War, Nation and Europe in the Novels of Storm Jameson

by: Katherine Cooper (Author)

Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic

Publication Date: 16 April 2020

Language: English

Print Length: 200 pages

ISBN-10: 1350094439

ISBN-13: 9781350094437

Book Description

The novels of Storm Jameson and their depictions of Britain’s relationship to Europe around the Second World War represent a crucial departure from the work of her contemporaries. As the first female President of English PEN, Jameson led her country’s wartime literary community through turbulent times in history by focusing on European – rather than pointedly British – experiences of war.War, Nation and Europe in the Novels of Storm Jameson is a timely critique situated within the historical and theoretical contexts so fundamental to understanding her work. Presenting previously unpublished archival material that documents her work as an ambassador for British writers during a time of national upheaval, Katherine Cooper reveals how the novelist’s pacifism and evolving attitudes to war and peace were underpinned by her overarching vision for the post-war world. Drawing comparisons to the works of Virginia Woolf, Arthur Koestler, Graham Greene and others, this study shows how Jameson’s novels gesture towards prevalent inteationalist perspectives and reshapes how we view the literary history of the period.