Classy Notes

Class and Tabloids

06.19.06

Class never goes out of style

Today was our first day back for classes, and the weather was really dumpy! It’s actually raining right now! It’s hard to believe because the weather has been so nice here! Our first lecturer today was Dr. George Bergstrom who actually used to be in the Political Science department at SDSU. He actually gave an interesting talk on the British Class System. I really liked the format of his lecture because he started off by giving a very quick rundown of the intricacy and importance of class in British society, but then followed up with quotes from different sources.Dr. Bergstrom said that “nothing happens without class distinction” in Britain. At first I thought it was somewhat of a broad, maybe embellished statement, but after his lecture, it was proved to be extremely true. It was at first hard to relate, because the United States’ history is nowhere as old as British history. Their class distinction roots back generation after generation, not to mention that their country is run by a monarchy (a class in its own).

What I found interesting was when he talked about the English public school system as the “cardinal reinforcer of class”. Until he started to talk about, I totally forgot that the English public school system and the United States public school system are two very different situations! In the United States public schools are run and financed by the government; adversely, public schools in England are exclusive, independent and are definitely not free. I know Oxford is definitely exclusive, but the numbers make it seem even more dramatic. Only 6% of English students go to public schools, however at least half of Oxford freshers are from public schools. It’s a really dominating factor, but I feel like it works somewhat similarly in the States. My school, just like many others really stressed the “college prepatory aspect”, and in turn, our first Senior semester English class was geared around our application essay, interview preparedness, etc. Just like the public schools in England, the private schools in the United States heavily prepare their students to be in the prime applicant pool for top universities. The prime example Dr. Bergstrom used was Eaton. Eaton has produced 18 Prime Ministers, has huge family lineage within the alumni and student body, cultures boys’ accents, etc.

While he did bring up the growing gap between the rich and the poor (which is a big problem we have in the States), I admittingly like exclusivity. I always have my whole entire life. It’s the concept of the have and have nots. Maybe it’s just because I believe that to an extent, everyone can control their destiny. It’s not wishful thinking, I’ve seen it happen. Rags to riches, what a mere set of goals can do for someone, mentors, etc. I get motivational e-mails, and once in a while there is something meaningful, “Where there is vision, there is life and growth, accomplishment, fulfillment and joy. Visualize the very best for your world, and allow your life to follow that vision.”

For lunch we went to this awesome Mongolian Barbeque place. You pack whatever you want into a bowl (the guys showed us space-saving secrets, haha), and then the chef ‘woks’ it for you, and it was only 5.50! So cheap for here! After that we still had a lot of dead time until our last lecture, so we walked around Oxford… I don’t want to admit it, but I started thinking about how I am going to miss this place that I have gotten used to.

Our last lecturer, Nick Thomas, who is currently under contract for The Telegraph, was a nice deviation from the norm. He spoke about all of the different forms of media in England (Press, Weekly Magazines, Radio and TV). It was especially interesting since he is a writer himself. I didn’t realize what a different media “climate” there is in England (compared to the States). England is about one-third of the United States’ population and the whole country is under the same time zone—making the market relatively compact, meaning that everyone watches the same 6 o’clock news and that there is more national coverage. He also shared his point of view as to what stations and publications are “rubbish”—gotta love the British!

The rest of the day has been spent studying. There was a minor interruption because some of the girls who are in our program had stuff stolen out of their flat, but they found out it was by their roommate…. Blah blah blah, the police came… it was interesting for a minute, but no longer (unfortunately)—it gave us a reason to take a break, that’s for sure!

Last, but definitely not least, we finalized our travel plans for the last travel week. We are going to Nice, France and Geneva, Switzerland! I am so excited!! But before, almost our whole group is going to go to London on Friday for the night and go to something called the "Ice Bar"... it's a bar made entirely of ice, and you have to wear a huge parka they give you when you enter.... I'm excited!

posted by CSP @ 2:18 PM