“A great story, full of twists and turns.... Careers made and ruined, departments torn apart, writing programs turned into sensitivity seminars, political witch hunts, public opprobrium, ignorant media attacks, the whole ball of wax. Read it and laugh or read it and weep. I can hardly wait for the movie.” —Stanley Fish, _Think Again, New York Times_ “In such a difficult genre, full of traps and obstacles, French Theory is a success and a remarkable book in every respect: it is (...) fair, balanced, and informed. I am sure this book will become the reference on both sides of the Atlantic.” —Jacques Derrida “The Atlantic Ocean has two sides, and so does French Theory. Reinvented in America and betrayed in its own country, it has become the most radical intellectual movement in the West with global reach, rewriting Marx in light of late capitalism. Breathtakingly moving back and forth between the two cultures, Francois Cusset takes us through a dazzling intellectual adventure that illuminates the past thirty years, and many more decades to come.” —Sylvere Lotringer During the last three decades of the twentieth century, a disparate group of radical French thinkers achieved an improbable level of influence and fame in the United States. Compared by at least one journalist to the British rock ‘n’ roll invasion, the arrival of works by Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida, Jean-François Lyotard, Jean Baudrillard, Gilles Deleuze, and Félix Guattari on American shores in the late 1970s and 1980s caused a sensation. Outside the academy, “French theory” had a profound impact on the era’s emerging identity politics while also becoming, in the 1980s, the target of right-wing propagandists. At the same time in academic departments across the country, their poststructuralist form of radical suspicion transformed disciplines from literature to anthropology to architecture. By the 1990s, French theory was woven deeply into America’s cultural and intellectual fabric. French Theory is the first comprehensive account of the American fortunes of these unlikely philosophical celebrities. François Cusset looks at why America proved to be such fertile ground for French theory, how such demanding writings could become so widely influential, and the peculiarly American readings of these works. Reveling in the gossipy history, Cusset also provides a lively exploration of the many provocative critical practices inspired by French theory. Ultimately, he dares to shine a bright light on the exultation of these thinkers to assess the relevance of critical theory to social and political activism today-showing, finally, how French theory has become inextricably bound with American life. François Cusset, a writer and intellectual historian, teaches contemporary French thought in Paris at the Institut d’Etudes Politiques and at Columbia University’s Reid Hall. His books include Queer Critics and La Décennie. Jeff Fort is assistant professor of French at the University of California, Davis. He has translated works by Maurice Blanchot, Jean Genet, and Jean-Luc Nancy. (shrink)

Das Faustbuch von 1587 führt die Tradition der altchristlichen Teufelspaktlegenden fort und bricht sie zugleich um. Die neue Konzeption, die hinter den verwirrenden inneren Widersprüchen und Inkonsequenzen des Werkes faßbar wird, zielt auf eine bewußte Zerstörung des alten Legendenschemas. Dabei ist es sowohl verfehlt, in Faustus noch einen mittelalterlichen Magier zu sehen wie auch ihn als macht- und wissenssüchtigen Renaissancemenschen zu verstehen; vielmehr wird an dieser Figur ein neuer Umgang mit dem Bösen narrativ diskutiert. Er ist das Opfer einer Strategie (...) des Teufels, durch die das Böse sich verflüchtigt und damit die Möglichkeit der Umkehr verbaut wird. (shrink)

Background The increasing incidence of people affected by overweight or obesity is a significant health problem. The knowledge of the factors which influences the inappropriate eating behaviours causing excessive body fat is an essential goal for the research. In fact, overweight and obesity are significant risk factors for many health diseases, such as cardiovascular problems, diabetes, etc. Recently, many studies have focused on the relationship between body weight and cognitive processes. Objectives This systematic review is aimed to investigate the existence (...) and the nature of the relationship between excessive body weight (overweight/obesity) and executive functions, analysing cross-sectional and longitudinal studies in order to verify the evidence of a possible causality between these variables. Methods The review was carried out according to the PRISMA-Statement, through systematic searches in the scientific databases PubMed, Medline, PsychInfo, and PsycArticles. The studies selected examined performance on executive tasks by participants with overweight or obesity, aged between 5 and 70 years. Studies examining eating disorders or obesity resulting from other medical problems were excluded. Furthermore, the results of studies using a cross-sectional design and those using a longitudinal one were separately investigated. Results Sixty-three cross-sectional studies and twenty-eight longitudinal studies that met our inclusion and exclusion criteria were analysed. The results confirmed the presence of a relation between executive functions and overweight/obesity, although the directionality of this relation was not clear; nor did any single executive function emerge as being more involved than others in this relation. Despite this, there was evidence of a reciprocal influence between executive functions and overweight/obesity. Conclusions This systematic review underlines the presence of a relationship between executive functions and overweight/obesity. Moreover, it seems to suggest a bidirectional trend in this relationship that could be the cause of the failure of interventions for weight reduction. The results of this review highlight the importance of a theoretical model able to consider all the main variables of interest, with the aim to structuring integrated approaches to solve the overweight/obesity problems. (shrink)

