Ready 4 our TRIP4FREAKS ? Clichés about the Brits !

You think you know what the Brits are like ? Well stereotypes are not always true !

Well, first of all we could see right away that this messy document is obviously an illustration of clichés about the Brits. Actually this is a cartoon called the « how to be British collection » that depicts some famous clichés avec the Brits.

Moving on to the description now. Before going any further, you must know our feelling about this stereotypical vision of what the Brits are like. In fact, we found this strange illustration is quite messy and makes us think of the middles ages since the style is rather medieval. It takes us back in time.

To us, it was quite unfathomable to produce this derogatory and mean postcard, but upon further approach we found it very open minded, especially as the authors are British themselves.

Subsequently we are first gonna describe the scenes and environnement of that cartoon before describing the main charachters presented here, with their funny stereotypes. Before disecting this cartoon, you must know that a stereotype is sometimes obviously derogatory and mean. Indeed It must be taken with a pinch of salt.

Well, the scene takes place perhaps in an British city center, since we can read some countless informations on signs (such as some street panels where «some even older bits» or «historic ruins» is written) and shops who bring us to this conclusion. Indeed at the street’s corner we could see a typical construction with a both orange and weird roof and some mythical wood boards. In the front of the construction we can read «antiques» so I’m not sure but I’m assuming this may be some type of museum. By the way is there maybe the Mona Lisa exhibited, do you think so ?

Besides, on the right of this old-looking house, there is a tiny tea workshop. Yet another cliché about the Brist is that, in fact the English people are keen on drinking some fabulous tea. Well the next monuments are not as interesting as the imposing building in the back. Indeed, we could notice that there is a wide grey castle made of ancient stones. I’m perhaps wrong, however I guess this is Elizabeth II’s castle. – only you to know that sir – note from Paps – This is indeed Windsor Castle looming in the distance !

Moving on to the protagonists depicted here. In fact we found them very strange since there are many different people on the illustration. The couple of tourists (a caucasian man and an asian woman) definitely stand out in the middle of the British people walking by.

So now let we describe them : I’m gonna start on the right side with the man wearing a costume – or is it though ? – since his outfit is quite weird. Indeed he is wearing a typical guard’s scarlet livery, with an old fashioned dark hat. He is stunned like the rest of the people. In fact the toursit asks them if there is anything new to see around here. For us there can be several reason of their shock. We do believe it is because they are in England and an Asian tourist dares ask them if there is anything new around. We find this question quite derogatory. Moreover the tourist couple is represented with travel gears since they are always on the move in other country. At last, we could see that the British are welcoming as the weather ! The british are skipping the question and they are either represented with elegant outfits with grey suits and bright ties and bowler hats. This is quite humourous because even the dog has a tiny Tudor bonnet ! Some of them are wearding a ridiculous-looking multicolor shirt and a pointy mustache.

It goes to show the British are said to live in the past and are famous for having a very particular sense of style. We also believe this cartoon depicts how stand-offish and snobbish the British are said to be. We feel this is fun, yet quite mean. We are so impatient to check this in real life in a few weeks ! 

Well, let me present you this postal card entitled « the how to be British collection » drawn by Peter Legon and Martin Ford. I’m not sure, but I think it’s a postcard extracted from a collection of satrical and humorous catoon about stereotypes.

This drawing is composed of two parts, on the both parts there is an old red brick bridge with some lorriess and a double decker bus on. On a lorry « TEA » is written so my guess is the scene takes place in the UK because the brit’s are said to drink thea everyday and famous for taking double decker buses. So it’s the first stereotype than I could see on this drawing.

Moving on to the first part; on the foreground, I can see a tipical british man who is walking his English bull dog by the river. He is wearing a bowler hat, a pink shirt under his a blue trench, a colorful tie and green trousers. Thats a little weird but the Brit’s are famous for being stuck and living in the past and to be old fashioned. Plus the man has a very old typical british mustache. This confirms the fact that the British are very out of fashion.

On top of that, the dog is like his owner. They have their head held high. So they look full of themseves and arrogant. On top of that, they both look unborthered and snobbish. In fact the British are said to be very stuck-up and stand-offish.

In the river, I can see a man who is clearly in distress because he is raising his hands and he is screaming for help. He seems to be drowning and looks both scared and chocked. But the British man and his dog both ignore him while there is lifebelt just next to them. They are going their merry way, unbothered.

On the second cartoon the man who is drowning is very polite. Indeed, he is asking for help reciting an overly polite request and now the British send him the lifebelt. I think the cartoonist wanted to show the English are said to be very polite and civilized, I think this stereotypes is quite funny – yet derogatory.

Thought, I find this post card is hilarious, I have to say a stereotype is not necessarirly true. It is usually a preconceived idea or a « cliché » about a group of people, and is generally quite derogatory and mean. Obviously, no man in his right mind would let someone drown unless they would ask for help politely.

Well, I am going to tell you about this document which nature is two drawings, more precisely cartoons.

At first, have a look at the title «how to be British». It most definitely shows an English cliché.

