Representing the Nation: A Reader: Histories, Heritage, Museums

ISBN-13: 9780415208703 / Angielski / Miękka / 1999 / 488 str.

Jessica Evans; David Boswell

Opis

In a period of globalization there has been a startling resurgence of nationalism, regionalism, and other assertions of local identity, reflected in the boom in the heritage industry in all its forms, from education in oral and social history to entertainment and tourism. But how are ideas of a unified culture and nationhood created out of the diversity of modern society? This volume gathers key writings from leading thinkers in cultural studies, cultural history, and museum studies to ask what role cultural institutions play in creating and shaping our sense of ourselves as a nation. With an international perspective focusing on the US, France, Australia, the UK and India, the contributors investigate whether cultural artefacts can represent all of us equally, as members of a given nation. The opening section explores the strategies involved in creating and sustaining a national culture, such as the standardization of language and the sidelining of regional cultures. In the second section, contributors examine the way the past is preserved, represented and consumed as our heritage.

O autorze

David Boswell is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the Open University. Jessica Evans is Lecturer in Cultural and Media Studies at the Open University.