Eyewitness

Task 1:  (Individual). Write a description of everything you can see in picture A. Use as much detail as possible. When you don’t know the technical name for something, find a way to describe it in your own words.

Picture A (click to enlarge)

parliament

Task 2: (Discuss with your neighbour.) Pictures A and B show the opening of the British parliament and the Swedish riksdag. What are some similarities and differences? What do the two pictures tell us about Swedish and British political traditions.

Picture B

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Task 3: (Discuss with your neighbour). Compare the scenes in pictures C and D. When and where do you think that they were taken? What is going on?

Picture C

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Picture D

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Task 4: (individual) Write a short paragraph comparing either picture A and B or pictures C and D. Use the ideas that came out of your discussionduring the lesson and your own knowledge.

 

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6 reaktioner till “Eyewitness”

  1. Task 1:
    In picture A you can clearly see the monarchs and the parliament partaking in some kind of traditional ceremony with the elite. Everyone is dressed in the finest clothes making it a ceremony with “pomp and circumstance”. You can see the House of Lords with their red robes and most likely the ministers of her majesty’s government in black robes with wigs. The costumes their wearing are period costumes: the whole setting is symbolic of when the British Empire was global. Her majesty is clearly reading the declaration of the government. The room in itself is very posh with the gold leaf throne and panel. Otherwise the wood and the carpet are expensive and exclusive. Other dignitaries such as sheiks and business people are also present, dressed in best clothes.
    Task: 4
    By comparison the opening of the Swedish parliament is more relaxed. The politicians and king are dressed in business suits instead of costumes. The rooms are very different, the Swedish parliament is very modern and high tech facility with microphones and screens etc. while the opening of the British parliament is very 19th century. While the queen of England is sitting in front of parliament, the king of Sweden is standing at a podium delivering his speech. There are also flowers as decoration in the Swedish parliament, indicating an affinity for nature. While the British seen set with nice furniture, clothes and gold.

    Gilla

  2. Task 1:
    The Queen (of the United Kingdom) is holding her speech, as is customary during the State Opening of Parliament, in front of the House of Lords, The Sovereign and the House of Commons. It is one of the biggest political events of the year in the UK, and for the parliament it is the main ceremonial event in their calendar.
    The ceremony is kept in the chamber of the House of Lords, and the Commons are seated on the opposite side of the throne and the Monarch. As shown in the picture there are a large number of guests present for the occasion and most of them are dressed in traditional outfits/ceremonial attire. The Queen donning the Robe of State and the Imperial State Crown are examples of this, and the display of the Great Sword of State together with the Cap of Maintenance (carried on the right and left sides of the thrones respectively) are also stressing the importance of the event.
    The Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom can be seen above Her Majesty, as well as on some officials in the rightmost corner of the image from our perspective.
    This year, 2016, the ceremony was held on the 18th of May.

    Task 2 and 3 depend on us having another student near to discuss with, would it be acceptable to do these during a coming lesson?

    Task 4:
    In picture C the symbol of the United Nations is displayed in the background along with the words ‘Peace and Freedom’ in various languages (English, Russian, German, etc…). It seems to be a gathering of some of the organization’s officials clad in pre-determined attire, possibly a official event of some sort.
    In picture D you see four English royal guards protecting something that is displayed on top of the Union Jack, and it seems to be a public event, if high stature.

    After further investigation picture C is an image of Olof Palme’s funeral that was held around 30 years ago. Picture D is one of the State Funeral of Winston Churchill, which makes the connection a lot more apparent. Divided opinions aside both of them were seen as great men by (part of) their respective countries, and were honored with grand send-offs after the time of their departing.

    Gilla

  3. Task 1
    The first thing that comes to mind is that it is a formal meeting of some sort. The first feeling that I get is that it is important and I feel very insignificant for not being there. The decoration is old fashioned and everything looks very fancy. The people that are attending this important meeting are very dressed up to show their respect in a way because the queen of England is sitting up on that red carpeted stage in her golden throne. There are people dressed in red and white, whom I would take a wild guess and say it is the House of the Lords and then the ministers in the black and gold attire.

