TEN REASONS FOR A TRADITION OF MODERNITY
It is a truth universally acknowledged that Britain is unique. Really, who can possibly deny it? It is also very much true, although not so universal that the image Britain projects overseas is rather inaccurate. Mostly because the traditional opinion is that Britain lacks modernity, that it is caught in a golden Victorian cage, and this cage, in spite of its material, is restricting the way towards whatever is considered modern. WRONG.
Why is it so wrong (and in capitals)? Because of at least 10 reasons.
Chronologically speaking, the first reason that comes to mind is
1. J. M. W. Turner, who can be considered as a painter with nerve. When
everyone's' paintings were oils on canvas "photographing" important
personalities, he had the impulse to use watercolours to paint ships caught
in storms. "His paintings are … so different and often [painted] in such an
ambiguous manner, were often misunderstood by contemporaries", say Fleming
and Honour in their "A World History of Art". And being misunderstood by
contemporaries is often the sign of modernity. A modernity that strikes at
the first sight of a painting by Turner. One cannot believe that they have
been painted in the first decades of the nineteenth century. As one cannot
believe that Caulfield or Hodgkin’s works are so resembling and have so
"vital links" with the past, with the traditional methods of painting, when
they have shocked the art community. Turner even finds a disciple in what
concerns the preference for marine themes in Tim Stoner. Turner stopped
time for a ship, Stoner stopped time for a couple of kids in a garden
plastic pool: the modern ships are too ugly to have the time stooped for
them, and besides nowadays the sea means the holiday there during the
summer , not pirates' adventures. Centuries apart, all these modern
painters support the idea of a Britishness in British art, of a certain
sense of insularity. And this is tradition.
The mind's track often brakes loose from the dominance of time, so let us abandon the chronological trail and follow the white rabbit through the mirror.
2. Jane Austen, Elizabeth Bennet and Bridget Jones. You are probably
wondering what two fictional characters and the author of one of them have
in common. They are all modern women. This first two are actually more
modern than the latter. For Jane Austen, modernity meant independence,
being able not to depend on a husband to make a living, and writing. For
Elizabeth Bennet, modernity meant a marriage with a peer not in station but
in mind. As for Bridget, modernity means… Oh, Bridget is rather special.
She is so traditional in her quest for a husband, that makes one wonder
whether she is the real daughter of Mrs. Bennet. In fact, Bridget is not
modern at all, except that she, unlike her other nominee in this category
does know how to use a computer. She actually determines the reader of her
Diary to scream " Are all British women 30 year-olds in search of a husband
and a job?" Apparently for Bridget being British is like being called
Heathcliff: you have to go outside and bang your head on very tree you
find, while yelling "Catherine!"
The trend nowadays is that old is new. Old mentalities, old things in general. Everything traditional is remixed, redesigned and morphed into the sensation of the month.( Often on the catwalk). This leads us to:
3. John Galliano, or Stella McCartney , or any other British designer. The reason: for using at least once in their collections the corset. For a whole century, women all over the world, including Britain, have tried to sack the corset, mostly due to its symbolism. British designers never let it go for good, they just put it on hold. The Goth image at the end of the past century gave them the opportunity to put it out back in the open. They waited for the symbolism to blur and vanish, and there it is: different colours, textures, but nevertheless a corset.
The verb "blur" used above sends to music. British music. And when talking about British music, one must talk about:
4. The Beatles. As a matter of fact, they should be reason number one on this list. They are the symbol of Modern Britain, of a certain Britain that used to dare and that was part of the “Avant-garde”. They were so modern for such a long time , they became tradition.
5. Guy Ritchie. Film Director. The traditional British movie was either Sir
Laurence Olivier or Alfred Hitchcock. From time to time , directors used to
make a name out shocking puritans, as Peter Greenaway did. Ritchie follows
this unspoken tradition and tries to catch its bare essence: to make a
couple of hit-movies, shock everybody, get famous and marry Madonna.
6. Madonna – this one is actually a “negative” argument. She does not prove
Britain is modern , she proves the image the world perceives of Britain is
wrong. Madonna is the epitome of modernity, the trend-maker. Now she wants
to have a normal life, although her idea of normality is more resembling to
Tony Ray-Jones’s photograph – Glyndebourne ( a couple smartly-dressed,
having tea in a field , amidst or among cows). The critics said about this
photo that captures the “introverted , self-contained lives in contrast to
the more expressive world of the cattle”. So, Madonna wants a normal life,
to be a mid-aged wife with a couple of kids, to live in Scottish manor, to
spend her mornings giving orders to the butler and her afternoons having
tea with some high-class pure British ladies, and during the holidays to go
to Bath.
Actually this is not Britain, it is the celluloid version of Britain. As
for celluloid, it has the tendency to exaggerate.
Speaking of movies:
7. The Full Monty .
Tradition : In Sheffield, steel is produced.
Modernity: In Sheffield, “Hot Steel” is produced.
The difference: “Hot Steel” is formed of male strippers, who actually are
ex-steel workers.
1- for Modernity in this one.
Leading to
8.Football – It was invented in Britain, it’s a tradition in Britain. And
1966 was a great year for British football: Cantona was born. Considering
British football is still one of the most praised, it has won the honour to
be also considered modern. And if Beckham isn’t modern, who is?
9. London. “Traditionally” speaking, London is supposed to be permanently
foggy, with no other means of transportation but double-deckers and cabs,
populated by men wearing bowlers or looking like James Bond. Well, it’s
not. What is really traditional about London is its scent, its atmosphere,
it’s the arrogance to have an area named so pompously “The City”, it’s the
mixture of trends, it’s the possibility of having Virgin records and
Harrods in the same part of town and it’s having the Changing of the Guards
happening just the same for such a long time, may it be under the flashes
of the last generation of cameras or under the curious eyes of people that
seemed to jump right out of Dickens’s books.
10. Cars. Especially Rolls-Royce. Probably the most British car ever, it is impregnated with the glow of “Britishness” and yet it is equipped with the latest discoveries in car technology.
Here were the ten reasons meant to show that Britain is a wonderful blend,
like a Lady Grey tea. Tradition never excluded modernity, and modernity
never excluded tradition. So, there is no place for a “versus” between
them. They were never parallel, never had each a separate life. Some
things are so new that they become tradition, and some things , although
obsolete for a while, become so modern all over again.
Conclusion: Britain is not the celluloid image of Britain. And for once, it
has the power to say through the voice of Robbie Williams: “I will talk and
Hollywood will listen!”
ROXANA VOICU-DOROBAN?U
REFERENCES
Frayling, Christopher – “100 Years at the Royal College of Art – Art and
Design”, Collins & Brown, 1999
Graham-Dixon, Andrew – “A History of British Art”, BBC, 1996
Hounour, Hugh & Fleming, John – “A World History of Art”, Calmann &
King, 1998
***The Photography Book, Phaidon Press, 1997
The list of all the sources mentioned in this text and found in the British
Council Library is rather long, and I honestly think that only the
catalogue of the Library would cover them all. Nevertheless here are at
least fur that have had an impact on this article.
Austen, Jane – “Pride and Prejudice”
Fielding, Helen – “The Diary of Bridget Jones”
Carroll, Lewis- ”The Adventures of Alice in Wonderland”
***The Full Monty , VHS & DVD
*** Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Directed by Guy Ritchie