In the background, I can see a bridge with a double decker bus, many cars bumper to bumper… There is a lorry too, where «Tea» is written. Indeed I’m not sure but I think it’s a stereotype, as the English people usually drink a lot of tea. I’m not sure but I guess the scene takes place in London because we can see the brick bridge. I believe this is London Bridge – not to be mistaken with the famous Tower Bridge.

After, I can see a wide and a long river, I think it’s the Thames. It’s the largest river of England. I’m not sure but I suppose it’s windy because there are strong currents.

Next, I can see an old-looking man, who is clearly old-fashioned. Indeed, he is wearing a blue trench coat and a black bowler hat. He is walking his dog, both look unbothered. Then there is another man who is drowing in the river and asking help. The scene is rather surreal.

Thanks to the picture, I can understand the English are said to be over polite. Indeed, I can see in the first picture the drowning man screams for help so the old man totally ignores him and leaves on his merry way. While in the second picture the man delivers a polite request so the old man listens to him and eventually helps him.

To conclude, let us keep in mind, the English are famous for being very polite so if you need help you have to speak to them politely even if it’s urgent.

Well, today I will present the here-above drawing called « how to be British collection ».

First the scene obviously takes place an old-looking village because I can see British timber houses. You can evan see a medieval castle in the background. I believe it looks like Windsor.

Everything around this cartoon evokes the past: the billboards, the stores and even the people. In the street they are people who are wearing old-fashioned clothes. It goes to show the English are stuck in the past and nobody can’t find anything new when visiting the UK.

Speaking of, let’s move on to the couple in the foreground. There is an Asian girl with a Caucasian man. This is a deliberate choice to show European people travel a lot and Asian people are famous for going around the world a lot too. Everybody is taken-aback because for them to say this is unfathomable. The Asian tourist asks « excuse me, is there anything new to see around here », the English turn round in shock and there’s even a dad covering his son’s ears.

Another stereotype can be seen on the second shop from the left, I’m not certain but I think it is the English people is famous for drinking tea: the traditional tea and cream shop testifies to that, obviously. It’s a store that sells English favourite beverage. I’m not sure but I guess the man on the bottom right maybe a touristic guide, as he is dressed in an English medieval livery.

To conclude the English are permanently stereotyped and tourists have too many prejudices about them.

So, I’ll talk about the Brits and what they are like. Of course, I will also talk about stereotypes associated to them. I will talk about the UK in general.

Actually in the UK, the Brits are known to be respectful, polite and elegant, most people think they are always wearing black clothes with an umbrella because it is “always” raining. Their food is also well known but not for the good reasons ; apart from their tea, their food is bad even if their full English breakfast is quite famous.

Besides, the UK is also known for their buildings like the London eye, Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, Tower bridge, Westminster Abbey, the Gherkin and others.

I am quite impatient to check these stereotypes for myself in a few weeks !

If you think you know the English and their culture by heart, well, check again and let me show you a cartoon that shows a stereotype about about the English that you may think is true.

Today we will present a cartoon, made by Martyn Ford and Peter Legon from a collection titled the « How to be British Collection. » Maybe it means this drawing is part of a collection of British stereotypes made by the same people.

Before describing the havles seperately, we can see that there are a few things in common between the two halves. In the background, we can see a lot of cars bumper to bumper on top of the London Bridge. There seems to be quite a lot of traffic. They introduced this traffic to show that people think there is always traffic in the UK, especially in London. On the bridge we can see a lorry where « tea » is written in bold letters – as if tea was carried thus ! – because a big part of the world thinks the English only drink tea. We can also see a double decker bus which is a symbol of England and many people think British people use them daily. Apart from the bridge, both scenes take place on the embankment where our two protagonists stand.

Now, let us describe the left half of this cartoon. We’ve already talked about the background with the bridge and the cars. In the forground we can see a man and his English bulldog. The man is wearing a blue trench coat which represents the cliché that it is always raining in England. The man is wearing black bowler hat and old-fashioned clothes. This man represents how people think the British dress. Although this man is rocking his old-timey moustache, his clothes are classy yet a little exentric because of all the different colors.

This man seems to be walking his dog: they both look snobbish, they seem as welcoming as the weather ! On the left we can see a man drowning in the Thames. Above him there is a speech bubble, he is screaming : « HELP! » Although the man on the right is in distress, the British man completely ignores him, he doesn’t even look at him and snobs him. Unlike in the left half, in the right half, the British men throws the life belt to the drowning man.
Instead of their stuck-up attitude in the first half, the man and his dog now seem content, the dog is wagging his tail and the man is smiling. Now you may ask « What changed ? » Unlike the first example were the man was simply yelling « HELP! », in this second half the man, even as he is drowning, asks for help in much longer polite way that it becomes quite ridiculous. Only then does the British men decide to help the drowning man.

The second half shows that people believe the British are overly polite even in situation of distress.

This cartoon was made to represent stereotypes about the British. To sum it up, people believe the British to be stuck-up, snobbish, overly polite, they also believe them to be old-fashioned. They also seem to believe that the British weather is always rainy and that there out always traffic jams. Not only but they seem to believe that tea is the most popular drink in the UK and that they have mostly double decker bus. Although these stereotypes may be funny, they are more often than not false and sometimes mean.

