Keep Calm and Pick Your Poison (Week 4)

Of all the exported brilliancy of British culture, the motto to "Keep Calm and Carry On" is most likely one of the most famous. More common than humbugs, more quoted and parodied than the Queen, and more far reaching than high tea, this wartime slogan is British culture in more than one way.

First of all, KCCO was designed during a critical time period in England, a time of lasting influence. Created at the beginning of WWII, KCCO was part of a three-poster to strengthen morale in case of war. Though not widely distributed during the war, its association with WWII made it an icon. While it is certain that World War II is a scar for every country, for Great Britain, it was a defining and intense development of its culture. During the Blitz, Britain stood alone in Europe with no certain survival, and its people hoped and believed, defying the bombs and doom. Today, the shrapnel shards still pepper buildings and roads all around London as a reminder. The holes could be filled, but instead they remain as part of the culture. So it is not really a surprise that when the KCCO slogan was rediscovered in 2000, it became an instant British icon.

Another way KCCO is British culture is the way it completely sums up British outlook. Basically, mind your own business, do not get over excited, and keep going. That's not to say no one in England gets upset or angry because they all do (some rather publicly too). But it seems to be frowned upon, this display of emotions. When someone is arguing, others around either push their noses further into a book, walk away with a remembered errand, or otherwise try to make themselves as tinny as possible. In short, they avoid the display, refusing to take part or worse, take a stand. Another example–on Wednesday after a long work day (at least it was for me), some man missed his bus. There was another one coming...in ten minutes. Oh the horror. He let forth a slew of choice words, albeit words I would not have said. Everyone else around was waiting for the same bus, in the same situation as the swearing man. But no one commiserated with him–they kept calm and carried on with their business, namely ignoring the anger. On the tube, people do not raise their voices or even their eyes. They just carry on with staring into space, tactfully keeping calm and ignoring everyone else.

While my observations are generalization, they hold for a majority of the English a majority of the time.  Yes, there are demonstrations and marches and even riots, but compared to other countries, they are mild and relatively tame. People march by, but others not actually in the demonstration advert their eyes, change their path, or passively watch the participators go by. Things typically do not get out of hand because the English take events in their strides, carrying on with their duties.