Master Programme: British Culture and Civilisation in the Context of

Globalisation

Course title: MYTHS OF IDENTITY IN THE BRITISH ISLES

During this course, students will explore the problem of national identity and of
the sense of identity as aspects of the various divisions characterising the historical and
contemporary British space. Students are expected to understand the fluid, relative
character of the concept of national identity, as well as the ideological load of various
identity myths.
The provided materials and the assignments aim at evincing the paradoxes and
contradictions in the construction of national identity, and in the definition of the
controversed notions of Englishness and Britishness.

Course topics
1. Introduction: Nationalism and national identity – theoretical perspectives
2. Englishness/Britishness in the age of devolution
3. Myths of ancestry and descent in the British Isles
4. Protestantism and patriotism – the myth of the elect nation
5. War and national identity in the British Isles
6. National stereotypes. The myth of “the English character”
7. Englishness and landscape. The rural myth: “Our England is a garden”
8. The heritage industry and the commodification of national identity

ASSESSMENT. You will be evaluated on the basis of a project, which you will
defend [i.e. îl veţi susţine] during the last course session (3 or 4 June 2011 – date
to be agreed upon), and which you will then hand in to the tutor.
Your assessment will take into account:
• The project’s relevance to the course thematics;
• The quality of its achievement;
• The quality of its presentation (in 10-15 minutes).

The project may consist in a paper – no longer than 4 pages ((A4; TNR; 12; 1,5
spacing) –, a powerpoint projection, or any other audio-visual media combination.
Its topic may bear on any aspect of national identity and its forms of cultural
expression in British context.