Freedom from 'Britain': A Comment on Recent Elite-Sponsored Political Cultural Identities

The issue of identity has been widely discussed both in recent social science and in the public sphere; race, ethnicity, gender and nation have all been extensively discussed. A common thread has been the rejection of essentialist arguments that attempt to fix identities in extra-social phenomena in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:British journal of politics & international relations 2007-02, Vol.9 (1), p.158-164
Main Author: Preston, Peter
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cultural diversity
Cultural Identity
Elites
Ethnicity
Freedom
Gender
Great Britain
Nation
Political behavior
Political Culture
Politics
Power Elite
Public Sphere
Race
Social classes
Social identity
United Kingdom
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Summary:The issue of identity has been widely discussed both in recent social science and in the public sphere; race, ethnicity, gender and nation have all been extensively discussed. A common thread has been the rejection of essentialist arguments that attempt to fix identities in extra-social phenomena in favour of an appreciation of their thoroughgoing social constructedness. Given these sophisticated understandings, how are we to account for the unexpected and seemingly atavistic reassertion of the enduring value of ‘Britishness’ among sections of the United Kingdom elite? Recent public discussion suggests that the Whitehall/Westminster elite have become uneasy about the burgeoning political-cultural diversity of the United Kingdom. However, an elite-specified identity is unlikely to have any purchase among a diverse sophisticated population.
ISSN:1369-1481
1467-856X
DOI:10.1111/j.1467-856X.2007.00265.x