Challenging The Importance of Cultural Identity and History Surrounding Scottish Independence

European Studies
Major in Culture
Bachelor’s Thesis
Challenging the importance of cultural identity and history surrounding Scottish Independence
By
Allyson Stewart
July 2020
Challenging the importance of cultural identity and history surrounding Scottish Independence July 2020
Abstract: In 2014, there was a referendum held in the UK regarding Scottish independence, and
after the cast of the vote, it was common to use political and economic frameworks to explain the
presence of antagonism between Scotland and England. However, exploration of the cultural
attitudes between these two nations is absent, while discussions for another Scottish referendum
appeared after Brexit finalized in 2019. An analysis of pre-referendum and post-referendum
films and TV series supports the presence of cultural discussion on independence. Narratology’s
structuralist approach to character will provide a foundation for character representations, and
Imagology’s dissection of ethnotypes reveals the cultural rift between the Scottish and English.
Introduction
Next to Brexit, the Scottish Independence Referendum in 2014 was a significant turning
point in recent UK history. The discussion around the referendum mostly concerns the political
and economic element, leaving the cultural relationship between the Scottish and English
neglected. McHarg’s textbook The Scottish Independence Referendum focuses primarily on the
political and economic actions which lead up to the referendum. There is no argument against the
importance of politics and economics in the decision to hold an independence referendum, but
there is an absence on the importance of cultural history in the discussion. The referendum in
2014 did not end the argument for an independent Scotland – independence became a point of
contention during and after Brexit. Therefore, analysis into the presence of a cultural rift between
the Scottish and English can help reveal the durability of Scotland’s need for independence. This
cultural rift expresses itself in two modes, anti-Scottish sentiment, and Anglophobia, and it
increases as a British identity falls to English and Scottish identity. Trainspotting (1996) and
This is England (2006) released before the referendum and centered around Thatcher’s Britain in
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the 1980s. Margaret Thatcher was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the 1980s; she
was pro-British and pro-Union. There was an economic recession, which plagued much of
Britain and pushes for autonomy from Northern Ireland, the Scottish National Party (SNP), and
the National Front Party. (Finlay 2012, 168) These films are a screenshot of Scottish and English
identity before the devolution of the central parliament in London (1998). In 2014, two TV series
were in production, Outlander (2014) and The Last Kingdom (2015), which center on centuries-
old history. In the 10th Century, when The Last Kingdom transpires, England does not exist, and
instead, the kingdom of Wessex (Southwest England) resists conquest by Vikings. Outlander
occurs later in 1743, a couple of years before the battle of Culloden (1975) – the last conflict
between Scotland Highlanders and the British army. Retrospect on these historical events evoke
a sense of identity and reinforce cultural stereotypes. Their release after the referendum is not a
coincidence but a reflection of identity politics within Britain and a reemergence of Anti-Scottish
and Anglophobia into the public sphere.
Because England became a nation in the late 10th Century, they had primary control over
the British Isles. The formation of the Kingdom of Scotland in the 13th Century denied expansion
into northern Britain by the English, and in return, Scotland become a rival. The ancient practice
of Anti-Scott sentiment developed English identity, painting the Scots with negative stereotypes.
In England, the Scottish were unwelcome and treated as foreigners. (Rounce 2005, 23) The
Scottish similarly used Anglophobia. Hatred towards the English was the main attribute of
Scottish identity. When the Scottish and English crowns unified in 1603 under James I of
England (also James VI of Scotland), there was no unification of identity. Scotland practiced
Anglophobia by blaming England for any travesties befalling the nation, and they treated English
visitors to Scotland inhospitably. (McIntosh 2004, 6) The dichotomy of Anglophobia and Anti-
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Scot sentiment within Britain defines an instability in the union. Through stereotyping, people
are divided into factions instead of combined into a British identity. Joep Leerssen’s imagology
uses the presence of stereotypes to explain the development of identity-based nations.
Leerssen is a historian and expert on nationalism. Under imagology, he transforms simple
stereotypes into meaningful ethnotypes. Through an essentialist look, ethnotypes are
‘representations of national character’ which react with gender, age, and class. (Leerssen 2016,
16) Often in media, ethnotypes are treated in several different ways, either ironically, meta-
canonically, or through the event of racism. The difference between the treatment of ethnotypes
in media is essential in understanding the meaning experienced by the audience. When a national
character is framed a certain way, a trigger is activated within the mind. Prejudices and
stereotypes are pulled forward from the back of the mind creating a latent background of
presumed national characteristics. Under an ironic approach, the typicality of a national identity
is the target of humour and ridiculousness. There is some truth in an ironic enthnotype, evoking
the famous phrase “every stereotype holds some measure of truth.” (Leerssen 2016, 21 – 5)While
most interpretations of nations assume an internal belief or external belief – Leerssen calls this
auto-image and hetero-images – the “meta” of these images lay between those confines. Instead
of Others explaining how they see a nation or a nation exporting their own belief, meta-images
represent how a nation thinks the Other sees them. In return, an assumption the Other intends
insult and lack of empathy towards the nation’s character creates a cultural clash. Ethnotypes
developed via racism are the harshest treatments of identity because ethnicity becomes an
“essential characteristic rather than an incidental attribute.” (Leerssen 2016, 26) Imagology must
take great care when dealing with the evidence of racist attitudes in the presence of ethnotypes.
Just as irony pulls on the underlying attitudes within the audience, what might be seen as racist
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can be a dormant attitude within the mind or merely a commonality of the time of production.
Therefore, during this project, it is imperative the intertext, context, and actual text is considered.
Imagological ethnotypes define national identity, but films presents another layer of
representation. Because the plot of the film is a story written and directed by multiple people,
acted by people selected by a casting agent, and portrayed with specific costumes and props,
films do not use solely ethnotypes to present identity. Mieke Bal is a literary scholar who
developed a theory of Narratology focused on the narrator instead of the narrative. Narratology is
the study of literary story and structure through three elements: text, story, and fabula. (Bal 1999,
6) The text is what is written on the page, the story is the events the characters partake in, and the
fabula is the sequence of these events. Verstraten explicitly applies Narratology to film, and in
their book, Film Narratology, they preface several vital elements of Narratology that translate
easily into a film: focalization, space, and character. Moreover, for a dissection of identity and
cultural attitudes, character is the key concept. Character can rely heavily on the genre of the
story if you are watching a Western, you are expecting a hero and a villain. Cultural expectations
help create a character, but so do subtle language within the fabula. Decisions made by a
character can decide if they are subservient or have a different goal, what type of personality
they hold. Interactions between characters can show conflicts and reveal background history. The
comparison between characters can reveal insecurities that can feed into the conflict of the plot,
as well as; different attributes, which can provide clarity between protagonist and antagonist.
(Verstraten 2009, 37-40)
Film’s treatment of character relies on several different attributes, actor choice, acting
style, costumes, props, and as previously mentioned, selective framing and the positioning of
actors. Actors often picked for their appearance and then for their ability – there is a lot of
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typecasting; thus, certain actors appear for expected roles. This treatment can counteract the
physical attributes of the characters they are representing, affecting the intent of the fabula.
Audience expectations of well-known actors shape their placement in the story, an actor who is
famous for playing protagonists may be one throughout the whole film – even if they were to
commit an action contradictory to that position. Further, acting style can provide another layer to
the character; if the actor portrays themselves as an idiot, a more satirical or comedic approach
envelops a fabula. Costume and props are literal depictions of a character; one must be a cowboy
if they wear a cowboy hat and have a revolver. (Verstraten 2009, 58-62) Narratology’s
foundation relies on structuralist approach of literary criticism, and under Bal’s concept, relies
solely on the narrator, not the actual narrative presented in the story. The plot of these films and
series are not as important as how the narrator treats the English and Scottish characters within
the story. The treatment observed will be through character actions and imagological ethnotypes
and how they can affect the audience’s understanding of their identity.
Previously, Polina Guseva publicized a report about the relationship between
mediatization and the new media during the Indy Ref. The observations she is between the
coverage of political points by the news media and how this may have affected the results of the
referendum. Another article by Sarah Birch and Fatma ElSafoury discusses the possibility of
social media’s influence on the perceptions of voters concerning electoral fraud. Unfortunately,
both these papers focus entirely on the results of the referendum and the media’s temporary
influence. Media is not merely a tool of influence to be used by politicians or nefarious actors; it
is a direct expression of identity and cultural attitudes. Expressions of identity before the
referendum and after it show a pattern of effect. When a film portrays the cultural history of a
community, relating audiences identify with the characters on the screen. Known as ethno-
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symbolism, communities reprocess historical events and transform them into myths and symbols.
Then, present these myths and symbols to the rest of their nation and reinforce their cultural
identity. (Noorda 2018, 363) In a study by Rachel Noorda, she observed Scottish identity and its
relation to book consumption. Novels detailing cultural characteristics were commonly reported
by participants as an influence on an increased Scottish identity. In particular, Outlander, the
book by American author, Diane Gabaldon, was mentioned by participants, and because it was
adapted into a show, promotes the effect of ethno-symbolism. Therefore, this study will be
building off of established theories, but targeting both English and Scottish depictions creates
room for assumptions and generalization.
Hence, Detailing the directors and writers of Trainspotting, This is England, Outlander,
and The Last Kingdom builds a foundation for later analysis in chapter 3. Trainspotting (1996) is
based on a novel of the same name written by Irvine Welsh. Welsh is a Scottish novelist, and the
screenwriting for the film, John Hodge is also Scottish; their nationalities place Trainspotting in
Scottish demographic. Curiously, the director of the film, Danny Boyle, is from England; his
English perspective could have blurred the lines between Scottish and British identity. The focal
point of the film is a group of Scottish drug addicts, but there are no direct references to Scottish
identity other than the setting. On the other hand, This is England (2006) is written and directed
by one man, Shane Meadows, an Englishman, and the plot is based on his own life experiences.
(Steans 2013, 73) The film’s focus on the infiltration of the skinheads by English nationalists, an
implication of a rising English identity within the late 20th Century. Outlander (2014), a sixteen-
episode TV series, is exceptional considering the novel was written by an American, and the
showrunner, Ronald D. Moore, and all the writers are also American. Concurrently, the amount
of Scottishness present in the first season is overwhelming. Its release in the UK is controversial
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because it never premiered on a British broadcaster, and thus, the series relied on Scottish
initiative to be viewed. Consequently, Outlander is a result of heightened Scottish identity due to
the referendum. Meanwhile, The Last Kingdom (2015) resembles a response to the increase of
Scottishness in 2014. Season one consists of eight episodes, with three different directors: Peter
