Writing Europe: What is European about the Literatures of Europe? Essays from 33 European Countries

What do we mean by Europe? Thirty-three renowned authors from 33 European countries attempt an answer-in serious, ironic, skeptical, or optimistic tones. Their essays, written for the symposium held at the Literaturhaus Hamburg in 2003, reflect the astonishing diversity of European cultures. Not only are the style and experience of the individual authors remarkable for their distinctiveness, but their perspectives and views also appear to have little in common-at first glance. The editors have created a unique literary project, a milestone in the vitally necessary cultural discourse about Europe.

Table of Contents:
Ursula Keller – Germany Writing Europe Ilma Rakusa – Switzerland Impressions and Conversations during the Intervals Guðbergur Bergsson – Island Europe Untitled Andrei Bitov – Russia The Literary Hero as Hero Hans Maarten van den Brink – The Netherlands Language and Terror Mircea Cărtărescu – Romania Europe Has the Shape of My Brain Stefan Chwin – Poland The Nursery School Teacher from Tversk Street Aleš Debeljak – Slovenia Concentric Circles of Identity Jörn Donner – Finnland Europe from the Fringe Mario Fortunato – Italy Europe? Eugenio Fuentes – Spain The Western Bloc Jens Christian Grøndahl – Denmark Notes of an Escapist Durs Grünbein – Germany Europa’s Lovers Daniela Hodrová – Czech Republic Woven Into the Web Panos Ioannides – Cyprus Europe in My Prose and My Theatrical Work Mirela Ivanova – Bulgaria Europe — One Way of Reading It Lídia Jorge – Portugal A Sort of Huge Portugal Dževad Karahasan – Bosnia Europe Writes in Time Fatos Lubonja – Albania Between the Local and the Universal Adolf Muschg – Switzerland Europe or “Eleuthera, City of the Mnemosyne” Péter Nádas – Hungary In the Intimacy of Literary Writing Emine Sevgi Özdamar – Turkey Guest Faces Geir Pollen – Norway On the European Ingredient in the Text Jean Rouaud – France In Memory of Ernst Wiechert Robert Schindel – Austria “We’re All Right.” Europe’s Influence on My Writing Ivan Štrpka – Slovakia Oh, Children Smeared with Honey and with Blood Richard Swartz – Sweden The Light Falls on Me Nikos Themelis – Greece Looking for a Widened Self-Awareness Emil Tode – Estonia Europe, a Blot of Ink Colm Toíbín – Ireland The Future of Europe Jean-Philippe Toussaint – Belgium You Are Leaving the American Sector Dubravka Ugrešić – Croatia European Literature as a Eurovision Song Contest Dragan Velikić – Serbia B-Europe Tomas Venclova – Lithuania What Can Lithuania Give to Present-Day Europe Māra Zālīte – Latvia Unfinished Thoughts

About the Author :
Ursula Keller is publicist, film-maker, dramaturg. She is programme director at the Literaturhaus Hamburg. Ilma Rakusa is writer and publicist, holds a PhD in literature and is the translator of numerous works from the Russian, French, Hungarian, and the Serbo-Croat.