The name Iphianassa occurs only once in Latin literature—in the proem toDe Rerum Natura(=DRN). Here Lucretius illustrates the evils of religion with a description of Iphianassa's sacrifice at Aulis (1.80–101):illud in his rebus uereor, ne forte rearisimpia te rationis inire elementa uiamqueindugredi sceleris. quod contra saepius illareligio peperit scelerosa atque impia facta.Aulide quo pacto Triuiai uirginis aramIphianassai turparunt sanguine foedeductores Danaum delecti, prima uirorum.cui simul infula uirgineos circumdata comptusex utraque pari malarum parte profusast,et maestum simul ante aras adstare parentemsensit (...) et hunc propter ferrum celare ministrosaspectuque suo lacrimas effundere ciuis,muta metu terram genibus summissa petebat.nec miserae prodesse in tali tempore quibatquod patrio princeps donarat nomine regem.nam sublata uirum manibus tremibundaque ad arasdeductast, non ut sollemni more sacrorumperfecto posset claro comitari Hymenaeo,sed casta inceste nubendi tempore in ipsohostia concideret mactatu maesta parentis,exitus ut classi felix faustusque daretur.tantum religio potuit suadere malorum.It is clear that Lucretius treats the name Iphianassa as a synonym for Iphigenia. Homer (Il. 9.145, 9.287) and Sophocles (El. 157) mention a daughter of Agamemnon called Iphianassa, but in neither author is she the daughter who was sacrificed at Aulis (and in several versions rescued at the last moment by Artemis). The first known mention of this myth was in theCypria, where, according to the summary of Proclus, the daughter was called Iphigenia (Kinkel,EGF19; Bernabé,PEG1.41). Hesiod refers to it in theCatalogue of Women, where he calls the daughter Iphimede (Cat. fr. 23a.15–26 + b M-W). From the fifth centuryb.c.e., the extant sources, beginning with Pindar (Pyth. 11.22) and Aeschylus (Ag. 1526, 1555), call her Iphigenia. Why did Lucretius choose Iphianassa? (shrink)

Este estudo é uma reflexão sobre o discurso e a prática nas comunidades Eclesiais de Base no Brasil e na Itália. Buscamos demonstrar, a partir de uma pesquisa empírica e teórica, as relações entres duas Comunidades Eclesiais de Base, a Comunidade San Paolo (Roma-IT) e a Prelazia de São Félix (Mato Gross-BR), demonstrando que estas baseiam-se em dois elementos: resultam das discussões advindas do Concílio Vaticano II e estão fortemente ligadas a seus líderes. E, ainda, que tais comunidades ligam-se por (...) fortes laços simbólicos. Este fato permitiu-nos concluir que a Teologia da Libertação empenhou-se em promover mudanças sociais e em criar um corpo simbólico que a corroborasse. Tais análises foram sustentadas pela teoria da transformação social de Max Weber e, ainda, pelos estudos de Karl Mannheim e de Glock e Stark. Palavras-chaves : Transformação social, Teologia da Libertação, prática, discurso.This study is a reflection of the discourse and practice on the Basic Ecclesial communities in Brazil and Italy. We try to show, from an empirical and theoretical research, the relations between two Christian Base Communities: the San Paolo Community (Rome – IT) and the Prelature of São Félix (BR – Mato Grosso), based on two factors: the result of discussions arising out of Vatican II, and the strong link to its leaders. Such communities bind by strong symbolic ties that really allowed us to conclude that Liberation Theology endeavored to promote social changes and to create a symbolic body that corroborates it. Such analysis was supported by the theory of social transformation of Max Weber, by the studies of Karl Mannheim and Glock and Stark. Keywords : Social Transformation; Liberation Theology, Practice, Discourse. (shrink)