Hoar, English; Anthony Byrne, Irish; and Ben Chanan, birthplace unknown, and two authors:
Stephen Buchard, English, and Bernard Cornwell, English. Cornwell is also the author of The
Saxon Stories, and he helped adapt his book for television. Detailing the invention of England
connects with the modern reinvention of English identity, and follows Cornwell’s discussion on
English identity and its relationship with immigration. (Brown 2015, 1)
Because of the method of the analysis, observations will be subjective. Identification of
ethnotypes relies on personal ability to apply definitions to actor portrayals and then develop a
context within the discourse on the Scottish-English cultural rift. Of course, Narratology and
imagology are not impeccable. Narratology suffers under the assumption that its ideas are
universal because of scientific bias; perhaps all narratives are similar because of human intuition,
not because of formalist theory. Further, because of Narratology’s linguistic framework, there is
a stubborn belief in the truthfulness of Narratology as an exact science, which is a common
argument against humanity-based disciplines. A final criticism is about how Narratology affects
the text in a reductive aptitude, changing art into a scientific formula and equations. Imagology’s
essentialism can develop ethnotypes created through a meta-image (i.e., a French-based German
Identity). Obscurity develops between internal and external images in film, and often it is
difficult to determine who is creating an image. Memory studies have become an essential
influence of Imagology; ethnotypes taken out of historical context will develop the wrong
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assumptions. Interestingly, as nation-states transform into diasporas, Imagology loses its insight
on national characteristics.
With political and economic attitudes taking a backseat, the cultural attitudes between
Scotland and England before and after the Independence Referendum of 2014 will provide
evidence of the importance of culture in the debate on Scottish independence. The first chapter
involves the history of the relationship between Scotland and England. Then, under the historical
backdrop, the presence of anti-Scottish sentiment and Anglophobia is detailed in the second
chapter. Anti-Scot sentiment details othering within British identity and Anglophobia presents an
inferiority-complex to define Scottish identity. Subsequently, general plot summaries are
provided in the third chapter, along with examples of ethno-symbolic appearances. Narratology
determines the impact of characters on identity, and imagological ethnotypes ascertain the
portrayal by characters in the fourth chapter. Analysis of character treatment through
Narratology will establish who a character is, what actor plays them, and what their nationality
is, and the presence of costumes or props that echo identity. Through imagology, English and
Scottish ethnotypes are defined and applied to characters. The comparison between past attitudes
shown in This is England and Trainspotting, and present attitudes in the post-referendum series,
Outlander and The Last Kingdom, will present the development of English and Scottish identity.
The establishment of these identities in the 21st Century supports the importance of cultural
analysis amidst Scottish independence movements.
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Chapter 1 Scotland and England’s Relationship
Before analyzing the films, it is essential to look at the United Kingdom. The unification
of England and Scotland in 1707 did not change the dichotomy between the two countries. The
island where the UK lies went by ‘Britain’ for many centuries, and England and Scotland would
slowly develop into kingdoms between the 10th and 13th Centuries. England’s advent as a single
kingdom occurred in the 10th Century, and Scotland followed as a singular monarchy in the 13th
Century. (Colley 2014, 42) The years between the 11th Century and the late 18th Century
involved numerous campaigns by England to conquer all of the British Isles, and only three
British Monarchs avoided conflict with Scotland until the final battle at Culloden in 1746. The
first conflict for Scottish independence happened in the 14th Century, through the infamous
William Wallace. After Wallace’s execution by the English in 1305, Scotland committed
themselves to Robert the Bruce (protector of Scotland), and under his leadership, freed
themselves from English tyranny. Robert I became the new King of Scotland, and his line of
kings would survive until the unification of the crown in 1603. The contention for the English
throne between Mary Queen of Scots and Queen Elizabeth in the 16th Century became a symbol
of the relationship between Catholic Scotland and Protestant England. (Colley 2014, 72) After
the conflict, James Stuart (James VI of Scotland and son of Mary Queen of Scots) became King
of Great Britain, and England and Scotland became bound under the nation of Great Britain. The
unification of the crown did not guarantee cultural unity. Scotland and England would be united
under their king but not culturally and peacefully. The Catholic Charles I, the successor of James
I, became the first and only king to be executed in the history of the English monarchy and
would fuel the conflict between Catholics and Protestants within and outside of England. (Colley
2014, 43)
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Subsequentially, the monarchy was abolished in 1649 by the puritan Cromwell, but the
Stuart line returned to power in 1660 when Charles II returned from exile. Because of England’s
aversion to Catholicism and France, they did not trust Charles II. (Pincus 1999, 186) When
Charles II’s heir, James II assumed power, he favored France, duplicated Louis XIV’s
absolutism (monarchal rule free of laws and opposition), assisted Catholics, and tried to nullify
parliamentary control. James II’s actions alienated his English subjects, and when English
Protestants saw William of Orange, the Dutch stadholder, resist French rule, they dubbed
William their new king. (Pincus 1999, 196-202) William III’s dethronement of James II was
known as the ‘Glorious Revolution,’ and after this, the Stuart line never returned to the British
throne. The conflict between the Catholic Scots and Protestants English did not cease throughout
the rest of the 18th Century because of French influence and Jacobite support for the Stuart
kings.
The threat of war between William III’s protestant Britain and Louis XIV’s Catholic
France influenced the unification of England and Scotland in 1707 (Colley 2014, 117). Yet,
many historians argue the Darien Scheme was the limit of Scottish autonomy. (Paul 2009, 2)
While England developed various colonies during the 17th Century, Scotland tried to create an
overseas colony in 1686. Darien was a piece of land in modern-day Panama, which was ruled by
the Kuna people. (Paul 2009, 4) Unfortunately, due to a multitude of circumstances, the
settlement would end up failing because of a lapse of funds. Neither William of Orange nor the
‘English’ parliament provided support for the failing colony; thus, the Scottish settlers
abandoned Darien. (Paul 2009, 10) While it seems the economic loss of the colony caused
Scotland to agree to unification, William III desired the involvement of Scottish soldiers in his
campaigns against Louis XIV. (Paul 2009, 12)
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After unification in 1707, the country became ‘The United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland,’ but James Stuart, son of James II – and later, his son Bonnie Prince Charlie – would
return from exile in France, draw up an army from the Jacobite lords (supporters of James I line),
and try to invade England to take back the throne. (Gold & Gold 2002, 2) The Jacobites were not
all Scottish; after all, many Jacobites were also English loyalists who wanted the return of the
‘real’ king. (Gold & Gold 2002, 3) These Jacobite uprisings are known as ‘fifteen’ and ‘the
forty-five,’ are distinguished as the last conflicts on British land between England and Scotland.
Predominantly, ‘the forty-five’ involved the battle of Culloden Moor in 1746 and the
illegalization of Highland culture.
Regarded as the Victorian Era, the 18th Century is when Scotland developed into a vital
component of the British Empire under Hanover rule – the last change of house for the British
monarchy. Scotland’s status in the union expanded with its economic power, and Scottish
regiments developed into the symbol of the Empire. Interestingly, the Scottish regiment wore
Highland dress, even though previously Highland culture was the symbol of Jacobitism. (Devine
2008, 111-2) Unfortunately, Scotland suffered from overseas emigration between 1815 and 1939
of over 2 million people, and six-thousand Scots also moved to London; this movement of
people was higher than emigration from Wales and England. With all the workers abandoning
Scotland due to poor working conditions, high living costs paired with low wages, and a housing
crisis, Glasgow, which was called “The Second City of the Empire” in the same decade, became
the center of poverty. (Devine 2008, 119) As the Victorian Era ended, England continued as the
dominant force in the UK because London was the center of migration for citizens of Great
Britain. London’s tremendous economic power threatened Scotland, Wales and even England’s
industrial North (Colley 2014, 52)
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When World War II ended, Scotland recovered from its economic peril, but it never
regained its position in the union; the Unionists party lost by a landslide in the 1945 election, and
the Labour and SNP parties were the dominant parties thereafter. Consequently, The Scottish
wanted to forget their fall from power and emphasized Scottish tragedies under the union.
(Devine 2008, 113) Unionist tradition came between Scotland and English cohesion when an
economic recession hit the UK in the 1980s. Under Thatcher, Scotland moved away from a
British identity because they felt underrepresented by her ‘southern English movement’ of
unionism. (Finlay 2012, 170-1) A convention for Scottish Independence developed in 1988,
where a majority of Scottish society refined their nationalism and the need for autonomy. (Finlay
2012, 175) Adversely as ‘UK’ became a common acronym for the country, many within Britain
shifted away from the term ‘British’ to describe themselves in the 1990s. When the British
parliament allowed the establishment of a Scottish parliament in 1997 under the devolution
measures, England was the only region under the supreme rule of London. The cultivation of
Scottish and English identities into the 21st Century cemented ‘UK’ a much more neutral term
than ‘Great Britain.’ (Colley 2014, 17) The devolution measures in the 1990s would be the
precursor to the Independence Referendum in 2014.
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Chapter 2 Experiences of Anglophobia and anti-Scot Sentiment
One important note, the proportion of prejudice given and taken by the Scots, and the
English is unequal. From the research compiled in this chapter, I have determined the English
experienced a significant amount of discrimination from the Scottish than the Scottish received
from the English. The fact that Scottish identity relies heavily on Anglophobia – the ‘fear’ of
oppression by the English – explains this. The Scottish place themselves in a predominantly
lesser role compared to their English counterparts, victimizing themselves under the guise of
colonization and the working class. The Scottish say they suffer under the English, and thus, they
are the cause of all Scotland’s troubles. (McIntosh, Sim, and Robertson 2004, 6-7)
Meanwhile, there are select cases where the English have treated the Scottish with
prejudice but not enough to base their identity on anti-Scottish sentiment. Most examples of anti-
Scottish sentiment focus on specific people who happen to be Scottish; due to the practice of
Anti-Scot sentiment not being widely reported in English history. (Rounce 2005, 20) The period
from the late 17th Century to the 21st Century exemplifies the cultural rift between Scotland and
England. After the Glorious Revolution, the Jacobites – those loyal James I and his successors –
would renew the division between the Scottish and the English. The Jacobites were not
exceptionally Anglophobic because some of them were Englishmen who also yearned for the
return of the Stuarts to the English throne. The transformation of Jacobitism from political to
cultural would create a foundation for English and Scottish prejudice during the Romantic era in
the 19th Century. Thus, Jacobitism would create a modern-day Scottish identity. (John Robert
Gold and Margret M Gold 2007, 34) However, England’s feelings of anti-Scottishness were
dominant as well, especially in London, where they reigned as the most unpopular group in the
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city. Famously, the French have been the classic opponent to England, Scotland’s history as an
ally to France left both nations in a distasteful place in English society. (Rounce 2005, 23)
When James I united the Scottish and English crown in 1603, he did not unite a people.
As seen in the previous chapter, the Darien Scheme was the precursor to the unification of
Scotland and England in 1707. From the 1690s to 1707, Scotland Anglophobia would shine
bright. When parliament denied their efforts to fund their failing colony, Scots saw it as an
English provocation, not a decision made by William III. Their dedication to the king was quite
strong, as seen in this verse (Paul 2009, 10):
“King WILLIAM did Encourage us, against the

