Some Modern Belgian Writers


Book Description




Flemish Legends


Book Description

Charles De Coster's book "Flemish Legends" is an anthology of folktales and stories from the Belgian province of Flanders. De Coster vividly captures Flanders' rich cultural legacy and mythology in a sequence of engrossing tales. A wide range of characters, including bold heroes, crafty tricksters, and mythological creatures, are included in the book and are interwoven with enthralling and thought-provoking stories. "Flemish Legends" gives readers an insight into Flemish mythology and customs through the mythical exploits of till Eulenspiegel, a shrewd trickster, and the fantastical adventures of Reynard the Fox, a sly and cunning protagonist. De Coster leads readers to a world full of magic, intrigue, and moral lessons with her vivid storytelling and vibrant images. The bravery, humor, and resiliency that permeate the stories in "Flemish Legends" are a reflection of the Flemish people's values and beliefs. De Coster's writing captivates readers of all ages, whether she is narrating epic wars, comedic misadventures, or heartfelt love stories. This helps to preserve the ageless appeal and value of Flemish folklore for future generations.




The Lion of Flanders


Book Description

The Lion of Flanders is an historical novel, relating the Flemish struggle for freedom against France in the medieval times.




Christ's Entry Into Brussels


Book Description

It's Jesus. He's coming back. To Brussels. Get ready...




Some Modern Belgian Writers


Book Description




Belgium


Book Description

Although Belgium has only been an independent state since the 1830s, it has a long and complex past. This history is essential for understanding the complexities of issues that led to a devolution of the unitary Belgian state into a federation of linguistically based regions. In addition to the elements that contributed to Belgium's particular political evolution, the history which is traced in this book is a composite of many themes of broad historical interest and importance. Belgium: A History covers the gamut of Belgian history through dramas of religious and cultural conflict, intense localism, state building, uneven development, divergent class interests, war and domination, and finally, integration into a larger European community.




The Intellectual Origins of the Belgian Revolution


Book Description

This book explores the political ideas of the Belgian Revolution of 1830, which led to the break-up of the Restoration state of the ‘united’ Kingdom of the Netherlands. It uncovers the origins of liberalism and political Catholicism in the Southern Netherlands in the wake of the French Revolution, and traces the development of political language in the context of the tensions between the Northern and Southern part of the united Netherlands. It shows how differences in ‘Dutch’ and ‘Belgian’ political and intellectual history resulted in different understandings of essential political concepts such as ‘sovereignty’ and ‘balance of powers’, as well as of the nature of the constitutional order of 1815. Finally, it traces the emergence of Belgian nationalism within the discourse of opposition against the government. Stefaan Marteel therefore provides a fresh perspective on the intellectual background of the rise of the nation-state in the nineteenth century.




An English Governess in the Great War


Book Description

Mary Thorp, an English governess working for a Belgian-Russian family in German-occupied Brussels, kept a secret war diary from September 1916 to January 1919. This long-forgotten diary sheds light on an important aspect of the First World War: civilian life under military occupation in a transnational conflict.




Masters of the Ninth Art


Book Description

In English-speaking countries, Francophone comic strips like Hergés's Les Aventures de Tin Tin and Goscinny and Uderzo's Les Aventures d'Asterix are viewed—and marketed—as children's literature. But in Belgium and France, their respective countries of origin, such strips—known as bandes dessinées—are considered a genuine art form, or, more specifically, "the ninth art." But what accounts for the drastic difference in the way such comics are received? In Masters of the Ninth Art, Matthew Screech explores that difference in the reception and reputation of bandes dessinées. Along with in-depth looks at Tin Tin and Asterix, Screech considers other major comics artists such as Jacque Tardi, Jean Giraud, and Moebius, assessing in the process their role in Francophone literary and artistic culture. Illustrated with images from the artists discussed, Masters of the Ninth Art will appeal to students of European popular culture, literature, and graphic art.




Narratives of Low Countries History and Culture


Book Description

This edited collection explores the ways in which our understanding of the past in Dutch history and culture can be rethought to consider not only how it forms part of the present but how it can relate also to the future. Divided into three parts – The Uses of Myth and History, The Past as Illumination of Cultural Context, and Historiography in Focus – this book seeks to demonstrate the importance of the past by investigating the transmission of culture and its transformations. It reflects on the history of historiography and looks critically at the products of the historiographic process, such as Dutch and Afrikaans literary history. The chapters cover a range of disciplines and approaches: some authors offer a broad view of a particular period, such as Jonathan Israel's contribution on myth and history in the ideological politics of the Dutch Golden Age, while others zoom in on specific genres, texts or historical moments, such as Benjamin Schmidt’s study of the doolhof, a word that today means ‘labyrinth’ but once described a 17th-century educational amusement park. This volume, enlightening and home to multiple paths of enquiry leading in different directions, is an excellent example of what a past-present doolhof might look like.