Realism' is a pervasive term in discussions of contemporary developments in literature and film. By drawing on different theories of realism, the authors explore how the term may be used as a helpful concept in order to analyse and evaluate current trends in cultural production and, in turn, how cultural production changes our understanding of what counts as realism'. The volume deals with media-specific and national traditions of realism, thereby offering a transdisciplinary engagement with forms and socio-political functions of realism' in contemporary culture.
Dorothee Birke, FRIAS, Freiburg; Stella Butter, University of Mannheim.
