Studying British Cultures: An Introduction

Studying British Cultures is a lively and provocative volume of essays which offers the ideal introduction to a contentious area. The contributors, who have been instrumental in establishing the discipline of British Cultural Studies, explore a wide range of critical debates on cultural identity and explode the myth that Britain is made up of a homogenous people. The first half of the book traces examines the theory and methodology of studying British cultures, in disciplines variously known as British Studies, Cultural Studies or British Cultural Studies. The second half of the book turns to key topics in those fields, looking in turn at developments in Scottish, Welsh and Irish Studies and the roles of Shakespeare and West Indian literature in the study of British cultures. In vivid and often entertaining essays, the authors demonstrate that ‘culture’ is a plurality of discourses, not a fixed, unitary concept. Now with an additional essay by Susan Bassnett, Studying British Cultures is essential reading for all those concerned with - or concerned about - the study of contemporary Britain. Contributors include Anthony Easthope, Alan Durant, Christopher Brumfit, Michael Byram, David Punter, Robert Crawford, Katie Gramich, Sabina Sharkey, David Dabydeen, John Drakakis.