Unsettled 1968 in the Troubled Present

Book excerpt: Why does 1968 matter today? The authors of this volume believe that it is a crucial point of reference for current developments, especially the ‘illiberal turn’ both in Europe and America. If we want to understand it, we need to look back into 1968 – the year that founded the cultural and political order of today’s world. The book consists of the following four sections: '1968 and transnationality', '1968 and the transformation of meanings', 'Artistic representations of 1968', and '1968 and the European contemporaity'. This is followed by an afterword from the significant keynote speaker at the conference Unsettled 1968: Origins – Myth – Impact in June 2018 in Tübingen, Germany: Irena Grudzinska-Gross, herself a Polish ‘68er’, reflects upon the conference and leaves remarks on her 50 years of engagement with what happened in 1968.