ABSTRACT

This book highlights the linkages between politics and governance and the arts. The essays in the volume show how visual and performative arts have challenged those in power – or conversely patronised by them – been used for propaganda, to stir up national fervour and found themselves at the receiving end of political censure. They focus on the tension and symbiosis between the politician and the artist foregrounding how they have always tried to influence, challenge and, in some cases, undermine one another.

This volume will serve as an indispensable source for researchers and academics in political science, the humanities and performing arts.

part I|120 pages

Politics and the Visual Arts

chapter 141|10 pages

Polis and imperium

The making of the modern world

chapter 2|17 pages

Politics and art in Baroque Malta

A case study in the expression of magnificence and its relevance to the present day

chapter 3|15 pages

Colonialism, collective identity and symbolism

Constructing perceptions of identity in a former British colony

chapter 4|17 pages

Politics and the iconography of statehood

National anthems and flags

chapter 5|27 pages

Postage stamps as a political tool across time and space

Reflections of a Maltese philatelist

part II|87 pages

Politics in the Performative Arts

chapter 1348|14 pages

French cinematography and politics

A symbol of French national cultural identity

chapter 9|14 pages

The world through the comedian's lens

The political and social commentary of Charles Chaplin

chapter 10|11 pages

Brecht for non-Marxists

chapter 11|14 pages

Fantozzi and politics as a farce

A critical perspective

chapter 12|13 pages

Shot in Malta

The politics of the film industry since independence

chapter 13|19 pages

Pathways

Walking in a terrain in flux