Narrated Empires. Perceptions of Late Habsburg and Ottoman Multinationalism

Description

Narrated Empires (Palgrave, 2021) examines the role of imperial
narratives of multinationalism as alternative ideologies to nationalism in
Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, and the Middle East from the
revolutions of 1848 up to the defeat and subsequent downfall of the
Habsburg and Ottoman empires in 1918. During this period, both
empires struggled against a rising tide of nationalism to legitimise their
own diversity of ethnicities, languages and religions. Contributors
scrutinise the various narratives of identity that they developed,
supported, encouraged or unwittingly created and left behind for posterity
as they tried to keep up with the changing political realities of modernity.
Beyond simplified notions of enforced harmony or dynamic dissonance, this book aims at a more polyphonic analysis of the various voices of Habsburg and Ottoman multinationalism: from the imperial centres and in the closest proximity to sovereigns, to provinces and minorities, among intellectuals and state servants, through novels and newspapers. Combining insights from history, literary studies and political sciences, it further explores the lasting legacy of the empires in post-imperial narratives of loss, nostalgia, hope and redemption. It shows why the two dynasties keep haunting the twenty-first century with fears and promises of conflict, coexistence, and reborn greatness.

Period	6 May 2021
Event title	Book presentation: Narrated Empires. Perceptions of Late Habsburg and Ottoman Multinationalism: A book presentation with the editors Johanna Chovanec (Vienna) and Olof Heilo (Istanbul), and chapter authors Therese Garstenauer (Vienna) and Stephan Guth (Oslo)
Event type	Conference
Location	Copenhagen, DenmarkShow on map
Degree of Recognition	International