“Englishness” is a common word used to refer to special values and characteristics that the English have and that demarcate them from others. Examining English characteristics, you will realize very quickly that privacy, which is defined as “the state of being alone and not watched or disturbed by other people,” (Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 2000) is highly regarded in England. Most English people make a clear distinction between the two areas of “private” and “public” life, as it is also stated by Dorsey et al. by saying that “To be a private person is not to be a public person.” (2004). In this matter, the English are conscious of the importance of privacy in their lives; but not all of them are aware of the extent to which privacy regulates their daily life, although it is reflected in their behaviour. The English definitely have an extreme love of privacy that can be seen in various areas of life, such as their house and gardens, their behaviour towards people they know, their behaviour towards unknown people, and their high interest in the protection of personal data.
Do the English have an extremely high love of privacy or is it just a common stereotype?
“Englishness” is a common word used to refer to special values and characteristics that the English have and that demarcate them from others. Examining English characteristics, you will realize very quickly that privacy, which is defined as “the state of being alone and not watched or disturbed by other people,” (Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary, 2000, p. 1006) is highly regarded in England. Most English people make a clear distinction between the two areas of “private” and “public” life, as it is also stated by Dorsey et al. by saying that “To be a private person is not to be a public person.” (2004, p. 122). In this matter, the English are conscious of the importance of privacy in their lives; but not all of them are aware of the extent to which privacy regulates their daily life, although it is reflected in their behaviour. The English definitely have an extreme love of privacy that can be seen in various areas of life, such as their house and gardens, their behaviour towards people they know, their behaviour towards unknown people, and their high interest in the protection of personal data.
To start with, the English liking of privacy is shown as far as their houses and gardens are concerned. For them, their own house and garden is the most important factor in order to possess a place totally dedicated to private life. Kate Fox, an anthropologist who conducted studies on this, refers to it as follows: “the English all want to live in their own private little box with their own private little green bit” (2004, p. 111). As to the houses, the common English proverb “An Englishman's home is his castle” (Larina, 2005, p. 28) emphasizes the importance of the idea of home which is closely intertwined with the building they live in. O' Driscoll underlines the importance of living in a “detached house” (1995, p. 174) to guarantee the highest amount of privacy possible, which flats or other types of accommodation cannot offer. Another example of protection against unwanted intrusion into privacy can be seen in the way a house is designed in the inside: most of them have a hall which visitors enter first, so that they do not find themselves standing in the private living room immediately, or a second living room - for family use only (O' Driscoll, 1995, p. 179). With regard to the outside of an idealized English house, it is essential to have both a front- and back garden surrounded by high fences or hedges which form the boundary of the private space (Fox, 2004, p. 124/125). The importance of fences, hedges or walls around the gardens is again reflected by a well-known English proverb, namely “Love your neighbour, yet pull not down your fence” (Larina, 2005, p. 28). All in all, English houses and gardens are excellent examples of the English mania for private space.
Another area of life, for instance, in which the English need for privacy can be seen is in their behaviour towards people they know. A common saying is that during a conversation, the English generally prefer to keep larger distance between the person to talk to than other nations do - to maintain privacy. Moreover, there are certain questions targeting at personal matters which should not be asked. At this point, a further differentiation has to be made between close friends and acquaintances as stressed by Fox (2004, p. 135). Acquaintances should not ask questions about topics, such as private life in general, money, age, or weight (Barrow, 2008). Furthermore, the English are very reserved when it comes to body contact. As advised by Barrow, you should avoid greeting “people with a kiss” or “hugging” - unless you have been friends for a long time (2008). As another case in point, the English language again provides two proverbs on this topic that are “A hedge between keeps friendship green” and “Friends are like fiddle-strings and they must not be screwed too tightly” (Larina, 2005, p. 28). This illustrates that the English value “privacy” is deeply rooted in the language they use. What is more, the two proverbs also show that even friends should be kept at a certain distance to ensure each individual's right for privacy as well as the future of friendship. In short, the interaction between English people is another indicator for the English urge for privacy.
