Description
Book Synopsis Forty years ago, German historian Reinhart Koselleck coined the notion of ‘asymmetrical concepts’, pointing at the asymmetry between standard self-ascriptions, such as ‘Hellenes’ or ‘Christians’, and pejorative other-references (‘Barbarians’ or ‘Pagans’) as a powerful weapon of cultural and political domination. Advancing and refining Koselleck’s approach, Beyond ‘Hellenes’ and ‘Barbarians’ explores the use of significant conceptual asymmetries such as ‘civilization’ vs. ‘barbarity’, ‘liberalism’ vs. ‘servility’, ‘order’ vs. ‘chaos’ or even ‘masters’ vs. ‘slaves’ in political, scientific and fictional discourses of Europe from the Middle Ages to the present day. Using an interdisciplinary set of approaches, the scholars in political history, cultural sociology, intellectual history and literary criticism bolster and extend our understanding of this ever-growing area of conceptual history.
Trade Review “This volume is a significant and innovative exploration of Koselleck’s notion of asymmetric counter-concepts in the form of case studies based on a number of European cultures and histories. Beyond 'Hellenes' and 'Barbarians' places its theme firmly on the agenda of conceptual historians, which makes it a very valuable and insightful addition to conceptual history literature.” • Michael Freeden, University of Oxford
Table of Contents List of Figures
Acknowledgments
Notes on Transliteration
Introduction: ‘Asymmetrical Counter-Concepts’: Chances and Challenges
Kirill Postoutenko
Chapter 1. Treason as Touchstone: Asymmetrical Relations between ‘Heathens’ and ‘Christians’ in Middle High German Epic Literature
Paul Paradies
Chapter 2. “Blond Flowing Hair”, “Tumid Lips,” “Rigid Posture”, and “Choleric Temperament:” Universal Aspirations and Racial Asymmetries in Linnaeus’ Descriptions of Homo Sapiens
Monica Libell
Chapter 3. The Contribution of Asymmetrical Concepts to the Building of the Spanish Liberal discourse in the First Half of 19th Century (Methodological Reflections and Applications)
Ana Isabel González Manso
Chapter 4. ‘Kultur’ / ‘Bildung’ vs. ‘Civilization’: A Close Look at one Conceptual Asymmetry in the Early Nineteenth-Century Finnish Discourse
Heli Rantala
Chapter 5. ‘Liberales' vs. 'Serviles': Symmetrisation of Asymmetrical Counter-Concepts and Political Polarization in Spain and Portugal (1810–1834)
Luis Fernandez Torres
Chapter 6. ‘Hellenes’ Revisited: Asymmetrical Concepts in the Language of the Greek Revolution
Alexandra Sfoini
Chapter 7. ‘Civilization’ and ‘Barbarity’ in French Liberal Discourse During the Conquest and Colonisation of Algeria
Nere Basabe, María Luisa Sánchez-Mejía
Chapter 8. ‘People,’ ‘Plebs’ and the Changing Boundaries of the Political: Asymmetrical Conceptualizations in Spanish Liberalism in Comparative European Perspective
Pablo Sánchez León
Chapter 9. ‘Order’ vs. ‘chaos’: Asymmetrical Counter-concepts and Ideological Struggles in the early 20th Century Russian Poland
Wiktor Marzec
Chapter 10. Dutch Mccarthyism? The Asymmetrical Opposition of ‘Democracy’ and ‘Communism’ in Holland Between 1920 and 1990
Wim de Jong
Chapter 11. Asymmetrical Oppositions and Hierarchical Structures in Soviet Musical Criticism: The Case of Essay Collection Za rubezhom (“Abroad”) (1953)
Kirill Kozlovskii
Chapter 12. “We the Basques”, and the “Other(s)": Ethnic Asymmetries in the Basque Nationalist Discourse
Iñaki Iriarte López
Conclusion: Beyond ‘Hellenes‘ and ‘Barbarians‘
Kirill Postoutenko
