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On yet another level,England, Englandis a novel of ideas mainly ideas that

correspond to the criticism of society voiced by French philosophers of the second half

of the 20th century. The seminal work in this respect isJean Baudrillard's (b.1929)

L'change symbolique et la mort(1976), in which Baudrillard claims that in the course

of the 20th century reality has been superseded by "simulacra", by representations of the

original which in a world where technologyhas developed the means to replicate

each and everything, including works of art (cf.Walter Benjamin's 1936 essay "Das

Kunstwerk im Zeitalter seiner technischen Reproduzierbarkeit") and humans (by means

ofcloning) acquire an independent and increasingly higher status than the original:

because they are safer, easier to handle, more cost-effective, ubiquitous and thus more

easily accessible, renewable, and predictable. (Cf. "postmodernism" and also U.S.

sociologist George Ritzer's "McDonaldization" thesis of the 1990s, in particular his

discussion oftourism).

England the theme park

Andrew Marrreviews England, England by Julian Barnes (Jonathan Cape)

hat England has become a theme-park nation is a chattering-class clich. It is also atleast partly true. There is no English crisis, but there is a problem. In England, everythingbecomes a tradition, and that includes the confection of tradition.

But the quantity of contemporary repackaging is remarkable. It wraps itself around us all, likegaudy, omnipresent plastic - knightly tournaments, Robin Hood rambles, Battle of Britain days,Shakespeares Globe. This, of course is hardly unique to England. Other countries have themeparks. But as any visitor to London will confirm, England itself can feel like one.

Yet the English passion for dressing up is matched by growing unease about nationhood. In hisnew novel, a frontrunner for this years Booker Prize, Julian Barnes has taken this spirit of thetime and further distilled it into one of the oddest books you are likely to read this year.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Baudrillardhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Baudrillardhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Baudrillardhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simulacrumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Benjaminhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Benjaminhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Benjaminhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Work_of_Art_in_the_Age_of_Mechanical_Reproductionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Work_of_Art_in_the_Age_of_Mechanical_Reproductionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloninghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cost-effectivehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postmodernismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Ritzerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonaldizationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Baudrillardhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simulacrumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Benjaminhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Work_of_Art_in_the_Age_of_Mechanical_Reproductionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Work_of_Art_in_the_Age_of_Mechanical_Reproductionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloninghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cost-effectivehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postmodernismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Ritzerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonaldizationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourism

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Its what they call a romp, but it is written in anger. There is a short first section, exquisitelydone, about a girls damaged childhood. There is a longer central satire in which a tycoon takesover the Isle of Wight and turns it into a giant theme park of English history. Then there is a brieffantasy about England in retreat, a place of organic farms and the occasional steamlocomotive.

The tone alters, disturbingly, from one section to the next. The central part is more cartoon-like,more Tom Sharpeish, than anything Barnes has done before. The colours are primary, theoutlines crude, the jokes obvious.

For people who like this sort of thing, this is the sort of thing they like: the Isle of Wightsbuildings are mostly demolished, then it gets a fake Parliament, peasants, fake London fog, Disgrave, Stonehenge, and so on. It is "everything you imagined England to be, but moreconvenient, cleaner, friendlier, and more efficient". It is also much more popular.

The heritage industry is an easy target. Barnes doesnt miss, though it was mildly amusing toread the breathless promise on the back of my proof copy: "Huge full colour advertising ...Splendid mobiles of the island ... 18-copy dump-bin and header ... Author tour." Next stop, theJulian Barnes Experience?

By the final section, the tone has shifted again. Old England suffers economic collapse. TheScots buy the northern counties and the Welsh, Shropshire and Herefordshire. SchemingEuropeans isolate England from the continent. By which time, I felt, Barness satire had curdledinto an exhibition of self-pity. Then the English turn ruralist, and the mood changes again.

Barness deep theme is the search for authenticity. What is real? Is it what we think we know ofour history, what we think we remember? A world of mimicry and falsity threatens life itself,Barnes argues: it cuts away at our capacity for seriousness.

In a key passage, one character explodes: "Look whats happened to Old England. It stopped

believing in things ... it lost seriousness." The search for authenticity, in an increasingly unrealworld, is worth it. Its the search for life itself.

Nothing could be odder than such a cartoonish romp whose real concern is seriousness. Butthis is both ambitious and serious - real, if you like. Dive at those dump-bins.

ENGLISHNESS, A RECOMMENDED READING

LIST

Introduction

What does it mean to be English not British, but specifically English and why

should it matter? What national and cultural qualities does the word identify, and whathas it meant in the past? Perhaps most importantly, what is the future of Englishness,

and what is the future of England?

These are pressing cultural issues, and many literary critics, historians, and writers have

recently turned their attention to such questions. They are also concerns that have a long

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history in English Literature, and have been debated and discussed for centuries. This

course offers an introduction to Englishness, both its history and its literature, andpresents a diverse (and ambitious) variety of material from the twelfth century to the

present day. It gives a broad historical overview of certain English figures, such as King

Arthur and Robin Hood, develops certain themes that characterize English identity theGothic, Landscape, Empire, Temper and examines the literature of historical events

such as the First and Second World Wars. The course argues that historically,

Englishness has been characterized by mongrelism, hybridity, the spirit of compromiseand adaptation, and linguistic capaciousness and absorption, and endeavours to explain

why certain attitudes persist and how others change, and ultimately what constitutes

Englishness.