Nation and Word : 1770-1850 Book

The emergence of the modern nation state in Europe and the accompanying rise in national consciousness led to a heightened awareness of the close relationship between language and national identity. The author shows that this relationship was expressed through the themes and figures of a language of nationhood, drawn from a common European cultural heritage, particularly the classical and christian traditions. Despite its common roots, this language became the medium through which the diversity of national characters was expressed. The idea of the divine Word, for example, enabled the sacredness and power of national language to be celebrated. The identification of poet and prophet gave Romantic nationalists an authority to speak for and to the nation, and the theme of the chosen people was often adopted to express the elect status of a writer's own nation. In conclusion, it is shown that this language of nationhood remains a powerful force at the end of the twentieth century.

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Explores the consciousness and feeling of national identity in a cultural rather than a strictly political sense. Argues that religious language was adopted in Europe for the cause of nationhood and nationalism during the period 1770-1850. Early chapters explore the extent to which religious concepts of the Word were reflected in philosophies of language and in calls for national linguistic purity. Later chapters examine how the archetypal power of Judeo-Christian symbols contributed to the psychological dynamics of nationalism, and look at narratives which presents the relation between "nation" and "word" as an incarnation of the idea of nationhood. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)