English will. His Words is like a Statly Oal, Will
neither Bow nor Break; We’ll venture Life and
Fortune both, for Scotland and his sake”
The Scottish saw William as King of Scotland, not King of Great Britain. All the
reasoning for their pitfall fell on the English and their plot to force Scotland into unifying. The
Jacobite George Lockhart, a Scottish writer and politician, demanded payment for English
meddling in the Darien Scheme. (Paul 2009, 12-13) The next Century would mark the rise of
more Jacobitism. The Battle at Culloden Moor was the climax of the conflict between Jacobites
and British forces. Three-quarters of the Jacobite army were members of Highland clans and
even Scots from the lowlands dressed in Highland dress. The final battle for the Stuart line, the
descendent of the Scottish kings, involved over thirty Highland clans including Clan Cameron,
Clan MacFie, Clan MacMillan, Clan Stewart of Appin, Clan MacLaren, Clan MacColl, Clan
MacInes, Clan MacIntyre, Clan Livingstone, Clan Chattan, Clan MacIntosh, Clan MacGillivray,
Clan MacBean, Clan MacKinnon, Clan MacTavish, Clan MacDonnell of Keppoch, Clan
MacDonald of Glencoe, Clan MacGregor, Clan MacIver, Clan Ogilvy, Clan Ramsay, Clan
Drummond, Clan Boyd, Clan Forbes, Clan Wemyss, Clan Murray, Clan Ferguson, Clan Stewart
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of Atholl, Clan Menzies, Clan Robertson, and Clan MacKenzie. Only numbered at
approximately five-thousand men, the Jacobites were outnumbered by the Hanoverian army of
eight-thousand. (New World Encyclopedia, s.v. “Battle of Culloden) The Jacobites lost the battle
because of soldier fatigue, superior British artillery, and poor movement in the marsh. In the
aftermath of the battle, British soldiers executed all surviving Jacobites, and Jacobite
sympathizers became criminals. Then, parliament passed the Act of Proscription in 1747, which
banned Gaelic, the tartan, Highland ceremonies, and bagpipes. The targeting of Scottish cultural
identifiers was, by definition, anti-Scottish, and following the act, the English attempted to
gentrify the Scottish Highlands with its more “English” lowlands. (John Robert Gold and
Margret M Gold 2007, 12) In the public sphere, the Scottish – English conflict relied heavily on
how the two commanders, Charles Stuart and William of Cumberland, at the Battle of Culloden,
were portrayed. For the English, the Duke of Cumberland was young, handsome, and most
importantly, English. He was the heroic commander who saved the English from the invasion of
the Scottish, unlike Charles, who portrayed as a foreign invader and a coward. For the Scottish,
Charles became known as Bonnie Prince Charlie and described as religiously tolerant,
empathetic, and supportive of local communities, the young and handsome Scotsman. The Duke
of Cumberland – ‘the Butcher’ most highlanders called him – became the symbol of English
arrogance and was depicted as old and overweight. (John Robert Gold and Margret M Gold
2007, 13-4)
The most outstanding example of anti-Scot sentiment in the 18th Century would occur
during George III reign. John Stuart Earl of Bute was George’s mentor, mockingly called the
king’s ‘favorite’ by his critics. In 1763 he would become the Prime Minister where he would face
immense criticism for his policy and his influence on George III. The English thought he was
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using his position to increase the power of Scotland in Great Britain. His association with the
Stuarts brought back fears of Charles I rule, where the Stuart throne held an absolutionist hold
over the country. Some saw George III ‘absolutionist tendencies’ as proof of Bute’s influence.
The prime minister could not be trusted because he was Scottish. The four-hundred prints satire
based on Bute consisted heavily on Scottish stereotyping: insolence, self-interest, and Jacobite
disobedience. (Rounce 2005, 22-3)
“To that rare soil, where virtues clust’ring grow,

What mighty blessings doth not England owe,
What waggon-loads of courage, wealth, and sense,
Doth each revolving day import from thence!
To us, she gives, disinterested friend!
Faith without fraud, and Stuarts without end.
Churchill explains England’s supremacy over Scotland and how the Scottish will always
be ‘pretenders’ like their Bonnie Prince Charlie. Bute is a pretender king, and he thinks he rules
Britain. Englishmen should not allow it. (Rounce 2005, 29)
Lur’d by that name, fine engine of deceit!

