Old Norse-Icelandic Poetry, Poetics and Myth. I will investigate three central issues in Old Norse-Icelandic literature, leading an international team in reediting skaldic verse,writing a book on Norse poetry and poetics and concluding my study of myth in medieval Icelandic fantasy literature.The edition will provide a benchmark for specialists and, together with my analytical overview, make this important collection of medieval poetry accessible to non-specialists. The study of myth will show h ....Old Norse-Icelandic Poetry, Poetics and Myth. I will investigate three central issues in Old Norse-Icelandic literature, leading an international team in reediting skaldic verse,writing a book on Norse poetry and poetics and concluding my study of myth in medieval Icelandic fantasy literature.The edition will provide a benchmark for specialists and, together with my analytical overview, make this important collection of medieval poetry accessible to non-specialists. The study of myth will show how a neglected genre belongs within the literature of fantasy. Expected outcomes: a new edition of Norse skaldic poetry; two books, on Norse poetry and poetics, and myth in Icelandic fantasy literature.Read moreRead less
The Language of Old Norse Poetry, an important intellectual achievement of the Western Middle Ages. Old Norse poetry, produced from the Viking Age until the end of the Middle Ages, is one of the most important achievements in European literature. Thematically, it ranges from praise of Viking kings to Christian devotion; in metre and style it is extremely elaborate. It has applied value to a range of disciplines, including history, archaeology, linguistics and religious studies. This project will ....The Language of Old Norse Poetry, an important intellectual achievement of the Western Middle Ages. Old Norse poetry, produced from the Viking Age until the end of the Middle Ages, is one of the most important achievements in European literature. Thematically, it ranges from praise of Viking kings to Christian devotion; in metre and style it is extremely elaborate. It has applied value to a range of disciplines, including history, archaeology, linguistics and religious studies. This project will make Norse poetic language more accessible to scholars and the general public by providing new resources in the English language for its understanding, superseding previous studies because of the use of fully revised primary data.Read moreRead less
Kadare post Communism: Albania, the Balkans and Europe in the Work of Ismail Kadare, 1990-2008. Albanians make up a small but important segment of multicultural Australia. Through the work of Albania's greatest writer and intellectual, Ismail Kadare, we can come to a better understanding of Albanians, their history and culture, and hence of Australia as a multicultural entity. Moreover traditionally Islamic Albania, with its Ottoman history and culture, is seeking inclusion into the European Uni ....Kadare post Communism: Albania, the Balkans and Europe in the Work of Ismail Kadare, 1990-2008. Albanians make up a small but important segment of multicultural Australia. Through the work of Albania's greatest writer and intellectual, Ismail Kadare, we can come to a better understanding of Albanians, their history and culture, and hence of Australia as a multicultural entity. Moreover traditionally Islamic Albania, with its Ottoman history and culture, is seeking inclusion into the European Union, Australia's major partner in trade, tourism, education and culture. Kadare's post-communist works on the subjects of Europe, Islam, Muslims and the West, and Balkan politics and history provide a valuable lesson on the interrelationships of politics, culture and patriotism in a global context for contemporary Australia.Read moreRead less
The Double Revolution : Decline and Renewal in French Narrative Art from Celine to Godard. This study will offer new insight into contemporary France - and increased knowledge of the ongoing development of a major world culture is a significant benefit in itself. France's long-standing status as a great centre of civilisation makes it a vital focal point for understanding the implications of global change. Australia's cultural connections to Europe remain crucial to the continuing construction o ....The Double Revolution : Decline and Renewal in French Narrative Art from Celine to Godard. This study will offer new insight into contemporary France - and increased knowledge of the ongoing development of a major world culture is a significant benefit in itself. France's long-standing status as a great centre of civilisation makes it a vital focal point for understanding the implications of global change. Australia's cultural connections to Europe remain crucial to the continuing construction of our own identity, and in this context too, the French example is highly salient. The study will also constitute a valuable Australian contribution to world research, enhancing the nation's already solid international reputation in French studies.
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Poetry of the Nordic past: a new analysis and interpretation. In the Middle Ages, Icelandic poets composed verses they imagined were spoken by heroes of the past and these poems were inserted into prose sagas about prehistoric times. This project will make a literary study of this poetry, which will be published as a book about the medieval Icelandic legendary past.
