It's unimaginable to meet a Pole or a German who does not know about the history of their country. But lots of English people don't know the difference between Britain and England.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
Why on earth do we want closer connection with England? We have little in common with English people except our language. We are fast becoming an entirely different people.
You know, I've just about got used to the fact that people in Britain know who I am on some level, but the notion that there's any kind of international recognition is still slightly bizarre to me.
I don't have a deep link with England like, say, Jonathan Coe or Hanif Kureishi might demonstrate. For me, it is like a mythical place.
Most commonly, I've been recognized from people who aren't actually from England.
Although I don't have anything against people from other countries, the higher the influx into England the more the British identity disappears.
They don't think we're in touch with modern Britain, or understand modern Britain or like modern Britain.
Because of the long, long history of British shipping, immigration, trade, empire, missionaries, you can have a better shot at telling a worldwide story in the British Museum's collection than any other. Britain has been more connected with the rest of the world than any other country, for longer.
When I'm in England, I know I'm a visitor, but being a white man in England with ancestry that's German and Italian, I have a history with the Romans and the Saxons. I feel some connection and ancestry here, as weird as that sounds.
I don't think the British carry a historical consciousness either.
England is a fairly envious little country and it's embodied in the press. They don't like anyone being more distinguished than they are.
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