Unity and diversity in the new Europe

Book abstract:

The central theme of this book centres on the belief that there is evidence of a move towards a 'New Europe' based on transnational identities but which acknowledges that history alone will not be a sufficient foundation. There is no compelling 'good' that drives the process but a myriad of complexities coagulating to create a 'new' life blood which acknowledges the past but shows a determination for survival that is almost cathartic.

From this shared perspective, the contributors build on a series of papers given at a conference organised by Oxford Brookes University Centre for European Research in March 1998, to broadly examine the complexities of culture, identity, memory, ideology and the experience of minorities. The specific experiences of individual countries trying to come to terms with the past and accommodate the present are explored whilst several transnational issues such as the quest for a European identity, the notion of citizenship in the EU and the representation of women's interests in the European Parliament are also analysed.

The work will interest students, scholars and policy researchers in European Studies, Social Sciences and European Politics.

Barrie Axford is Professor of Politics, Oxford Brookes University. Daniela Berghahn is Principal Lecturer, School of Languages, Oxford Brookes University. Nick Hewlett is Reader, School of Languages, Oxford Brookes University