In my talk I will outline the research project I am currently developing. This project examines how left-wing literary-political journals in Western Europe (1945–1975) shaped and redefined literary engagement amidst ideological shifts, particularly through transnational networks across Italy, Germany, France, and formerly colonised francophone regions. Moving beyond both a French-centric perspective and the dominant view of literary engagement, it analyses how periodicals facilitated transnational exchanges and served as “laboratories of ideas” and “sites of contestation” where writers and intellectuals debated the role of literature in politics in the face of de-Stalinisation and decolonisation. In addition to outlining the project, I will discuss a number of methodological issues related to the study of intellectual and artistic networks over time.