Today, let us present the postcard “How to be British collection.”

First, on the right picture, we can see in the foreground a typical man who wears a black bowler hat, a trench coat and who walks with his dog. This man and his dog look quite stuck-up, stand-offish and snobbish. He is the stereotypical English man. He walks on the sidewalk near the river, probably the Thames. In the background, we can see a life belt. In the river, there is someone drowning, screaming “HELP!”

This cartoon is clearly a humorous and exaggerated stereotype. The man walking by doesn’t react at all to the emergency. He just keeps walking his merry way, looking proud and cold and stand-offish, like he doesn’t care at all. This shows the stereotype that British people are very distant, unemotional, and proud, even in serious situations.

Moving to the second part, the man in the water finally uses a very polite request to ask for help: “Excuse me, Sir. I’m terribly sorry to bother you, but I wonder if you would mind helping me a moment, as long as it’s no trouble, of course. » Only after this formal request, the British man throws him the life belt.

This scene is totally surreal and ironic. It shows how British people are sometimes seen as both too formal and arrogant even in extreme situations. This picture uses this stereotype to make fun of British behaviour: always arrogant, always haughty, and never emotional.

To conclude, we find this document funny, I know that a stereotype is not necessarily true. It is just a general idea about a group of people, and it can sometimes be a bit offensive or ridiculous.

Well, first, let me present this new document. This document is a postal card untitled the « How to be British collection. » This post card collection is famous for portaying   »clichés » about the English people.

Now, let us describe this picture.

On the foreground, I can see a couple of tourists who are visiting an obviously British town. I’m not sure but I guess, the women is Japanese because she has almond-shaped eyes.

Next to them, on the right, we can see a man who is dressed up in a medieval guard livery and is holding up a sign. I may be wrong but I think, this man is a tour guide for the old Middle Ages castle in the background. On the left, there are English people who are walking by. They have old-fashioned clothes like a colorful stripped shirt, a medieval-looking green dress, or a suit and tie. Plus, their dog is wearing a red ruff and a Tudor hat ! How peculiar !

Next, the English people seem taken-aback when the tourists ask «Excuse me, is there anything new to see around here ?» ; an English man even covers the ears of his little boy because he thinks this question is like an insult to the English.

In the background, I can see two half-timbered house that is actually two shops. On the first shop we can read «Antiques» so I can guess this is a shop with many antiques – which triggers the conclusion that there is hardly anything new think in this country.

Behind those shop, there is an ancient castle. I’m not sure but I suppose, it’s a Middle Ages castle and the tourist can visit it with the tour guide dressed-up in a medieval guard. I believe this is Windsor Castle.

All these things tend to depict the preconcieved idea that the English people are said to be old-fashioned, chic and that they live in the past. Of course, the postal card is just a drawing and the real English people are not like this. So that is why clichés are not always true, it must be taken with a pinch of salt.

Well, the document I will talk about is obviously a drawing entitled « the how to be British collection ». I may be wrong but I suppose this drawing looks like a post card, and is probably an example of a collection of satirical and humorous cartoons about stereotypes. Martin Ford and Peter Legon must be the cartoonists and writers of this collection. 

This being said, let’s move on to the cartoon itself. 

First of all, the drawing is divided into two parts and must be read like a comic strip, left to right. On both drawings I can see an old-looking bridge in the background, probably made of red bricks. There is a lot of traffic on the road and the cars are basically bumper-to-bumper. On the left drawing there is a huge lorry with « TEA » written on it, and on the right, there is a typical double-decker bus : my guess is the scene takes place in the United Kingdom as the Brits are said to drink tea everyday and are famous for taking double-decker buses to commute. These are the first stereotypes I could identify as soon as I saw this picture. 

In the foreground now, a typical-looking British man is walking his dog by the river : he has got a black bowler hat, a long blue trench coat over a pink shirt, a colorful tie and green trousers. How odd ! On top of that he is sporting a very old-fashioned mustache. His dog looks like an English Bull-dog. Both characters are walking with their head held high. They look quite full-of-themselves and arrogant. I have to say, I suppose this drawing depicts a Brit as they are supposed to wear weird colors and to be old-fashioned. Plus, they both look unbothered and snobbish and the Brits are famous for being very stuck-up and standoffish. 

While these two characters are walking, a man is clearly in distress in the river. He seems to be drowning and looks both terrified and chocked. Indeed, there is a lifebelt by the river and the man in the bowler hat is not even considering helping him, though he is screaming for help. 

On the second cartoon however, the cartoonist tries to show the British are a very polite people : indeed the scene is quite surreal. The passer-by only seems to hear the victim’s cry for help when he recites an overly-polite request ! I find this stereotype quite hilarious ! All three characters now look rather pleased. I believe this shows the Brits are popular for being very civilized yet quite proud and snobbish. 

Though I find this document pretty funny, I have to say a stereotype is not necessarily true. It is usually a preconceived idea or a cliché about a group of people, and is generally quite derogatory. Obviously, no man in his right mind would let someone drown unless they would ask for help politely.