O presente artigo relata a experiência vivenciada por estudantes de graduação em Licenciatura em Ciências Biológicas da Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana durante uma viagem de campo às cidades de Cachoeira e São Félix, na Bahia, promovida pelo componente curricular Relações Étnico-raciais na Escola. Por meio da observação sensível, os estudantes registraram a realidade dessas cidades no formato de fotografias e discursos. Durante a viagem, foi possível constatar a predominância de uma população negra, cujas vidas diárias estão intimamente ligadas (...) a uma diversidade de religiões que, embora sejam percebidas como antagônicas no imaginário popular, coexistem de forma harmoniosa na realidade local. Além disso, observou-se um forte vínculo com figuras históricas relacionadas, ou não, à independência da Bahia e do Brasil, bem como à herança do período colonial. A partir dessas observações, teceu-se reflexões acerca das observações realizadas, apresentando dados relevantes sobre a história, estrutura, religião, cultura, entre outros aspectos das cidades. O trabalho contribuiu para ampliar a compreensão e estabelecer relações entre a experiência vivenciada e a formação decolonial de futuros professores de Ciências e Biologia, com o objetivo de promover um ensino descolonizado das Ciências da Natureza. (shrink)

Saichō 最澄, one of the most prominent of Japanese Buddhist innovators, is the renowned ninth-century founder of the Tendai School, the first Japanese Buddhist sect with its own system of temples and monasteries, ordinations, practices and philosophy. It was in the goal of founding and maintaining an authentic Buddhist monastic institution that, for better or worse, influenced his thinking, and structured his philosophy. Although Saichō’s identity as founder is beyond dispute, this accomplishment was initially made possible through what we might (...) call modes of self-displacement, essentially establishing his legitimacy as founder by tracing the origins of Tendai beyond himself to founders even more prominent in the minds of his contemporaries. It is through our participation in this initial displacement of Saichō that the meaning of his contributions to Japanese Buddhism will begin to unfold. (shrink)

Interpreters of archaic Greek epic poetry have long labored to explain the meaning of the semantically ambiguous phrase involving “tree (δρῦς) and/or rock (πέτρη).” The idiom appears three times in archaic epic: in the proem of Hesiod’s Theogony, during Hector’s deliberation about negotiating a truce in Iliad 22, and in Penelope’s speech to a disguised Odysseus in Odyssey 19. A tantalizingly similar, and equally unsolved idiom, rgm ‘ṣ w lḫšt ’abn, appears in the thirteenth-century Ugaritic Ba’al Cycle found at Ras (...) Shamra. Current scholarship agrees that this phrase connotes ideas of prophecy. This article argues that the phrase’s history can be traced further back to a metaphor describing the audio-visual phenomenon of lightning and thunder as the storm-god’s oracular speech. Crucial evidence for this account is found in Bronze Age material culture. (shrink)

The theme of the pleasure of knowledge is central in Averroes’ aesthetical reflection of Aristotle’s Poetics, regardless whether we side with the logical or with the moral interpretation. The first one stresses the continuity between Averroes and previous commentators in his attempt to reconstruct the Poetics as an integral part of the Logic itself, whereby poetic discourse is conceived as a form of reasoning based on syllogisms. According to the latter perspective, however, pleasure is central in that poetry is a (...) tool towards the pursuit of happiness: in this perspective it is necessary to bear in mind some common themes present in other works by Averroes. The pleasure of contemplative knowledge must go hand in hand with the pursuit of communal happiness and therefore with the good and proper order of c... (shrink)

