How identity is reflected in British working class films

Seminar paper from the year 2003 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Culture and Applied Geography, grade: 1,3, Dresden Technical University (Anglistik), language: English, abstract: This thesis compares several working class films such as "Brassed Off" and "Billy Elliot" with reference to the theoretical concept of national identity, ie. the British national identity. The analysis of such a diverse cultural term like "identity" and its treatment in British working class related films will be the topic of this research paper. After having defined the term on its several levels, I want to show how identity is treated differently in, firstly, a popular film called "Brassed Off" and, secondly, an independent film produced by Amber Films called "Like Father". Both films are set in the 1990's and deal with the problem of pit closure and unemployment of miners. Both films deal with the consequences of unemployment and poverty of the working class than with work per se. Concerning class consciousness, both films show people who wish to escape the constrictions of their class. Since identity is not only a question of class, gender roles are considered in both films as well. The motif of identity is shown very differently in these films. This thesis analyzes how these films represent the construction, the maintenance and the loss of identity.