Simona Nicoarã, Istorie si imaginar – eseuri de antropologie istoricã (History and Imaginary - Essays in Historical Anthropology) Editura Presa Universitarã Clujeanã, Cluj-Napoca, 2000.

This work intends to discuss about the first generation of Romanian womenpainters within the wider context of the condition of woman within the Romanian society during the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. We will develop the following path: a) the movement of women’s emancipation in Romania – characteristics and phases; b) the Romanian art-world and this movement of women-painters.

The value systems established by centuries have been reversed under the pressure of the political correctness. I intend to talk about a way of communicating and transmitting messages in the public space nowadays. I write about post-truth, arguing that it is a lie cosmeticized, hidden in a language that astounds and is supported by ideas that challenge not only refined intelligence, but also common sense. When I write the word truth, I do not consider the concept of truth, which philosophy (...) strives to define it, but I refer to the instrumental truth, the objective truth with which we operate daily, the truth as a benchmark of stability. And I put this truth in relation to the lie. I offer some concrete examples from the last three decades, from different environments, about events or statements that have been the subject of scandals that have started from the claim of some people to present a lie as a truth. I also refer to the fact that there is a whole Neo-Marxist literature that nullifies the natural hierarchy of things, so that objective truth loses its value, becomes irrelevant, flexible, until it is despised, because it is the instrument of „the conservative” individual, the class enemy of the progressives. (shrink)

Art and Form: From Roger Fry to Global ModernismROSESAMPenn State University Press. 2019. pp. 224. £71.95.

Os tempos pandêmicos forçaram a escola em relação ao encontro com a morte. Cenas narradas ou encenadas convocaram os educadores a se confrontarem com os desdobramentos desse encontro disruptivo. Coube aos professores se ocuparem dos efeitos mortíferos produzidos pela pandemia de Covid-19. Diante da morte, o silêncio costuma ser uma saída e, em relação aos educadores, não saber sobre o que fazer com ela na escola produz mal-estar, pois educar supõe uma posição de saber a ser sustentada. A partir de (...) fragmentos das falas de educadoras da Educação Infantil, da entrevista com a diretora e coordenadora de uma escola pública da região serrana do Rio de Janeiro, questionamos se a intensificação do mal-estar vivido durante o período pandêmico poderia impactar nas formas de saber fazer com o mortífero que se presentificou no encontro com as crianças.Os espaços de escuta ocorreram no retorno das aulas presenciais, no início do ano de 2022, no formato de rodas de conversa, em uma pesquisa-intervenção. A possibilidade de colocar em palavras o vivido na escola possibilitou aos educadores reservar um lugar para a morte, ao invés de suprimi-la, oferecendo espaço para o não saber e a dúvida. (shrink)

Human tragedy could be summed up a single word—death. One first encounters it through the death of others, and then everyone faces it for themselves. The Christian faith confronts humanity’s final foe head on, delivering sustained hope amidst the sorrow and despair of impending death. This paper will first address the central role of the resurrection of the dead in First Corinthians. Second, the paper will present Paul’s retort to several challenges raised against the notion of the resurrection. Finally, the (...) paper will attempt to systematize the means by which Paul proves the resurrection of the dead. (shrink)

In 1992, the much acclaimed prolific American writer Joyce Carol Oates publishes Black Water – a very harsh and condensed literary reenactment of a gruesome event having taken place more than twenty years before and known as the “Chappaquiddick incident”. Another twenty years later, through her 2012 novel Mudwoman, the author seems to revisit the topic that had haunted her for decades. This paper aims at establishing a certain narrative pattern connecting the two novels not only thematically, but also phantasmatically: (...) the sudden “resurrection” of Joyce Carol Oates’s character in the 2012 novel is, as we see it, far from being “incidental”. By “textual anastomosis”, we understand a subjective association of narratives in order to show how the disembodied consciousness “travels” from one character’s fictional body to another’s, triggering a whole bunch of personal memories which also resurrect in this other character’s fictional biography. (shrink)

