A new edition of Ronald Johnson's masterpiece /> />"ARK is a metaphysical poem that could only have been written in our time, of which it displays a new vision. It is a late harvest of seeds sown by Blake, L. Frank Baum, the Bible, and Zukofsky, all in a new architecture, a wholly new voice, and even a new chemistry of words and images. It is for those who can see visions, and for those who know how to look well and be taught that they can see them."—Guy Davenport

Sweden was perceived for a long time as a society characterized by equality, social cohesion and an ambitious welfare policy. With its independent foreign policy, it stood outside the great power conflicts. In recent years, gang crime and shootings have received a lot of attention in the media, a right-wing populist party has become part of the government and we have ended 200 years of non-alignment by becoming members of NATO. How has it changed the image of our country and ourselves?In this anthology, a number of writers discuss the image of Sweden past and present, both within and outside the country's borders. Svante Nordin writes about Sweden and Luther, Elisabeth Braw about the importance of Swedes living abroad, Mikael Wiberg about the technological wonder, Fraser Nelson about gang crime and Sofia Bard about Sweden's soft power. Per Enerud, Anna von Bayern and Nathan Shachar address the image of Sweden in Russia, Germany and Spain and Richard Swartz criticizes the decline of the Swedish language.

The Bayeux Tapestry is one of the most important works of art in the world. Even without visiting the tapestry itself in the museum dedicated to it, we are all familiar with at least one illustration drawn from one of the 58 scenes that compose it. Visitors to the tapestry are often surprised by its length, its vivacity and its colours. It inspires passion in everybody who sees it - nobody can remain insensitive to a 950 year old story told in pictures accompanied by a Latin text.