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Euroscepticism, anti-nostalgic nostalgia and the past perfect post-Brexit future

Euroscepticism, anti-nostalgic nostalgia and the past perfect post-Brexit future
Euroscepticism, anti-nostalgic nostalgia and the past perfect post-Brexit future
While extant work on British Euroscepticism has highlighted vestiges of historical empire imaginaries in discourses opposing EU integration, the emotional dynamics of such frames remain curiously underexplored. The diluted quality of these Eurosceptic histories, with their distinctive interplay of past and future, has led some to reject their nostalgic emotional credentials altogether. This article challenges such assumptions of emotional absence through a qualitative discourse analysis of the 2016 EU referendum Vote Leave campaign's materials, and interviews with 13 former campaigners. By unpacking Vote Leave's preference for an anti-nostalgic form of empire nostalgia, central to its vision of a past perfect post-Brexit future, this analysis contributes primarily to literatures on British Euroscepticism and Brexit, revealing the counterintuitive nostalgic politics and persistent cultural appeal of ostensibly forward-looking discursive stances. The analysis also has broader relevance, particularly for advocates of an ‘emotional turn’ in EU Studies and scholars investigating escalating nationalisms beyond Britain.
Euroscepticism, Brexit, EU contestation, nostalgia, nationalism
0021-9886
1758-1776
Melhuish, Francesca
c0ab0898-d938-4f4e-bca9-af48815d1f69
Melhuish, Francesca
c0ab0898-d938-4f4e-bca9-af48815d1f69

Melhuish, Francesca (2022) Euroscepticism, anti-nostalgic nostalgia and the past perfect post-Brexit future. JCMS: Journal of Common Market Studies, 60 (6), 1758-1776. (doi:10.1111/jcms.13345).

Record type: Article

Abstract

While extant work on British Euroscepticism has highlighted vestiges of historical empire imaginaries in discourses opposing EU integration, the emotional dynamics of such frames remain curiously underexplored. The diluted quality of these Eurosceptic histories, with their distinctive interplay of past and future, has led some to reject their nostalgic emotional credentials altogether. This article challenges such assumptions of emotional absence through a qualitative discourse analysis of the 2016 EU referendum Vote Leave campaign's materials, and interviews with 13 former campaigners. By unpacking Vote Leave's preference for an anti-nostalgic form of empire nostalgia, central to its vision of a past perfect post-Brexit future, this analysis contributes primarily to literatures on British Euroscepticism and Brexit, revealing the counterintuitive nostalgic politics and persistent cultural appeal of ostensibly forward-looking discursive stances. The analysis also has broader relevance, particularly for advocates of an ‘emotional turn’ in EU Studies and scholars investigating escalating nationalisms beyond Britain.

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J of Common Market Studies - 2022 - Melhuish - Euroscepticism Anti‐Nostalgic Nostalgia and the Past Perfect Post‐Brexit - Version of Record
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Accepted/In Press date: 14 April 2022
e-pub ahead of print date: 17 May 2022
Published date: 25 October 2022
Keywords: Euroscepticism, Brexit, EU contestation, nostalgia, nationalism

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 494065
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/494065
ISSN: 0021-9886
PURE UUID: ab06f8df-d80f-4d7c-a5f2-defe4c4f1981
ORCID for Francesca Melhuish: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-2952-5607

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Date deposited: 20 Sep 2024 17:06
Last modified: 21 Sep 2024 02:14

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Author: Francesca Melhuish ORCID iD

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