Although Max Weber does not specifically analyze the topic of esteem, his investigation of the Protestant ethic offers interesting insights into it. The change in mentality it engendered essentially contributed to enhancing the meaning and importance of esteem in modern society. In his analysis, Weber ascertains that esteem was fundamental to being accepted and integrated into the social life of congregations. Nevertheless, he also highlights that esteem was supported by a form of self-esteem which was not simply derived from a (...) good social reputation, but also achieved through a deep and continual self-analysis as well as a strict discipline in the ethical conduct of life. The present analysis reconstructs the different aspects of the relationship between social and self-esteem and analyzes the consequences of that relationship by focusing on the exemplary case of the politician’s personality and ethic. (shrink)

Dario Argento and the Mother-Witch: Psychoanalysis of an Obsessive Image. This paper tries to present the complexity of the maternal figures in the work and biography of film director Dario Argento. The methods of interpretation are inspired by psychoanalysis, because Argento often referred to Freud’s writings in his films or in his recent autobiography, Fear, published in 2014. The criminal mothers depicted in some films signed by Dario Argento show, through violent narratives, the difficulties he had in dealing with the (...) maternal imago. But the most striking embodiments of the maternal monstrosity are to be found in the figure of the mother-witch, in the trilogy composed by Suspiria (1977), Inferno (1980), La Terza Madre (2007). The mother-witch has, of course, biographical sources, but its presence in some classical fairy-tales or in fin-de-siècle decadent literature also inspired the film director. (shrink)

Mat is a specific domain of Russian obscene vocabulary including words related to sexuality. The first sociolinguistic studies on mat emerged after the fall of the Soviet Union, concomitantly with the formation of Russian gender studies in the early 1990s. Until today, research on gender and taboo in Russian has been exiguous. Many scholars claim that the use of mat is a male prerogative, whereas women’s use of mat is heavily sanctioned in society. Through data from a survey I carried (...) out with 772 participants, I illustrate that mat is strongly present in women’s language use and that stereotypical gender conceptualizations are undergoing change. From the participants’ answers it emerges that discussions about the use of obscene language play a critical role in the multifaceted process of renegotiation of gender roles in post-Soviet contexts. (shrink)

At the beginning of the 16 th century, Transylvania had been an officially Catholic land belonging to the Kingdom of Hungary and led by an elite consisting of three nations, the Hungarian nobles (increasingly referred to as the Hungarian nation), the Saxons and the Szeklers. However, the general population, deprived of any political power, consisted of Orthodox Romanians. In other words, in Transylvania the Latin West met the Byzantine Orient. The old Hungary fell apart between 1526 and 1541, its central (...) regions taken by the Ottoman Empire, the west and the north by the Habsburgs, while the eastern part, Transylvania, became an autonomous principality under Ottoman suzerainty. At the same time, various Protestant trends made their presence felt among the leading nations, eventually crystallizing in the form of Lutheranism, Calvinism, and Unitarianism. In the space of three decades (1540–1570) these rival denominations gained legal status and joined Catholicism as the official religions of the country. Catholicism became a marginal denomination, deprived of assets and of its hierarchy. Under Protestant pressure, the Orthodox Romanians were still kept away from power. The last three decades of the century saw some attempts at Counterreformation and at a Catholic Reformation, at a time when the principality was once again led by a Catholic dynasty. In this context, new Catholic cultural (educational) models, supported by the Jesuits, were implemented in the existing Protestant and Orthodox context, in an often desperate attempt to reverse or at least balance the situation. In this respect, the Jesuit College of Cluj (today Cluj-Napoca, Romania), established in 1581, remains a most memorable episode, whose consequences can still be seen today. By resorting to education and learning, the college was meant to influence and alter the surrounding Protestant and Orthodox world. In fact, it became an interesting facet of the multicultural, multiethnic and multiconfessional character of Transylvania, a miniature Europe inhabited by Latin, Germanic, Finno-Ugrian, Slavic peoples etc., by Byzantines, Catholics and Protestants, by rightful citizens and “tolerated” inhabitants, by masters and servants, by privileged categories and by groups merely “allowed to exist”. The troubled events of those years have left us with a model of cohabitation based on both cooperation and rivalry that truly deserves consideration. (shrink)