Shall the weak English help themselves to cheat;
To gain our love, with honours shall they grace
The old adherents of the Stuart race,
Who, pointed out no matter by what name,
Tories or Jacobites, are still the same.”
Further, Churchill connects Bute to Jacobites and their penchants for “deceit’ and trickery.
Almost Twenty years since Culloden, fear of another Jacobite uprising was still intense, and by
connecting Bute to Jacobites, Churchill is warning the English of betrayal and spurring their fear.
(Rounce 2005, 32) John Wilkes and Charles Churchill, the primary authors of these satirical
pieces aimed at Bute, focused on English society to strengthen their anti-Scot sentiment. Wilkes’
Englishness was defined primarily by the fear of Scottish domination and conspiracy of
England’s condemnation to fall under Scottish decree. Nowadays, the English consider Wilkes’
stances towards the Scottish to be far from ordinary. His movement to kick Bute out of office
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succeeded, but reliance on prejudice presented him as a champion of bigotry. Wilkes ended up
living in exile in France between 1764 and 1768 shortly after his victory. (Rounce 2005, 38)
When the Repeal of the Act of Proscription occurred in 1782, Jacobitism transformed into
a cultural belief. Under the influence of the Romantic Era, Jacobitism gained power through
nostalgia. Highlander culture was celebrated because if its resistance to modernism. Highlanders
were no longer primitive barbarians but the protectors of the British Empire. (John Robert Gold
and Margret M Gold 2007, 15) Unfortunately, the Battle of Culloden continued to become more
polarized. Bonnie Prince Charlie was now the hero of Scotland, similar to how William Wallace
is perceived today after the release of Braveheart (1995). Romantic Jacobitism evolved into 20th
Century Scottish identity, where hatred for the English was a primary attribute. Highlanders
would be the perfect example of a Scot, tartans, bagpipes, and the Highland Games. (McIntosh,
Sim, and Robertson 2004, 4) In 1999 when Scotland gained a regional parliament under
devolution, Scottish identity would rise to extreme levels. After unification in 1707, Scotland
was foreign, and these feelings never left; Scotland would build its character on its difference
from England. In 2003, Scotland saw the English as Middle Class, arrogant (like the Duke of
Cumberland), and as colonizers – England was always the more powerful of the two countries,
real unification was never possible. (McIntosh, Sim, and Robertson 2004, 6-7) The English
population growth in Scotland would reach 8% in the 2000s and were frequent victims of
prejudice by the Scottish.
Interestingly, the victims of these attacks were white-collar workers, the opposite of
Scotland’s working-class identity. (McIntosh, Sim, and Robertson 2004, 1) In 2004, Ian
McIntosh, Douglas Sim, and Douglas Robertson described a variety of microaggressions and
feelings of difference in English residents of Scotland experiences in their paper, “It’s as if
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you’re some alien…’ Exploring Anti-English Attitudes in Scotland’. English accents weaponized
against them to the point that their children would develop a ‘bilingualism’ – speaking in a
Scottish accent at school and an English accent at home. Once they identified as English, Scots
called them ‘Sassunaich,’ a word that is hard to pronounce by non-Gaelic speakers, but also
directly means ‘Saxon.’ By targeting the English with their foreign tongue, Englishmen enter a
zone of discomfort and division. When in conversations with Scots, it was custom for ‘the
English’ to be the main subject of discussion, and members of the study felt they needed to hate
themselves to fit in. (McIntosh, Sim, and Robertson 2004, 3) The small hints of unwelcomeness
were so prevalent that some members attributed Scottish actions to a sort of racism. “I hate the
thing when you’re in a public place, and the minute you haven’t spoken with the vernacular
accent, everybody stops what they’re doing and turns round and stare at you as if you’re some
alien… You [get] a sense that maybe black people get a lot, you know, if they walk into a public
place and people just do a double-take or take a step aside or stare at them or whatever it is,
you’ve been spotted as somebody that’s different.” (McIntosh, Sim, and Robertson 2004, 7)
Importantly, some of the English interviewed cited the films Braveheart (1995) and Rob Roy
(1995) as perpetrators of pro-Scot attitudes. The Scottish romanticism in the films elevated
English discretions and increased Scottish victimization. The Scottish saw the English as a
threat, Londoners bought their money into Scotland, had bought businesses, and raised local
prices. (McIntosh, Sim, and Robertson 2004, 4-5) Scottish identity developed into the mirror
image of their perceived English character. One could not be Scottish if they did not hate the
English.
From unification to the devolution of the Scottish parliament, there are spatters of
Anglophobia and anti-Scottish sentiment between the English and Scottish. The failure of the
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Darien Scheme was blamed on the English even when it was William III, who was enforcing its
decisions. Jacobitism, while not characteristically Scottish, would be blamed on the Scottish after
the Battle of Culloden. The commanders of the Jacobite and Loyalist armies stereotyped into
Scottish and English heroes. John Stuart, a Scottish prime minister, was the target of bigotry by
anti-Scot conspiracy. The English feared control of the country was in the hands of the Scottish;
meanwhile, the Scottish believed they were victims of colonization under English domination.
Highlanders had their culture stripped from them, and when they returned to their culture, it
came back with a vengeance. The Highlander and antithesis to English identity was the base of
Scottish identity. Always seen as a foreign place, Scotland accepted its difference but also based
themselves on their hatred for the English. That hatred developed in an Anglophobia focused on
English accents and English stereotypes. The balance of prejudice is unequal, but English history
purposely excludes mention of anti-Scot experiences, according to Linda Colley (Rounce 2005,
20). Scotland’s reliance on the colonization narrative explains why they had a persistent push for
independence from England. Still, McIntosh’s report revealed pro-Scot film might have had an
essential influence on Scotland’s identity. Therefore, the analysis of two films and two TV series
is essential in discovering new sources of the cultural rift between Scotland and England.
19
Chapter 3 Ethnotypes and Film Synopsis
When it comes to analysis, the approach to organize representative observations will be
character analysis through narratology – who is the actor, what is their nationality, and what
costumes and props appear in the media – and imagological ethnotypes – English and Scottish
representation within the media. Therefore detail on particular English and Scottish ethnotypes
from Imagology: The Cultural Construction and Literary Representation of National
Characters: a Critical Survey textbook will be required.
As with most identities, the English and Scottish have transformed throughout history.
Ethnotypes of both nations consider religion, class, and even ethnic background as crucial to
their formation. There are two groups, The Gentleman and John Bull, that create English
stereotypes. The Gentleman has a phlegmatic persona, a sense of duty to the country, self-
confidence, and a morally upright, Christian, and usually upper class (and fond of French
cuisine) presence. This classification developed between the 14th and 18th Centuries, from the
time of the Norman conquests, where non-heirs held the title Gentleman, to the era of the British
Empire, where sport became more important than education because it strengthened men into
leaders. (Spiering 2007, 146) John Bull, on the other hand, is a choleric character, with a matter
of fact attitude, often unkempt and ready to fight, and hates the French. Often sitting in the lower
class, John Bull, made his premiere in the 18th Century in The History of John Bull by John
Arbuthnot. (Spiering 2007, 146) Even though The Gentleman and John Bull contrast, they shape
the general ethnotypes of the English: Protestantism, honesty, arrogance, imperialism, and
Gallaphobia (hatred of the French). Jacobitism caused an Othering of the Scottish as enemies to
the United Kingdom, negative Scottish stereotypes contrasted with positive English stereotypes.
Scottish ally-ship with France and the emergence of Germany as an global rival developed an
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English identity bereft of Europe. (Spiering 2007, 148) Through industrialization, English
identity experienced a ‘North/South divide, contrasting a rugged, industrialized North with a
most genteel, rural South.’ (Spiering 2007, 149) Instead of English identity defined by its
neighbor, the Scottish, 21st Century Englishness developed through the continued Othering of
Europe and a Euroscepticism of European Integration. In the analysis of the films later in this
chapter, English representation, for certain characters, has become vague and does not fit entirely
in a group. Therefore, there is a presence of the hybridization of The Gentleman and John Bull
within characters. One issue with these ethnotypes is they focus on one gender representation,
but many characteristics are not gender-dependent. A woman can be a ‘gentleman’ or a ‘John
Bull,’ but because of how gender representation works within media, purely ethnic image is
muddled. While it is not the focus of this report, notes on gender appear, and analysis will focus
only on aspects of the predefined ethnotypes above.
Conversely, Scottish ethnotypes went through five different phases: Confusion between
the Irish and the Scottish, impoverish people who live nowhere, a dichotomy between the
Highlanders and the Lowlanders, the Romanticism of the Highlands and the British Empire, and
movement towards democracy and inclusivity. Before the 12th Century, the Scottish identity did
not exist. The people who inhabited the Highlands and Lowlands were simply known as
Albannaich or Gaelic speakers. Because the Irish and the Scottish both speak a form of Gaelic,
their language would blend their identities. Around the same time Scotland developed as a
kingdom in the 12th and 13th Centuries, the Irish and Scottish became separate nations, but
religious and lingual similarities created confusion for outsiders. (Pittock 2007, 230-1)This first
phase of Scottish identity would break when Scotland made its first (of many) alliance with
France in the 14th Century. Under French ally-ship, ‘the Scot’ became a global identity.
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Scottishness was labeled as the impoverished, living in the middle of nowhere, where strength
and fighting ability was required to survive. Phase 2 Scottish identity belonged to the ‘Scottish
Hero from the mountains’ who had successfully resisted the Romans, the Vikings, and the
Saxons. At the same time, within phase 2 came the dichotomy between the Highlands and
Lowlands in the 16th Century, a cultural border based on the geographical border of the highland
fault. The Highlanders became descendants of the Celts and Gaelic speaking Catholics who
followed the Jacobite cause and were bound to their kin, clan, and honor. Here the Scottish
identity reverted to phase 1; the Irish and the Highlanders were indistinguishable; they were
indignant, savage, and followers of tyranny. The Lowlanders, on the other hand, were decedents
of the Teutons, English speaking Protestants who were loyal to England.
The root of ‘colonized Scotland’ grew out of the phase 3 split of Highlands and
Lowlands. (Pittock 2007, 231-2)Nevertheless, as Jacobitism continued to grow into the 18th
Century, the split became unimportant to the British army, and Scots became ‘filthy, flea-ridden,
grasping, treacherous and violent.’ (Pittock 2007, 232) When the aftermath of Culloden caused
the illegalization of Highlander culture, the forty years between the Act of Proscription of 1747
and its repeal in 1782 developed a nostalgia for Highlander culture. Phase 4 Scottishness was a
romantic reimaging of the Highlander and their participation in establishing the British Empire.
Another split between Highlands and Lowlands occurred permanently; Highlanders became the
‘real Scot,’ and Lowlanders blended entirely into English ethnotypes. The Highlander was
‘brave, soldierly, and valorous… tamed by British discipline and the opportunity for military
careers’ and the Lowlander was ‘better-educated than the English, care, cautious and the
backbone of the Empire, though arguably unfit to lead it.’ Pittock 232-3) Romantic
Highlanderism continues into the 21st Century, where there is a small change to seeing Scotland
22
as a democratic and inclusive nation (phase 5). Still, due to pushes for autonomy from the
Scottish and the Independence Referendum, some English returned to perceptions of the Scottish
as disloyal Highlanders and English-like Lowlanders. (Pittock 2007, 234) Unlike English
ethnotypes, the five phases of Scottish ethnotypes are not harshly gender-coded, but they can
overlap each other. Therefore, when analyzing Scottish characters, some may appear to fit
multiples phases.
To better understand culture’s effect on Scottish independence, Outlander, The Last