Il contributo intende ricostruire il dibattito storiografico intorno all’eredità di Averroè a partire dalla sua nascita, con la riscoperta di Averroè da parte dell’orientalismo francese arrivando fino agli intellettuali arabo-musulmani contemporanei, che hanno fatto del filosofo di Cordoba un rappresentante dell’illuminismo ante litteram. Scopo del saggio è dunque quello di ripercorrere brevemente la storia di questo dibattito per mettere in luce l’uso esplicitamente politico e ideologico di un autore medievale e, in ultima analisi, sottolineare che ogni storia delle filosofia porta (...) con sé uno sguardo orientato e mai neutro sulla propria tradizione. This paper aims to outline the historical debate about the Averroes’ heritage since its beginning, with the revival of Averroes by French Orientalism coming up to contemporary Arab-Muslim intellectuals, who made this author an Enlightenment’s representative before its time. The aim of the contribution is therefore to recall briefly the history of this debate to highlight the political and ideological utilization of a medieval author and, ultimately, to emphasize that every history of philosophy implies a view oriented and never neutral on its tradition. (shrink)

This commentary begins by analyzing two textual selections about death in the Gorgias in order to expand upon Ewegen’s portrayal of Socrates. I close by briefly giving voice to another, perhaps more familiar side of Socrates’ rhetorical approach in the dialogue in order to provide some further perspective about Ewegen’s claims.

La tensión entre las letras y las armas, la teoría y la práctica, la experiencia técnica y el saber erudito y humanista, las tendencias medievalizantes y las modernas han movilizado buena parte de las interpretaciones del Arte de la guerra de Maquiavelo. Escrito en un momento de fuertes transiciones, en los albores de lo que se ha venido llamando la revolución militar moderna, la noción de “humanismo militar” parecía un razonable punto de partida para comprender un texto que, en efecto, (...) sale a la luz en un momento histórico de transición, que desarrollaba una cierta complejidad literaria y que contenía evidentes trazos clasicistas, pero que buscaba poner en orden la experiencia de las “cosas modernas”. (shrink)

Se trata en este artículo de aclarar la especificidad del análisis de la Escritura propuesto por Spinoza en el Tratado Teológico Político. Se parte de la distinción entre los diferentes niveles de interpretación que Spinoza aplica al texto sagrado, y que pueden resumirse en dos: el histórico-filológico y el filosófico. A continuación, se intentan determinar las relaciones entre estos diferentes niveles, y asimismo las diferencias de la propuesta spinoziana frente a otras propuestas interpretativas, en particular, la Philosophia S. Scripturae Interpres (...) de Lodewijk Meyer. (shrink)

Cybernetic governmentality weakens the capacity of resistant subjectivities to struggle against neoliberal rationality because digitalized subjectivation processes are constantly pushed towards the logics of the market and into codifications of competitive evaluation. Despite the potential for new forms of collectivity contained in the concept of virtuality, technological evolution has disseminated a systemic form of digitality that operates not through collective procedures but through subjective-individualistic ones. Hence arises a danger that was indicated by Deleuze decades ago: that of confusing the virtual (...) with the possible. By constructing a genealogy that is built around Pierre Levy’s optimistic representation of cyberspace, Bernard Stiegler’s work on the contemporary disenchantment of the computerized world, Baudrillard’s metaphysics of code and Antoinette Rouvroy’s analysis of algorithmic governmentality, we will demonstrate that digitality is between us and that this amounts to an irreversible fact entailing a critical confrontation with its current manifestation. (shrink)

