I tea culture in england past and present

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI University of Languages and international Studies FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION nguyÔn hång NGäC TEA CULTURE IN ENGLAND: PAST AND PRESENT submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of bachelor of arts (TEFL) Ha Noi, May 2014 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI University of Languages and international Studies FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION nguyÔn hång NGäC TEA CULTURE IN ENGLAND: PAST AND PRESENT submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of bachelor of arts (TEFL) supervisor: NGUN DIƯU HåNG, ma Ha Noi, May 2014 ACCEPTANCE PAGE I hereby state that I: Nguyễn Hồng Ngọc, QH2010.F1.E13, being a candidate for the degree of Bachelor of Arts (TEFL) accept the requirements of the College relating to the retention and use of Bachelor’s Graduation Paper deposited in the library In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited in the library should be accessible for the purposes of study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the librarian for the care, loan or reproduction of the paper Signature Nguyễn Hồng Ngọc Date: April 30th, 2014 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS There are a number of people without whom this paper might not have been completed, and to whom I am greatly indebted I take this opportunity to express my gratitude to those whose encouragement and guidelines have made tremendous contribution to the success of my study First and foremost, I have to thank my research supervisor, Ms Nguyễn Diệu Hồng Without her valuable advice and constant encouragement in every step throughout the process, this thesis would have never been accomplished Words could not convey enough my appreciation for her support and understanding over the past seven months Furthermore, I am truly grateful to Mr Đỗ Quốc Minh, Ms Giang Thùy Dương and Ms Nguyễn Thúy Hạnh for their help in data collection and proofreading process I am also fortunate enough to receive mental support from Ms Đặng Minh Trang, Ms Vũ Liên Hương and many others from class QH2010.F1.E13 throughout the difficult time conducting this research Most importantly, none of this could have happened without my family They have been kind and supportive to me during my undergraduate years This dissertation stands as a testament to their unconditional love and encouragement, to which I am wholeheartedly appreciative Finally, I would honestly thank my readers for their interests and criticism on the study i ABSTRACT Currently, tea consumption in the UK is the highest in the world per capita The English sip 165 million cups of tea daily according to the UK Tea Council Their fondness for this aromatic brew began about three hundred years ago and hasn’t slowed down since This dissertation aims to explain the growth of popularity of tea in England and its roles in the society of London over the years The objectives of the research is to find out how tea, from a luxury goods that only the rich could afford, became the national favorite drink as well as to clarify the differences in the way people in England, between upper and lower classes, practiced tea customs years ago and whether these differences still exist until today The research employs qualitative data analysis such as content analysis and visual analysis Content analysis is mainly applied in the paper, for most of sources are written documents On the other hand, visual analysis is used when studying tea paintings, which reflect the attitude of English painters towards tea culture at that time Originating as an index of fashion and modernity, tea passed with remarkable speed from the conspicuous consumption of the wealthy and powerful to use by all classes There may be several reasons explaining the surprising growth of tea in England, such as duty reduction, diversion of importation and recognition of tea’s medicinal values Even though the English today may have the same attitude towards tea, in the past, tea to each class in the society had different meanings Tea customs as well as English tea drinking habits have significant changes in their symbolic meanings, especially between different classes ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT i ABSTRACT ii TABLE OF CONTENT iii LIST OF TABLES vi LIST OF FIGURES vii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Statement of the problem and rationale for the study 1.2 Aims and objectives of the study 1.3 Significance of the study 1.4 Scope of the study 1.5 Organization CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 A brief history and classification of tea 2.2 Brief overview of tea cultures around the world 10 2.3 The social classes existing in England now and then 11 2.4 East India Company – The rise and fall of the most powerful commercial organization 13 iii 2.5 Review on previous studies related to the research subject .14 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 