The English Countryside

"A stimulating exploration of how the land we know as the English countryside has been imagined, portrayed and contested in popular culture. It is recommended reading for anyone interested in peering beyond the chocolate-box idyll." (Michael Woods, Aberystwyth University, UK) "This book focuses on the debunking of an idealized English countryside seen as a relief from the tensions of urban, modern and frenzy England. Through a great variety of media, it sheds a light on how the representations of rural England have permeated the English frame of mind and therefore enabled people to build their own identity." (Gilles Teulie, Aix-Marseille University, France) "Half about literature and half about the history of representations, this book offers us a subtle and thorough approach to the meanings of countryside in English cultural production. From the promotional strategies of rural tourism to the complexities of countryside settings in comedy sitcoms or in Hardy's novels, the work provides a perspective which may change forever the way you look at the countryside!" (John Mullen, University of Rouen, France)

This collection of essays examines representations of the English countryside and its mutations, and what they reveal about a nation’s, communities’ or individuals’ search for identity – and fear of losing it.

This collection of essays examines representations of the English countryside and its mutations, and what they reveal about a nation’s, communities’ or individuals’ search for identity – and fear of losing it. Based on a pluridisciplinary approach and a variety of media, this book challenges the view that the English countryside is an apolitical space characterised by permanence and lack of conflict. It analyses how the pastoral motif is actually subverted to explore liminal spaces and temporalities. The authors deconstruct the “rural idyll” myth to show how it plays a distinctive and yet ambiguous part in defining Englishness/Britishness. A must read for both scholars and students interested in British rural and cultural history, media and literature.