La moderna riscoperta del lavoro di Ibn Khaldūn da parte degli studiosi arabi si è sviluppata attorno a una vera e propria dicotomia: alcuni hanno descritto Ibn Khaldūn come un pensatore originale e anomalo tenendo conto del suo contesto e del suo tempo, o l’unico e più alto rappresentante del pensiero arabo-islamico, legittimando gli interessi di coloro che puntavano a mettere in ombra la restante parte della tradizione. Dall’altra parte si è assistito al tentativo opposto di ridimensionare la sua originalità (...) rispetto al contesto evidenziando la sua piena appartenenza alla tradizione storiografica e di pensiero islamica. Questo contributo intende approfondire le interpretazioni di quattro importanti esponenti del pensiero marocchino contemporaneo che hanno dedicato a Ibn Khaldūn importanti studi: si tratta di Mohammed Aziz Lahbābi, Mohammed Abed al-Jābrī (importante esponente della scuola filosofica di Rabat), il noto intellettuale Abdallah Laroui, e il letterato Bensalem Himmich. Si fa riferimento in primo luogo a M.A. Lahbābi e al suo allievo più noto, M.A. al-Jābrī, al primo perché ha dato sicuramente un impulso importante allo studio dell’autore ed è tra i fondatori della _scuola di Rabat_, al secondo per la sistematicità e importanza della sua proposta teorica di critica della ragione araba. L’analisi proposta da A. Laroui, anch’egli rappresentante della _scuola di Rabat_, mette in luce caratteristiche diverse dell’opera di Ibn Khaldūn rispetto ai primi due studiosi, concentrandosi sui temi della modernità e dello Stato. Si è dato spazio infine a un’altra lettura, quella proposta da B. Himmich che all’autore ha dedicato uno studio e una biografia romanzata, a dimostrazione della sua attitudine a intrecciare ricerca accademica e letteratura. Si tratta di autori che hanno avuto grande riscontro e risonanza nel mondo arabo e che sono ben noti anche in quello occidentale, in particolare Laroui. The modern rediscovery and re-appropriation of Ibn Khaldūn’s work by Arab scholars has largely developed along the following dichotomy. On the one hand, some have described Ibn Khaldūn as an original and atypical thinker for his context and time, and as the only or highest representative of Arab-Islamic thought – thus partly reinforcing the view of many Western scholars who had minimized the role of the tradition to which he belonged. On the other hand, there has been an opposite trend that demotes his originality, by highlighting his complete adherence to the Islamic tradition of historiography and thought. This contribution studies four prominent contemporary Moroccan scholars who have systematically addressed Ibn Khaldūn’s philosophy: Mohammed Aziz Lahbābi, Mohammed Abed al-Jābrī, Abdallah Laroui, and Bensalem Himmich. The essay first considers Lahbābi and al-Jabri, Lahbābi’s most renowned pupil; the former due to his contribution to the advancement of the study of Ibn Khaldūn in general, and as one of the founders of the _school of Rabat_, and the latter due to the theoretical importance and systematic nature of his critical approach to Arab thought. Laroui, another representative of the _school of Rabat_, offers an analysis which highlights different characteristics of Ibn Khaldūn’s work, compared to the first two scholars, by focusing on the subjects of modernity and the State. Finally, the chapter examines Himmich’s reading. Himmich has written both an academic work as well as a literary/fictional biography of the Maghrebi figure in focus. All these four scholars have made a substantial impact on the Arab world, whilst also being wellknown in the West, Laroui in particular. (shrink)

La complessa storia della Poetica aristotelica nella cultura arabo-islamica. Alcune vistose discrepanze tra il testo greco e i commenti arabi e, al tempo stesso, l'originalità della lettura proposta dai falāsifah.

With an overall estimated 5-year survival rate of 67 percent, bone marrow transplant is a potential cure for patients with primary immune regulatory diseases. Given that Sa...

The main concern of this article is Weber's antagonism with respect to materialism and the distance or affinity between Marx's and Weber's standpoints. It focuses on two interconnected issues: the social and political role of religion and the emergence of modern capitalism. These two points are justified because of their strategic importance and because, with them, Weber's distance with respect to materialism apparently reaches its zenith. Through them, this text attempts to expose the main features of the controversy between Marxism (...) and Weberianism, evaluating the alternatives on the matter offered by different perspectives. Key Words: capitalism • Karl Marx • materialism • Protestant ethic • rationalism • religion • Max Weber. (shrink)

A fines del año 2015 la firma Rasic Hermanos, una de las productoras avícolas más grandes de la Argentina, paraliza totalmente su producción dejando a todos sus empleados en la calle y adeudando varios meses de sueldo. Estos deciden cortar la autopista Ricchieri en espera de respuestas por parte de la empresa y el gobierno. Mientras el conflicto se desarrolla, una enorme cantidad de animales quedan encerrados sin alimento ni agua y la jueza a cargo de la causa decide tomarse (...) un mes para resolver su situación. Este trabajo se propone analizar la construcción de representaciones especistas en un corpus de notas periodísticas de publicación digital. Para la consecución del análisis trabajaremos sobre dos notas publicadas en el diario Clarín, una nota aparecida en el diario Página 12 y un editorial publicado por la ONG Voicot en su página de Facebook. Partiremos de la hipótesis de que las representaciones especistas están tan arraigadas en el discurso mediático que ni siquiera generan una justificación para su existencia, borrando todo elemento que permita considerar a los animales no humanos como seres vivientes. El análisis se inscribirá dentro del marco teórico del Análisis Crítico del Discurso desde una perspectiva de análisis multimodal, adoptando la propuesta de la Lingüística Crítica para la asignación de papeles temáticos y descripción de procesos en el material verbal, junto con los elementos sistematizados por Kress y van Leeuwen para el análisis de imágenes. (shrink)

