Robert Burns in Global Culture - Hardcover

Robert Burns in Global Culture, edited by Murray Pittock, is part of a substantial series of publications and activity that aims to re-establish Burns as a central figure in Romantic studies. It is telling, and appropriate, that the contributors attempt to do so by noting the combination of Burns's intense feeling for local place with his global reach and global interests. * The Year's Work In English Studies *

Robert Burns in Global Culture is a collection that breaks new ground in treating Burns' poetry and influence in an international context. Widely recognized as poet of global significance in the nineteenth century, Burns' reputation has suffered from the critical turns in Romanticism since 1945 and is only now beginning to be seen in its proper context. Following on from the celebrations across the world to mark Burns' 250th anniversary in 2009, this collection asks questions concerning the nature of Burns' global influence in the United States, Europe and the Commonwealth, examines the extraordinary ways in which his writing combines a distinctively progressive agenda with deceptively traditional styles, and places his reputation at the heart of questions of American exceptionalism, European democracy, British imperial identities, Italian politics, French literary history, questions of desire and sexuality, the Burns Supper and the extraordinary cult of Burns statues. Robert Burns in Global Culture combines literary criticism, history, cultural theory and comparative literature to create a set of powerful, new and unique directions in the study of this major Romantic poet.