The Politics and Poetics of Authenticity
A Cultural Genealogy of Sinhala Nationalism
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Author(s)
Rambukwella, Harshana
Language
EnglishAbstract
What is the role of cultural authenticity in the making of nations? Much scholarly and popular commentary on nationalism dismisses authenticity as a romantic fantasy or, worse, a deliberately constructed mythology used for political manipulation. The Politics and Poetics of Authenticity places authenticity at the heart of Sinhala nationalism in late nineteenth and twentieth-century Sri Lanka. It argues that the passion for the ‘real’ or the ‘authentic’ has played a significant role in shaping nationalist thinking and argues for an empathetic yet critical engagement with the idea of authenticity.
Keywords
Authenticity; Decolonisation; Nationalism; Sinhala; Buddhism; Dharmapala; Sri LankaISBN
9781787351288Publisher
UCL PressPublication date and place
2018Classification
Biography, Literature and Literary studies
History
General and world history
Asian history
Nationalism