Encountering the North : Cultural Geography, International Relations and Northern Landscapes

This text argues that culture - referring to artistic and intellectual products and systems of shared beliefs - and international relations are mutually dependent.

For example, the cultural-aesthetic layers underlying international relations and how they have changed in space and time are necessary if one wishes to understand how power in international relations unfolds.

The book investigates this claim by analysing cultural and political representations of the European North which is understood as a meeting place, a natural area unnaturally divided by national boundaries.

Illustrated by a wide range of case studies, it explores issues such as gender, literature, history, folk culture, environment and climate change and cultural marginalization, and links these with the geopolitics of the region.

The book also addresses Northern Europe in terms of postcolonialism and refers to inequalities within and between societies as a result of colonial practices of nation states.