Description
The love of countryside is one of the important aspects showing the British love
of nature. To British, the countryside is all about peace and quiet, beautiful view,
no busy traffic, good health and no crime. Nowadays, more and more Brits are
moving away from built up urban areas to enjoy the peace and quiet of the
countryside. For centuries landowners and horticulturists have shaped the land and
as a result every county in England has something peculiar in its landscape and
local culture. The countryside of England today reflects the wealth of landowners
and success of those who can afford to escape the trappings of city life. According
to a recent survey conducted by Country Life magazine, some 80 percent of
Britain's population dream of living in the countryside. English village
communities are small and often eccentric. They are, however warm and usually
welcoming, reflecting local charms of the 'English character'. The local post office
or shop is the communications hub of every village, while the village pub offers an
opportunity for new arrivals to get to know local culture and its personalities. But
the heart of many rural communities remains a -- usually historic -- village church
around which many community activities--and squabbles--revolve, from village
fêtes, parish council meetings to flower arranging.
Besides getting into the countryside to enjoy nature, British grow plants.
Gardening is one of the most popular hobbies in the country. In fact, British spend
a lot on gardening. When a British does not lucky enough to have a garden, he or
she can participate by renting land from local authority to grow vegetable or create
some green spaces in his/her own house.
b. Historical and social factors contribute to formulate this value
Historically, in Great Britain these principles have clustered around two rival
traditions: a liberal or libertarian conservatism concerned with free markets,
localism and private property; and a paternalist conservatism that has prioritised
community and social stability. British people like the symbol of tradition and
stability, they do not like change. Because the countryside represents stability, the
love of countryside can be considered as an aspect of British conservation.
Geographically, Britain is known to be “the land of fog” with little sunshine
hours. That is why everyone wants to get out the garden, enjoying the sunny day
meager as much as possible rather than staying in the house. As a nation, British
love of gardening starts early. They are promoting their children to be gardeners
practically before they are old enough to hold a trowel. There’s this great legacy of
children’s books, like The Secret Garden, Wind in the Willows, Winnie the Pooh,
with nature at their hearts. British people learn very early that gardens are magical
places, that the landscape is incredibly important to who they are.
Example
In 2016, British clothing retailer named A Hume asked 10,000 people what they
love about the great British countryside. Results show that lots of people prefer the
things that rural living offers them compared to life in an urban area. According to
the study, idyllic scenery is high on the UK’s agenda, with many participants
saying they love a countryside view as well as other mentioning that they love to
be up and close with the amazing wildlife that Britain has to offer. In all, 10,000
people were surveyed about what they love most about the countryside. The survey
found that:
52% of overall respondents said peace and quiet was top of the agenda.
45% of all participants say they love a countryside view
A third of those surveyed said the chance to get up close with the wildlife is
what draws them to the countryside.
For 1 in 4 people, the appeal of a country pub is what they love most about
spending time in the sticks.
20% of Brits said a lack of traffic is their favourite thing about escaping
urban areas.
Last year British staycations hit a seven-year high with over 19.7 million
UK holidays booked in the first quarter of 2015.1
Besides getting into the countryside to enjoy nature, British grow plants.
Gardening is one of the most popular hobbies in the country. In fact, British spend
a lot on gardening. In all the British spend 7.7 billion pounds each year
maintaining their gardens. The Welsh spend the most on average, at 465.96 pounds
a year, followed by London at 394.75 pounds. The South West spend the least at
211.65 per year on average. 60% of the British public say having a garden is very
important. When a British does not lucky enough to have a garden, he or she can
1 https://outdoorsmagic.com/article/british-countryside/
participate by renting land from local authority to grow vegetable or create some
green spaces in his/her own house. In England alone, 5 645 140 meter square of
land is designated as domestic garden space.
The RHS Chelsea Flower Show is the most fragrant and accessible event in the
British social calendar. Over five days, more than 165,000 fans of flowers, fruit
and foliage will make their pilgrimage to the grounds of the Royal Hospital in
central London to feed their particular obsessions. Whether it’s cacti or
carnivorous plants, auriculas or pelargoniums, clematis or roses, perfect vegetables
or walls of delphiniums, they’re all there in their most exquisite form, as though
drought and flood, wind and slugs, budget and time constraints never existed.2
Positive
As a nation with great love of nature, Britain is actively involved in environmental
protection activities. Britain was the first country in the world to appoint a
government- sponsored conservation body (the Nature Conservancy, in 1949) and
it was in Britain that the first large green pressure group was founded (the World
Wildlife Fund in 1961, now the Worldwide Fund for nature).
