Harry And Kate, Is it?
Well, what a delightful article in the 30 June edition of the National Post, by John Ivison. The man has a wonderful sense of proportion and a deep wellspring of humour. And he has encapsulated in his article, "Rejoice, all ye royal believers", precisely how many thinking Canadians feel about the increasingly silly tizzy that other Canadians are expressing because of the visit of two British Royals.
Two beautiful, wealthy, extremely aware children of privilege. And class, let us not forget class. For what else is royalty and aristocracy and social wealth, (including nowadays, nouveau riche) but the class system personified? And if Europe and particularly Great Britain know anything about society and who's up and who's down, the class system tells it all. Not to be spoken of in genteel company, of course.
Class is something people have or don't have. The mother of the groom had none; she may have been an aristocrat born, but class eluded her. She was a woman who craved notice and became notorious for her grubby attempts to bring the spotlight to her tawdry need of attention and public acclaim. Portraying herself as noble and hard done by, while working hard at being hard done by.
Now it's her sons' turn under the tutelage of their loving father whose specialty is disaffected grumbling about how the peasants are spoiling things for everyone, while he gets on with life, dabbling in art, architecture, environmental issues and clean living, nurturing organic fields of plenty. Gawd, that sounds dreadful. Not him, Prince Charles, and his favourite things but my cavilling.
Back to John Ivison, that delightful man. He was tasked with what seems to him to be a puzzling assignment. Given, that is, his lack of enthusiasm and regard for the Family Royal. And their exalted social hierarchy which does indeed celebrate the apex of a class system. And which Canadians are indulging in a mass cultural hyperventilation of ecstasy.
He was commissioned by his editor to work for his keep by writing a la Evelyn Waugh, of the people "rejoicing". And this they most certainly are doing, rather to excess in the opinion of some: me, for example. Who'm I? Nobody, actually, and admittedly.
Wait: I'm someone who is utterly thrilled by Ivison having mentioned the 1980 Socialist Worker headline on the marriage of Charles to Diana: "Parasite marries Scrounger". Priceless beyond words. And so, crowds, hordes of enthusiasts were up at the crack of dawn to begin to gather in anticipation of the 2:00 p.m. arrival of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, this day.
And I am resigned to reading about, hearing about, viewing most reluctantly, all the tiddly little details of the visit until they finally depart. Our own class system has produced a Canadian counterpart in the personage of our (relatively) new Governor General David Johnston, former academic whose annual salary topped a blazing million bucks.
I trust the young couple whom I cannot quite recognize as "beautiful", will enjoy their brief stay. I am paying for it through my taxes, along with all other Canadians, those who swoon over the prospect of actually seeing a real, live royal (soon-to-be-majesty, mayhap) and those who couldn't really care less.
Should they feel inclined to express gratefulness to the tax funding I've been partially responsible for, they're welcome. But not too often, I daresay.
Two beautiful, wealthy, extremely aware children of privilege. And class, let us not forget class. For what else is royalty and aristocracy and social wealth, (including nowadays, nouveau riche) but the class system personified? And if Europe and particularly Great Britain know anything about society and who's up and who's down, the class system tells it all. Not to be spoken of in genteel company, of course.
Class is something people have or don't have. The mother of the groom had none; she may have been an aristocrat born, but class eluded her. She was a woman who craved notice and became notorious for her grubby attempts to bring the spotlight to her tawdry need of attention and public acclaim. Portraying herself as noble and hard done by, while working hard at being hard done by.
Now it's her sons' turn under the tutelage of their loving father whose specialty is disaffected grumbling about how the peasants are spoiling things for everyone, while he gets on with life, dabbling in art, architecture, environmental issues and clean living, nurturing organic fields of plenty. Gawd, that sounds dreadful. Not him, Prince Charles, and his favourite things but my cavilling.
Back to John Ivison, that delightful man. He was tasked with what seems to him to be a puzzling assignment. Given, that is, his lack of enthusiasm and regard for the Family Royal. And their exalted social hierarchy which does indeed celebrate the apex of a class system. And which Canadians are indulging in a mass cultural hyperventilation of ecstasy.
He was commissioned by his editor to work for his keep by writing a la Evelyn Waugh, of the people "rejoicing". And this they most certainly are doing, rather to excess in the opinion of some: me, for example. Who'm I? Nobody, actually, and admittedly.
Wait: I'm someone who is utterly thrilled by Ivison having mentioned the 1980 Socialist Worker headline on the marriage of Charles to Diana: "Parasite marries Scrounger". Priceless beyond words. And so, crowds, hordes of enthusiasts were up at the crack of dawn to begin to gather in anticipation of the 2:00 p.m. arrival of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, this day.
And I am resigned to reading about, hearing about, viewing most reluctantly, all the tiddly little details of the visit until they finally depart. Our own class system has produced a Canadian counterpart in the personage of our (relatively) new Governor General David Johnston, former academic whose annual salary topped a blazing million bucks.
I trust the young couple whom I cannot quite recognize as "beautiful", will enjoy their brief stay. I am paying for it through my taxes, along with all other Canadians, those who swoon over the prospect of actually seeing a real, live royal (soon-to-be-majesty, mayhap) and those who couldn't really care less.
Should they feel inclined to express gratefulness to the tax funding I've been partially responsible for, they're welcome. But not too often, I daresay.
The Royal Family Pictured at the Royal Wedding
In This Photo: Kate Middleton, Prince Harry, Prince William, Prince Charles, Pippa Middleton, Camilla Parker Bowles, Carole Middleton
The Royal Family pictured with the newly married couple Prince William and Kate Middleton on the balcony at Buckingham Palace for their Royal Wedding. Thousands of supporters lined The Mall in London to congratulate the Royals as they travelled to Buckingham Palace. (April 29, 2011 - Photo by PacificCoastNews.com)
Labels: Canada, Culture, Life's Like That, Society
posted by Pieface | 9:55 AM
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