The Cultural Work of Fictions

Imke Polland-Schmandt, Ansgar Nünning (Eds.)

The Cultural Work of Fictions. Trajectories of Literary Studies in the 21st Century

ISBN 978-3-86821-912-8, 216 S., kt., € 32,50 (2021)

(ELCH - Studies in English Literary and Cultural History, Bd. 84)

Taking its cue from the ubiquity of fictions in current society – regularly dubbed ‘post-truth’ era – this volume dedicates itself to the examination of fictions, the cultural work they engage in, and the functions they fulfill. We employ a broad definition of the notion of fiction that takes into account literary fictions as well as cultural fictions and pays respect to their pervasiveness and affordances. The contributions to this volume engage in exemplary analyses that offer a collection of the various facets of the cultural work of fictions. By way of model interpretations and case studies, the articles explore the interfaces of literary and socio-cultural fictions and the cultural work these fictions accomplish.
The contributors to this conceptual collection address one of the main research agendas in the contemporary study of literature and culture – namely the role and functions of fictions – and, on this basis, deliberate the trajectories of the study of literature and culture. In this way, they also contribute to strengthening the very institutional importance of literary studies in the academic landscape of the 21st century.

Buchvorschau / Inhaltsverzeichnis (pdf)

Pressestimme

"This volume is a significant point of departure for scholars interested in discovering and revealing the cultural work of fictions, promisingly following up on the potential trajectories offered by the contributors as well as their functional methodological frameworks employed. All of the different perspectives presented in the book function as worthy examples of contemporary scholarly work in literary studies, orienting both the reader who is approaching the study of fictions for the first time and established scholars interested in new trajectories to follow during their academic career."

Marco Presago, KULT_online 67 (2023)