The problems of national identity in the process of standardization of the English style of ballroom dance

Abstract

The purpose of the article. Consider the process of standardization of the English style of
ball dance as the embodiment of the ideas of national identity. Methodology. Setting a research
objective actualizes the use of general scientific methods and principles for analyzing the specifics
of the standardization process of the English style of ballroom dance: source study (for studying
materials from British specialized periodicals of the 1920s and 1930s); analytical (for processing
historical, cultural, and art history scientific literature); historical (to study the historical
background of the formation of the English style of ballroom dance); terminological (to clarify the
content and establish the relationship of the concepts of «anglization», «ballroom dance»,
«national dance culture», «national identity»). Scientific novelty. An art study of the trends in the
development of popular dance culture in the UK in the 1920s and 1930s was carried out the
twentieth century and the process of standardization of the English style of ball dance as part of a
transnational system of cultural circulation, influenced by the countries of continental Europe, the
British colonies, Latin America and the United States of America; It is revealed that the process of
standardization of the English style of ball dance took place in the context of cultural policies and
practices aimed at combating the growing influence on the population of the British Isles of
American culture and provided a space for the expression and embodiment of the ideas of national
identity. Conclusions. The standardization of the English style is a more complicated process than
the establishment of a certain form of steps and dance figures. Consistently claiming that dance is
an expression of national character, professional dancers and dance teachers sought to create a
British dance form that is different from foreign forms. It is precisely the process of anglisation of
foreign ballroom dancing, in our opinion, is one of the most important elements in the process of creating the national dance culture of Great Britain of the 1920–1930s, which helped to create a
space for the expression of ideas of national identity.
Key words: English style, ballroom dancing, standardization, national identity, cultural
policy