*** Dokumente / Documents. Zeitschrift für den deutsch-französischen Dialog / Revue du dialogue franco-allemand. Verlag Dokumente (86 Dottendorfer Strasse, D-53129 Bonn. Tel: (49-228) 92129365 - Fax: 690385 - Email: aboservice@dokumente-documents.info - Internet: http://www.dokumente-documents.info ). 2015, €7. Subscription €8.90.
This issue of the Dokumente / Documents review, containing as always articles in French or German with a summary in the other language, covers a highly diverse range of themes. The problems encountered in translating Le Petit Prince into German are discussed with great sensitivity by Cornelia Frenkel - Le Chuiton, Franco-German cooperation in the domain of quantum optics is examined, along with diverse historical and societal questions concerning the two countries, not to mention the large section devoted to French and German-language literature, through reviews of books by Günter Grass and on Jean Genet, and articles by people who met Heinrich Böll and Vladimir Jankélévitch. Some authors do not hesitate to examine matters less directly relevant while remaining within the general framework of the review, such as Eugène Berg in two reviews entitled "Fluidité intellectuelle: transferts germano-russes dans les sciences humaines" and "Une tendance à la négativité, W.G. Sebald et la littérature autrichienne." Based on 'L'ambre et la fossil' by Michel Espagne, the first review notes the fecundity of German-Russian intellectual exchanges in the contemporary epoch, revealing the fundamental role of the French-speaking area in this process; and the second review, based on 'La description du malheur, à propos de la littérature autrichienne' by Winfried Georg Sebald, highlights the psychological traits specific to Austrian literature.
The articles in this review are generally of a high, very high, level, and some of them are truly captivating, such as the historical articles, whether about the Second World War - often from an original angle - or the obituary of Richard von Weizsäcker provided by Gérard Foussier or another article by the same author on commemoration of the destruction of Dresden that has a wealth of information in the desire to reconstitute the historical backdrop to the bombardment of the city and the various historical interpretations of the event. All the same, political questions concerning the far right or the French National Front cause problems for German analysts who find it difficult to address these themes other than in the light of the history of Nazi-ism and therefore find it difficult to capture the true nature of these contemporary phenomena. This clearly arises in the article Rechtspopulismus in Frankreich, which although well documented and serious for some points, finds it difficult to detach from 'classical' interpretations of the National Front phenomenon and endorses very basic German analyses, verging at times on clichés. But if one considers how this question is dealt with in the review as a whole, then this small weakness is easily compensated for by the frankness and perspicacity within the limits of the politically correct of F. Talcy or M. Ritzenhofen in their articles entitled respectively "Des travailleurs étrangers aux réfugiés" and "Apartheid in Frankreich?," which also stand out from what one usually reads about these subjects without sliding into stigmatisation or caricature.
Many authors demonstrate their aptitude in their comparisons of the situation in France and Germany to identify French structural weaknesses, be it in terms of the training of young people or learning German. Jean-Georges Mandon, in his article "Une super-région tournée vers l'avenir," defends the creation of the future region in the north-east of France, Alsace-Lorraine-Champagne-Ardennes, attacking resistance to this project as being, in his view, affected by parochialism. This high-quality article is committed, but sometimes skates over some arguments (such as cross-border policy in the Sarre). This is part of a special report on the Fondation Entente Franco-allemande that Mandon heads. This foundation was set up in 1981 to provide compensation to people from Alsace and the Moselle who were forced to join the Wehrmacht in 1940-45, and is has experienced a boom since 2010 by working in the following fields; youth, culture, the cross-border labour market, amateur sport and memoirs. Although the various participants in the special report enthusiastically depict a foundation that seems to be fully committed to the areas of action it has taken up, a number of these areas nevertheless come under the scope of other players - the most striking (but not the only) example of this being exchanges between French and German young people, which is already managed by the Office Franco-allemand Pour la Jeunesse. In the light of this special report, it is not possible to see how the work of the Fondation Entente Franco-allemande meshes with existing actors and their projects. Assuming that such coordination exists. it would have been indispensible to write about his in order to demonstrate how each player cooperates with the others to avoid confusion.
