Martians in politics

The Economist's Bagehot highlights a paradox in the meeja's portrayal of Gordon Brown:

His Scottishness will reinforce the view that, even more than most politicians, Mr Brown is a sort of intellectual Martian. In fact, with his state-school education and up-by-the-bootstraps philosophy, he can arguably claim to have more in common with some of the semi-mythical denizens of Middle England than did suave, metropolitan Mr Blair.

Or, we might add, David Cameron, who has inherited £30 million and got his first job thanks to royal connections.
Which raises the question. Why is Brown so often seen as out of touch with ordinary people whilst Cameron and Blair (who was educated at Fettes where fees are £22,326 a year, equal to median annual earnings (pdf)) are regarded as in touch?
The problem here is not just an idiosyncratic problem with Brown. David Miliband is often described as a geek or swot, despite being one of the most personable men I've ever met. Nor even is it a Labour problem; David Willetts, who went to a direct grant school, is almost always regarded as an out-of-touch intellectual.
So, what's happening here?
One possibility is simply that anyone of above-average intellect will look like a freakish genius next to the average journalist; hey, I owe my livelihood to this trick.
Another is that the public schoolboy media (which includes some bloggers as well as the dead trees) think that intelligent state school people have even less right to be in politics than women.
Another is state school people genuinely are out of touch. To succeed from a modest-to-average background requires unusual drive and intellect. This alone will separate one from average people - which is why success might not be worth pursuing.

Comments

[dearieme]

Verrry interrresting, Mr D. But could part of the prob simply be that the London media find their English class-consciousness somewhat frustrated in that they find it hard to "place" any Scot who is neither Glesca slum nor Duke of Hamilton. Mayhap. Lord Worstall of the Algarve recently referred to GB as being "upper middle class". Hm.

[Peter Risdon]

Have you read "How to be Alien", by George Mikes? (http://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Be-Alien-Handbook-Beginners/dp/0140025146) Especially this bit: http://f2.org/humour/howalien.html#Clever

I think there's even more to this than you point out. Somewhere in this by no means recent attitude lies the manner in which the self-made engineering class of the 19th century became absorbed by the upper classes, and the self-improving working class by the socialist movement.

[nick humfrey]

I think there's something in your last suggestion (although some of the others show a little bit of chip on your shoulder). When I was at cambridge I was struck how strong the correlation there was between how cool and confident you were and how good the school you'd been to was. Almost by definition you have to be seriously geeky to get to Cambridge from a below average comp. While at public school (and I went to one so I know what I'm talking about) it's almost a given that if you're bright you'll try for oxbridge. As a result you don't have to sacrifice any social status to try hard academically.
I can see how this could affect politics too. Cameron was reputed to be a fan of the high life in his twenties. It's not obvious how you can be so if you have to spend those years working hard to get anywhere near the job he got straight out of uni.
My solution? Allow all wannabe politicians to enjoy their youth by not allowing anyone to be an MP before they're 40. But then Milliband wouldn't be foreign secretary and that would be a shame.

[Dipper]

presumably David Miliband is so personable because he spent his school days socialising instead of working, hence his 3B's and a D at A level. How on earth did he get into Oxford with that lot? Was there some special scholarship for the children of Marxist University Professors? Or was he just too clever to get an A?

[dearieme]

Oi, Dipper, you're not suggesting that he applied to a College where a chum of his Dad's was Admissions Tutor, are you? Shame on you.

[Dipper]

Well it does throw up a lot of questions.

Like, if one of the countries most intellectually capable politicians only gets B's and a D at A level then what is the point of A levels?

And as for nepotism and the old boy network, I think, ahem, for personal reasons I'll let someone else complain about that.

[Will Blake]

Nothing to do with their supposed intellectual abilities. The people you mention - Brown, Milliband and Willetts - all come across as socially awkward in the way that people who were bullied at school often do. Many other politicians have similar characteristics (the other Milliband and Michael Gove come easily to mind). Unfortunately such people often bring out an instinctive antipathy in others; irrational but all the stronger for that.

[The Druid]

How did Milliband get into Oxford with such low grades? Easy. He passed the entrance exam. Nothing to do with connections.

Blair and Cameron appeal more to ordinary people simply because they practice at it. To a large extent its an act. Take Blair's support of English football. Manufactured. He is a Scot by birth and education. But no doubt calculated that post Euro 96 there were shed loads of votes in being associated with English football. Just as he discovered - out of nowhere - a passion for English rugby and cricket when those teams won. Then there was the people carrier with the baby seats, the mug, the taking off of the suit jacket and so on. All very carefully crafted. But if you look back to the early Blair career pretty much absent. Cameron's limited career is mostly in PR. So no doubt he is well aware of the importance of image in a way that John Major wasn't.

The reverse was of course Macmillan who passed himself off as an aristo at home on the grouse moor etc. He was of course an upper middle class publisher descendant of crofters who married a Duke's daughter and after some searing personal experiences re-invented himself. F E Smith was another great pretender. His background in Birkenhead was very humble, but through raw talent, a large overdraft and chupatz he went on to seize the 'glittering prizes'.

Actor managers the lot. Now the people you mention probably have the sort of integrity that makes living a lie like this difficult.

[Workshy Fop]

I've got to say that far from appearing personable, when I met Milliband he came across as an arrogant prick, completely unwilling to listen to any point of view other than his own, talking over people, ignoring people who were trying to talk to him, and absolutely desperate to get away from an event he'd attended of his own volition.

[Devil's Kitchen]

Workshy Fop,

Isn't that odd? Because that is precisely how he comes over on his blog...

DK

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