Continued from Part 6
In this part Ina goes on to talk about politics and social issues.
But politics were never mentioned really. In the VIth form in General Studies we discussed current affairs as we were told about them from time to time. The Head might bring in a newspaper - I think the Telegraph. We clubbed together in the VIth and bought a paper, I think. Maybe the Daily Express - Giles was the cartoonist I think so that should tell us. We had a small radio in our common room. I remember being very upset by 4 events.
1) George VIs death - I was about 13. We were all called together to an assembly where it was announced and we had the day off. I thought it was like Chicken Licken and the sky falling in.
2) Derek Bentley being hung - we were going into assembly just at the time he was hung - horror.
3/4) The Suez crisis and the Hungarian Uprising.
A more pleasant experience was the Coronation - day off and a picnic lunch in a big hall with a b/w TV at one end. There were card models of the golden coaches and the footwear, horses etc. We cut them out and they could be made into 3-D models - voila! Our own little coronation. We also had scrapbooks with pictures of the Royal family. I don't remember ever having to sing the English National Anthem but on St David's day we certainly sung the Welsh one and I did know some by heart - certainly the chorus.
The other very dramatic announcement was when we were told in assembly that the Russians had got the Atom bomb. The end of the world seemed inevitable.
In retrospect I realise that the idea of class didn't enter my head. I came into contact with it when meeting Brian and going to his parents. I had learned about the French revolution but the gulf was between the aristocracy and everybody else, as I saw it. In my situation the privileged were those who had homes and lived with their parents and those at school who went away every holiday and often at half-term too. That is where my envy lay. When I went to Brian's I saw him as fortunate and, apart from the family-ness, their belongings and style were an eye opener to me - the amount of food they ate, their clothes and so on. They kitted Brian out in suits with 2 pairs of trousers and shirts with 2 collars. In fact, they didn't have a bathroom - the bath was in a kitchen and loo outside. My uncle had a better property actually but there was a sense of watching spending - probably because of accommodating us.
Much later I realised that my parents were working class but they never spoke of it whereas Brian's parents constantly did. Not that my parents were ashamed - it wasn't of significance to them. Whether someone was a believer or a non-believer, those were the distinctions of importance. I also realised much later that their colleague missionaries that I met were more educated and middle class - tho' my father educated himself. There was a camaraderie and I never detected disdain for my parents. But the doctors in the mission were highly regarded as having that bit extra. I have sense that the missionaries regarded themselves as superior to the native Peruvians many of whom were Inca Indians. Of course they were as regards western education even with their minimal amount. I also realised later that my other friends at school - missionaries' children - had parents with more education, eg Yvonne's parents were designers for Sandford's - a wallpaper firm of some fame. He was an artist. And so on. And I have seen how they have inherited property and money and knew the ropes as to housekeeping, traditions etc, shopping etc.
Strangely though I never for a moment thought that women were inferior to men or should kow tow to them. Strange because it was certainly part of my parents' creed that a woman should be subservient to her husband and my mother was, but we girls always argued the toss, especially me. I remember my mother saying 'you would argue that black was white' - that was when we lived together briefly when they came back and I was 20. On reflection, I think one factor that influenced me was probably that at school when the top 3 of each class were read out every month? week? they were nearly always girls. I didn't consciously think inferior or superior but I guess that indicated that girls could do stuff albeit maybe because they were more industrious or/and conscientious.
In the next Part 8 Ina goes on to talk about books and music.