to kill her in the murky lake. 3 After fifty years, the hero kills a fire-breathing dragon in Scandinavia but is mortally wounded. Themes 1. Importance of the warrior code: loyalty to the king who is generous, hospitable and protected by his warriors / thanes; the thanes are loyal, brave, courageous; the need to take revenge; physical strength and courage; the search for glory in this life. 2. A system of revenge is repeated in the poem: The feud = the tragic waste. Feud--> peace--> feud 3. The eternal conflict between good and evil. 4. Fate and destiny govern the world. 5. Courage is the quality that can stand against Fate. Supernatural elements Superhuman powers are attributed to Beowulf. Several monsters appear in the poem. The supernatural lake, where Grendel and his mother live, is filled with sea-monsters. Ninth century – the Danish occupation. During the ninth century, Viking raiders attacked the North-Eastern coasts of England and eventually occupied part of the English kingdom. A peace treaty between the Danish leader Guthrum and the king of Wessex Alfred the Great established the birth of a new political entity, known as Dane lagu, or Danelaw (‘Danish jurisdiction’). Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. It was commissioned during the reign of King Alfred the Great. It lists important events in the history of the British Isles from prehistory until the twelfth century. As is often the case with medieval manuscripts, there is not just one copy written by one person, but various copies written in different centuries by different scribes who made additions and omitted material. Today, there are nine surviving manuscripts. All have been identified and classified in the nineteenth century. Scandinavian influences in English As well as politically, this occupation also had a dramatic influence in the evolution of the English language. The contacts between the Anglo-Saxons and the Danish determined the introduction of new linguistic elements in Old English. According to some researchers, it The most important author of this period: Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales. The Canterbury Tales are a collection of tales written by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400. These tales are told by a group of pilgrims heading to the shrine of St. Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral, where all the members of the society of those times are portrayed ironically. The work is modelled on Boccaccio’s Decameron. This work, and in general, Chaucer’s activity, are fundamental for the birth of a standard literary language, which became that spoken by Chaucer himself, who was born and lived in London. The opening lines Each of the major literary works of the Middle English period provides evidence of the way new French loans were continuing to arrive and older loans being consolidated. By the time we reach the opening lines of The Canterbury Tales the French lexical content is a major linguistic feature: When that Aprill with his shoures soote The droghte of March hath perced to the roote, And bathed every veyne in swich licour Of which vertu engendred is the flour ... When April with its sweet showers has pierced the drought of March to the root, and bathed every vein in such liquid from which strength the flower is engendered ... Chaucer wrote it at a time when English, French, and Latin all mingled in everyday contexts, and the language of his poem reflects the diverse modes of speech present in England's society. Lexical alternatives  The end of the Middle English period is traditionally placed between 1476 and 1483. These years mark two fundamental events in the history of England: 1476: William Caxton, the first English printer, sets his printing press at Westminster. The press contributed enormously to the process of language standardisation (the East Midlands dialect and the dialect of the London area, becomes the national standard). The fixity of the printed word and the distribution of books made the London variety of English the standard for the whole kingdom. 1483: the death of Richard III of the House of York by the hand of Henry Tudor (the future Henry VII) marked the end of the War of the Roses and the beginning of a period of political stability, which favoured a huge cultural development and the beginning of English Renaissance. The Great Vowel Shift the passage from Middle English to Modern English is marked by a fundamental linguistic change, which involved phonology. This was a very long process that last about two centuries, and that brought English to be, fundamentally, the language we study and speak nowadays. This phenomenon is called Great Vowel Shift. This process implies a series of changes in the pronunciation of the accented long vowels. Researchers suppose that what triggered the chain was the changed pronunciation of ME /i:/ and /u:/, two long vowels which started to be pronounced as a diphthong, perhaps to distinguish two different words written in the same way (ex. ‘wind’ vs ‘towind’). For example, consider verbs such as written, which had a /i:/ in the infinitive and a /i/ in the past participle. Therefore, to that, we have a shift of all the other vowels as well, until a new balance was established. Renaissance Renaissance marks a very important period for English: Linguistic transformations (GVS, further morphological simplification). New consciousness: English as important as the major European languages (Latin, Italian, French, Spanish), due to the increasing military and political power (the Elizabethan Age) Since mid-16th cent.: introduction of new literary models coming from the Continent (Thomas Wyatt’s sonnets). King James’ Bible (1611), «appointed to be read in Churches», and The Book of