(no subject)
Mar. 10th, 2009 01:56 amI recently read a novel describing an invasion of Great Britain in Napoleonic time. Though London was occupied, fortunately the government and armed forces were able to retreat to Scotland. However, the south suffered much despoilation, guerilla fighting, collaboration, massacres, starvation, etc, much as all the other countries in Europe had.
Obviously there are many examples of countries that suffered like that at the time, and that suffer like that now. Some endlessly war-torn. Some without any hope of reclaiming the country, and with refugees scattered to countries not their own to live as best they can. Sometimes integrated, sometimes not integrated for hundreds or thousands of years. (I deliberately said Great Britain rather than United Kingdom at the start, as regardless of the situation now, I didn't feel comfortable describing a conquest of Ireland by a foreign power as fictional.)
And there are many fictional books about a noble rebellion overthrowing an evil dictator or conqueror. Although in most, you don't have any attachment to the country before, you just want things to get better than they are now. I know there ought to be examples, but I can't think of any books with the same vibe.
For though I'm not especially a British nationalist, what I wanted to say was that it felt different when it was this country, than in all those other examples.
Obviously there are many examples of countries that suffered like that at the time, and that suffer like that now. Some endlessly war-torn. Some without any hope of reclaiming the country, and with refugees scattered to countries not their own to live as best they can. Sometimes integrated, sometimes not integrated for hundreds or thousands of years. (I deliberately said Great Britain rather than United Kingdom at the start, as regardless of the situation now, I didn't feel comfortable describing a conquest of Ireland by a foreign power as fictional.)
And there are many fictional books about a noble rebellion overthrowing an evil dictator or conqueror. Although in most, you don't have any attachment to the country before, you just want things to get better than they are now. I know there ought to be examples, but I can't think of any books with the same vibe.
For though I'm not especially a British nationalist, what I wanted to say was that it felt different when it was this country, than in all those other examples.