17 3.1 Data collection method .17 3.2 Data analysis method 18 CHAPTER 4: TEA – FROM A LUXURY TO A NECESSITY 22 4.1 The spreading popularity of tea in England .22 4.2 Main factors contributing to the popularity of tea in England 32 4.2.1 Decrease in tax, increase in consumption 33 4.2.2 A change in the sources of tea importation 34 4.2.3 Growing recognition of tea’s medicinal values .36 CHAPTER 5: TEA CUSTOMS AND TEA’S ROLES TO DIFFERENT CLASSES .39 5.1 Tea customs in England 39 5.1.1 Afternoon Tea and High Tea 39 5.1.2 Tea Dances .46 5.2 Roles of tea to different classes 47 CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSION .54 6.1 Summary of findings 54 6.2 Limitations of the research .55 iv 6.3 Suggestions for further study 56 REFERENCES .57 v LIST OF TABLES Names of tables Table Tea importation by the Company into England in 1700s (Martin,p.18) Page 26 Table An account, showing the gross quantity of tea, including private- trade, prize, neutral property, etc annually imported into England, put up to sale, sold and refused from 27 1784 to 1823 (Martin, 1832) Table Tea Consumption in the UK, 1919 – 38 (lb/head/year) (Mitchell & Deane, 1962) Table Sources of UK tea supplies, 1866 – 1903 (Burnett, 1999, p.61) Table Differences between Afternoon Tea and High Tea 28 35 42 vi LIST OF FIGURES Names of figures Figure Step model of deductive category application (Mayring 2000) Figure An English family at tea (Joseph Van Aken, 1720) Figure A group of women workers at the British Oil Cake Company, Manchester, World War I Page 19 25 29 Figure All night workers of the Rescue Squads welcome tea in the morning Life in London during the Blitz of World War 30 II in 1939-40 (Rodger, 1940) Figure The Distressed Poet (William Hogarth, 1741) 31 Figure Sending a boiler to a tea factory, Ceylon 35 Figure Afternoon Tea (George Goodwin Kilburne, 1839 – 1924) Figure Living off the Fat of the Land (Thomas Unwins, 1782 – 1857) 43 44 Figure Bettys cafe tea room, York, England 45 Figure 10 Kettledrum in Knightsbridge (1871) 48 Figure 11 The Graphic (1892) 49 Figure 12 Interior of a London Coffee House in 1668 (c 1700) 50 vii In Britain today, Afternoon Tea is usually enjoyed as an occasional indulgence or to celebrate a special event such as a birthday, or a prewedding or baby shower party with a group of friends It is so famous that visitors coming to the UK cannot miss the opportunity to enjoy the tea meal at least once In York, there is a tea room which becomes the most famous tourist attraction and people wanting to have Afternoon Tea there probably need to queue up for hours Figure Bettys cafe tea room, York, England The traditional High Tea, on the other hand, exists only in some parts of the North and Scotland, though some venues serve a special High Tea menu, which includes savory items such as Welsh Rarebit, English muffins, pies or omelet Currently, High Tea cannot compare to Afternoon Tea in terms of popularity, maybe because the foods in High Tea are inappropriate for the hour Rather than eating meat at midday, people might prepare have some 45 cups of tea and light sweetened cakes Therefore, tea time served in hotels, restaurants or café now usually refers to Afternoon Tea 5.1.2 Tea Dances A Tea Dance is a summer or autumn afternoon or early-evening dance from four to seven, evolved from the concept of Afternoon Tea In “Waltz around a Tea Table” (2001), J Pettigrew traces its origin to the French colonization of Morocco Tea was offered as refreshments during a common Tea Dance Unlike the customs mentioned in the previous section, Tea Dances were held mainly by wealthy classes because workers and laborers could not afford leaving their workplaces to enjoy some tea party At the commencement of the 20th century, Tea Dances became popular among ladies and gentlemen of the wealthy and aristocratic families This was seen as the proper way of entertaining and chaperon young ladies allowing them to associate with suitable young men in the middle of the afternoon, as parents or governesses watched over them The arrival of the tango from Argentina led to a craze for new tea dances – tango tea dances The first tango performance in England took place in 1912 on the stage of London’s Gaiety Theater in a show called “The Sunshine Girl” As a result, everyone wanted to learn to dance it themselves (Pettigrew, p.106) The Waldorf Hotel in Aldwych, London quickly became one of the main venues for tea dances In 1913, Beatrice Crozier wrote about these events in “The Tango and How to Dance it”: The Thé Dansants…in the pretty white and gold ballroom at the Waldorf Hotel, take place on Wednesday afternoon, from half past four to half past seven, and are delightful Tall white pillars, set out a few feet from the walls down the length of the room, make long 46 colonnades, at either side, which are set forth with small tea tables, where little parties of from two to six can sit and enjoy a most excellent tea between the dances, or remain throughout the afternoon watching the