What do Americans think of Britain and the British

In My Humble Opinion
41

Here I’d say the British (or ‘limeys’ as we call them) are often regarded as dignified to the point of being stuffy and contrarily, or perhaps consequently, set a lot of store by being hip and outrageous. Limeyland has a reputation for producing scholarly types while at the same time originating youthful fashion and music trends which take a year at least to spread across the pond.

An Oxford-style, or at least clear and comprehensible, British accent is perceived as intelligent and often sexy – even more so when used by your ‘asian’ women. Note, in America, people of Indian or Pakistani extraction are not regarded as ‘asian.’ Be warned, however, that more Americans lay claim to Irish ancestry than English, and a swaggering brogue will get you laid a lot quicker than The Queen’s English.

The Brits are as reputed for their wry wit as the Spartans for their stoicism. As a headline in The Onion once read, “British Comedy Assumed to be Intellectual.” Even such lowbrow fare as Are you Being Served? is considered classy just because it’s chockablock (as I understand you’re wont to say) with Limeys.

The reputation for classiness may be in danger. Currently, even our Daughters of the American Revolution, who you would think would have an ancestral grudge to bear, are as packed with Anglophiles as the Daughters of the British Empire. But films like Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels have made many Americans aware that the clean, dulcet accents that dominated imported British media in the past are actually a small fraction of the many and often cryptic and gutteral speech patterns that propigate on that island.

Also, what is the deal with the cross-dressing? It’s not that funny.

42

I say old boy - it’s Rule Britannia! :slight_smile:

I think you’ll find that curries like Chicken Tikka Marsala are indeed far more English than Indian. We eat far more meat here than in Asia too.
There are some super Bangladeshi restaurants as well, but they all cater to a English style and expectation.

Were you not listening during History lessons? :eek:
We fought with the French for centuries. Remember the battles of Hastings / Agincourt / Trafalgar / Waterloo…
There’s been an undercurrent of linguistic competition too. The French somewhat resent phrases like ‘le weekend’ and the fact that English is fast becoming a standard worldwide second language.

I think you should also mention ‘no taxation without representation’, and the madness of King George III here.

43

Someone up-thread said it - “like us only over there somewhere” (I mean that in a good way). There are parts of the US that I consider more foreign than Britain/Ireland (or Canada). The royalty thing just seems weird to me, but only slightly weirder than our Kennedy’s and Bush’s.

Only problem I have with the British is their (your?) terrible taste in beer. Bud long necks? C’mon people! Even Americans joke about how terrible that stuff is.
Freakin’ go to London and have to choose between Bud and a French beer (yes, apparently the French brew beer, who knew?)

Anything I’d like to see in America? Clotted cream!

44

The bad stereotype:

Physically the British are thin and feeble, with the exception of the brit-on-the-dole who is bloated to almost American proportions. They have bad teeth and poor household hygiene. Brits with money dress like Victorian bankers, and the poor hardly dress at all wearing the same filthy sleeveless t-shirts day in and day out.

Half of all British men are homosexuals but they hide it. They learned this (both homosexuality and hiding it) at Eton, where half of all British men go to school. The other half never attended school and they hardly know how to talk. This half lives in Liverpool where they work in coal mines or on boats or something.

Married Brits only have sex three times during the marriage, and only then for the sake of posterity. Such affections as hugging, kissing, holding hands, and smiling are quite literally frowned upon. British kids are raised by fat nannies.

There is only one acceptable form of greeting in England: “good-day, sir!”.

The British are ruled by a monarch who wields absolute power as they haven’t discovered the advancements of democracy yet. The press is required by law to devote half of their reporting to covering the dramas of this royal family, the other half is devoted to famous breasts and bums.

Culinary technique in England consists of boiling or deep frying, sometimes both to same “food” product (is it any wonder since they eat such things as bangers, spotted dicks, and toads in holes). The staple of the British diet is “sausages”.

British entertainment consists entirely of two different venues: live Shakespeare starring Richard Chamberlain and Peter O’Toole, and terrible reality television.

They all drive mini-Coopers.

45

CURRIES

There are companies that sell, in cans and also packets, some disgusting stuff which they laughingly call curry. Believe me it most certainly is not . Indian and Pakistani restaurants have their own chefs, my fave is close by home and the curry is absolutely fantastic.

Bloody great chunks of chicken or whatever you choose, curry sauce just how you like it and the nan bread is to die for. It’s quite an expensive place but as the saying goes “You get what you pay for”

Limey
Nah, doesn’t bother us at all, no more than Yank does to you guys.

Queen Liz

Dunno if it’s more widespread but in the circles I move in we would much prefer that Liz & Co slung their collective hooks. Personally I am in favour of a Republic but where is Oliver when you need him?.

Beer
You guys seem to think we drink warm beer, we don’t…:frowning:
Maybe it isn’t teeth numbing cold but it sure aint warm.

Cross Dressing

What?

46

The good stereotype:

Though we have cut the apron strings England is still the motherland. American culture is a borrowed culture, and while many world cultures have contributed to the American melting pot England gave more than the lion’s share. In fact it would be more accurate to say that the pot that holds the mélange of American culture is itself English. Our system of government grew out of the British system, as did our court system, our common and criminal laws, our system of economics, and our military approach. The majority of our architecture, art, and literature, and our popular and household culture in general all trace back to British culture. Of course things have changed over time, our cultures have diverged, but America is still proudly part of the so-called Anglosphere.

