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On the ‘Topographical Turn’: Concepts of Space in Cultural Studies and Kulturwissenschaften. A Cartographic Feud†

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 2009

Sigrid Weigel
Sigrid Weigel
Affiliation:
Zentrum für Literatur- und Kulturforschung; Schützenstr. 18, D-10117 Berlin, Germany. E-mail: direktion@zfl-berlin.org
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Abstract

Addressing the ‘topographical turn’ in cultural theory which emphasizes spatial constellations and sites, the article discusses concepts of space both in Anglo-American Cultural Theory and in European Culture Studies in order to develop their differences. Within Cultural Studies the program to ‘spatialize’ historical narratives has created a whole language of symbolic topographical figures which function as a counter-discourse for minorities. To argue against the tendency of translating theories in order to transform them into ‘neutral tools’, independent of their historical origin, the article discusses various space-discourses in European cultural theories; it refers to studies from the current cultural reorientation of the humanities but also to those from the early 20th century to illuminate different relationships between philosophy, historiography and cultural techniques.

Type
Focus: European Literature
Information
European Review , Volume 17 , Issue 1 , February 2009 , pp. 187 - 201
Copyright
Copyright © Academia Europaea 2009

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References

Notes and References

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