En la conmemoración del octavo centenario del fallecimiento de Averroes, el recuerdo de un esfuerzo filosófico por armonizar fe y razón, por presentar la esperanza de la revelación monoteísta, por mantener el talante del pensar crítico aprendido en la tradición griega. Demasiada pretensión, quizá, para una cultura tan desagarrada como la nuestra que no quiere o no puede penetrar en lo mejor del impulso filosófico medieval. Por eso, quizá Averroes va a congresos presididos por altas jerarquías de la sociedad, pero (...) no entra en la escuela para enseñar una manera de enfrentar la vida, una manera de humanizar (que esto es educar). (shrink)

Biesta approaches different important educational topics that deserve some clarification and exploration. To begin with, Biesta emphasizes the preferential position that subjectification should occupy in education, a thesis I agree with. Nevertheless, qualification and socialization are also fundamental domains in education, much more in formal education. The aim of education, therefore, is to achieve an adequate balance between the three domains that makes possible a full educational process. On the other hand, it is valuable proposal to recover the importance of (...) the act of teaching, in a period of learning focuses the attention in educational environments. However, we need also to achieve a balance between teaching and learning; thus, a contrast between the two dimensions of education should not be highlighted: there is not teaching without learning, and there is not learning without teaching. Likewise, evaluation and measurement are essential elements of education, even if they involve risks that must be avoided. If we want to achieve some educational aims, we have to be able to find out whether we got them and how much we have achieved. That is, we have to measure and compare. Finally, education is an interpersonal relationship characterized by openness and encounter, which includes a positive view of heteronomy and obedience, in which empowerment does not preclude acceptance of interdependence and vulnerability. (shrink)

Desde comienzos del siglo XIX, los trabajadores buscaron asociarse para defender sus derechos y mejorar sus condiciones de existencia. Buscaban también en algunas ocasiones cambiar radicalmente la sociedad capitalista. Más de un siglo de lucha contribuyó decisivamente a la consolidación del estado del bienestar, con el consiguiente éxito del sindicalismo. Las condiciones de trabajo en las últimas décadas han cambiado significativamente y los sindicatos tradicionales, a pesar del reconocimiento social de que disponen, no han sido capaces de hacer frente a (...) las exigencias de un modelo de capitalismo más explotador. Por otra parte, otras organizaciones se muestran más activas en la lucha por un cambio social. En estos momentos, el sindicalismo tiene el difícil reto de reorganizarse para conseguir defender eficazmente a la clase trabajadora y proponer un modelo de sociedad más justo y solidario. (shrink)

La historia de la filosofía ha experimentado grandes cambios a lo largo de los últimos decenios. Algunos de ellos afectan a la forma de entender la propia historia, es decir, la filosofía de la historia, estando sometidos a revisión conceptos fundamentales como los de progreso, sujeto de la historia, posibilidad de un conocimiento objetivo de los hechos históricos y el sentido mismo de la historia. Por otra parte, se han enriquecido considerablemente los estudios históricos y han ido apareciendo nuevas temáticas (...) como pueden ser la historia de las mentalidades o la historia intelectual, que aportan análisis e información relevantes para la historia de la filosofía clásica. Los nuevos planteamientos en historia del arte o en historia de la ciencia han tenido igualmente un impacto significativo en la historia de la filosofía. Por último, desde la propia historia de la filosofía se ha producido una importante renovación en la manera de enfocar los autores y los problemas, ofreciendo en algunos casos, como la historia de las ideas, planteamientos globales y coherentes alternativos a las clásicas doxografías. (shrink)