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Albion as a role model: Scottish folk religion, humour and upbringing in works by Ferenc Baráth
Get PDFFolklore, Ethnology, Folk Religion, Scottish history, Ferenc Baranth, Albion, Scottish music, Scottish song, Calvinism, Church of Scotland, Hungary, Anglo-Saxon, Germany, Edinburgh, education, Protestantism, humour, Dean Ramsa
Who is to Blame for the Russia-Ukraine war? Feminist and Postcolonial Perspectives on \u27Real Politics\u27
No full textThe 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine has widely been narrated as having epochal significance with far-reaching implications. For leading historians of Eastern Europe, such as Timothy Snyder (2022) and Serhii Plokhy (2015), what we are seeing is an existential threat to democratic norms.
While discussing phenomena of the political world, drawing on a variety of lenses is advantageous; in the case of the Russian-Ukrainian war it is a necessity. This article engages with a combination of lenses provided by feminist and postcolonial theories to critically reflect on the logic, as articulated by Russia\u27s political elites, behind the invasion of Ukraine. It focuses on the role of gender and racialisation in normalising one’s place in the social hierarchy and its ‘appropriate’ behaviour, excusing occupational, violent and genocidal policies under the abstract term of ‘real politics’.
This article attempts to trace the way social structures empower gendered and racialised politics, allowing invasions to be justified. Russia-led wars in Ukraine will be discussed as an example of the consequences of such a structure and ideology. This article will firstly underline a feminist and postcolonial approach that addresses the necessity of social hierarchy analysis to reveal the causes of war. Further sections will focus on unpacking Russia’s claims of the legitimacy of its colonial/great-power state project to incorporate Ukraine. I will conclude with a reflection on how the notion of the nation-state, rooted in the ideologies of social hierarchy and colonial domination, can be seen as having fuelled the ongoing war
Ellen Churchill Semple: Navigating a Patriarchal Discipline
No full textEllen Churchill Semple is a notorious figure in the geographical realm whose complicated legacy renders her place within a historiography of geography uncertain. While Semple is hailed as the first female geographer, it is also widely acknowledged that her work is tainted with racism. Contemporary scholars wish to erase her contributions, declaring that they would “prefer to forget” her infamous text Influences of Geographic Environment in which she claimed that physical geography determined human behaviour. Mona Domosh complicates this desire to erase Semple from memory by advocating for a feminist historiography of geography. Through foregrounding the contributions that women have made to the development of geographic knowledge, Domosh challenges the exclusion of women from accounts of the discipline’s past. This paper therefore addresses the question: Should Semple be included in a feminist historiography of geography? Furthermore, was Semple a feminist? To interrogate this, I reimagine Pearson’s take on violent women. Just as Atwood describes a woman’s disbelief at her ability to cause harm in the opening quote, Pearson centres the misperception that women are simply compassionate caregivers and victims of their circumstances – the ‘myth of female innocence’. This is useful for exploring Semple’s role in epistemological violence where her data interpretations brought negative consequences for certain groups. An intersectional lens is crucial for examining the connections between race, class, and gender which shaped the experiences of Semple and those she deemed ‘inferior’. The structure-agency debate emerges, asking whether individuals are entirely socialised by structures or can act autonomously. I take a relational approach to acknowledge the interrelatedness of social processes and argue that Semple both actively challenged and perpetuated patriarchy. Firstly, this paper outlines Semple’s theoretical contributions and other key insights provided by contemporary female geographers which are useful for assessing Semple’s impact today. Secondly, Semple’s infiltration of male-dominated space is examined to demonstrate her resistance to traditional gender expectations. Thirdly, her imperial entanglements are traced to illustrate her perpetuation of the patriarchal state. Finally, a contemporary manifestation of the Semple dilemma is considered. I conclude that by today’s standards of intersectional feminism Semple is not a feminist role model, however she can be considered an early feminist for her active reconfiguration of an all-male discipline. Ultimately, I advocate for the critical inclusion of Semple’s work in a feminist historiography of geography. This project of decoding knowledge to understand the influence of cultural forces offers a step towards decolonising the academy
