--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In Britain, when the working class are…" description: "\"In Britain, when the working class are summoned for fiction, it's 'isn't it a shame, isn't it a pity, isn't it awful, the terribly poor things... ' whe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbe/steven-knight-2205_class_in-britain-when-the-working-class-are-su_1275330.jpg" --- # In Britain, when the working class are summoned for… ![“In Britain, when the working class are summoned for fiction, it's 'isn't it a shame, isn't it a pity, isn't it awful, the terribly poor things... ' whereas from within, it's nothing like that. It's fantastic, it's glamorous, it's terrible and good the same as it is for everybody.” quote by Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbe/steven-knight-2205_class_in-britain-when-the-working-class-are-su_1275330.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbe/steven-knight-2205_class_in-britain-when-the-working-class-are-su_1275330.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbe/steven-knight-2205_class_in-britain-when-the-working-class-are-su_1275330.jpg) > “In Britain, when the working class are summoned for fiction, it's 'isn't it a shame, isn't it a pity, isn't it awful, the terribly poor things... ' whereas from within, it's nothing like that. It's fantastic, it's glamorous, it's terrible and good the same as it is for everybody.” [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote highlights the double standard in how working‑class stories are portrayed versus how insiders experience them, mixing glamour with hardship. **In simple terms:** Working‑class tales are romanticized by outsiders but lived as mixed reality. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge stereotypes. Themes class media representation perception reality stereotypes Mood critical reflective Type analytical commentary When to use this quote - film analysis - media literacy - social advocacy - education - policy making Key Concepts social critique narrative framing cultural bias Questions to Reflect On - How does media shape our view of class? - What stories are missing from mainstream narratives? A Different Perspective Oversimplification can erase genuine struggles and diversity of experience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class/) [Fiction Isn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction-isn-388010/) [Glamorous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/glamorous/) [Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good/) [Isn Pity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/isn-pity-4102305/) [Nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nothing/) [Pity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pity/) [Pity Isn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pity-isn-1230887/) [Poor Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poor-things/) [Shame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shame/) [Working class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/working-class/) ## Related quotes > [Charity isn't about pity, it is about love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/charity-isn-t-about-pity-it-is-about-love/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [Pity me or everyone pity the one who isn't worth looking back too](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-salameh/pity-me-or-everyone-pity-the-one-who-isn-t-worth-looking-back-too/) [Tony Salameh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-salameh/) > [“Self pity isn't a trophy or a badge to show off as though you've got the rhythm of cool in your corner.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calvin-w-allison/self-pity-isn-t-a-trophy-or-a-badge-to-show-off-as-though-you-ve-got/) [Calvin W. 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But fiction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-iagnemma/i-m-really-not-interested-in-writing-about-science-at-all-i-mean-i/) [Karl Iagnemma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-iagnemma/) > [Fiction that isn't an author's personal adventure into the frightening or the unknown isn't worth writing for anything but money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-franzen/fiction-that-isn-t-an-author-s-personal-adventure-into-the/) [Jonathan Franzen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-franzen/) > [Science fiction is about what could be but isn't; fantasy is about what couldn't be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/science-fiction-is-about-what-could-be-but-isn-t-fantasy-is-about/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [When we talk about 9/11 and 26/11 - which is the shorthand for the Mumbai attacks in 2008 - we're talking about the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karan-mahajan/when-we-talk-about-9-11-and-26-11-which-is-the-shorthand-for-the/) [Karan Mahajan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karan-mahajan/) ## More by Steven Knight > [There's a convention in English stuff that if something is more than 100 years old, people have to say 'do not' instead of 'don't.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/there-s-a-convention-in-english-stuff-that-if-something-is-more-than/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [There's lots of different ways of writing stuff and lots of different mindsets to have, but I think when it's your own creation, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/there-s-lots-of-different-ways-of-writing-stuff-and-lots-of-different/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [It's such a gift when you know who you're writing for and you know that that actor is capable of so much that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/it-s-such-a-gift-when-you-know-who-you-re-writing-for-and-you-know/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [I'm not a great film-goer, and I never have been.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/i-m-not-a-great-film-goer-and-i-never-have-been/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [There's no writers room, or any other writer involved. I write everything from beginning to end. Maybe it's just me not being able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/there-s-no-writers-room-or-any-other-writer-involved-i-write/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [I've realized that the only thing I'm interested in is the performance. If the performance is right, then I'm happy. You offer up the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/i-ve-realized-that-the-only-thing-i-m-interested-in-is-the/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [“It seems to me, that if there is a bad taste in your mouth, you spit it out. You don't constantly swallow it back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/it-seems-to-me-that-if-there-is-a-bad-taste-in-your-mouth-you-spit-it/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [With FX in particular, they've been fantastic and were really hands off. I mean, it helps that you've got Ridley Scott on your side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/with-fx-in-particular-they-ve-been-fantastic-and-were-really-hands/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [I often find in the film world, that it's very self-referring. If you talk to someone about films, they talk about them in terms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/i-often-find-in-the-film-world-that-it-s-very-self-referring-if-you/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [Whenever I went to L.A. the first thing people said in the meeting, no matter what it was about, was how much they loved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/whenever-i-went-to-l-a-the-first-thing-people-said-in-the-meeting-no/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [ I've spent three hours with Snoop Dogg, talking about how he loved \[Peaky Blinders series\]. And David Bowie loved it. The late Leonard Cohen… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/i-ve-spent-three-hours-with-snoop-dogg-talking-about-how-he-loved/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [I think the best research is people you meet and things that they say, rather than second hand accounts of something. I think when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/i-think-the-best-research-is-people-you-meet-and-things-that-they-say/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [Writing, when it works, one needs to access whatever it is that creates dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/writing-when-it-works-one-needs-to-access-whatever-it-is-that-creates/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [Making a film is hard because you're not dealing with the intangible. When you're writing, it's perfect because it's only in your head and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/making-a-film-is-hard-because-you-re-not-dealing-with-the-intangible/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [There's a grown-upness about television now that wasn't there before. You do know you're doing stuff for adults who can tell the difference between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/there-s-a-grown-upness-about-television-now-that-wasn-t-there-before/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) [Explore all 179 Steven Knight quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) ## More Class quotes > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. 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Wherefore, the law ought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-leo-xiii/it-must-be-assumed-and-established-as-a-principle-that-the-right-of/) [Pope Leo XIII](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-leo-xiii/) > [The rich people are apparently leaving America. They're giving up their citizenship. These great lovers of America who made their money in this country-when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-rich-people-are-apparently-leaving-america-they-re-giving-up/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [I certainly don't think that the heirs of the American Revolution were a particularly noble class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-w-brands/i-certainly-don-t-think-that-the-heirs-of-the-american-revolution/) [H. W. 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We are fighting for the middle class!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-pelosi/we-are-not-going-back-to-the-failed-policies-of-the-past-we-are/) [Nancy Pelosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-pelosi/) [Browse all 7,637 Class quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In Britain, when the working class are summoned for fiction, it's 'isn't it a shame, isn't it a pity, isn't it awful, the terribly poor things... ' whereas from within, it's nothing like that. 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