Common Prayer. The works of William Shakespeare (plays and sonnets). First vocabularies (glossaries). A text from 1611 Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil: for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen The used of the second person to refer to God which was a clear evidence of proximity between people and God, he was called by name using the singular. Shakespeare idioms There is no doubt that William Shakespeare gave a lot to literature and to the English language, but did you know that one of the most influential playwrights of all time also coined some of the best-known idioms we still use today in English? Examples: Heart of Gold--> “The king’s a bawcock, and a heart of gold, a lad of life, an imp of fame, of parents good, of fist most valiant.” – Henry V Kill with kindness--> “This is a way to kill a wife with kindness, and thus I’ll curb her mad and headstrong humor.” – The Taming of the Shrew. The Renaissance brought a widening of horizons. Words were introduced from all the major European languages. The atmosphere of global exploration is unmistakable. Direct loans into English, however, had to wait for the first English settlement. The new vocabulary can be seen even in the first written accounts which reached Britain, demonstrating the speed with which languages adapt to new circumstances. In 1608 a London printer published a recently written account by Captain John Smith of the early exploration of Virginia. His story contains many Amerindian placenames. In Smith’s later writing we find such words as moccasin. The new words generally reflect an encounter with the various aspects of culture and religion, like harem, magazine, sofa (Arabic); coffee, yoghurt (Turkish). As the British East India Company was established in India in 1600, we find words as bungalow, catamaran, curry, mango and, from the Far East, bamboo, ketchup, kimono. 18th century: stabilizing disorder All the linguistic phenomena of this century brought to the English we study nowadays. It was only then that grammarians worked for a regularisation of the language. The first dictionaries started being produced at the beginning of the 17th and finally in the 18th century, after a period of unprecedented social and political upheaval (the Reformation, the Civil Wars, the execution of the king, Irish and Scottish rebellions, the Glorious Revolution): a «century of revolution» was followed by an «age of learning and politeness». 1755: the first complete English dictionary by Samuel Johnson. First published in 1755, the dictionary took just over eight years to compile, required six helpers and listed 40,000 words. Each word was defined in detail, the definitions illustrated with quotations covering every branch of learning. It was a huge scholarly achievement, a more extensive and complex dictionary than any of its predecessors. A group of London booksellers first commissioned Johnson’s dictionary, as they hoped that a book of this kind would help stabilise the rules governing the English language. In the preface to the book, Johnson explains how he had found the language to be ‘copious without order, and energetic without rules’. In his view, English was in desperate need of some discipline: ‘wherever I turned my view … there was perplexity to be disentangled, and confusion to be regulated’. However, in the process of compiling the dictionary, Johnson recognised that language is impossible to fix because of its constantly changing nature, and that his role was to record the language of the day, rather than to form it. Johnson details the ways in which languages change over time. However much the lexicographer may want to fix or 'embalm' his language, new words, phrases and pronunciations are constantly appearing, whether brought from abroad by merchants and travellers, extracted from the workrooms of geometricians and physicians, or found in the minds of poets. In all, there are over 114,000 quotations in the dictionary. Johnson was the first English lexicographer to use citations in this way, a method that greatly influenced the style of future dictionaries. He had scoured books stretching back to the 16th century, often quoting from those thought to be 'great works', such as poems by Milton or plays by Shakespeare. Therefore, the quotations reflect his own distinct literary taste and political views. A lot of native speakers in the South of England tend to switch constantly between RP and an accent closer to ‘estuary’. The issue is certainly a talking point; there have been plenty of column inches on Prince William and Kate Middleton’s varying levels of ‘RP’ recently, with some bloggers claiming William has ‘quite a bit of Estuary’ in his speech. What are the key differences between RP & Estuary? Wrong pronunciation. Omission of some letters and substitution of V with W. Dickens is great in trying to give an idea of how people actually spoke. English(es) in the world As we all know, English is ackowledged to be the international language. It is, in fact, the most spoken language in the world. After WWII the huge mass of anglicisms which has pervaded all Europe is more evident than ever, thanks to the military, economic and political power of the USA. Today anglicisms pertain to the field of trade and communication, with words like marketing, leasing, buyer, budget, film, cast, set, deadline, computer, software, download, etc. English is the lingua franca of communication, sailing, pilots, information technology, internet, but is also the language of diplomacy and the international science community. What is American English (AE)? It is the variety of English spoken in North America (US and Canada). It is not the official language of the U.S., though. Only 32 out of the 50 States