Hamlet by Olivier Kaurismäki or Shepard and Pride and Prejudice in its many adaptations show
the virulence of these texts and the importance of aesthetic recycling for the formation of
cultural identity and diversity. Adaptation has always been a standard literary and cultural
strategy and can be regarded as the dominant means of production in the cultural industries
today. Focusing on a variety of aspects such as artistic strategies and genre but also
marketing and cultural politics this volume takes a critical look at ways of adapting and
appropriating cultural texts across epochs and cultures in literature film and the arts.