In the final section, there is a chronology of a range of economic, diplomatic and social information in the form of short articles and summaries on specific themes that put the finishing touches to a review which despite a handful of probably inevitable faults, kindles the reader's curiosity by constantly encouraging reflection, discovery and appreciation of German (German-speaking) and French (French-speaking) culture.
Guillaume Lelorain
*** KLAUS PETER MÜLLER (Ed.): Scotland 2014 and Beyond - Coming of Age and Loss of Innocence? Peter Lang (1 Moosstrasse, P.O. 350, CH-2542 Pieterlen. Tel: (41-32) 3761717 - Fax: 3761727 - Email: info@peterlang.com - Internet: http://www.peterlang.com ). Series "Scottish Studies International," No. 39. 2015, 457 pp, €87.95. ISBN 978-3-631-65571-9.
Arising from a conference organised at the Johannes Gutenberg Univeristy in Mainz before the referendum on 18 September 2014 in which the majority voted against Scottish independence, this multidisciplinary book is entirely devoted to the provocative question raised by Klaus Peter Müller in the introduction: 'Is this now the time for Scotland to eventually grow up and finally leave Neverland?' All of these wonderfully crafted contributions fit together to provide a detailed image of the precise nature of Scottish society today, with an eye being cast in turn on history and politics, the media, law and the constitution, the specific nature of Scottish literature and finally the Scotland that is emerging in the sociological and political fields. In this way, the authors discern how the ideas of independence, freedom, maturity, national identity and devolution have taken hold in Scottish citizens' souls from the Middle Ages until the present day. It goes without saying that England and Europe are also covered in this broad overview. The book's editor is not wrong to have a dig at the first - along, to a certain extent, with Great Britain (and therefore Scotland too)... - observing that it 'has defined itself mostly by means of concepts of the past and has, therefore, neglected the present and especially not sufficiently developed plans and ideas for the future.' The editor, who is Chair of English at Johannes Gutenberg University, also attacks those who, like many British leaders, think that despite everything, nations are still an intangible reality, asking them: 'And what have nations given us? A drastic answer would simply say: two world wars. Full stop.' In his view, Europe would have the potential to provide a barrage against nationalism, as long as it finally catches up democratically, as otherwise it will remain 'governed by parties and oligarchies' if national princes do not allow its citizens to become its actors. Thus hostile both to nations and to the creation of new member states, Klaus Peter Müller asks for an exception to be made for Scotland, an exception that would strengthen Europe.
(MT)
*** KATHARINE THROSSELL: Child and Nation. A Study of Political Socialisation and Banal Nationalism in France and England. Presses Interuniversitaires Européennes / Peter Lang (1 av. Maurice, B-1050 Brussels. Tel: (41-32) 3761717 - Fax: 3761727 - Email: info@peterlang.com - Internet: http://www.peterlang.com ). 2015, 450 pp, €53.50. ISBN 978-2-87574-244-5.
A researcher at the Institut des Sciences sociales du Politique in Paris and hailing originally from Australia, Katharine Throssell goes back in this brilliant study to the roots of the feeling that most people have of belonging to a particular country. To this end, she follows the intellectual path of Michael Billig who, in his book Banal nationalism, asks 'how are nations maintained and perpetuated,' answering the question via a number of signs, symbols and references that are so present in everyday life as to become invisible. In this way, the nation becomes self-evident and attachment to a nation becomes banal, commonplace nationalism, and simply arises, in his view, from 'the most successful ideology in history.' Agreeing that nationalism is 'an ideology to the extent that it provides a particular reading of reality, which becomes a "habit of thought,"' resulting in giving legitimacy to a world divided into nation states, Katharine Throssell examines in the book how it functions as a form of socialisation, seeking the roots of this 'forgotten' ideology in childhood, and more particularly in children's view of the world. Though the visions of French and English children, this expert in political socialisation also discerns how banal nationalism operates from the youngest child upwards and 'contributes to the perpetuation of the normalcy of nations over time.'
(PBo)
*** DARIUSZ JAROSZ, MARIA PASZTOR: Polish-French Relations, 1944-1989. Peter Lang (see above). "Polish Studies - Transdisciplinary Perspectives" series. 2015, 502 pp, €86.95. ISBN 978-3-631-62742-6.