    Task 4
    The first that is very prominent is that the English meeting is more “ceremonial” than what the Swedish parliament are both when it comes to the apparel and the execution of the meeting. In Sweden the men wears suits and a tie while the women are most likely to wear a formal type of dress. As we see in the picture that represents English we see that they are dressed in a formal way but a bit more over the top and they also have these ceremonial attires with the red and white and black and gold. That is something that would never really happen in a meeting with the Swedish parliament when even the king is in an “ordinary” suit and tie.
    We can also see how much more relaxed the Swedish parliament looks compared to the English people where we have people from all over the world honoring the queen, sitting straight and paying all the attention to her.

    Gilla

  4. Task 1:
    Formal meeting hold by the queen of United Kingdom. Many politically important persons from other parts of the world are attending the meeting. The majority of the attendants are dressed in cultural attires, like Arabic clothes and the English read coat with white collar. The queen is dressed in white and has the crown on her head representing the head of the kingdom. The architecture of the hall is very old with many detailed gold pattern on the wall behind the queen, two chandeliers with candles are suspended from the ceiling which gives an old English feeling and the walls are made of dark wood with beautiful pattern. The atmosphere is calm but gives a feeling of old England, which in my opinion makes the meeting very elegant, important and formal.

    Task 4:
    The picture of the Swedish meeting in the parliament differs very much from picture A. The king of Sweden is staying alone and talking with the attendants who are dressed very simply, without any cultural clothes or elegant dresses. The king is not wearing a crown on his head like the queen of England. The architecture of the hall is very simple with light wooden furniture without any patterns, which gives a feeling of modern architecture rather than old. White flowers are places on the table where the king is standing. Compared to the meeting in England the lights in the Swedish parliament are very bright and lit up the hall, which do not give the same “cozy” feeling. The meeting hold in Sweden seems to be very simple and formal.

    Gilla

  5. Task 1

    In picture A, I see the Queen Elisabeth II, to the left, and her husband prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, to the right, sitting on each throne in the upper middle of the picture. To the right of prince Philip stands two women in white dresses and they both are weraing blue ribbons across their chest. And to the left of the Queen Elisabeth II sits another couple; Charles, Prince of Whales and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall. These six persons stands or sits on an elevated place in a large room, probably church. In front on Queen Elisabeth II, four steps down, are a group of men where the majority wears grey elderly wigs. Some wears white dresses with red details, and some wears black dresses with golden details.

    Around these people, in an U – form, sits white and red dressed men and a few women, and in another U – form behind the first, sits ordinary-clothed persons, and if you look to the left hand side corner, there is persons with kind of tablecloths on their heads, with a black ring to hold it on its place.

    In both upper corners stands an amount of people in red and gold dresses, or red and white dresses, some kind of royal remnant. Queen Elisabeth II is wearing the royal crown, and she has her reading glasses on because she is reading something out of a book whith a white cover. She is wearing a white dress and also a red, long mantle that is laying nicely down the few staps down from the placement of the thrones. Behind her is a wall, coverd in golden details, and different kinds of sheild – emblem containing both red and blue details. Also mounting lions and mounting horses is a part of this wall. Two tall candlesticks stands on each side of the elevated seatment.

    Task 2 and 3
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    Task 4

    If you compare picture A and B, you can se some big differences. First of all, in picture A, is that the Brittish assemble has an older way in the clothing and they have still the old wigs and dresses in different colours that shows wich rank you have in the parliment. But in picture B, where the Swedish parliment listen to our King. They are not as ”ceremonial” as the Brittish, they wear suits resp. a dress or skirt. You should dress proffesional. It does not look like it did for about 100 years ago, like it may have done in the UK, they are always up to change.

    Gilla

  6. Task 1
    It looks like his/her majesty are in the parliament informing the parliamentarians about something important.
    they are all dressed accordingly, some in red others in black and those in power sitted at the front are dressed in white and black suits.
    Task 2
    They all indicate that its a monarchy governance because its the kings informing the public.
    In picture A we see that all a dressed accordingly where as in B differently although smart.
    Task 3
    I think picture A and B were taken in Britain. Picture A indicating United Nations UN and B i think its about the British Union.
    Task 4
    Pictures C and D must be showing unity in those particular countries showed or represented.

    Gilla

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