The Cultural Realm of European Integration: Social Representations in France, Spain, and the United Kingdom

Antonio V. Menendez-Alarcon

Apr 2004 · Greenwood Publishing Group

About this ebook

Against the background of the changing global context, this book presents an analysis of three country members of the European Union— France, Spain, and the United Kingdom—and the most significant social representations that are influencing the course of European integration. At the heart of the work is an analysis of the uneasy relation of the nation-state, its symbolism and the process of European integration. The text uses a sociological perspective to examine the issues of economic integration, enlargement, the question of national identity versus European identity, and sovereignty.

This account is based on multiple research methods, including document analysis, content analysis, and in-depth semi-structured individual interviews, quantitative and qualitative data. This study proceeds in two distinct, but complementary directions. First it offers a top-down analysis of the discourse on the nation-state and the European Union offered by political, labor union, and economic elites. Second it takes a bottom-up approach through the analysis of the general public's perception of the European Union. By looking at the interweaving of culture, politics, and economics, the author provides an insightful portrait of the complexity of the European Union.

About the author

Antonio Menéndez-Alarcón is chair of the Department of Sociology and Director of the International Studies Program at Butler University, where he teaches courses on the European Union, Globalization, Culture, Ethnic Relations, and Social Movements. He received his PhD from the University of Notre Dame, Indiana. He has published several books and articles including Power and Television in Latin America (Praeger, 1992), which received the Choice Magazine 1994 outstanding academic book award.