others dance… The passion for tea dances continued into the early 1920s, until the appearance of the cocktail hour, so tea dances gradually lost its appeal The Waldorf continued its Tea Dances until 1939, when a German bomb shattered the glass roof of the Palm Court, leading to the cancellation of all Tea Dances Tea Dances are still held around England nowadays, not only with Tango but also Cha Chas, Foxtrots and many more 5.2 Roles of tea to different classes Tea is now part of the fabric of English lives It can be a comfort or a celebration It can be a relaxing, social, and civilized occasion Although the social system is divided into smaller categories, tea plays the same roles to each class But many years ago, to the wealthy and the poorer, tea had totally different meanings To the well-off, tea appeared in almost all leisure events It was hard to say that people assembled to have tea, or they used tea as an excuse to gather While having tea, people talked about various topics, from religion, politics to recent gossips, yet in refined and relaxed atmosphere 47 Figure 10 Kettledrum in Knightsbridge (1871) The sketch above is taken from The Graphic, a British weekly illustrated newspaper, first published on 4th December 1869 The captions read: “In this form of afternoon party, ladies and gentlemen can mingle ‘Tea in the arbour’, which used to be reckoned among the vulgarities, has got into society; it is certainly much better to talk scandal in the garden than indoors.” 48 Figure 11 The Graphic (1892) The picture above was taken from The Graphic (1892), showing Afternoon Tea at a lawn tennis tournament In the newspaper wrote a comment: “Although lawn tennis has grown increasingly popular, the tea perhaps, especially in the country, plays a more important part in the afternoon’s programme.” As seen in figure 5.4., though people were there to watch tennis, they seemed to focus more on having tea and chatting with each other A table full with cups of tea was placed right next to the court and women were serving tea Not only did tea become the main component of social gatherings, it was also used by wealthy women to keep their husbands at home At the time tea started to raise its popularity in England, coffeehouses were very famous among gentlemen Men were often seen spending hours in 49 coffeehouses with their friends, drinking wine, coffee or tea and smoking cigars Figure 12 Interior of a London Coffee House in 1668 (c 1700) Tea was expensive at first, but it was still greatly purchased by wealthy ladies They used it as a social and political weapon against the coffeehouses Stephen Twining, 10th generation of the famous tea family, said: If you could afford tea, you might serve it once or twice a week – to impress a business acquaintance of your husband or an important relative In doing so, obviously your husband would be home more often as he was down at the coffeehouse drinking rum and cognac (Appetite, p.50) To the poorer, tea was not only a pleasure or refreshment but a drink that brought comfort and warmth In 1853, the Edinburgh Review wrote: 50 By her fireside, in her humble cottage, the lonely widow sits; the kettle simmers over the ruddy embers, and the blackened tea-pot on the hot brick prepares her evening drink Her crust is scanty, yet as she sips the warm beverage – little sweetened, it may be, with the produce of the sugar-cane – genial thoughts awaken in her mind; her cottage grows less dark and lonely, and comfort seems to enliven the ill-furnished cabin Figure 13 Eventide: A Scene at the Westminster Union (1878) Eventide: A Scene at the Westminster Union was painted by Sir Hubert von Herkomer, a British portraitist remembered for his earlier works that took a realistic approach to the conditions of life of the poor In the painting, there are several women in the shabby workhouse They look exhausted in those tattered clothes No traces of happiness and satisfaction can be found on their face However, no matter how hard their life must be, they are still accompanied by tea, which may warm their days and soothe their suffering 51 Also, to the workers, tea also provided nutrition or simply filled up their empty stomachs or partly relieved the tiredness Before 1878, farm workers and laborers usually drank beer during the working day to relieve their thirst But then T Bland Garland, a land owner thought that “nothing could be more unsuitable to quench the thirst during hard work in hot weather than beer” He decided to supply his workers tea instead and also convinced other employers to follow his idea The result was surprising – the workers “were in better condition at the conclusion of the day, less stupid and sullen, and certainly much better fitted the next morning to resume their labors, than with the old system of beer.” (Pettigrew, 125) Figure 14 Willow Workers in Somerset (c.1900) The people in the photo above are workers on willow fields around the year 1900 In the middle of the field, there was a table, on which placed a kettle and several