TRANSCENDING THE NATION-STATE - THE EUROPEAN-COMMISSION AND THE (RE)-DISCOVERY OF EUROPE

This article examines the process of European integration from a cultu ral perspective. Taking up questions posed by social scientists and Eu ropean Community (EC) officials concerning the possibility of transcen ding nation-state and nationalism in Europe, it explores the European Commission's attempts to do this, particularly through the EC's campai gns and initiatives for forging a sense of European identity and cultu re at the level of popular consciousness. Following Hobsbawn and Range r, I argue that the history of EC cultural politics provides an intere sting case study of invented traditions and manufactured heritage. The political implications and problems of using culture as a vehicle for nation-building at a pan-European level are analysed. The article con cludes with a critical appraisal of the concept of European identity a nd questions whether the EC's project for constructing a post-national ist political order in Europe is feasible or politically desirable.