Kingdom, This is England, and Trainspotting are separated into two categories: pre-2014 and
post-2014 because the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum is a turning point for the cultural
clash between England and Scotland. Trainspotting and This is England are films created before
2014 and focus on the Thatcher era (the 1980s) of British politics right before devolution. Much
of the UK suffered under economic decline and a rise in nationalism (both English and Scottish).
The pre-2014 films provide a modern look at the rift between Scotland and England, not due to
the othering of each other, but alienation under the union. The story of This is England focuses
on Shaun, a 12-year old boy who lost his father in the Falklands War, and a group of skinheads
under Woody: Milky, Lol, Smell, Gadget, Meggy, Pukey, Kes, and Kelly.
In Shaun’s journey of self-discovery, Woody’s friend Combo returns from prison and
introduces the teenage skinheads to far-right ideals (anti-immigrant and white nationalist
23
rhetoric). Shaun is emboldened by Combo when he goes on a rant about England, immigrants
and Thatcher’s war:
Two-thousand years, this little tiny fucking island has been raped and
pillaged by people who have come here and wanted a piece of it. Two
fucking world wars, men have laid down their lives for this… So we can
stick our fucking flag in the ground and say, ‘Yeah, this is England’…
What for? So we can just open the fucking floodgates and let them all
come in?... There’s three and a half million unemployed out there… Cos
they’re taking them all. Cos’s fucking cheap labor… And that Thatcher
sits there in her fucking ivory tower and sends us on a fucking phony
war!”
Hurt that his father died needlessly, Shaun creates a new goal for himself: to become a
proud Englishman. Woody’s group ends up splitting up, Gadget, Shaun, and Pukey join
Combo’s gang, and Combo becomes Shaun’s father figure. The gang follows Combo to a
meeting by the right-wing, white nationalist party, the Nationalist Front. Lenny, a spokesman for
the National Front, exemplifies the alienation people felt under the unionist policies of Thatcher:
As Shaun continues to mimic Combo’s attitude, he gets into an altercation with Mr.
Sandhu, a local shopkeeper, calling him a ‘Paki Bastard,’ and he and Combo’s gang rob the
store. The climax of the film involves Milky, a Jamaican-Englishman who refused to join
Combo’s gang, and Combo as they hang out and get high. As they speak about their lives and
their family, Combo white nationalism flares up as he calls Milky racial slurs and almost beats
24
him to death. Shaun realizes he no longer wants to be a proud Englishman, takes the English flag
that hung in his window, and tosses it into the sea.
Whereas, in Trainspotters, the plot involves three Scottish heroin addicts: Renton, Sick
Boy and Spud, their clean, footballer friend Tommy, and the local thug Begbie. Renton narrates
the film as he goes from an addict, to clean and back to addict again. Their addiction to heroin
relies heavily on existential dread in Thatcher’s Britain. In the short lapse of Renton and his
friends clean period, Tommy takes them into the Scottish countryside to hike a mountain, and
Renton goes on a rant about Scottish identity.
Renton and his group despair in their Scottish identity and use heroin as a coping
mechanism. Thus, after their short stint as non-addicts, they return to using again. When
Tommy’s girlfriend ends up breaking up with him, he starts using heroin in desperation. To
finance their addiction, Renton, Sick Boy, and Spud begin stealing and shoplifting and inevitably
get caught. Spud imprisoned, Sick Boy on the run, and Renton on a rehabilitation program. After
a delirious struggle in his childhood bedroom, Renton escapes heroin and Scotland. He moves to
London to become a real estate agent, but he cannot avoid his friends Begbie and Sick Boy
following him from Scotland. After Tommy dies from AIDS (transmitted through a heroin
needle) and they all return to Scotland for his funeral, Renton, Spud, and Begbie get involved in
25
a drug deal orchestrated by Sick Boy. They sell £16,000 of heroin in London, and Renton steals
all of it, freeing himself from his troublesome friends and Scotland.
The first seasons of Outlander (16 episodes) and The Last Kingdom (8 episodes) debuted
in the UK in 2015, right after the Scottish Independence Referendum. Outlander places fictional
faces on real events when Claire, an Englishwoman from the 1940s, is sent back in time to 1743.
She is almost assaulted by Captain Randall, a British officer, when a Highland war chief, Dougal
MacKenzie, saves her. Now a prisoner of the MacKenzie clan, Claire meets Jamie, a wanted man
of clan Fraser, who had altercations with Captain Randall in the past. At Castle Leoch, Claire
meets Colum MacKenzie, leader of the clan, and becomes the castle healer because of her
experience in World War II as a nurse. While gathering herbs for her medicines, Claire meets
Geillis, the local witch, who practices pagan rituals in the night. When Claire thinks she has
gained trust with clan MacKenzie, Dougal takes her away from Castle Leoch on a journey to
collect rent from tenants. In her company are Jamie, Ned, the MacKenzie lawyer, Angus, Rupert,
and Willie, MacKenzie clansmen. As the group travels the Highlands countryside collecting rent
– and secretly, taking donations for Bonnie Prince Charlie – a ‘redcoat’ discovers Claire might
be imprisoned and brings a squad to rescue her. Claire denies she is a captive but agrees to
accompany the squad to a nearby British outpost to meet their commander. With Dougal
accompanying her, Claire finds relief being “surrounded by my own people,” the British army.
26
At the meeting with Sir Thomas, commander of the British forces in the Highlands, Dougal
experiences English arrogance.
When Captain Randall interrupts the meeting, Claire realizes she gained respect for
Jacobites like Dougal. Captain Randall tries to take Claire into custody as a Jacobite
sympathizer, but Dougal rescues her again. To escape the clutches of Randall, Claire must marry
a Scotsman and become a real Scot because the British army is not allowed to imprison Scottish
citizens without permission from clan leaders. Jamie and Claire marry each other, but their
marriage only creates more complications because of Claire’s modern, English sensibilities.
After returning to Castle Leoch, a drama between Colum and Dougal begins. First, Willie tells
Colum that Dougal is a Jacobite, and then, Dougal impregnates Geillis. Simultaneously , Jamie
contacts the Duke of Sandringham with a letter of complaint against Captain Randall in the hope
it can gain him a pardon. Colum decides to exile Dougal from the castle, with Jamie to watch
him. Now alone at the castle, Claire is accused of being a witch along with Geillis. As Geillis
confesses to the court, she is a witch; she reveals she is also a time traveler from the 1960s
because of her scar from a smallpox vaccine. Claire is then taken away from Castle Leoch by
Jamie, who hopes he will soon be pardoned from his crimes. When Claire reveals she is a time
traveler, Jamie gives her a chance to return to her time, but she chooses to stay. Jamie takes his
27
place as Fraser clan leader until he gets involved with a group of outlaws called The Watch.
Jamie ends up imprisoned in Wentworth prison, where he is to be hanged for his crimes.
Unfortunately, Captain Randall shows up to torture Jamie one last time, postponing the
execution. Claire, Angus, Rupert, Willie, and Murtagh (a Fraser clansman) help free Jamie from
prison and Captain Randall, but the couple must escape to France. Claire and Jamie decide to try
and stop the battle at Culloden to save clan MacKenzie.
The Last Kingdom occurs in the 9th Century, a time before England when the British Isles
split into competing kingdoms. Uhtred is heir to Bebbanburg in Northumbria until his uncle,
Aelfric, betrays him. Now the adopted son of the Dane, Earl Ragnar, Uhtred becomes a complex
character of Saxon heritage and Viking culture. He grows up alongside the Danes with another
English captive, Brida, who fully assimilated to Dane culture. Kjartan and Sven, past tenants
exiled from Ragnar land, murder Earl Rangar, and Uhtred and Brida become exiles. No longer
safe in the territories conquered by the Danes, Uhtred and Brida travel to Wessex, the last free,
English kingdom. Uhtred must prove himself to the pious King Alfred, who sees Uhtred as a
disloyal pagan. Beocca, a priest under Alfred, who knows Uhtred from his childhood, becomes
the key to Uhtred’s return to Bebbanburg. Now set with the goal of taking back his land, Uhtred
commits his sword to Alfred’s cause, to create a united kingdom of England. Brida, who sees
28
herself as a Dane, leaves Wessex with Young Ragnar, son of Earl Ragnar, who was absent to his
father’s murder. Uhtred promises he will help them get revenge on Kjartan and Sven. Thus the
sides are decided; the Danes follow Ubba and Guthrum, whose focus is conquering Wessex.
Alfred leads Wessex with the Ealdorman of Devonshire, Odda the Elder, as his trusted general.
To further prove his loyalty to Alfred, Uhtred marries Odda’s goddaughter, Mildrith, and
becomes an ealdorman. When Guthrum’s forces capture a local Wessex fort, Alfred orders
Uhtred to be taken hostage by the Danes and spy on them.
Ragnar and Brida are inside the forth with Guthrum and try to convince to abandon the
English and become a Dane again. Worried about Mildrith and his newborn son, Uhtred decided
to return to Wessex, and with the help of Ragnar escape execution by Guthrum. Back in Wessex,
Uhtred becomes conflicted with his identity and bitter towards Christianity, driving a wedge
between him and Mildrith. When Ubba is defeated by Uhtred at Cynuit, Odda the Elder is
injured, and Odda the Younger becomes the new Ealdorman of Devonshire. Unaware Odda the
Younger has taken credit for the defeat of Ubba and victory at Cynuit, Uhtred travels to
Cornwallum with Leofric to earn some extra silver. In Cornwallum, he meets a Briton sorceress,
Iseult, who he takes into his safety after Danes kill the King of Cornwallum. At his return to
Alfred’s court in Winchester, Uhtred is found guilty of breaking the treaty between Wessex and
the murder of Christians.
29
Leofric, unable to deny the charges, asks to let God decide Uhtred’s fate in a trial of
combat. As Leofric and Uhtred fight each other unwillingly, the Danes invade Winchester and
Wessex falls. Uhtred, Iseult and Leofric now on the run, save a nun, Hild, from rape by the
invading Danes. Now taking refuge in the marshlands of Wessex, Uhtred discovers Alfred has
evaded capture with his family. Alfred wants to escape to Frankia for the time being, but Uhtred
convinces him to fight for Wessex; otherwise, Alfred is the “king of nothing.” Isuelt performs a
pagan ritual, saving Alfred’s son Edward from a deadly fever, and then the party travels to
Odda’s estate. Alfred dispatches three messengers far across Wessex to bring their armies to
Egbert’s Stone, where they will fight the Danes. When they arrive in Devonshire, Odda the
Younger has allied himself with the Danes proclaiming Alfred to be a failure of a king. Odda the
Elder is forced to kill his son when he sees Alfred witnessing the traitorous rant. He takes his
army to Egbert’s Stone with Alfred, and they wait for the rest of Wessex’s armies to arrive. With
the odds in the Danes’ favor, Alfred puts his trust in God.
The Saxons end up pushing back the Danes at the battle of Ethandun, and Guthrum
attributes it to God’s providence. The war between the Danes and Wessex ends with the baptism
of Guthrum, and Uhtred heads out to reclaim his lands at Bebbanburg.
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Chapter 4 Character Analysis
Charted below is a simplified analysis of Trainspotting, This is England, The Last
Kingdom, and Outlander. Characters and actors in bold depict a difference in nationality, and
highlights depict Gentleman, John Bull, and hybrid representations of English ethnotypes, as
well as phase 1 – 5 Scottish ethnotypes. Due to relevance, the Vikings characters from The Last
Kingdom are not analyzed, and neither are some characters who do not appear enough to be
examined.
Figure 1 Outlander (2014) Figure 1 This is England (2006)
Character Actors Actor's Nationality
Claire (Eng) ♀ Caitriona Balfe Irish
Frank (Eng) Tobias Menzies English Character Actor Actor's Nationality
Jamie (Scot) Sam Heughan Scottish Shaun (Eng) Thomas Turgoose English
Captain Randall (Eng) Tobias Menzies English Combo (Eng) Stephen Graham English
Dougal (Scot) Graham McTavish Scottish Cynth (Eng) ♀ Jo Hartley English
Geillis (Scot) ♀ Lotte Verbeek Dutch Milky (Eng) Andrew Shim American
Ned (Scot) Bill Patterson Scottish Lol (Eng) ♀ Vicky McClure English
Sir Thomas (Eng) John Heffernan English
Woody (Eng) Joseph Gilgun English
Duke of Sandrigham (Eng) Simon Callow English
Smell (Eng) ♀ Rosamund Hanson English
MacQuarrie (Scot) Henshall Scottish
Jenny (Scot) ♀ Luara Donnelly Irish Gadget (Eng) Andrew Ellis English
Ian (Scot) Steven Cree Scottish Banjo (Eng) George Newton English
Angus (Scot) Stephen Walters English Lenny (Eng) Frank Harper English
Rupert (Scot) Grant O'Rourke Scottish Pukey (Eng) Jack O'Connell English
Willie (Scot) Finn Den Hertog Scottish Mr. Sandhu (Paki) Kriss Dosanjh English
Key
Gentleman
John Bull
English Hybrid
Phase 1
Phase 2
Phase 3
Phase 4
Phase 5
N/A
Figure 3 The Last Kingdom (2015) Figure 4 Trainspotting (1996)

