Synopses & Reviews
The explorations of eighteenth-century British travelers to the European frontiers were often geared to define the cultural, political and historical boundaries of European civilization. In an age when political revolutions shocked nations into reassessing what separated the civilized from the barbaric, how did literary travelers contemplate the characteristics of their continental neighbors? Focusing on the writings of British travelers, we see how a new view of Europe was created, one that attempted to define'modern Europe against a yet unenlightened Europe.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 208-225) and index.
Table of Contents
Preparing the course: the death of the grand tour and the making of a literary traveller -- Northern frontier: Scandinavia- the mismeasure of modernity and the 'Age of liberty' -- Eastern frontier: Russia and its frontier- cultivating empire and imitating enlightenment -- Southern frontier: Greece and the Levant- the archaeological appropriation of the historical frontier -- Coming home: displaying and describing the trophies of travels.