I feel therefore I am

I feel, therefore I am

What happens when feelings and social expectations clash ?

1/ The expression of emotions

2/ The British Stiff Upper Lip: myth, or reality?

3/ When your heart takes over

A.PEROU Lycée Gaston Bachelard

I don't want to be at the mercy of my emotions. I want to use them, to enjoy them, and to dominate them. Oscar Wilde

Expressing EMOTIONS

Expressing EMOTIONS

• 16th century = Elizabethan period (W. Shakespeare)
• 18th century (French Revolution 1789)

• 19th century = Victorian period

British Imperialism (imperial heyday) Colonial expansion (the Empire Where The Sun Never Sets) Explorers, sailors, soldiers, traders, aministrators

• early 20th century - WWI - the Great Depression
• WWII - the Blitz (bombing of London)

• the 1950s-1960s = post-war Britain (death of Churchill 1965)
• late 20th century (death of Diana 1999)

• early 21st century

4 elements of a good podcast

• Focus on a central idea
• Play to an audience
• Show structure
• Authenticity

Hellelil and Hildebrand Frederic William Burton, 1864

Sense and Sensibility Jane Austen, 1811

When your heart takes over

The Meeting Place Paul Day, 2007

Boys don't Cry The Cure, 1979

From post-war Britain (the 1950s-1960s) to the late 20th century

• Era of prosperity during which major social changes happened (rise of feminism, sexual revolution, consumer society,...) People felt confident and proud, and felt like sharing these positive emotions: mass display of pride and jubilation (66 World Cup, Gay Pride, NottingHill Carnival...) + mass communion (Churchill's funerals)

• People started understanding that emotional repression was bad for mental and physical health. Many studies were published on the harmful impact of the denial of feelings. Many people started therapies.

• The “Me generation” favoured individual well-being over decorum.

• People felt the need to mourn collectively / as a nation when Diana, Princess of Hearts, died.

• On the whole, there was a growing need for emotional release.

19th century (Victorian era = British Imperialism)

• Boys were raised with the idea that men have to master their emotions.

• Explorers who sailed the world to expand the Empire were celebrated for their endurance to hardships and sang-froid during their expeditions. So were the soldiers and settlers who colonized these newfound territories.

• Education became stricter in schools for boys (physical punishments to learn endurance and restraint emotions) as they were shaped to become unflappable soldiers or unblinking administrators + British people had to behave with dignity, contrary to the "savages" of the colonies.

• Women were glorified for being long-suffering wives. They were raised to accept their destiny (following their husband overseas and accepting hardships or loss) and suffer in silence for the good of the nation.

21st century

• People (and especially men) now reveal their frailty unabashedly.

• The display of emotions grows on TV stages (hugs and weepings, outpouring of emotions during TV shows).

• Some people are worried about this mass emotionalism through the medias, as the control of people starts with the control of their emotions.

• Nowadays, the British Stiff Upper Lip is more stereotypical than real, it has become a cliché. It mostly defines the Royal family decorum.

• Yet, even if it has softened over the last century, reserve remains a national trait, as Bristish people are much less emotional than other nationalities. Understatements are commonly used by British people.

From the 16th century (Elizabethan era) to the late 18th century

• People openly displayed their emotions in public (interaction between the audience and the actors on stage during plays at the theater).

• Popular beliefs stressed the fact that women were more emotional than men (influence of the moon on women's mood).

• Women were regarded as "the weaker sex", not just in terms of physical strength, but emotionally too. Weeping was regarded as a gendered act (stigmatisation of tears for men).

• The Elizabethan society was framed by rigid notions of masculinity (men are leaders and by definition stronger than women).

• The French Revolution came as a shock for British people who considered mass unrestrained feelings were dangerous for the nation. Emotions had to be mastered on behalf of the nation's sake.

From the early 20th century to the Blitz

• A whole generation went to fight WWI without even complaining, as they grew up with the idea of self-denial for the sake the nation.

• During the Great Depression, British people felt the necessity to face hardship as a united nation, which meant repressing individual emotions for the good of all.

• The Blitz spirit, or cheery spirit, was a way for the British to reinvent a smile during the crisis (“Keep calm and Carry on” campaign by the government).