When it comes to culture, is Scotland already independent, asks Allan Massie.
A good many Scottish writers and artists of all kinds have come out in favour of independence. Fair enough, that’s what they want. If they were French, Italian or German they would doubtless describe themselves as “intellectuals”, even as “public intellectuals giving a lead to the nation”, but they are, mostly, sufficiently British to steer clear of the somewhat pretentious word.
This isn’t the only way in which they show themselves to be British as well as Scottish. A number of my fellow novelists who are eager to break the Union are nevertheless content to have at least some of their books, usually their most ambitious ones, published in London rather than in Edinburgh or Glasgow. They may – one or two of them to my knowledge do – have a Scottish editor at their London publisher, but this just goes to show how British it all is... Keep reading on The Scotsman
A good many Scottish writers and artists of all kinds have come out in favour of independence. Fair enough, that’s what they want. If they were French, Italian or German they would doubtless describe themselves as “intellectuals”, even as “public intellectuals giving a lead to the nation”, but they are, mostly, sufficiently British to steer clear of the somewhat pretentious word.
This isn’t the only way in which they show themselves to be British as well as Scottish. A number of my fellow novelists who are eager to break the Union are nevertheless content to have at least some of their books, usually their most ambitious ones, published in London rather than in Edinburgh or Glasgow. They may – one or two of them to my knowledge do – have a Scottish editor at their London publisher, but this just goes to show how British it all is... Keep reading on The Scotsman