9 - Being Eurocentric within Europe: Nineteenth-century English and Dutch Literary Historiography and Oriental Spain

Summary

Abstract

Some current political notions of a ‘two-speed’ Europe find their roots in a long-existing narrative that divides Europe along different polarities, one of them being between North and South. This polarity is further complicated by an association of the South with the Oriental Other, creating a divide within Europe itself in an exercise of Eurocentrism within Europe's own borders. Delving into the way nineteenth-century English and Dutch literary historiography dealt with the literary legacy of early modern Spain – when it was at the zenith of its political and cultural power – reveals how a new organization of the leading literatures and cultures from the eighteenth century onwards excluded or downplayed Spain's role in Europe. However, the reason for this exclusion or downplaying within the English and Dutch discourse seems unrelated to the Oriental vision of Spain, as envisioned by Madame de Staël and others at the beginning of the nineteenth century.

Keywords: Eurocentrism, Oriental Spain, Spanish Golden Age, nineteenth century, Dutch literary historiography, English literary historiography

Certain concepts within EU political discourse do not just come into existence in medias res or in a spontaneous self-generating manner. The thrilling thing about studying Europe, European culture and history, the roots, bonds and rivalries among its comprising nations and others beyond her borders, is the possibility of drawing on a rich reservoir of European – and transnational – interlocked narratives that can account for the origin and further evolution of certain notions, perceptions and prejudices. Think, rather, of a prosaic notion such as that of the ‘two-speed’ Europe. Although at first sight it may seem a purely practical policy or strategy to accommodate differences within Europe with regard to pace and level in economic matters, on closer contemplation there is more to it than simply that. According to Italian economist Pasquale Luzio Scandizzo, this concept has two meanings:

On the one hand, it is a statement of the fact that Europe is moving along at two different speeds: at the speed of the Eurozone and at the speed of the rest of Europe. However there is already a ‘two-speed’ model within the Eurozone itself: there are more developed countries like Germany and the Netherlands and there are countries which are experiencing certain economic hardships – France, Spain, Italy and others.