Character Actor Actor's Nationality
Character Actor Actor's Nationality
U htred (Eng) Alexander Dreymon German Renton (Scot) Ewan McGregor Scottish
Ubba (Dane) Rune Temte Norwegian Spud (Scot) Ewen Bremmer Scottish
Aelswith (Eng) ♀ Eliza Butterworth English Sick Boy (Scot) Johnny Lee Miller English
Beocca (Eng) Ian Hart English Tommy (Scot) Kevin McKidd Scottish
Brida (Eng) ♀ Emily Cox Austrian Begbie (Scot) Robert Carlyle Scottish
Alfred (Eng) David Dawnson English
Diane (Scot) Kelly Mcdonald Scottish
Aethelwold (Eng) Harry McEntire English
Iseult (Briton) Charlie Murphy Irish Swanney (Scot) Peter Mullan Scottish
Hild (Eng) ♀ Eva Birthistle Irish Mr. Renton (Scot) James Cosmos Scottish
Odda the Elder (Eng) Simon Kunz English Mrs. Renton (Scot) ♀ Eileen Nicholas Scottish
Odda the Younger (Eng) Brian Vernel Scottish Allison (Scot) ♀ Susan Vidler Scottish
Ragnar (Dane) Tobias Santlemann German Lizzy (Scot) ♀ Pauline Lynch Scottish
Loefric (Eng) Adrian Bower English
Gail (Scot) ♀ Shirley Henderson Scottish
Aelfric (Eng) Joseph Milson English
Guthrum (Dane) Thomas W. Gabrielsson Swedish
Mildrith (Eng) ♀ Amy Wren English
31
In This is England, Shaun symbolizes the loss of identity England has experienced under
the union because Englishness was intricately tied to Britishness. He does not know who he is
and what he is doing. At the beginning of the film, he meanders about and gets into a fight about
his father’s death. The skinheads are similar; they have attached themselves to a subculture to
generate an identity for themselves. Meadows, director, and writer for the films explains
skinheads had grown out of working-class English lads working side by side with West Indians
in factories and shipyards in the late-60s” (Steans 2013, 74). The movement grew out of class
solidarity. Eventually, when Combo enters the scenes, he transforms the subculture into a
nationalistic movement; under Combo, Shaun and Gadget develop into John Bulls with a
penance for Euroscepticism. Combo’s gang deface walls with racial slurs and hate speech similar
to how a John Bull hates the French. Lenny, from the National Front, comes off as a Gentleman
and sees a return to Englishness as a duty to his country. The hegemonic cast displays how This
is England is a film about English identity.
Yet, Milky, the Jamaican-English gang
member, is not played by an English actor but
Andrew Shim, an African-American. This
character is almost beaten to death for not
being English, for threatening Combo’s white
supremacy, but the actor is not even a black Englishman. On the other hand, Mr. Sandhu, who
coded as an immigrant shopkeeper in the film, is played by Kriss Dosanjh, who is from England.
Mr. Sandhu follows the pattern of an English gentleman; he is polite even when his store is
getting robbed and treats Shaun calmly. Combo’s racism towards Milky demonstrates Shim’s
foreignness, but Dosanjh’s Englishness victimizes Mr. Sandhu when he is treated like a foreigner
32
by Shaun. In pre-2014 England, English identity is a controversial topic. People in the United
Kingdom are supposed to be British, but the alienation of the working class under Thatcherism
has created a population that does not want to be British.
The opposite effect occurs in Trainspotting. Scottish is almost entirely unspoken of in the
film. Renton is the only character to mention a Scottish identity, but not in a prideful way. Their
life under the British identity is suffocating and worrisome, so the group takes heroin to free
themselves of any worry. There is, amusingly, a moment of otherness in the film when Renton
moves to London, through ‘touristic clichés’ Renton and his parents other the English, ironically
mirroring imagery of the English visiting Scotland. While living within the same state, the Scots
and English regard each other as foreign tourist attractions. (Schoene 2010, 49)
Interestingly, the only character portrayed by an Englishman is Sick Boy. He is obsessed with
James Bond, and he dresses in a suit to copy
Bond; Sick Boy is also the character who
orchestrates the £16,000 drug deal. A
phlegmatic temperament, Sick Boy fits
closely to English stereotypes than Scottish.
Jointly, Renton and Spud embody a watered-down version of the indignant Scot from Highlander
ethnotypes, but Renton’s dismissal of Scottish identity places him in phase 5 democracy and
inclusiveness. Renton instead sees himself as British than Scottish. Begbie provokes a caricature
of a Highlander; He sets himself to get into brawls on purpose. One of the reasons Renton ends
up stealing the drug money is because Begbie starts a fight with an Englishman in a bar. The
Scottish in Trainspotting are drained of their identity and resort to drugs and a British identity to
cope.
33
Ethnotypes and identity are absent for the characters in the pre-2014 films. Britishness
has drained the working class and forced them to resort to radical measures to deal with that. The
English invest their time in the skinhead subculture, reinventing their identity, then use the
skinhead culture to develop a new sense of Englishness. For Meadows, England has no room for
the working class, and as outcasts, they become homeless victims who must fight to gain their
place. (Steans 2013, 77-8) Combo hates Milky and other immigrants because they have stolen
his spot in the nation, and his only solution is a return to England. The UK may not have room,
but England will. Scottishness is a chain that holds Renton back. He cannot escape the
impoverished reality of Edinburgh because it is a land conquered by the English. Self-defeated,
Renton fades into heroin intoxication and then escapes to England, where his life improves. His
Scottish friends are the ones who bring his heroin addiction back but also push him to separate
his life from them. Being Scottish, living in Scotland, is a dead end because of English conquest.
Renton’s escape from his experience in Edinburgh symbolizes hope for Scottish autonomy. With
the rise of English nationalism and the push for a better life in Scotland, the split in the union
was inevitable.
Whereas the pre-2104 films are absent of specific Scottish and English ethnotypes,
Outlander and The Last Kingdom rely on them. The shows focus on the times forgotten, 18th
Century Highland culture, and 10th Century English resistance to Viking conquest. Outlander did
not release on the British market because it could not secure a British distributor. While it
released successfully near the end of 2014 in the United States and Ireland, it did not reach a UK
release until 2015. It premiered on Amazon Prime, which required British citizens to search for
the show, instead of simply tuning in on their television. Even though the show was filmed in
Scotland and featured Scottish actors, British citizens considered it an American TV show,
34
which alienated the audience. Under the theory of cultural proximity, an audience is more likely
to watch a show if it involves their culture and place they know. The show was irrelevant to
Scottish citizens as an American show. Therefore, when Outlander was released later and on an
American provider, the UK was able to shelter citizens from its Jacobite sympathies. (Shacklock
2016, 311-12) The show is a result of Highlander Romanticism, with sweeping bagpipe music,
traditional kilts and tartans, and English
oppression; Phase 2 Scottishness is the
primary representation of the Scottish
characters in Outlander because of this.
Claire matches a phlegmatic, English
sensibility, and her outspokenness is a symbol of her 20th-century background, not her ethnic
representation. She began her journey as a stranger in a strange land and labeled a ‘Sassenach’
(English or Outlander) by Jamie and the MacKenzies. Until she marries Jamie, the highlanders
see Claire as an English spy, a threat to their autonomy.
In the show, the Scottish suffer under English tyranny through the actions of Captain
Randall, a hybrid character. He is arrogant towards the Scottish, who he sees as traitorous beasts,
but acts with brutish savagery. Randall flogged Jamie twice in one day, a total of 200 lashes,
which left Jamie with unrepairable scarring. The treatment Jamie suffers under Randall is
metaphoric to the treatment Scots felt under English conquest. When Claire discovers Dougal is
collecting donations for Bonnie Prince Charlie, she feels remorse for the MacKenzies and plans
to stop the battle at Culloden to save them. The audience should feel despair for the realities of
Culloden and the end of Highland culture. The character of Geillis is a character of wish
fulfillment; she travels back in time from the 1960s, intending to change history. She funnels
35
thousands of pounds into Dougal’s Jacobite campaign; in hope, she can create a future where
Scotland was victorious.
While the characters in This is England are trying to reinvent English identity, The Last
Kingdom focuses on the invention of Englishness. The English characters are pious and
xenophobic. They do not want to fall under the controls of the pagan Danes. Uhtred suffers
because of this point of view; he is tested multiple times by Alfred to prove his loyalty because a
pagan cannot be trusted. The conflict between
Alfred and Guthrum ends through baptism.
Throughout the show, Guthrum grows an
interest in Christianity, questioning priests and
listening to sermons. When Aethelwold,
Alfred’s nephew, was a captive under Guthrum, he
explains, “Alfred believes that he can win… he is wrong, of course, but his faith, that God will
not desert him, will make him believe that he will win.” Later at the Battle of Ethandun, Uhtred
breaks through the front line against the Danes, and Guthrum exclaims, “Did you see that? It
came as the priest said. Their God is with them.” The Viking characters are all played by
Scandinavian actors – Uhtred, Brida, and Young Ragnar are not – increasing the difference
between the English and Viking characters. Alexander Dreymon, a German, plays Uhtred
because he is different from both the English and the Danes. He is trying to be both Saxon and
Dane, but it is not possible. The show is based on The Saxon Stories by Bernard Cornwell, who
explains the show covers contemporary topics despite its placement in the 10th Century. (Brown
2015, 1)
36
“I do see something modern in it – that we are all

