The Nation and British Literature and Culture charts the emergence of Britain as a political, social and cultural construct, examining the manner in which its constituent elements were brought together through a process of amalgamation and conquest. The fashioning of the nation through literature and culture is examined, as well as counter narratives that have sought to call national orthodoxies into question. Specific topics explored include the emergence of a distinctively national literature in the early modern period; the impact of French Revolution on conceptions of Britishness; portrayals of empire in popular and literary fiction; popular music and national imagining; the marginalisation and oppression of particular communities within the nation. The volume concludes by asking what implications an extended set of contemporary crises have for the ongoing survival both of the United Kingdom, both as a political unit and as a literary and cultural point of identity.

A comprehensive overview of how Britain came into being and how literature and culture have both enabled and interrogated 'Britishness'.

About the Author
Andrew Murphy has published extensively in the fields of Shakespeare Studies and Irish Studies, with a particular focus on issues of national and cultural identity. He has been awarded fellowships in support of his work by the British Academy and the Leverhulme Trust.


Book Information
ISBN 9781009378857
Author Andrew Murphy
Format Hardback
Page Count 393
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press