After studying a Latin record issued on 6 June 1574, the specialists expressed different opinions regarding the expression romana videlicet seu graeca religio, i.e. “Roman or Greek religion”. The author believes that the issuer of the 1574 document only transposed into Latin a phrase commonly used in the Romanian Transylvanian environment, so that the “Romanian religion” became practically naturally, in Latin, religio romana, all the more so as we are dealing with an internal document, not intended for the Holy See (...) or for other foreign institutions, where it may have created confusion. The matter of this unusual document is far from being settled, as the arguments raised are probably insufficient or not eloquent enough. However, they are just as consistent as those that suggest an interpretation based on the alleged Catholicism of the Romanians. Consequently, we consider that in the current stage of our knowledge it is plausible to believe that in the document of 1574 religio romana sive greca means “Romanian or Greek religion.”. (shrink)

This essay intends to reveal the contribution of some Aristotelian concepts – such as “just measure” (metron, meson) and “lack of measure” (alloiosis) as well as some other connected pathological affections (pathe) of the human volitive part of the soul (thymos), caused by certain changes of the humoral mixtures, especially the ones of the black bile, a humoral substance that was considered largely responsible for the severe alterations of the normal rational activity of the human soul (logismos). – to the (...) definition of melancholy as a natural/pathological condition. This type of analysis could be useful for wider cultural studies in which certain medical traditions would have a significant contribution and would help us understand better the holistic thought of the ancient and medievalEuropean culture. (shrink)

This work applies the meaning of empsychia (animation) to the domain of graphe empsychos (animated word or image) using some funerary orations written by Gregory of Naziansus (IV-th century) and Michael Psellos (XI-th century). In our opinion, a certain continuity of this Byzantine tradition could be traced in the Romanian culture of the XVI-th century.

In the Doctrine of Science nova methodo Fichte explains the difference between the mirror and the eye. While the former only mirrors without seeing itself by doing it, the eye is in its essential connotation „image for itself“. The capacity of becoming aware of the image as such and of conceiving it as image for itself plays an essential role also in the perception of the other and in the originating process of the intersubjective relationship. The paper first focuses on (...) reconstructing the meaning of the image for the intersubjective relationship and on evaluating whether and how far Fichte’s later elaboration of the theory of the image can be significant for the relationship to the other. Consideration of the different dimensions disclosed by the concept of image can also be helpful in illuminating the potential applications (and possible misuses) of the image of the other, especially in relation to the world of the media. The hypothesis is that Fichte’s conception of the image has a heuristic value also with respect to the image of the other in the present world and opens the way to further developments in the practical-ethical realm. (shrink)

This paper represents a case study interpretation of the political and media discourses in Romania referring to Islam and the threat of Muslim refugees. Using a selection of media narratives from the public debates that took shape immediately after the Brussels attacks on March 22, 2016, this study uses a critical discourse analysis approach as an interpretative tool to understanding how in Romania the opinion leaders, the political elites and the media are building an anti-Islam propaganda. By applying a textual (...) and ideological analysis of a selection of media discourses that refer to the terrorist attacks and the implicit threat of Islam, the author describes the dominant rhetorics of conflict between the West and the Muslim world. By elaborating a list of Islamophobic stereotypes used in the Romanian mainstream media and by discussing the negative narratives propagated in the public sphere, a case is made against the artificial growth of intolerant attitudes. The central argument of the author is that we are witnessing a generalized anti-Islam propaganda, where a specific religion and its followers are demonized by politicians, cultural figures and opinion leaders. This paper's conclusion is that in the Romanian media and the political discourses a form of unjustified Islamophobia is cultivated for ideological purposes. (shrink)