This monograph by historians - Dariusz Jarosz is a lecturer at the Polish Academy of Sciences' Institute of History, and Maria Pasztor at the Institute of International Relations at the University of Warsaw - emerges from long research they have carried out into Franco-Polish relations from 1944 to the fall of the Iron Curtain, making a short detour into the 'Burden of the Past' left at the end of World War One. Based mainly on archives of various origins, many of them unveiled for the first time, their analyses and overviews look very naturally at the political and diplomatic relations between the two countries. However, since the two countries belonged during this period to opposing ideological camps, the authors do not neglect the economic and cultural links that it proved possible to forge between French and Poles during their period, which they use to shed light on various actions in the field of trade, culture, academia and science. Finally, they are also careful to cast their meticulous historians' eye over relations forged in these decades between the Communist Parties of France and Poland. In this manner, they manage to demonstrate that while the Cold War clearly had a very serious affect on relations between countries of opposing blocs, Poland being under the vigilant yoke of Moscow, it nevertheless proved possible to carry out a number of bilateral policies.
(PBo)
*** ANDRZEJ RYCHARD, GABRIEL MOTZKIN (Ed.): The Legacy of Polish Solidarity. Social Activism, Regime Collapse, and Building of a New Society. Peter Lang (see above). “Studies in Social Sciences, Philosophy and History of Ideas,” No. 8. 2015, 213 pp, €54.95. ISBN 978-3-631-64856-8.
SolidarnoϾ, the trade union that was also a social and political movement and was set up in 1980 by Lech Walesa, made a huge contribution to the collapse of the former Soviet Union and the communist regimes that Moscow hoisted on Eastern Europe. On the twenty-fifth anniversary of the fall of communism, Andrzej Rychard, director of the Philosophy and Sociology Institute of Poland's Science Academy, and Gabriel Motzkin, director of the Jerusalem Van Leer Institute, decided to return to this movement and analyse it in depth. Presenting nine contributions written by experts in sociology and political science, the book enables reader to gain greater understanding of the complexity and development of SolidarnoϾ. The authors of the essays in the first part of the book analyse SolidarnoϾ as a social movement. This is followed by essays considering its role in the political changes that occurred in Poland, and finally it is compared with other peaceful revolutionary movements in Europe.
(HHe)
*** ROBERT TRABA: The Past in the Present. Peter Lang (see above). “Eastern European Culture, Politics and Societies” series , No. 8. 2015, 333 pp, €64.95. ISBN 978-3-631-64047-0.
National memory is an important aspect of each country. What events are part of a nation's History? How do citizens experience the actions and decisions of their ancestors? What is the danger of improper ownership of a country's history by political leaders? Robert Traba answers these questions by looking at the case of Poland. This Polish historian specialising in collective memory, regional history and, above all, changes in German-Polish borders utilises collective memory theories as the recurrent theme. He feels that modernisation and polyphonics are allowing the building of a new history for Poland.
(HHe)
*** Futuribles. L'anticipation au service de l'action. Futuribles Sarl (47 rue de Babylone, F-75007 Paris. Tel: (33-1) 53633770 - Fax: 42226554 - Email: revue@futuribles.com - Internet: http://www.futuribles.com ). July-August 2015, No. 407, 152 pp, €22. Annual subscription: €15. ISBN 978-2-84387-419-2.
This issue of the future prospects review Futuribles includes a special report on the state of France, featuring discordant voices. To give an example, as far as Pierre Bonnaure is concerned, France has been lagging behind for more than forty years, since the time when it entered the discontinuous process of of public debt, rising unemployment and under-employment. He says that there is no reason to hope for improvement. Cécile Désaunay, however, explains how on the contrary, one can discern indications that a major transition is under way, with citizens' iniatives demonstrating that real alternatives exist to the current social and ecomomic model. . Jean-François Drevet devotes his Euoropean column to the countries in the 'rearguard,' from Scandinavia to the United Kingdom via Switzerland, Iceland and, more surprisingly, Ireland. In his view, these countries are prepared to take advantage of the benefits provided by the European Union, but are reluctant to accept the economic price that accompanies Community solidairy or to give up their neutrality, and they may well see themselves forced to make changes in this domains as a result of the massive economic, political and, particularly security upheavals occurring in the world. Other contributions look at 'biodiversity in danger,' how farming is adjusting to climate change, and the 'explosive demographic transition' occurring in sub-Saharan Africa.
(MT)