immigrants. The Saxons are immigrants – according to the
British, the Celts, they have stolen land the land they have.
The first shield wall battle which Uhtred takes part in is
against the Welsh. The Saxons were very successful
colonizers, and neighbors, then the Danes, the Normans,
the Huguenots, you name it… right through this Century,
we are all immigrants.”
The Saxon characters are gentlemen, dedicated to King Alfred’s vision of England, but
four characters do not follow this ethnotype. Beocca, a Saxon priest, is a rowdy character who
yells expletives at the Danes. Leofric, a loyal captain to Odda, gets along well with Uhtred and
even travels with him to raid Cornwallum. Aethelwold was supposed to be the next king, but
wastes his days in whore houses and speaks traitorously about Alfred. Then there is Aelfric,
Uhtred’s uncle and current Ealdorman of Bebbanburg, who attempts to murder Uhtred and
accepts rule under the Danes; Aelfric is not the model Englishman, he is the antagonist. Even
though Saxon society rejects Uhtred because of his pagan beliefs, he is the protagonist because
he represents the values of an Englishman. He fights for the country, defends the king, and
believes in liberty. Brida, who is a Saxon, denies the identity and, in choosing the Danes,
becomes absent from the show.
Conclusion
England and Scotland’s histories are tied together, and their identities are influenced by
each other. Similarly, both nations were affected by Britishness and the union. Characters in
Trainspotting (1996) and This is England (2006) are suffering an identity crisis. Renton does not
want to be a Scot because it only brings pain, and Combo wants to reinvent himself as an
Englishman because he suffers under British imperialism. These films were echoes of life under
Thatcher, where nationalism was the solution for her unionism and the economic recession.
37
Renton takes his life into his own hands when he steals the money, and Scotland took its future
into its own hands through nationalism. Combo needed to fight alienation by determining his
Englishness and sovereignty.
Concurrently, representation after the referendum defined the lines between English,
Scottish, and British. In Outlander (2014), through an aversion to the British army Scottish
identity strengthens, characters like Jamie and Dougal are symbols of Highland Romanticism
and freedom of expression. The English participate in national pride, too; after all, The Last
Kingdom (2015) is a celebration of England’s conception. Guthrum and Alfred shine with
English nationalism; the Saxons are determined to create England; thus, the English audience
should be proud. The Highlanders are loyal to their clans, wear their tartan, and listen to
bagpipes, but suffer under England. Scotland is the victim of English colonization, while
England is at threat from immigrants. After 2014, cultural identity is vital to national
determination; the contrast between the absence of identity in the 1980s to the aftermath of the
referendum is influential. Audiences consume nationalistic media and elect to conform
representation to their nationalistic expression. Scotland questions why they are determined to
settle for rule under an unequal union, and England decides to be English, not British. The switch
in cultural representation in 2014 shapes the argument in Scottish independence and reveals the
union does not easily diminish the rift between England and Scotland.
Interestingly, both shows are not trying to break up the union. Claire is trying to stop the
uprising in 1745, and she wants to save Scottish culture. Alfred may despise pagans, but he does
not want to kill them all, he wants to convert them. If the Scots can learn to accept a ‘Sassenach’
like Claire, then perhaps the Scottish can learn to accept Englishmen.
38
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41