Projecting Difference: A History of the Practice and Politics of French Cinema since 1980. This cultural history project has dual aims. Firstly, it will examine how French cinema, as a narrative art, has since the late 20th century become a major vector for defining cultural identity (partially eclipsing the role traditionally occupied by literature). On the other hand, it will document and analyse the processes by which cinema practice - diverse and often fractiously critical of existing politi ....Projecting Difference: A History of the Practice and Politics of French Cinema since 1980. This cultural history project has dual aims. Firstly, it will examine how French cinema, as a narrative art, has since the late 20th century become a major vector for defining cultural identity (partially eclipsing the role traditionally occupied by literature). On the other hand, it will document and analyse the processes by which cinema practice - diverse and often fractiously critical of existing political structures - has become a central symbolic weapon in the French State's political defence of cultural autonomy and difference in a globalising world. The resulting synthesis will provide extensive new understanding of the dynamics of contemporary France.Read moreRead less
Province, Nation, Empire: France, 1871-1940. This project will deepen understanding of structures of political, strategic and economic power by providing insight into the dynamics of regionalist, nationalist and internationalist ideologies through study of the world's second largest overseas empire. It examines the role of non-state initiatives and pressures, while also investigating the colonial origins of contemporary globalisation. It will shed light, in particular, on the post-colonial heri ....Province, Nation, Empire: France, 1871-1940. This project will deepen understanding of structures of political, strategic and economic power by providing insight into the dynamics of regionalist, nationalist and internationalist ideologies through study of the world's second largest overseas empire. It examines the role of non-state initiatives and pressures, while also investigating the colonial origins of contemporary globalisation. It will shed light, in particular, on the post-colonial heritage of actions in countries of the Asia-Pacific region that were French colonies or that remain French overseas outposts.Read moreRead less
Subversion and Dissent in the Third Reich. Through the new approach of analysing records of Germans put on trial by the Nazi regime for the crime of "subversion," for which an estimated 60,000 Germans were prosecuted, I will gain access to a hitherto neglected current of popular dissent and discontent within the Third Reich. My project will challenge the conventional view that German society in the Third Reich was overwhelmingly consensual, apart from a miniscule group of anti-Nazi resisters. Th ....Subversion and Dissent in the Third Reich. Through the new approach of analysing records of Germans put on trial by the Nazi regime for the crime of "subversion," for which an estimated 60,000 Germans were prosecuted, I will gain access to a hitherto neglected current of popular dissent and discontent within the Third Reich. My project will challenge the conventional view that German society in the Third Reich was overwhelmingly consensual, apart from a miniscule group of anti-Nazi resisters. The outcome will be a more nuanced, complex picture of German society revealing that many Germans exhibited an amibivalent mix of consensus and dissent toward the Nazi regime.Read moreRead less
The growth of toleration in a cosmopolitan society: Protestants in eighteenth-century Paris. In an international context in which religious conflict appears to be increasing, and an Australia where religious diversity is growing, understanding the historical and cultural roots of toleration is vital. This project will reinforce Australia's reputation for innovative and independent work in French and urban history, both areas where Australian scholars are well known internationally.
'Ordinary Writings': lower-class writing practices in the transition to mass literacy in Europe, 1800-1918. This project contributes to public debate on literacy and literacy standards. Its historical perspective offers an antidote to conventional wisdom. It will show that there is no clear separation between literacy and illiteracy, that levels of literary competence vary according to specific occasions and specific tasks, and that schooling is not necessary for literacy acquisition. It will he ....'Ordinary Writings': lower-class writing practices in the transition to mass literacy in Europe, 1800-1918. This project contributes to public debate on literacy and literacy standards. Its historical perspective offers an antidote to conventional wisdom. It will show that there is no clear separation between literacy and illiteracy, that levels of literary competence vary according to specific occasions and specific tasks, and that schooling is not necessary for literacy acquisition. It will help put Australian research in the international forefront of cultural history. It will show that written heritage deserves full recognition in all its aspects, not just as the expression of educated elites. This aspect of our written patrimony needs re-evaluation, and we need to improve preservation of it and accessibility to it.Read moreRead less