Edinburgh University Press Rural Modernity in Britain: A Critical Intervention

Defines the interdisciplinary field of Rural Modernity through analysis of British literature, art and culture Rural Modernity in Britain argues that the rural areas of Britain were impacted by modernisation just as much - if not more - than urban and suburban areas. It is the first study of modernity and modernism to focus on rural people and places that experienced economic depression, the expansion of transportation and communication networks, the roll out of electricity, the loss of land, and the erosion of local identities. Who celebrated these changes? Who resisted them? Who documented them? Essays in this collection make the case that the rural means more than just the often-studied countryside of southern England, a retreat from the consequences of modernity; rather, the rural emerges as a source for new versions of the modern, with an active role in the formation and development of British experiences and representations of modernity. Key Features Introdues readers to concept of rural modernity that locates its critical intervention in fields of modernism and modernity studies Split into five sections addressing Networks, Landscapes, Communities, Heritage, and War Includes In dialogue with suggestions to guide readers across interdisciplinary contents of diverse chapters Contributors from England, Scotland, USA, New Zealand and Canada, representing fields of literature, art history, history, geography, and cultural studies From the Inside Flap Rural Modernity in Britain doesnt merely fill a notable gap in studies of modernism and modernity - it provides a new template for understanding these terms in reference to Britain. Charting diverse, regionally inflected responses to modernity, the volume moves beyond the model of a single countryside as the locus of nostalgia or the weekend fantasies of modern urban dwellers to render the rural complex and vital.Debra Rae Cohen, University of South CarolinaDefines the interdisciplinary field of Rural Modernity through analysis of British literature, art and cultureRural Modernity in Britain argues that the rural areas of Britain were impacted by modernisation just as much if not more than urban and suburban areas. It is the first study of modernity and modernism to focus on rural people and places that experienced economic depression, the expansion of transportation and communication networks, the roll out of electricity, the loss of land, and the erosion of local identities. Who celebrated these changes? Who resisted them? Who documented them?Essays in this collection make the case that the rural means more than just the often-studied countryside of southern England, a retreat from the consequences of modernity; rather, the rural emerges as a source for new versions of the modern, with an active role in the formation and development of British experiences and representations of modernity.Kristin Bluemel is Professor of English and Wayne D. McMurray Chair in the Humanities at Monmouth University in New Jersey.Michael McCluskey is Lecturer in English and Film Studies at the University of York.Cover image: Deserted Quarry, William Rothenstein, 1904Cover design:[EUP logo]edinburghuniversitypress.comISBN 978-1-4744-2095-2Barcode From the Back Cover Rural Modernity in Britain doesn't merely fill a notable gap in studies of "modernism" and "modernity" - it provides a new template for understanding these terms in reference to Britain. Charting diverse, regionally inflected responses to modernity, the volume moves beyond the model of a single "countryside" as the locus of nostalgia or the weekend fantasies of modern urban dwellers to render the "rural" complex and vital.' Debra Rae Cohen, University of South Carolina Defines the interdisciplinary field of Rural Modernity through analysis of British literature, art and culture Rural Modernity in Britain argues that the rural areas of Britain were impacted by modernisati