Images of Europe around the Crisis

This article was originally presented as a keynote speech at ISSEI’s 14th International Conference, “Images of Europe: Past, Present, Future,” The Catholic University of Portugal, Porto, 4–8 August 2014.

Abstract

In this article I examine the extent to which the European crisis has debunked certain images of Europe and spread other new ones. I will try to summarize the stages of this symbolic tour through (1) furtive and mechanical Europe; (2) the remoteness of non-salient Europe; (3) the Europe that hopes and the Europe that fears; (4) headstrong Europe, which claims that crises are necessarily opportunities; and then (5), the Europe with which I identify the most: contingent Europe, which could be or not be, or be in another fashion, whose interest lies in that it is an uncertain product of our conditioned freedom and which, for that very reason, we can consider (6) a politicized Europe.

Notes

This article was originally presented as a keynote speech at ISSEI’s 14th International Conference, “Images of Europe: Past, Present, Future,” The Catholic University of Portugal, Porto, 4–8 August 2014.

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