Wittlinger takes a fresh look at German national identity in the 21st century and shows that it has undergone considerable changes since unification in 1990. Due to the external pressures of the post-cold war world and recent domestic developments, Germany has re-emerged as a nation which is less hesitant to assert its national interest.

RUTH WITTLINGER is Senior Lecturer in Politics, School of Government and International Affairs, University of Durham, UK. She has published widely on post-unification Germany, European integration, British perceptions of Germany and the Germans and politics and literature.