Visceral Cosmopolitanism: Gender, Culture and the Normalisation of Differenc

by Mica Nava

Cultural theorist Mica Nava makes an original and significant contribution to the study of cosmopolitanism by exploring everyday English urban cosmopolitanism and foregrounding the gendered, imaginative and empathetic aspects of positive engagement with cultural and racial difference. By looking at a wide range of texts, events and biographical narratives, she traces cosmopolitanism from its marginal status at the beginning of the twentieth century to its relative normalisation today. Case studies include the promotion of cosmopolitanism by Selfridges before the first world war; relationships between white English women and 'other' men -- Jews and black GIs -- during the 1930s and 1940s; literary, cinematic and social science representations of migrants in postcolonial Britain; and Diana and Dodi's interracial romance in the 1990s. In the final chapter, the author draws on her own complex family history to illustrate the contemporary cosmopolitan London experience.Scholars have tended to ignore the oppositional cultures of antiracism and social inclusivity. This groundbreaking study redresses this imbalance and offers a sophisticated account of the uneven history of vernacular cosmopolitanism.

224 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2007

Reviews

[Aidan Corrie]

Just a fucking exquisite, concise book. Some of the language and event framing is a little dated, but all of the analysis and criticism fits MORESO now. What wonderful work. Wish we would’ve gotten more secondary literature on the Said points talked about, but that’s okay!