The
British
government is attentively working to protect our environment by reducing
pollution, reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill, protecting areas of
parkland, wildlife reserves and marine biodiversity, and enforcing regulations that
keep water and air clean. They also help communities avoid or recover from
flooding and other weather-related hazards.
The British always try to preserve the beauty of the ideal villages. The result is
there are plenty of tradition village still remain its own ancient beauty across
Britain such as Castle Combe (Wiltshire)- the village dotted by honey- coloured
houses made of Cotswold stone, Aysgarth (Yorkshire) – the village at the south
back of the River Ure, home to one of Britain’s most beautiful water falls –
Aysgarth Falls… Each year, these villages attract thousands of indigenous people
and tourists to visit and relax.
The love of nature also positively affects the health and well-being of the people.
The curative, restorative power of gardening is profound. Gardening is something
which can play a powerful role in promoting physical and emotional health. It even
2 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/columnists/why-gardening-is-good-for-the-british-soul/
went so far as to encourage doctors to prescribe gardening for patients with cancer,
dementia and depression. There are many studies that show patients recover more
quickly in hospital if they can see a garden. Visiting gardens and being outside in
lovely surroundings, in the fresh air, is good for people’s wellbeing.
Negative
Love of nature is a precious value is passed through generations of Britons.
However, it seems to be faded nowadays. The three-year research project by
the RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds), shows that according to the
conservation group's scoring system, four out of five children in the UK are not
adequately "connected to nature".
The study, which saw 1,200 children aged 8-12 years questioned on how strongly
they agreed or disagreed with 16 statements such as "I enjoy touching animals and
plants", "being outdoors makes me happy" and "humans are part of the natural
world", suggests that girls have a better connection with nature than boys. It also
found children in London had a stronger connection than those in Wales. The study
follows a major stock-take of the state of Britain's nature, which found that the
majority of UK species are declining, and one in three have halved in number in
the past five decades. Conservationists linked the decline in wildlife to the
disconnect between children and the natural world. Millions of people are
increasingly worried that today's children have less contact with nature than ever
before, but until now there has been no robust scientific attempt to measure and
track connection to nature among children in the UK, which means the problem
hasn't been given the attention it deserves.
Additionally, the love of gardening is one aspect of British love of nature.
However, gardening dovetails beautifully with the other British hobby of choice:
snobbery. Gardening sometimes provides us with a whole different opportunity to
judge our neighbours and, most thrillingly, friends. Judging and comparison could
easily lead to misunderstanding and be harmful to relationships.
Love of animal
Describe
Britain is famous for being a nation of animal lovers, and many people in Britain
keep pets. More than 50 per cent of British families own a pet. They keep some 7.7
million cats, 6.6 million dogs, one million budgerigars and 18 million goldfish.
They are increasingly adopting exotic creatures such as small farm animals,
snakes, tropical fish, and spiders; an estimated 2,000 households now have reptiles.
Moreover, the status of pets is taken seriously. Wildlife programmes are by far the
most popular kind of television documentary. Millions of families have 'birdtables' in their gardens. There is even a special hospital (St Tiggywinkles) which
treats injured wild animals in the UK.
Birdwatching is a popular pastime in Britain. England is home to nearly 230 kinds
of birds and a temporary home to 200 migrating birds. A common bird in England
is the red robin. The migrant cuckoo stops in England during spring. The tit family,
chaffinch, blackbird, and thrush are other common birds.
