Iori Yamamoto
It seems as if this decade is itching to place points on the timeline of major world events. Last month, Queen Elizabeth II, who presided over the United Kingdom for over 70 years, died, “peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon” according to an official statement made by Buckingham Palace. However, did this event of supposed significance have any impact on us internationally-minded students here at Saint Maur? I talked to some people to determine our thoughts on the Queen’s death.
I talked to one Grade 11 student who told me that they “don’t care for the monarchy- it’s too old, outdated.” I questioned them if the Queen had any significance at all. “Actually, yes, because it’s the end of an era. But it’s not like I personally am really affected by it”, they told me.
“Most people in Singapore don’t remember when it used to be a crown colony”, said a Grade 9 student on his home country’s relation to the United Kingdom. “So I don’t think [the Queen’s death] affected me that much. I do think it was important, to people from the Commonwealth Realms and Britain, but to me it didn’t really have much impact.”
Finally, I talked to a Grade 10 student who told me that the death of the Queen “made [them] reflect.” I asked them why, and they told me it was because the “Queen of England is supposed to be immortal- she’s been alive for so long I just felt like she was going to be alive for the rest of my life as well.” So did this student see the death of the UK’s longest reigning monarch as significant? “It’s a big change, but I don’t think it’s very significant- to me”, they said.
Most people in Saint Maur might not feel a great impact from the death of the Queen, because after all, our countries of origin are scattered all over the globe. Despite not having direct ties to the United Kingdom, the people I talked to all recognized some significance in the Queen’s passing. The death of the Queen undoubtedly marks a passage of time; her being a monarch crowned in 1953, who watched all the significant occurrences of the 20th century into the 21st. Although we may not have an immediate response to it, her death can be framed to represent the ‘end of an era’, and it seems many have taken this to heart.
Iori Yamamoto