Acknowledgements
1. Introduction
2. Becoming acquainted with Ali Smith
3. Smith’s dramatis personae
4. A portrayal of the age of distraction
5. “Land of my soul”: national and environmental concerns
6. Magical interventions
7. Intertextual encounters with art
8. Ekphrastic moments
9. Other artistic encounters
10. The transformative power of art
11. By way of conclusion. Solidarity through dialogue
Index
Biography
José I. Prieto-Arranz is Associate Professor of English at the University of the Balearic Islands, Spain. He has conducted research at the intersection of applied linguistics, semiotics, sociology, and cultural studies. His work has examined the construction and expression of national identity in cultural phenomena and products like language acquisition, translation, tourism promotion and advertising, popular music, television, film, and, more recently, literature. Focusing on how literature addresses contemporary nationalism and social fragmentation, he has pioneered the study of neo-historical fiction, including authors like Hilary Mantel and CJ Sansom. His book Ethics and Aesthetics in Ali Smith’s Fiction provides the first holistic study of Smith’s oeuvre.
This study offers an exceptionally engaging and informative guide to the literary and ethical value of Ali Smith’s fiction. This is the book that at last brings to the fore Smith’s constant use of literary and artistic forms to convey her central aim of intervening in current culture and politics.
– Susana Onega, Emeritus Professor, University of Zaragoza, Academia Europæa
José Igor Prieto-Arranz offers a valuable and detailed overview of the multiple modes of solidarity–between individuals, cultures, environments, and forms of art–that are brought about in Ali Smith’s works.
– Merja Polvinen, Senior Lecturer, University of Helsinki, Finland