From Fear and Anxiety to Vulnerable Collective Action: Lucy Kirkwood\u27s The Children
Get PDFIn a seemingly tranquil cottage along the coast, Lucy Kirkwood’s The Children (2016) delves into the profound anxieties and vulnerabilities arising from an ecological crisis. Set in a post-nuclear disaster Britain, the play follows three retired nuclear scientists grappling with the consequences of their past decisions. Amidst a world in chaos, Kirkwood portrays the fragile relationships and emotional struggles of her characters, reflecting the anxieties prevalent in our own reality. Drawing on affect studies theories—such as Lauren Berlant’s “cruel optimism” and “inconvenience,” Sianne Ngai’s “ugly feelings” and Clare Hemmings’ “affective dissonance”—this analysis explores how these concepts shed light on the characters’ experiences. Berlant’s ideas help us understand the characters’ necessity to adhere to routine as a means to avoid confronting larger, more pressing issues. Ngai’s “ugly feelings” expose the anxiety and discomfort that pervade their lives, while Hemmings’ “affective dissonance” highlights the internal conflicts and moral dilemmas they face. By emphasising these struggles, the play invites audiences to reflect on their own vulnerabilities and consider the need for collective action in the face of adversity. Deliberately refusing catharsis, the play underscores the persistence of unresolved crises, prompting viewers to engage with the issues presented on stage and consider their implications beyond the theatre
“She Feels not Half What We Feel”: Oriental Affect Aliens and the Unhappy Queers in Mrs Dalloway and To the Lighthouse
Get PDFIn Mrs. Dalloway and To the Lighthouse, Virginia Woolf’s portrayal of Lily Briscoe’s and Elizabeth Dalloway’s “Chinese eyes” has drawn critical attention, but the lack of affective expressiveness in these characters needs further examination. Borrowing Xine Yao’s term “unfeeling,” this essay explores the relationship between Woolf’s use of Oriental imagery and disaffection. It argues that Woolf’s depiction of Oriental unaffectedness critiques Victorian patriarchal conventions and their constructed notions of happiness. However, in doing so, Woolf simultaneously perpetuates the stereotype of Oriental inscrutability. Drawing on Sara Ahmed’s critique of happiness and her concept of the “unhappy queer,” this essay first examines Elizabeth’s restrained affective expressiveness, suggesting that Woolf’s characterization challenges the white sentimentality linked to the heterosexual definition of happiness in the late Victorian era. Yet, through the lens of Yao’s analysis of Oriental alienness, the essay contends that Woolf’s narrative still subscribes to Orientalism. Likewise, Lily Briscoe’s negotiation of her capacity for sympathy—especially in contrast to Mrs. Ramsay—highlights Woolf’s critique of patriarchal norms. However, Lily’s artistic vision is ultimately realised through her alignment with the Western affective economy, suggesting the author’s acknowledgement of sympathy and affectability as universal concepts—yet ones that are underpinned by a racial hierarchy
The Kirkwood Papers
No full textOver many years, Colin and Gerri Kirkwood have made a significant, distinctive and influential contribution to the practice of community-based adult education in both Scotland and the UK as well as further afield. In this article, they provide a brief introduction to the archive of their work which has recently been established at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow
Family Secrets: Questioning the Past
No full textI opened the antique chest I inherited from my great-great uncle Alexander and began unravelling the strands of his life as an evangelical minister in late nineteenth-century Italy, bringing to light the cover-ups in Britain’s history of Empire and the ways in which a handful of families even today continue to shore up their wealth
Review of A Mountain Oasis: Daily Life in a Village in the Yasin Valley, Pakistan by Susan York: Reviewed by Fizza Batool
Get PDFHumanities researchers’ perspectives towards scholarly communication practices
Get PDFHumanities researchers’ perspectives towards scholarly communication practice