Kate Fox
Watching the English
WATCHING THE ENGLISH
HODDER amp; STOUGHTON
Kate Fox, a social anthropologist, is Co-Director of the Social Issues Research Centre in Oxford and a Fellow of the Institute for Cultural Research. Following an erratic education in England, America, Ireland and France, she studied anthropology and philosophy at Cambridge.
'Watching the English... will make you laugh out loud ("Oh God. I do that!") and cringe simultaneously ("Oh God. I do that as well. "). This is a hilarious book which just shows us for what we are... beautifully-observed. It is a wonderful read for both the English and those who look at us and wonder why we do what we do. Now they'll know. '
Birmingham Post
'Fascinating reading. '
Oxford Times
'The book captivates at the first page. It's fun. It's also embarrassing. "Yes...
yes," the reader will constantly exclaim. "I'm always doing that"'.Manchester Evening News
'There's a qualitative difference in the results, the telling detail that adds real weight. Fox brings enough wit and insight to her portrayal of the tribe to raise many a smile of recognition. She has a talent for observation, bringing a sharp and humorous eye and ear to everyday conventions, from the choreography of the English queue to the curious etiquette of weather talk. '
The Tablet
'It's a fascinating and insightful book, but what really sets it apart is the informal style aimed squarely at the intelligent layman. '
City Life, Manchester
'Fascinating... Every aspect of English conversation and behaviour is put under the microscope. Watching the English is a thorough study which is interesting and amusing. '
Western Daily Press
'Enjoyable good fun, with underlying seriousness - a book to dip into at random and relish for its many acute observations. '
Leicester Mercury
Also by Kate Fox
The Racing Tribe: Watching the Horsewatchers
Pubwatching with Desmond Morris
Passport to the Pub:
The Tourist's Guide to Pub Etiquette
Drinking and Public Disorder
(with Dr Peter Marsh)
WATCHING THE ENGLISH
Copyright 2004 by Kate Fox
The right of Kate Fox to be identified as the Author of the Work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library
Epub ISBN 978 1 84894 050 5
Book ISBN 978 0 340 81886 2
Hodder and Stoughton Ltd
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London NW1 3BH
To Henry, William, Sarah and Katharine
Introduction - Anthropology at Home