have given official status to it. Generally speaking, we refer to U.S. English as General American (GA). The linguist William Labov describes GA as ‘a fairly uniform broadcast standard in the mass media’. Nevertheless, English is not as uniform as Labov seems to suggest. Even though the foundation of the English colonies in America started in XVII century, only in the next century can we distinguish an American English, with the arrival of a significant number of immigrants. From this mixture of the languages of immigrants of different origins, English men and women of various regions, but also Scottish and Irish from Ulster, and people from all walks of life, a variety of English pretty different from the contemporary British standard appeared. A map of English accents  RP vs GA Differences in pronounciation • -ile words: fertile, hostile, mobile, versatile. • /a/: bath, laugh, class, chance, ask, after, can’t, example. RP: is longer, GA are shorter. • /r/: hard, were, ear, pure, more, chair, bar. Spelling • -isation / -ization words: civilization, organization, authorization, globalization. •/t/: better, water, hated, writing, bottom, native, artificial, notice. Differences in spelling Many of the differences between American and British English date back to a time when spelling standards had not yet been developed. In fact, some spellings seen as ‘American’ today were once commonly used in Britain and some spellings seen as ‘British’ were once commonly used in the United States. A ‘British standard’ began to emerge following the 1755 publication of Samuel Johnson’s A Dictionary of the English Language, and an ‘American standard’ started following the work of Noah Webster and in particular his An American Dictionary of the English Language, first published in 1828. Examples: -our vs –or. Most words ending in -our in BE: colour, flavour, behaviour, harbour, honour, humour, labour, neighbour, rumour, survivour, splendour end in -or in GA: color, flavor, behavior, harbor, honor, humor, labor, neighbor, rumor, survivor, splendor. er vs -re. In BE, some words from French, Latin or Greek end with a consonant followed by an unstressed -re. In AE, most of these words have the ending -er. The difference is most common for words ending -bre or -tre: BE spellings calibre, centre, fibre, litre, manoeuvre, meagre, metre, nitre, sepulchre, spectre, theatre all have -er in AE (caliber, center, fiber, etc.) -yse vs -yze. The ending -yse is BE and -yze is GA. Thus, in BE analyse, catalyse, hydrolyse and paralyse, but in GA analyze, catalyze, hydrolyze and paralyze. World English refers to the English language as a lingua franca used in business, trade, diplomacy and other spheres of global activity, while World Englishes refers to the different varieties of English and English-based creoles developed in different regions of the world. The ‘New Englishes’ became the dominant development in the second half of the 20th century. How did English spread worldwide? The First phase The first big migration involved relatively large-scale movements of mother-tongue English speakers from England, Scotland, and Ireland predominantly to North America and the Caribbean, Australia, and New Zealand. In contrast to the English spoken in Great Britain, the varieties spoken in modern North America and the Caribbean, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand have been modified as being in contact with indigenous Native American, Aboriginal, and Maori populations in the colonies. The language of the locals is called substrate language; the language of the occupiers is the superstrate language. The second phase The second migration was the result of the colonization of Asia and Africa. English in West Africa began with trade, particularly the slave trade. English soon gained official status in what are today Gambia, Ghana, Nigeria, and Cameroon. As for East Africa, extensive British settlements were established in what are now Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, where English became a crucial language of the government, education and law. Even after their independence, English remained the official language for many of them. English was formally introduced into South Asia (India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bhutan) in the second half of the eighteenth century. During the period of the British sovereignty (the Raj), English became the medium of administration and education throughout the subcontinent. British influence in South-East Asia and the South Pacific began in the late eighteenth century, involving primarily the territories now known as Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea, also a British protectorate, with his English-based Tok Pisin. Linguistic contact It happens during economic exchanges, colonizations or occupations. The language of the occupiers has a higher status than that of the occupied. However, communication must be established. It is realised in various ways: • imposition of the language of the occupiers, which determines the exclusion of the language of the occupied in the margins of communication • lingua franca: a third language is used to communicate • Pidgins and creoles: mixture of the two languages. Usually, the basis is the language of the occupiers. A pidgin is most employed in situations such as trade. Fundamentally, a pidgin is a simplified means of linguistic communication, where grammar is not as important as immediate verbal exchange, especially in contexts of trade and commerce. A pidgin is not the native language of any speech community but is learned as a second language. Pidgins allow people who have no common language to communicate with each other. Pidgins usually have low prestige if compared to other languages