... Portugal comparable to Sisyphus who, in the Greek myth, was punished by Zeus and had to roll a block of stone up a steep hill. Since the rock fell back every time when almost at the top, Sisyphus was confronted with an eternal and exhausting labour lasting an entire lifetime. In the following essay it will be discussed how and why Portugal is comparable to this figure and why state building seems to be an endless task for Portugal. What are the reasons and final consequences for such a struggle, and what role plays the national unity in this context? The remarkable (his)story of Sisyphus. The Ascending of the Hill - Creating an Identity In the 5th century, Germanic tribes entered the peninsula, such as Vandals and Swabians who settled at the west coast. The territory was to that time part of the Holy Roman Empire and because the arriving tribes did ...

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