History
For many years now, Brits have enjoyed the reputation of being a nation of pet
lovers. At home and internationally, this praise has persisted albeit with
controversy. Indeed, this perception has been questioned; and it is pivotal to
interrogate why Brits are seen to love pets. There are numerous reasons that have
informed this thought. First, Britain was the first country in the world to start a
welfare charity for animals. This spirited concern to rescue and preserve the
dignity of animals led to the formation of the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals. This charity was pleased to attain a royal status thanks to her majesty
Queen Victoria in 1840. The society rescues injured and sick animals in a bid to
rehabilitate
them;
it
is
funded
by
people
of
goodwill.3
example
The love of animals
British people even hold a television show for animal. The British Animal
Honours is a British awards ceremony which honoured the country's most
extraordinary animals and the people who dedicate their lives to them. The
programme was broadcast by ITV and was presented by Paul O'Grady. Animals
3 http://www.bret.org.uk/nationofpetlovers.html
are nominated for honours by members of the public, with the winners being
decided by a panel of animal experts.4 The first award ceremony aired on Thursday
18 April 2013 on ITV, STV, UTV and was presented by Paul O'Grady.[5][6]
The ceremony also featured one-off performances from the National Theatre's
production of War Horse, a dancing dog troupe led by Kennel Club trainer Gina
Pink and a showpiece by the South Wales Police Dog Section. The award
ceremony was sponsored by Animal Friends Pet Insurance, who also sponsor
O'Grady's other programme For the Love of Dogs.
Positive
As a country with great love for animals, UK has always strive to protect animals.
Britain has strict rules to protect animals included The wildlife and Countryside
Act 1981, National Park and access to countryside Act 1949, Hedgerows
Regulations 1997, Protection of Badgers 1992,…5
Love of nature urges people requires addressing animal protection issues. In fact,
after Brexit, an overwhelming majority of the British public polled want new postBrexit laws protecting wildlife and the countryside to be at least as strong as the
EU rules currently in place, according to a opinion poll published on Thursday.
Many also want a new farming subsidy regime to emphasise environmental
protection more than the EU’s existing Common Agricultural Policy and the vast
majority want an EU ban on neonicotinoid pesticides, known to harm bees and
other pollinators, to remain in place. This sends a powerful message to the UK
government that EU rules aimed at protecting our natural environment must be
maintained or strengthened. The poll completely undermines those who argue
that Brexit should lead to a watering down of the UK’s environmental
commitments.6
Negative
4 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_British_Animal_Honours
5 https://www.google.com.vn/url?
sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiz_5nnqYDYAhWMvLwKHcCbDt
MQFgglMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wildlifetrusts.org%2Fnode
%2F114299&usg=AOvVaw1710xhCcbpjuZ73MX1a6ln
6 https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/aug/25/british-wildlife-needs-new-laws-to-protect-it-post-brexitpoll-shows
The love of the Britian with their pet is undeniable. However, this is sometimes
outrageous and has serious consequences.
British not only love popular pet like cats, dogs or rabbits,…they also show their
love for exotic animal. In fact, exotic pets can endanger British wildlife. Racoons,
wild cats, and skunks are just a few of the non-native species experts believe are
settling in Britain and endangering our own native species. Conservationists
believe many of these animals start life in the UK as pets. They are now calling for
a tightening of the regulations on animals being kept in homes.7
Furthermore, despite Britain being a nation of pet lovers, reports have confirmed
that up to 10 million pets in the nation suffer from physical and mental stress. A
large number of dogs are overweight and half of all cats are overweight as well.
Pets are left for many hours at home alone and this has contributed to the problem.
Dogs and cats should not be left alone for more than 4 hours. In light of this,
animal cruelty in a nation of pet lovers is hard to ignore. Many people love to see
pets and play with them in Britain. Consequently, many have gone ahead to get
pets and they do not know the first thing about taking care of their furry friends.
Ignorance and lack of education on how to look after pets have contributed to
negligence of pets in Britain. In fact, some pet owners do not know how to feed
their pets. A good example is the fact that a large number of pet rabbits kept by
Brits do not get enough food. As if this is not enough, many pet owners do not take
their pets to the vet because of the worry in regards to cost. Animals have needs
and just like humans, they need proper care for a healthy happy life. British people
are indeed a nation of pet lovers but, love comes with responsibility. Getting pets
when you can fully take care of them is better; to steer clear of animal cruelty.
Some Brits have opted to keep less demanding pets like cats or fish. To maintain a
good name as pet lovers, Brits have to put their best foot forward to fully earn the
trust and respect back. In the meantime, compassion and love for pets in Britain
continues undeterred.8
7 http://www.bbc.com/news/av/science-environment-15420295/exotic-pets-can-endanger-uk-wildlife
8 http://www.bret.org.uk/nationofpetlovers.html
- Xem thêm -
.DOCX 
8 
1244 
97 
