Dutch and Flemish Literature as World Literature

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Description

The recent return of 'world literature' to the centre of literary studies has entailed an increased attention to non-European literatures, but in turn has also further marginalized Europe's smaller literatures. Dutch and Flemish Literature as World Literature shows how Dutch-language literature, from its very beginnings in the Middle Ages to the present, has not only always taken its cue from the 'major' literary traditions of Europe and beyond, but has also actively contributed to and influenced these traditions. The contributors to this book focus on key works and authors, providing a concise, yet highly readable, history of Dutch-language literature and demonstrating how this literature is anchored in world literature.

Reviews

This compendious collection opens out the varied landscape of literature in Dutch from the Middle Ages to the present, with illuminating essays on writers who were at once hemmed in by the surrounding major powers and deeply engaged with them. Anyone interested in world literature, in centre-periphery relations and in translation studies will find many discoveries among these writers who together created a minor literature of major proportions. * David Damrosch, Ernest Bernbaum Professor of Comparative Literature and Director of the Institute for World Literature, Harvard University, USA *
This useful book offers new perspectives on the relationship between Dutch writing and other literatures through the ages. The contributors make a strong case for redefining the position of Dutch as a world literature, opening the way for other unjustly neglected literatures to be re-evaluated. * Susan Bassnett, Professor of Comparative Literature, University of Glasgow and Professor Emerita of Comparative Literature, University of Warwick, UK, and author of Translation Studies (4th edition, 2014) *
For non-Dutch readers, this collection of essays presents a marvellous discovery of the gems of Dutch or Flemish literature, their rich colours and brilliance, and their significance as world literature. This shows what world literature can do at its best namely, the enrichment of world literature by bringing in the best of the worlds various literary traditions, particularly those globally yet-unknown works of great worth and value for our understanding and appreciation. * Zhang Longxi, Chair Professor of Comparative Literature and Translation, City University of Hong Kong, and President of the International Comparative Literature Association *

Author Bio

Theo Dhaen is Professor of English and American Literatures, KU Leuven, Belgium. He is the author or editor of 53 books, including The Routledge Concise History of World Literature (2012), American Literature: A History (with Hans Bertens, 2014), World Literature: A Reader (edited with Csar Domnguez and Mads Rosendahl, 2013), A World History of Literature (2012), The Routledge Companion to World Literature (edited with David Damrosch and Djelal Kadir, 2012), and Crime Fiction as World Literature (edited with David Damrosch and Louise Nilsson, Bloomsbury, 2017).