Este artigo discute o mal-estar de adolescentes de duas escolas públicas da cidade do Rio de Janeiro, no contexto de retorno presencial das aulas pós-pandemia da COVID-19. Durante o contexto de isolamento, a escola teve de se ressignificar como lugar de aprendizagem, de convivência e de mediações com tecnologias até então ausentes, e atualmente tem que se reconstruir, territorialmente, como um lugar possível de afeto e transmissão. A escola é uma das instâncias que se ocupa desta tarefa, em que o (...) jogo de forças entre os grupos e a subjetividade se faz presente. No entanto, a ausência territorial da escola no período de isolamento social foi inevitável. A questão central a que este artigo busca responder é de que maneira o pressuposto freudiano de que o mal-estar faz parte e é inerente à relação entre o sujeito e a cultura, aparece, e sob que aspectos, nesta experiência de retorno às escolas, no período pós-pandemia. Quer nas dificuldades de aprendizagem, diante do lugar do outro, no conflito entre temporalidade e demanda, nas estratégias de enfrentamento e na distância entre os projetos e a realidade, os estudantes revelam suas angústias e novos modos de lidar com a condição de mal-estar. (shrink)

The psychological factors influencing a return to sport has gained increased research attention. In the current investigation, we explored professional basketball players’ perceptions of the psychological factors facilitating a return to performance equal to or exceeding previous performance standards. We also sought to describe athletes’ experiences – both positive and negative – of returning to sport following injury recovery. Ten Italian professional male basketball players (age range 22-36 years), were retrospectively interviewed in relation to three time-periods: (1) from the commencement (...) of rehabilitation to their first official competition, (2) the first official competition, and (3) the six-months following the initial competition. Hierarchical content analysis of the data revealed numerous themes across the three time periods. In regards to Period 1, participants indicated that social support, investment in rehabilitation and training programs, coping skills and motivation were fundamental in reaching pre-injury performance levels. During their first official game (i.e. Period 2), athletes reported that realistic performance expectations, focusing on the performance, positive emotions, motivation, arousal and social support facilitated their return to sport. Athletes however, also described a predominance of factors that hindered their return to pre- injury levels (i.e., low confidence in personal abilities, decrements in skill execution and dysfunctional physical sensations). Moreover, participants typically described a substandard level of performance during their first competition back following injury. In recounting experiences during the six months following their first official game, basketballers reported improvements in skill execution and highlighted the importance of coping skills, motivation and social support. The process of restoring self-confidence in one’s ability to successfully perform was perceived as crucial in enabling participants to move beyond a mere return to sport to a return to high performance ─ that is, to reach a level of proficiency equal to or exceeding previous performance standards. Findings support the relevance of cognitive, emotional and behavioral responses highlighted in the Integrated Model and suggest the importance of addressing psychological factors throughout the return-to-sport process. Finally, results from the present study hold a number of practical implications for athletes’ aiming to achieve a return to pre-injury levels. (shrink)

In this article, I address some infectious diseases that never really “ended,” even though their morbidity, their social impact, and their public visibility have faded away: AIDS, syphilis, and measles. I will use data from different projects I have conducted on each of those epidemics: HIV/AIDS at the doctoral training level in the 1990s, with a geographical focus on Brazil and the United States; syphilis in the context of a 2010 project on the social history of health in Lisbon in (...) the late 19th and early 20th centuries; and measles as part of my current project on labor migration in the 19th century, with a focus on epidemic outbreaks in migrant ships from Madeira to Hawaii. (shrink)

The article aims to demonstrate to what extent the work Art as Experience by the American philosopher and pedagogist John Dewey, a proponent of pedagogical activism, may have contributed to Loris Malaguzzi’s thought and the Reggio Emilia Approach. Starting from the idea of an aesthetic experience as a privileged means of knowledge, the comparison between the two authors continues through reflections on the relationship between art-community and art-ethics. The dialogue between these important educational approaches is proposed in order to highlight (...) their relevance and the role they could play in today’s schools thanks to the concept of knowledge based on the senses and on doing, contributing to the sensitisation of educational action towards the social aspect of art, both as an opening towards the community, and as a reflection on the values of the human being. The dialogue between these two important educational approaches is proposed in order to highlight their relevance and the role they could play in today's schools thanks to the concept of knowledge based on the senses and on doing, contributing to the sensitisation of educational action towards the social aspect of art, both as an opening towards the community, and as a reflection on the values of the human being. (shrink)