Myth, Memory and the Middlebrow : Priestley, Du Maurier and the Symbolic Form of Englishness

This study explores Englishness as a 'symbolic form' from the 1920s to the 1940s. Two case studies, focused on J.B. Priestley and Daphne du Maurier, explore crucial ways in which popular 'middlebrow' authors imagine and shape the nation, providing an innovative approach to literary negotiations of cultural identity. Globalization, Devolution And The Challenges Of A Postcolonial And Multicultural Society Have Fuelled The Debate About National Identity In Britain In Recent Years. Notions Of Individual And Collective Identity Have Revolved Around A Number Of Stereotypes Of ̀britishness' Or ̀englishness' Which Appear Ever More Incongruous. This Study Suggests That These Debates Still Draw On Discourses Of Englishness Which Were Shaped In The Interwar Period And Amplified In Second World War Propaganda. From The 1920s To The 1940s, Englishness As A Form Of Collective And Cultural Identity Can Be Described As A ̀symbolic Form', Comprising Specific Notions Of The People And Their Relationship To The Country, Most Powerfully Visualized In Landscapes Embodying A ̀mythical Present'. Two Case Studies, Focused On J.b. Priestley And Daphne Du Maurier, Explore Crucial Ways In Which Popular ̀middlebrow' Authors Imagine And Shape The Nation, Providing A Fresh And Innovative Approach To Literary Negotiations Of Cultural Identity --book Jacket. Cover; Contents; Acknowledgements; Part I: Introduction: Englishness As A Symbolic Form; 1 Identity: Englishness And The Reconfiguration Of The Nation; 2 Myth: Ideologies, Symbolic Forms And The 'mythical Present'; 3 Memory: Shaping The Present Out Of The Past; 4 Media: Challenging Modernism -- The 'middlebrow' And Memodrama; Part Ii: J.b. Priestley: Shaping Communities; 5 Steak-and-kidney Pie In The Land Of Cockaigne; 6 English Journeys; 7 Addressing The People; Part Iii: Daphne Du Maurier: (de- )familiarizing The Nation; 8 Dreamtime In Cornwall; 9 From Gothic To Memodrama. Ina Habermann. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Globalisation, devolution and the challenges of a postcolonial and multicultural society have fuelled the debate about national identity in Britain in recent years. Notions of individual and collective identity have revolved around a number of stereotypes of & lsquo;Britishness & rsquo; or & lsquo;Englishness & rsquo; which appear ever more incongruous. This study suggests that these debates still draw on discourses of Englishness which were shaped in the interwar period and amplified in Second World War propaganda. From the 1920s to the 1940s, Englishness as a form of collective and cultural identity can be described as a & lsquo;symbolic form & rsquo;, comprising specific notions of the people and their relationship to the country, most powerfully visualized in landscapes embodying a & lsquo;mythical present & rsquo;. Two case studies, focused on J.B. Priestley and Daphne du Maurier, explore crucial ways in which popular & lsquo;middlebrow & rsquo; authors imagine and shape the nation. This book thus provides a fresh and innovative approach to literary negotiations of cultural identity Globalisation, devolution and the challenges of a postcolonial and multicultural society have fuelled the debate about national identity in Britain in recent years. Notions of individual and collective identity have revolved around a number of stereotypes of 'Britishness' or 'Englishness' which appear ever more incongruous. This study suggests that these debates still draw on discourses of Englishness which were shaped in the interwar period and amplified in Second World War propaganda. From the 1920s to the 1940s, Englishness as a form of collective and cultural identity can be described as a 'symbolic form', comprising specific notions of the people and their relationship to the country, most powerfully visualized in landscapes embodying a 'mythical present'. Two case studies, focused on J.B. Priestley and Daphne du Maurier, explore crucial ways in which popular 'middlebrow' authors imagine and shape the nation, providing a fresh and innovative approach to literary negotiations of cultural identity Front Matter....Pages i-x Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Identity: Englishness and the Reconfiguration of the Nation....Pages 3-8 Myth: Ideologies, Symbolic Forms and the ‘Mythical Present’....Pages 9-25 Memory: Shaping the Present out of the Past....Pages 26-30 Media: Challenging Modernism — the ‘Middlebrow’ and Memodrama....Pages 31-42 Front Matter....Pages 43-43 Steak-and-Kidney Pie in the Land of Cockaigne....Pages 45-60 English Journeys....Pages 61-104 Addressing the People....Pages 105-146 Front Matter....Pages 147-147 Dreamtime in Cornwall....Pages 149-169 From Gothic to Memodrama....Pages 170-191 The Skeleton in the Cupboard....Pages 192-210 Back Matter....Pages 211-242