Empire and Nation in British Future-War and Invasion-Scare Fiction, 1871–1914
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8958837 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Christian K Melby (0000-0001-7937-5742, King's College London, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2019 |
| Volume | 63 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 389-410 |
| Publication date | 2019-06-24 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The Historical Journal (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0018-246X • E-ISSN: 1469-5103 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s0018246x19000232 |
| OpenAlex | W2954359582 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 4 |
| References cited | 36 |
The British wrote and read a large quantity of fictional depictions of future wars and invasions in the period between 1871 and 1914, imagining the various ways in which a great war might look before the real conflict broke out. This article outlines the ways in which this form of literature described a British world united across time and space. The stories have traditionally been read as indicative of a societal fear of invasion, of imperial decline, or of the dangers of revolutionary upheaval. The article argues that the stories’ popularity can instead be traced to the way they included their readers in the experience of invasion and conflict, and how they were well suited to the era of modern mass newspapers. The article therefore concludes that earlier interpretations of how readers engaged with such fiction has underestimated how a varied readership could view the stories as entertaining spectacles where they were invited to participate. As such, the article offers a new interpretation of an important literary genre as well as of British pre-war political culture
Aesthetics · Ancient history · Art · Audience measurement · British Empire · Empire · Interpretation (philosophy · Literature · Media studies · Newspaper · Period (music · Political science · Politics · Popularity · Sociology · Australian History and Society · History · Joseph Conrad and Literature · Law · World Wars: History, Literature, and Impact
The commodity culture of Victorian England
Propaganda and empire
The Routledge Companion to British Media History
Progress versus Utopia; or, can we imagine the future?
The Routledge Companion to Science Fiction
British Political Culture and the Idea of ‘Public Opinion', 1867–1914
English Culture and the Decline of the Industrial Spirit, 1850–1980
'At duty’s call'
Propaganda and Empire
The Idea of Greater Britain
To Arms!’
Crimson Nightmares
Scrutinizing the Battle of Dorking
Against ‘Englishness’
Looking Backward, Looking Forward
The Rise of the Anglo-German Antagonism 1860–1914
The Prospect of War
Voices Prophesying War
The Six Panics, and other Essays
Storied Ground
The Decline and Fall of the British Empire
Imagined communities
The Titan Refreshed
The eyes of an empire'
The Place of the Past in English Culture c.1890-1914
Imagined Communities. Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism
| Unique citing works | 4 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2022 - 2025 (4) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 4 |