Quote:
Originally Posted by BluPhire
Quick question, but this was inspired by my suit guy when buying a suit.
Americans, why are you so enthralled with royalty?
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Why are Americans enthralled with celebrities generally? I think it's a specialized form of our celebrity-enthrallment, fed, as k_s says, by our not having an equivalent.
There's also the British-American connection involved -- it's really only British royalty we're so enthralled with. I mean, Quick! Someone name the heir to the Dutch or Swedish throne without looking it up.
Then there's the pageantry. We may not want all that to-do here, but there's no denying it can be fun to watch them do it; they do it better than anyone.
And finally, for some of us there are the historical connections and implications as well. I mean, they've been doing this for 1000+ years.
ETA:
Quote:
Originally Posted by AlphaFrog
Listen, I would take QEII over Obama any day. Charles, well....there would be discussion first.
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Apples to oranges, though. She's a Head of State without being a Head of Government. An American president is both. You might feel differently if she was pushing a political agenda instead of having to stay above politics.
And as I type I think that may be another factor in American fascination with the British royalty. I think to a greater or lesser degree, many of us envy the idea of a nationally unifying figure (in theory at least; I know there are certainly those in Britain who'd prefer to abolish the monarchy) who is above politics. That's what we don't have. I've often thought that in some ways, the flag is the closest equivalent we have in that regard.