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The Wealth of English Literature
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Posted on Nov 12, 2007 by Jodie in English Education, English Traditions, English TravelPeople love to read and hear poetry and other literary arts. Some would listen and learn from their message to the reader while some would simply be amazed at how they were constructed with such enthusiasm and imagination. Whatever the case may be, English literature has been known to be rich and capable of rubbing on people who try their hand on poetry and prose.
Much can be traced to the ancestry of English literature and arts. A lot of the famous writers trace their roots to the homelands of England. Charles Dickens for one, is a famous poet that everyone is particularly familiar with. Among his famous works include that of Oliver Twist, David Copperfield and the seasonal holiday tale of the Christmas Carol.
To this day, much of the familiar prose that people read would be immediately associated with the famous writers such as Dickens. It is not surprising to note why this came about considering that England is indeed rich in the arts and culture.
[tags]oliver twist, charles dickens, literature, prose, poetry[/tags]
Everyone is familiar with having desert at the end of a good meal. Deserts can take the form of ice cream, cakes and other known sweets to top of an appetizing meal. In Britain, pudding is something that is known as a common desert to consume. Pudding is usually composed of bread, or other forms of cakes, paired with various add-ons such as raisins, alcohol and vanilla. Pudding is prepared in different ways, and the variants would depend on what the server would normally want to offer to their customers.
Pudding can be paired with other deserts as well. It is in particular that ice cream is normally the first option to be paired with it. Fruits are also another good addition to the normal pudding servings. Some also make unique sauces to complement the pudding served, making it something different from the usual cakes and pastries that are offered as deserts for people after a hearty meal.
[tags]pudding, british food, british desert[/tags]
Fish and chips can be traced under the English tradition of providing quality food snacks catered to serve people on occasions. Much of this widely famous served meal has been found in various parts of the world especially in restaurants where it has evolved into one full meal as well.
Fish and chips meals were originally conceptualized to be served in alleys and stand similar to the concept used by America’s world famous hotdog stand. Fish and chips, a meal where fish classes as cod, haddock and placie are deep fried in a flour batter and paired with chips to become what it is known today.
The usual wrapping would be that of used newspapers for people to easily hold them. This same English meal is a common site in recreation parks and events like baseball where the meal is consumed while they are watching or socializing at times to hit the spot in their bellies.
[tags]fish and chips, food, english cuisine[/tags]
The Rough and Tumble Sport of Football
Comments Off Posted on Mar 14, 2007 by Jodie in English Culture, English Life, English Sports, English Traditions, English TravelOne of the more popular sports today is football. While everyone is aware of the American style of football that the National Football League (NFL) offers, England also has its share of wide followers for this game that they consider among their national sports. Football in England is very much followed and since people are very much into the sport, it tends to go out of hand, showing the desire and attachment that people have for the sport.
The English style of football is however in the form of soccer where it is mostly the legs that are used rather than a highly physical American football game similar to rugby, another national sport that England considers. The best football or soccer players are easily born from English nations since people serve this sport as a part of their daily rituals and practices.
The large success of the UEFA Champions league is evidence that England does indeed put premium in it soccer matches such as the World Cup which is composed largely of English nations and some other countries like the United States, Korea, Japan and China.
[tags]rugby, uefa, football, soccer[/tags]
An English Tradition called St. Andrew’s Day
Comments Off Posted on Mar 8, 2007 by Jodie in English Cuisine, English Culture, English Traditions, English TravelEach year come November 30, people would celebrate St. Andrew’s day, the recognized patron saint of Scotland. For people who know their history, many would not that Andrew is among the 12 disciples of Jesus. It is believed that he was crucified as well on an x-shaped cross which in turn has become the reason for Scotland’s symbolic national flag.
St. Andrew’s day is a feast day that is celebrated by farm workers by catching hares and rabbits in the early years. Today, this has changed and people simply celebrate through eating fish and other traditional Scottish foods known today such as porridge, haggis and pudding.
Each country has its own traditional belief on how to celebrate certain holidays as recognized locally and St. Andrew’s Day is something that is celebrated with honor in Scotland and through all of England. These dates are of significant interest in the same way that other local declared holidays based on traditional beliefs are done.
[tags]st. andrew’s day, holiday, religious, Jesus, english tradition, english facts[/tags]
The Descent of Boxing Day
Comments Off Posted on Feb 28, 2007 by Jodie in English Culture, English Life, English News, English Traditions, English TravelThe day itself should not be associated with the usual boxing sport that most of us watch over the famous world sports channels such as HBO and ESPN. Rather, Boxing Day is also known as St. Stephen’s day where people share food and is a national holiday for the families and friends to share friendship and love.
This event is usually spent on the 26th of December of each year, the day right after Christmas. This is celebrated in known regions such as Austria, Britain, New Zealand and Canada. During this time, most business and government offices are closed and people can be found in malls savoring the holiday for the time to enjoy and be with their loved ones.
