Description: Contemporary Austria habitually presents itself as the «cultural nation», or Kulturnation, where the promotion of culture is both of national and economic importance. In 1999, the government stated the value of culture in Austria as follows: «Our cultural heritage, contemporary culture, and art constitute major factors for both our own definition of cultural nation as well as the foreign perception of Austria.» Since the 1950s, Austria has nurtured a romantic attitude toward its past glory and embraced a cultural conservatism that hindered many Austrians from developing an open mind toward - and interest in - cultural criticism, artistic experimentation, and innovation. Therefore, most state funding continues to be channeled toward Austria's established theaters and artists rather than the writers and filmmakers, who make significant contributions to the public discourse on cultural amnesia and historical revisionism by challenging with varying intensity and on differing aesthetic platforms Austria's misguided self-promotion, such as Kulturnation par excellence.
Review Quotes: «This book differs from other anthologies of criticism on Austrian literature, film, and culture by bridging the gap between serious art and the economic, political, and social conditions of its production and distribution. Film, the visual arts, fiction, drama, documentary, and popular culture are all represented. Nearly all of the contributors address how market forces and policy decisions affect the creation and consumption of such artifacts. Any serious student of Austria and its culture should be familiar with the empirical information presented here on funding, the culture industry, tourism, and the media. At the same time, studies of individual artists, writers, and texts show in detail how policy, commercial promotion, criticism, and competition with mass media determine how art is made and consumed. Several essays examine commentary on the culture industry from the creative artists themselves. This collection is an important contribution to understanding a small country with a big culture.» (Geoffrey C. Howes, Bowling Green State University Co-Editor, Modern Austrian Literature)
«Dr. Lamb-Faffelberger's informative and eminently readable book contains first-rate literary and cultural analyses and critical essays by leading scholars. This fine collection of articles celebrates a new phase in Austrian Studies in the United States, marked by the founding of MALCA (Modern Austrian Literature and Culture Association). The authors address a wide spectrum of issues and concerns: Austrian cultural politics and policies; Austrian stereotypes; and the conditions under which the truly remarkable contribution to Western culture by Austrian writers, filmmakers, essayists and dramatists is produced and disseminated. Major contemporary writers and artists and their works are highlighted - Jelinek, Haneke, Brandstetter, Haslinger, and Handke. What a fascinating panorama of ideas and viewpoints on an often underestimated German-speaking society in the heart of Europe!» (Dagmar C. G. Lorenz, University of Illinois at Chicago)