Full Description
Regionalism is one of the most debated issues in contemporary western Europe. Yet why the region, rather than the nation state, can have such a strong appeal for the construction of social and political identity remains largely unexplored. Drawing on data collected in the mountainous Trentino region of northern Italy, the author investigates how ideas about village boundaries and private property form the background against which regionalist ideologies are understood. In suggesting that ideas about regionalism largely reflect views about private property, he provides an alternative to theories of nationalism that overlook the articulation between official ideologies and discourses at the local level.
Contents
List of Illustrations
Note on Language
Preface and Acknowledgements
Chapter 1. Introducing Localism
Chapter 2. The Setting and its Historical Background
Chapter 3. A Private Space: The Present-day Organisation of Village Life
Chapter 4. Knowing One's Land: Hunters and Poachers
Chapter 5. The View from Below: Constructions of Otherness
Chapter 6. Natural Time, Political Time: Representations of History
Chapter 7. Local Politics in Theory and Practice
Chapter 8. Conclusions: Localism Revisited
Appendices
References
Index
