This pioneering study introduces readers to key themes from animal studies, as a frame within which it examines the representation of animals and animality in the work of a range of authors. In this new approach to animal studies, the concept of a relational universe that has emerged in recent natural and physical science is argued as being central. With fresh readings of Welsh literary and non-literary publications, including the Welsh press and Welsh-language manuals, the book explores relationships among animals and between humans and animals, to approach subjects such as intelligence, sensibility and knowledge from an animal perspective. The possibility of redrawing and reclaiming a history of rural and industrial Wales is suggested according to an animal history and agenda. This innovative contribution to Welsh and animal studies illuminates fascinating and controversial subjects, including animal domestication, captivity, communication, biopsychology, human exceptionalism, zoos and farming.

This study places the internationally renowned poetry of two major figures, R. S. Thomas and Rowan Williams, in a new and illuminating context. It demonstrates how theological convictions are embodied in the very form and texture of poems. The book draws attention to a cultural phenomenon of European resonance, because it runs counter to established secular practice in the UK, in Western Europe and in the US.

Rather than being limited to political or legal discussion (like most books on Brexit), this book explores the relationship between cultural production and Brexit (both in the lead up to it; and in its aftermath). It is the first major study to take a comparative approach to analysing the relationship between cultural production and Brexit in all 4 nations of the UK. This comparative approach is necessary to get a detailed picture of the complex dynamics at work across each. This book is highly interdisciplinary in nature, looking at the rise of the cultural industries; the relationship between the UK City of Culture festival and its fore-runner, the European Capital of Culture; national book prizes in Britain and Europe; British variations on Nordic Noir TV; and the Brexit novel. As a result, it draws on research in the disciplines of geography, economics, film and television studies, history and politics as well as publishing and literary studies.

Postcolonialism Revisited is a ground-breaking book, the first to explore and analyse Anglophone Welsh writing, both literary and otherwise, in the context of contemporary thinking about colonial and post-colonial cultures. Kirsti Bohata considers how far the paradigms of postcolonial theory may be usefully adopted and adapted to provide an illuminating exploration of Welsh writing in English, while simultaneously considering the challenges that such writing might offer to the field of postcolonial theory. In addition to dealing with a range of theorists in the field, including Frantz Fanon, Albert Memmi, Charlotte Williams and Homi Bhabha, the book looks at how Wales has been constructed as a colonized nation in nineteenth- and twentieth-century writing. Themed chapters include the treatment of place in English- and Welsh-language writing of the 1950s and 1960s; hybridity and assimilation; the position of the Welsh as 'outsiders inside'; the women's movement in Wales during the fin de siecle; and postcolonial understanding of linguistic power struggles. A variety of forgotten writers have been unearthed in this study and are considered alongside more famous names such as R. S. Thomas, Margiad Evans, Arthur Machen, Christopher Meredith and Rhys Davies. Written in an accessible style, Postcolonialism Revisited will be required reading for those involved in the study of Welsh writing in English.

"Humanists and social scientists alike will profit from reflection on the efforts of the contributors to reimagine anthropology in terms, not only of methodology, but also of politics, ethics, and historical relevance. Every discipline in the human and social sciences could use such a book."--Hayden White, author of Metahistory

The author traces the course of literary criticism from its foundations in classical and medieval precepts to the theorising of the present day. He explores the texts which have been milestones in the history of critical thought, placing them firmly in the context of their time.

1. The book is in keeping with contemporary developments in literary criticism and interpretation. 2. The book is the first to offer a comprehensive critical overview of Thomas’s entire output. 3. It provides exciting new commentaries on cultural appropriations and interpretations of Thomas in the media, letters, and popular culture. 4. It contains work by some of the leading voices in the fields of Thomas studies and Welsh Writing in English. 5. It offers key insights into the Welsh contexts of Thomas’s work and legacy.