cups They were allowed to drink tea during their workday, instead of beer like they did before 52 When employers didn’t provide tea, they paid workers 2-4 shillings more instead Hence, workers could prepare tea beforehand and brought it along All around the country, workers refreshed themselves with hot or cold tea – in factories, mines, offices and famers’ fields, on railways, roads and fishing boats Tea had become the best drink of the day (Pettigrew, p 125) Usually heavily sweetened with cheap sugar, tea was an important vehicle for energy, contributing around a sixth of average calorie intake and more for working class women and children (Burnett, p 63) Moreover, tea was taken by working classes as a substitute for alcohol “The cup that cheers but not inebriates” would rescue men from the alehouse and women from the gin palace, would preserve the family and restore domestic comfort by saving what was wasted on alcohol, estimated in 1867 at around a quarter of working class earnings Looking back at yesteryears, it is surprising how tea could mean so different to upper and lower classes While tea was a pleasure and an important feature of social gatherings to people of leisure, it carried connotations of comfort and warmth to workers and laborers Today, there is no difference between the rich and poor in terms of tea drinking Everybody can afford tea and they all enjoy it as a habit of contemporary life 53 CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSION The last chapter summarized what has been done throughout the research process Limitations of the current research and suggestions for further study would also be proposed in this chapter 6.1 Summary of findings As of today, tea is such a fundamental part of everyday life that English tea drinkers often failed to notice its significance within their daily lives A few would realize that tea had experienced major changes in its history of more than three centuries, from a drink consumed by some, to become a habitual comfort of all Tea was introduced to England in the 1650s, imported from China through Dutch merchants Like sugar and other imported “luxury” foods, tea originally signified status and wealth in English society But the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries witnessed a dramatic increase in the availability and popularity of tea This was thanks to duty cut, leading to the drop in prices, creating opportunities for people with low incomes to purchase tea In addition, having found new sources of tea in India and Ceylon also boosted the retailing amount, so that people from all over the nation could buy tea leaves in stores Another significant factor is the rising recognition of tea’s medicinal values Despite the fact that Eastern countries had considered tea as a medicine for ages, the English have not fully acknowledged the therapeutic benefits of tea-drinking until the twentieth century Tea, hence, from a luxury solely for the elite, has pervaded into every part of English lives, forming a comfortable and secure basis for their responses, decisions and actions as well as standing firmly as the national beverage 54 Drinking tea was an evolving ritual in English culture, differentiating among social classes A quintessence of this difference is Afternoon Tea and High Tea, which originally came from one tea meal in the afternoon While Afternoon Tea was popular among the wealthy classes, workers and laborers preferred to call this meal as High Tea The differences between these two meals represented the gap between upper and lower classes: one drank tea as a pleasure; the other considered it as nourishing food Although these customs can still be found in England nowadays, this distinction is no longer seen in spite of existent social system Furthermore, the researcher found out that even though the English today may have the same attitude towards tea, in the past, tea to each class in the society had different meanings For instance, the upper classes used tea as a chance for social gathering, while working population favored tea because of the warmth and comfort it brought Tea customs as well as English tea drinking habits have significant changes in their symbolic meanings, especially between different classes Although tea is neither cultivated in England nor part of elaborate ceremonies like that of China and Japan, tea is still considered as a culture because of its popularity among Englishmen and the customs which are daily practiced England’s love affair for tea started over 300 years ago and has no sign of slowing down since 6.2 Limitations of the research Despite strenuous efforts of the research, there are a certain number of limitations in this study due to the limited resources and other unanticipated factors 55 Firstly, there is a shortage of materials related to tea culture in England Most of books on tea by Jane Pettigrew are not available in local libraries so the researcher had to search in online database of foreign universities Secondly, limited background in