Abstract:
The issue of Ralph Vaughan Williams's Englishness - both in terms of his compositions, and his approach to music - has influenced both public opinion and biographical work. Therefore, a better understanding of Vaughan Williams's Englishness is essential.
To this end, the present study explores several aspects of Vaughan Williams's Englishness which have not been sufficiently analysed by previous biographers: historical context, Vaughan Williams's prose, and existing characterisations of Vaughan Williams.
Understanding Vaughan Williams's Englishness within the broader pastoral movement which affected numerous disciplines in the nineteenth and twentieth century is vital. Thus, a survey of the movement is undertaken, culminating in an analysis of the characterisation of the "Grand Old Man of English Music" accolade bestowed on Vaughan Williams. A "Timeline Illustrating Historical Context" is included to aid this discussion.
A review of Vaughan Williams's prose writings on nationalism, supplemented with other literary sources, follows. These sources supply an essential component to understanding Vaughan Williams Englishness as they are both an example of, and a commentary on the nationalist element of the characterisation of Englishness.
Finally, two approaches to reviewing existing characterisations of Vaughan Williams's Englishness are undertaken. First, prominent works which discuss the Englishness issue are reviewed. Second, three biases in biographies of Vaughan Williams are explored: the depoliticisation of Vaughan Williams, the tendency to downplay the intellectual acumen of Vaughan Williams, and the inability of most biographers to allow non-English influences in the education and, therefore, compositions of Vaughan Williams. All of these elements combine to show that the generally accepted characterisation of Vaughan Williams needs revision.
