This lively study provides an account of the 'fall and rise' of the English nation within the British discipline of English Literature between the late eighteenth century and the present day, offering a reconceptualisation of the relationship between English Literature and the formation of English cultural identity.

MICHAEL GARDINER is Professor in the Department of English and Comparative Literary Studies at the University of Warwick, UK. His books include The Cultural Roots of British Devolution, Scottish Critical Theory Since 1960 and the forthcoming The Constitution of English Literature. He is also on the editorial boards of Textual Practice and OpenDemocracy.