Brill Myths of Europe: 107 (Internationale Forschungen zur Allgemeinen und Vergleichenden Literaturwissenschaft, 107)

Myths of Europe focuses on the identity of Europe, seeking to re-assess its cultural, literary and political traditions in the context of the 21st century. Over 20 authors - historians, political scientists, literary scholars, art and cultural historians - from five countries here enter into a debate. How far are the myths by which Europe has defined itself for centuries relevant to its role in global politics after 9/11? Can 'Old Europe' maintain its traditional identity now that the European Union includes countries previously supposed to be on its periphery? How has Europe handled relations with the non-European Other in the past and how is it reacting now to an influx of immigrants and asylum seekers? It becomes clear that founding myths such as Hamlet and St Nicholas have helped construct the European consciousness but also that these and other European myths have disturbing Eurocentric implications. Are these myths still viable today and, if so, to what extent and for what purpose? This volume sits on the interface between culture and politics and is important reading for all those interested in the transmission of myth and in both the past and the future of Europe. About the Author Richard Littlejohns is Emeritus Professor of Modern Languages at the University of Leicester, where he is currently Director of the Institution-Wide Languages Programme in the School of Modern Languages. His research centres on German literature and the visual arts between 1750 and 1850. He co-edited the critical edition of the works of W.H. Wackenroder and is the author of a volume of Wackenroder-Studien (1987). He has written on Tieck, Novalis, August Wilhelm and Friedrich Schlegel, Philipp Otto Runge, Görres, Eichendorff, Goethe and Schiller amongst other authors. He is at present writing a chapter on painting for the Cambridge Companion to German Romanticism. Sara Soncini holds a PhD in English from the University of Genoa and is Research Associate at the University of Pisa. She has published essays and articles on contemporary British drama, Restoration and Eighteenth-century theatre, stage and screen translation. She is the author of a volume on present-day rewrites of Restoration drama, Playing with(in) the Restoration (1999), and co-editor of Caledonia Dreaming. La nuova drammaturgia scozzese (2001, with M. Cavecchi and M. Rose), Shakespeare Graffiti, Il Cigno di Avon nella cultura di massa, a (2002, with M. Cavecchi) and Conflict Zones: Actions Languages Mediations (2004, with C. Dente).