Even more so, it is due to the institutional history of the discipline. The history of 'English' is relatively short and of great complexity. It is a history full of ideological and political conflict, both nationally and internationally. This collection gives a survey of English as an academic discipline in Europe. It offers essays on the history of English studies in various countries, deals with issues cutting across national borders and, in the final essay, highlights common features.
Much work remains to be done.
This volume marks an important step towards a European history of English studies, by sketching a framework, by offering examples, by creating a context for further work, and by discussing the problems of writing the history of a discipline crucial to the humanities.