The English obsession with privacy cannot only be watched in their behaviour towards people they know, but also towards unknown people. It is worth mentioning at this point that this kind of behaviour is most of the time displayed in the body language towards strangers. First of all, it seems that many English people do not like socializing with people they do not know. Miall et al., for example, are of the opinion that “Every English person is his or her own island” (2008, p. 10), which goes to prove my point. This is indicated by their behaviour in public, such as always choosing seats that are the furthest away from other people (Miall et al., 2008, p. 10) or pretending not to see other people when commuting in the train to keep the typical English distance (Fox, 2004, p. 139). In addition to this, the English also try to avoid touching unknown people (Miall et al., 2008, p. 32) or talking to them (Fox, 2004, p. 139) in order to maintain the required amount of privacy. Another interesting point that shows the English reserve is that many English people do not like giving their names when they are introduced to strangers (Fox, 2004, p. 39) because it would probably be too private for the first meeting. To sum up, the English do not socialize with strangers easily due to their high regard of privacy.
My final illustration of the English privacy obsession deals with their high interest in the protection of personal data. Firstly, a lot of English people are afraid of the misuse of private data that they would be supposed to provide if identity cards became obligatory for all English citizens (Travis, 2008). This seems to be the main reason why nearly half of the population objects to the introduction of national identity cards as shown by a survey conducted by the Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust (Travis, 2008). Concerning this issue, many citizens commented on a newspaper article “Millions to rebel over ID cards” by Leppard et al. from the Sunday Times. Lots of them regard identity cards as an intrusion into their privacy and therefore claim that they should not be introduced (2008). Secondly, the English are very concerned about the data they provide on the internet; especially the data they give to certain companies or organizations. This can be seen on detailed privacy statements written on the websites. For example, the internet page of “Cars 4 Charities” contains a large privacy statement which begins with “We wish to demonstrate our firm commitment to your rights to privacy” (http://www.cars4charities.co.uk/privacy.php). In sum, the English are concerned about providing personal data to the government or on the internet.
All in all, one important English value that characterizes “Englishness” is the high esteem of privacy that can be found in many areas of English life, such as the creation of a private home to the full, which the owners only rarely allow visitors to enter, the interaction with friends or acquaintances that can sometimes turn out as very difficult, the reserved behaviour towards strangers, and the worries about the use of personal data. Privacy has an enormous influence on the English way of thinking, which is most of the time subconsciously influenced by their love for this value. Other nations regard this as a unique English character trait that helps to demarcate them from others and makes them special. As a conclusion, the English obsession with privacy is obvious and goes beyond the simple classification as a stereotype.
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References
- Cars 4 Charities Ltd. 2008. 27 December 2008 http://www.cars4charities.co.uk/privacy.php.
- Dorsey, James; Mizutani, Mashiko; and James H. Moor. “The Internet and Japanese Conception of Privacy.” Ethics and Information Technology 6 (2004): 121-128.
- Fox, Kate. Watching the English: The Hidden Rules of English Behaviour. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 2004.
- Larina, Tatiana. “Cultural Values and Negative Politeness in English and Russian.” Respectus Philologicus 8.13 (2005): 25-39.
- Leppard, David, and Robert Winnett. “Millions to Rebel over ID Cards.” The Sunday Times 8 April 2007.
- Miall, Antony, and David Milsted. Xenophobe 's Guide to the English. Xenophobe's Guides. London: Oval books, 2008.
- O'Driscoll, James. Britain: The Country and its People: An Introduction for Learners of English. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995.
- Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000.
- Ozaki, Ritsuko. “Housing as a Reflection of Culture: Privatised Living and Privacy in England and Japan.” Housing Studies 17.2 (2002): 209-227.
- Projectbritain.com: British Life and Culture. Ed. Mandy Barrow. 2008. 27 December 2008 http://projectbritain.com/customs/behaviour.html
- Travis, Alan. “Poll shows growing opposition to ID card over data fears.” The Guardian 6 February 2008.
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- Anonymous,, 2009, Do the English have an extremely high love of privacy or is it just a common stereotype?, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1360399
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