'That still goes on, doesn't it, in their religion?' British values, Islam and vernacular discourse

Marsden, Lee, Jarvis, Lee ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4149-7135 and Atakav, Eylem ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5718-5614 (2023) 'That still goes on, doesn't it, in their religion?' British values, Islam and vernacular discourse. Nations and Nationalism, 29 (1). pp. 229-245. ISSN 1354-5078

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Abstract

This article explores ‘everyday’ or ‘vernacular’ conceptions of Muslims, Islam and their relationship to ‘British values’. Drawing on original data from focus groups in the East of England, it argues that the relationship is typically constructed around a series of binary pairings. Where Islam is held to be traditional, conservative, pious and outmoded, British values are seen as progressive, liberal, secular and modern. This opposition matters for three reasons. First, it is a contingent construction rather than reflection of realities; one that draws upon Orientalist tropes and militates against alternative ways of imagining this relationship. Second, it does important work at the vernacular level in explaining political dynamics, especially successful integration (because of British liberalism) and the failure thereof (because of Islam's traditionalism). Third, its predication on an essentialised claim of difference inflects even competing efforts to story the British values/Islam relationship which tend, we suggest, to reinforce the positioning of Muslims and their values as somehow beyond or external to Britishness.

Item Type: Article
Additional Information: Research Funding: UKRI Partnership for Conflict, Crime and Security Research (PaCCS). Grant Number: AH/N008340/1
Faculty \ School: Faculty of Arts and Humanities > School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies (former - to 2024)
Faculty of Arts and Humanities > School of Art, Media and American Studies (former - to 2024)
UEA Research Groups: Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Area Studies
Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Political, Social and International Studies
Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Women of Influence - Community Participation in Peru
Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Film, Television and Media
Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Critical Global Politics
Depositing User: LivePure Connector
Date Deposited: 20 Dec 2022 12:31
Last Modified: 25 Sep 2024 17:02
URI: https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/90325
DOI: 10.1111/nana.12849

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