The British are the some of the most resilient people in the world, certainly the most admired in Europe, in fact it is better not to consider England as part of Europe as the term “European” is considered a general insult in parts of America. In the 20th century, as Europe broke down into ethnic feuds and pointless border wars, as the continent was plagued by the fevers of fascism, Bolshevism, communism, and Nazism, as two world wars and countless civil wars broke out, England stood firm, and the British did not lose their heads. Facing seeming impossible odds of survival against invasion and the attrition of war, against cultural breakdown brought by the fatalistic and fascist philosophies that tore through the rest of Europe, England survived with a courage and determination perhaps never before seen in world history. When the chips are down on the table of world politics the British can always be counted on to be on the side of good.

Temperamentally the British are refined and even-tempered. They may tend toward being aloof, but such is done out of a constant conscious regard for the feelings of others. If they have disagreements they keep their arguing civil. In extreme cases an argument may come to blows, but such irrationality as shooting one another (on display daily in the US) would be unconscionable to British sensibilities.

Brits are more well-read and better educated in general than Americans, and they certainly have a superior mastery of the use of the English language. British literature is far and away the greatest body of literature in human history.

They dress well, speak well, and act with propriety apropos of whatever situation they may encounter. Even in crisis they maintain order and keep an even head. The British man is, to this day, still the model of gentlemanly decorum.

Of course the truth is neither presented nor betrayed by either version of the above.

47

Eater in the Round those were beautiful posts. I am now going to put my top hat and spats on to complement my shellshuit, and stab the doorman at the Ritz for his tip money.

48

I would happily move to the UK for a year or two or three. There is so much I would love to see there. (Forever is another question, since I’m pretty attached to my family and this city…) I am in fact disgustingly Anglophilic and know more about your history and literature than my own, which is sort of awful really, but blame my mother, who is just the same.

The only negative impression of modern Britain I can think of is that crime seems to be on the rise–you keep hearing about hooligans who break into little old ladies’ flats, beat them up (possibly to death), and steal everything in sight.

Otherwise, it’s an entirely lovely place with good people–if somewhat more addicted to fish and chips than perhaps they ought to be, and what is it with mushy peas, bleah–who take care of their country, are very funny, and produce excellent TV programs, not to mention all the good children’s and fantasy books. I especially envy you Diana Wynne Jones.

49

Yes indeed they were excellent posts.

jjimm Don’t forget your gloves and stick with an 'orses 'ead handle.

50

Indeed, I shall push it in Wallace’s ear.

51

Oh, and of course the British people are brave and stoic, never allowing scary things to get in the way of doing their duty.

And I would like to announce that I am quite pleased with myself, for I have just learned the tunes to “Oranges and Lemons” and “Cockles and Mussels.” One problem with reading a lot of books about the British Isles is that you get familiar with lots of songs, but never learn the tunes.

52

I just wonder if our American friends know what it is we are talking about

53

Even if this thread turns argumentative, which hardly seems likely, it is a poll, not a debate.

Off to IMHO.

[ /Moderating ]

54

Hmmm. I wonder where our frankfurters and hamburgers came from…

55

I, too, don’t think I’ve ever met a Briton I didn’t like. I’ve nothing but positive feelings for them. As for the nation, what can I say? I’d like to move there, is that plain enough?

56

I’m another big Anglophile. I watch more British TV than I do American, and my MP3 player is filled with selections from BBC Radio. Your radio comedy is sadly neglected by most, but it’s every bit as amazing as your TV comedy. I finally managed to make it over there for two weeks earlier this year and had a fantastic time. The food was amazing, the people were without exception polite, friendly, and witty, and the scenery was beautiful.

I am, in all honestly, trying to figure out a way to move there someday, though I know immigration is a sticky issue.

57

I think this thread is an interesting idea, but we are on a board that tries to stamp out ignorance!

The public like the Queen and want to retain her:

‘The Queen is the most popular royal and more than half of the British public want her to reign for the rest of her life, a poll in her 80th birthday week showed today.’

‘More than two thirds (68%) still support the idea of a monarchy.’

http://www.utvlive.com/newsroom/indepth.asp?id=10334&pt=e

I expect this is a reference to Eddie Izzard appearing on US TV.

58

I have to say, also, that British stock seemed to go up a few points around here during the Falkland Islands brouhaha. Speaking only for my circle of acquaintances, Britain was starting to seem as something of a political irrelevancy before then. Going to arms against Argentina for a few dots of land thousands of miles away was quixotic and perhaps a bit silly, but we admired the hell out you for it.

59

I am another Anglophile. I just love Britain. I love the landscape, I love the beer, I love the old architecture, I love the literature, I love the history… hell, I even love the food. Britain is a big part of my heritage, and going there felt sort of like… going home, except, to a home that’s just too good to be true. For me, anyway.

I would love to be rich in Britain. I’m not sure I’d love to live there, if I wasn’t quite rich.

60

I like Britain pretty well. I spent a couple weeks in London and Wales a few years ago, and now that I am in Europe too, I am looking forward to visiting again sometime in the near future. I’ve made a mental list of things I want to do when I go to visit. (My cousin married an English guy - an actual aristocrat too; his dad is a Sir! - so I can crash on their couch.)

  1. get my eyebrows threaded.
  2. eat lots of curry.
  3. go shopping!!!
  4. go to the National Gallery and the British Museum. Dude. The British Musem is awesome. No one can plunder colonies like the British.
  5. eat more curry.
  6. speak ENGLISH, the greatest language ever invented because I am fluent in it!
  7. Buy books. Precious, precious books. In English.

Actually, that’s it for the moment. Well, and hang out with Francesca, of course.