Such a practice is considered and extension of the usual Christmas breaks. For some people, they technically practice this although unnamed. Besides, there is no harm in extending a one day vacation considering that the Christmas season should be spent at its fullest potential worldwide.
[tags]english tradition, boxing, boxing day, christmas[/tags]
English Music and Bands Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
Comments Off Posted on Feb 25, 2007 by Jodie in English Culture, English Life, English News, English TravelEngland is known to house the best names in the music industry, covering that of rock, jazz and pop music. A lot of the known names in the music industry today have made their mark in most parts of the world. Music artists such as The Beatles, Led Zepellin, The Rolling Stones, and Queen have all made their mark as solid English groups that have taken the world by storm.
To this day, most of their original hits are still being played all over the world. The musical artists have left a trail of followers still supporting them to this day and this can be attributed to the quality of music that they have offered to music lovers all over.
All regions and countries have a good following for following the memorable and up to date musical tunes of today. Music hits the spot for most people and using the path of fans that they have until today, such English music names will forever remain in the annals of history and provide inspiration as well to aspiring musicians on the rise.
[tags]beatles, english bands, rolling stones, led zepellin, queen[/tags]
Taking the Toad in a Hole for Breakfast
Comments Off Posted on Feb 23, 2007 by Jodie in English Cuisine, English Culture, English Traditions, English TravelThe name should not be taken literally since similar to most adages, this is simply a name christened to unique conceptualized meals that the English have developed. And for the sake of clearing things out, no frogs or toads are included in it!
Seriously, it is simple egg and toast presented in a unique way. The center portion of bread is simply cut using a round object such as a cookie or a glass and then placed in a frying pan to which eggs are placed in the revealing circular portion. It is like simply frying an egg sunny side up but with borders which produces an appealing manner of presentation for dishes originating from England.
While the name termed for it may need some work, it is commonly known as Egg in the Basket as well. But knowing how to stimulate the curiosity of most people, the attention garnered by Toad in a Hole will really catch their interest since they are not too familiar with such an offered English meal.
[tags]english cuisine, english tradition, english breakfast[/tags]
Each country has a different belief with regards to spending their daily lives at any day of the week. The usual weekdays of Monday to Friday are considered as working days, similar to that of most countries today. Saturday is an option for others to make as a working day or not, but for the British, Saturdays are times where they spend with their families and times for shopping.
Sundays are extension of the quality time spent with families. This includes the shopping malls and stalls which would not hold the usual working hours. Some would not even open since the British put premium towards family and religion during the weekends.
For Britain, it is obvious that premium on stronger ties within families is what is important. Their traditions and routine manner of living is something to envy. But for each country today, adjustments to the manner of living is a must to adhere towards the increasing demand for quality living.
[tags]english culture, english traditions, family[/tags]
In England, the two main ways to assess students’ performances are coursework and exams respectively. The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority has recently proposed to scrap coursework in favour of full scale exams because according to their report, coursework has become less valid.
People have argued that nerves often get the better off them in exams whereas they find little difficulty doing coursework. To be honest, I reckon it’s quite fair to give people a chance this way, although I myself am happy doing exams. Coursework gives people complete freedom as they can go onto a computer, delete and edit things they way they like. There is also an opportunity for them to properly research stuff.
Despite the fact that I never complained about coursework, I have to say that I would have preferred to do all exams. I reckon coursework can sometimes be unfair as parents, teachers and mates can give too much help. In addition, the growing use of Internet can also result in an extremely uneven playing field, where a C grade student can hardly be distinguished from an A grade student because they were allowed countless redrafts, given loads and loads of help and could then potentially end up with unfairly high marks.
Regardless of its drawbacks, coursework does have its major advantage too; students can feel more confident going into the exam as they’ve already got some marks in the bag. However, there is also a problem that tutors don’t always get the marking accurately and your final results could get moderated down. It would be quite a blow for anyone to be told that they’d got an A for their coursework and hence felt secure, only to later discover that it was actually worth a mere B or less.
That happened with my Geography coursework and I have to say it’s not nice at all. Maybe the idea of open book exams supported by many seems a viable alternative because it is not all about memorising and also minimises the problem of cheating. And certain subjects such as maths and science should not have coursework because it is rather pointless, though science could just have a practical exam instead.
As far as I’m concerned, students in modern English education have a bit too much coursework, and they are also over examined. However, if I was doing it again I would still rather do all exams, particularly at A level. During A-levels most people had to do quite a few papers for two full weeks and although I think it’s not so healthy I believe it taught me to learn to cope under extreme pressure and time constraints.
To scrap coursework might be good once and for all. I fully appreciate that some people find exams very stressful and as a result they might not be able to perform to the best of their academic abilities. With that said, there has to be some method of student assessment and no single method is perfect for everyone. Given the ease and prevalence of cheating in coursework, it’s blindingly obvious that a purely exam based system, in spite of any disadvantages it may cause some students, is a lot safer from cheating.