England history of more than three centuries is a big hindrance to knowledgeable analysis The researcher needed to understand general ideas about legends of tea in other countries or the British East India Company before doing the main content Last but not least, time constraint prevented the researcher from carrying out this study more intensively Less than ten paintings and sketches were analyzed in the paper, though there are more worth mentioning 6.3 Suggestions for further study Since the study focused on the social aspect of tea culture, further studies can still be done with other aspects such as historical or political one Comparison between English and other tea cultures can also be exploited to emphasize the special features of Englishness Besides, those who are interested in this subject can conduct the study on different approaches, for example, paying attention to tea as a symbol in English literature 56 REFERENCES Jane Pettigrew (2001) A Social History of Tea (1st ed.) Aylesbury: National Trust Samuel Phillips Day (1878) Tea: Its Mystery and History London: Simpkin, Marshall & Co Julie E Fromer (2008) A Necessary Luxury: Tea in Victorian England (1st ed.) Ohio: Ohio University Press Laura C Martin (2007) Tea: The Drink that Changed the World (1st ed.) Vermont: Tuttle Publishing John Burnett (2012) Liquid Pleasures: A Social History of Drinks in Modern Britain Routledge Mary Lou Heiss & Robert J Heiss (2011) The Story of Tea: A Cultural History and Drinking Guide Berkeley: Ten Speed Press Dawn Campbell (1995) The Tea Book Pelican Publishing Keith Souter (2013) The Tea Cyclopedia: A Celebration of the World's Favorite Drink Skyhorse Publishing, Inc Anthony Burgess (1992) The Book of Tea Paris: Flammarion Robert Montgomery Martin (1832) The past and present state of the tea trade of England, and of the continents of Europe and America Parbury, Allen, & Co Harvest House Publishers (2008) 365 Things Every Tea Lover Should Know Harvest House Publishers 57 John Wesley (1825) Letter to a Friend, Concerning Tea A Macintosh Beverly Dubrin (2012) Tea Culture: History, Traditions, Celebrations, Recipes & More: History, Traditions, Celebrations, Recipes & More Charlesbridge Publishing Carrie Gleason (2007) The Biography of Tea Crabtree Publishing Company Linton, R (1945) The Cultural Background of Personality New York K N Chaudhuri (1978) The Trading World of Asia and the English East India Company Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Tirthankar Roy (2012) The East India Company: The World's Most Powerful Corporation Penguin Books India Nika Hazelton (June 24, 1988) Teas of yesteryear National Review, p.51 Tea time: Past & Present (2012, June) appetite, p 48 Tea in London (2010) Tea A Magazine, p A Social History by Jane Pettigrew Review Retrieved from http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/498131.A_Social_History_of_Tea Tea Facts Retrieved from http://tea.co.uk/tea-glossary-and-faqs Green Tea Retrieved February 2014 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_tea Black Tea Retrieved February 2014 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_tea 58 Tea Culture Retrieved February 2014 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_Culture Hannah Briggs (2013) “Cup of Tea: Mastering the Art of the Perfect Brew” Retrieved February 2014 from http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/0/22026753 “Huge survey reveals seven social classes in UK” (2013) Retrieved February 2014 from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-22007058 “East India Company” Retrieved February 2014 from http://www.tea.co.uk/east-india-company George Goodwin Kilburne’s paintings retrieved April 27 from http://artrenewal.org/pages/artist.php?artistid=1896 “Time for tea: The history and customs of high tea” Retrieved April 29 from http://www.confused.com/news-views/infographics/the-history-andcustoms-of-high-tea “History of Afternoon Tea” Retrieved April 30 from http://www.afternoontea.co.uk/information/history-of-afternoon-tea/ Visual Analysis Retrieved February 2014 from http://twp.duke.edu/uploads/assets/visual_analysis.pdf “Visual Analysis” Retrieved February 2014 from http://www.monash.edu.au/lls/llonline/writing/artdesign/writing/1.xml Philipp Mayring (2000) “Qualitative Content Analysis” Retrieved February 2014 from http://www.qualitativeresearch.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/1089/2385#g4 59 ... While the East India Company held a monopoly of the tea trade with China, it took little interest in developing cultivation in India Instead, opium had been cultivated in exchange for Chinese tea. .. porcelain for brewing and drinking it were displayed in the closet, and during the seventeenth and even eighteenth centuries, tea equipage was listed not in the kitchens or dining rooms, but in the... necessity in England, and in fact, it is The United Kingdom is known to consume 165 million cups of tea daily, according to The UK Tea Council (n.d), with 66% of its population drinking tea every