Challenging The Importance of Cultural Identity and History Surrounding Scottish Independence

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Challenging The Importance of Cultural Identity and History Surrounding Scottish Independence

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European Studies

appeared after Brexit finalized in 2019. An analysis of pre-referendum and post-referendum

and Anglophobia into the public sphere.

uses the presence of stereotypes to explain the development of identity-based nations.

Leerssen is a historian and expert on nationalism. Under imagology, he transforms simple

stereotypes into meaningful ethnotypes. Through an essentialist look, ethnotypes are

(Verstraten 2009, 37-40)

Previously, Polina Guseva publicized a report about the relationship between

by participants as an influence on an increased Scottish identity. In particular, Outlander, the

room for assumptions and generalization.

initiative to be viewed. Consequently, Outlander is a result of heightened Scottish identity due to

English identity and its relationship with immigration. (Brown 2015, 1)

Because of the method of the analysis, observations will be subjective. Identification of

a stubborn belief in the truthfulness of Narratology as an exact science, which is a common

inferiority-complex to define Scottish identity. Subsequently, general plot summaries are

portrayal by characters in the fourth chapter. Analysis of character treatment through

analysis amidst Scottish independence movements.

Chapter 1 Scotland and England’s Relationship

campaigns against Louis XIV. (Paul 2009, 12)

illegalization of Highland culture.

industrial North (Colley 2014, 52)

precursor to the Independence Referendum in 2014.

Chapter 2 Experiences of Anglophobia and anti-Scot Sentiment

strong, as seen in this verse (Paul 2009, 10):

“King WILLIAM did Encourage us, against the

disobedience. (Rounce 2005, 22-3)

“To that rare soil, where virtues clust’ring grow,

Britain. Englishmen should not allow it. (Rounce 2005, 29)

Lur’d by that name, fine engine of deceit!

prejudice by the Scottish.

feelings of difference in English residents of Scotland experiences in their paper, “It’s as if

Chapter 3 Ethnotypes and Film Synopsis

When it comes to analysis, the approach to organize representative observations will be

from Imagology: The Cultural Construction and Literary Representation of National

Characters: a Critical Survey textbook will be required.

identity experienced a ‘North/South divide, contrasting a rugged, industrialized North with a

only on aspects of the predefined ethnotypes above.

of the Teutons, English speaking Protestants who were loyal to England.

To better understand culture’s effect on Scottish independence, Outlander, The Last

and Thatcher’s war:

that hung in his window, and tosses it into the sea.

Renton goes on a rant about Scottish identity.

experiences English arrogance.

and stop the battle at Culloden to save clan MacKenzie.

Uhtred to be taken hostage by the Danes and spy on them.

the murder of Christians.

of Guthrum, and Uhtred heads out to reclaim his lands at Bebbanburg.

Chapter 4 Character Analysis

Charted below is a simplified analysis of Trainspotting, This is England, The Last

Figure 3 The Last Kingdom (2015) Figure 4 Trainspotting (1996)

is England is a film about English identity.

Yet, Milky, the Jamaican-English gang

member, is not played by an English actor but

Andrew Shim, an African-American. This

character is almost beaten to death for not

being English, for threatening Combo’s white

has created a population that does not want to be British.

James Bond, and he dresses in a suit to copy

Bond; Sick Boy is also the character who

orchestrates the £16,000 drug deal. A

phlegmatic temperament, Sick Boy fits

closely to English stereotypes than Scottish.

impoverished reality of Edinburgh because it is a land conquered by the English. Self-defeated,