The Edinburgh Companion to Fin-de-Siecle Literature, Culture and the Arts

'An exciting and adventurous collection which sets out to challenge established interpretations of this complex period.' Valerie Sanders, University of Hull Explores the significance of the British fin de siècle in Scotland and Ireland, as well as some regional cities in England The late nineteenth-century fin de siècle has proved an enduringly fascinating moment in literary and cultural history. It is associated with the emergence of intriguing figures such as the 'new woman' and 'uranian'; with contradictory impulses, of decadence and decay on the one hand and of experiment and renewal on the other; and with unprecedented intercultural exchange, especially between Britain and France. The twenty-two newly-commissioned essays collected here re-examine some of the key concepts taken to define the fin de siècle, while also introducing hitherto overlooked cultural phenomena into the frame, such as the importance of humanitarianism. The impact of recent research in material culture is explored, particularly how the history of the book and the history of performance culture is changing our understanding of this period. A wide range of cultural activities is discussed: from participation in avant-garde theatre to interior decoration and from the writing of poetry to political and religious activism. Together, the essays provide new scholarly insights into British fin de siècle and enrich our understanding of this complex period, while paying particular attention to the importance of regionalism. Josephine M. Guy has published widely on Victorian literature and culture, especially on Oscar Wilde, and is a member of the editorial team of the Oxford English Texts Edition of the Complete Works of Oscar Wilde. She is the author of The British Avant-Garde: The Theory and Politics of Tradition (1991) and co-editor, with Ian Small, of The Textual Condition of Nineteenth-Century Literature (2012). Cover image: The Brontolonis, Bertalan Karlovsky, 1890 (c) Alfredo Dagli Orti/REX/Shutterstock Cover design: [EUP logo] edinburghuniversitypress.com ISBN 978-1-4744-0891-2 Barcode