151 research outputs found
Oscar Wilde : a Victorian sage in a modern age
No full textThis paper assesses Oscar Wilde’s reaction to the fin de siècle and argues against his widely-accepted position as a main figure in the English avant-garde movement, a view which major literary critics such as Peter Gay, Sos Eltis and S. I. Salamensky promote today. Based on Foucault’s definition of modernity as ‘a break with tradition' rather than a specific time, I argue that Wilde was not the modernist author he is widely perceived as, but a conventional Victorian sage who cleverly adopted, and tailored, the fashion of his time to deliver his thoroughly traditional teachings. The paper is split into five sections. The first of deals with Wilde’s creation of his dandy self and the influences of Carlyle, Arnold and Christ over him; the second section examines Ruskin’s influence over Wilde’s theory of art, and Wilde’s self-perception; the third section continues to examine the influence of the Victorian sages on Wilde by exploring his criticism of contemporary modernity in some of his works; the fourth and fifth sections deal with Wilde’s views on the roles of the sexes and his homosexuality respectively, and weigh these views, through further close analysis of his works, against the argument of his modernity. The research ends by asserting that Oscar Wilde was thoroughly Victorian in his views and themes, and that he perceived himself as a sage for his modern age.peer-reviewe
William Baker & Isobel Armstrong, eds., Form and Feeling in Modern Literature: Essays in Honour of Barbara Hardy
No full textForm and Feeling in Modern Literature pays tribute to critic Barbara Hardy, born in 1924, and to ‘a lifetime of absolute immersion in . . . fiction’ (2). The variety of articles and narratives included in the volume bears witness to Barbara Hardy’s range of interest which goes beyond English fiction of the 19th and 20th centuries to include poetry and creative writing. Besides her academic work, as Isobel Armstrong reminds us in her introduction, Barbara Hardy is the author of a novel, her au..
Uma leitura de Isobel Gunn de Audrey Thomas no contexto do travestismo no discurso feminino
No full textDissertação(mestrado) - Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Letras, Instituto de Letras e Artes, 2004.O travestismo feminino é um tema recorrente na história da literatura. Contudo, não encontramos tantos estudos quanto a relevância da temática sugere, e a maioria
daqueles realizados não leva em consideração o histórico do motivo. Nesse trabalho, percorremos práticas representativas do travestismo feminino na literatura, num estudo diacrônico da figura, delineando um caminho para a investigação da problemática no discurso feminino. O travestismo, no contexto discursivo feminino, significa uma
importante estratégia de (des)construção de possibilidades identitárias para o ser
mulher. A obra escolhida para analise é o romance Isobel Gunn (1999), da escritora
canadense Audrey Thomas. Na proposta artística dessa narrativa, Thomas apresenta técnicas de travestismo que desestabilizam a noção cultural de gênero e agenciam a autonomia identitária do sujeito feminino. Verificamos nesse estudo como o signo do travestismo, inserido em ambiente literário de inter/invenção feminina, realiza relevantes contribuições para o debate crítico feminista atual, dentre os quais estão as relações de gênero, a busca da identidade autêntica, e o papel da narrativa nessas questões. Na leitura do texto, focalizamos os processos de tecnologia de gênero, presentes em Isobel Gunn numa abordagem que aponta possibilidades de interferência e subversão nas suas relações com a visão tradicional. Nosso embasamento teórico ancora-se nas perspectivas dos estudos femininos da contemporaneidade e nos princípios da hermenêutica moderna.The feminine cross-dressing is a frequent theme in the literary history. However, we do
not find as much studies as the significance of the motif suggests, and most of them do
not take into consideration its history. In this research we follow representative
occurrences of the motif in literature, through a diachronic study of this figure.
Presenting this panorama, we delineate a way to investigate the problematic in the feminine discourse. The cross-dressing, in this context, becomes a special tool to (de)construct identity possibilities of the female self. The narrative we analyze is Isobel Gunn (1999), written by the Canadian author Audrey Thomas. In the artistic perspective of this novel, Thomas presents crossdressing techniques that disestablish the cultural notion of gender and promote identity autonomy to the female individual. In this study we observe how this sign, within a literary environment of woman in(ter)vention, makes relevant contributions to the contemporary feminist critical debate, like gender relations, the search for an authentic identity and the role and influence of narrative on these issues. When reading the text, we focus on the processes of gender technology, presented in Isobel Gunn with an
approach that provides possibilities of interference and subversion in relation to the traditional view. The contemporaneous female studies and the principles of the modern hermeneutic are the theoretical support of this research
Uma leitura de Isobel Gunn de Audrey Thomas no contexto do travestismo no discurso feminino
No full textDissertação(mestrado) - Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Letras, Instituto de Letras e Artes, 2004.O travestismo feminino é um tema recorrente na história da literatura. Contudo, não encontramos tantos estudos quanto a relevância da temática sugere, e a maioria
daqueles realizados não leva em consideração o histórico do motivo. Nesse trabalho, percorremos práticas representativas do travestismo feminino na literatura, num estudo diacrônico da figura, delineando um caminho para a investigação da problemática no discurso feminino. O travestismo, no contexto discursivo feminino, significa uma
importante estratégia de (des)construção de possibilidades identitárias para o ser
mulher. A obra escolhida para analise é o romance Isobel Gunn (1999), da escritora
canadense Audrey Thomas. Na proposta artística dessa narrativa, Thomas apresenta técnicas de travestismo que desestabilizam a noção cultural de gênero e agenciam a autonomia identitária do sujeito feminino. Verificamos nesse estudo como o signo do travestismo, inserido em ambiente literário de inter/invenção feminina, realiza relevantes contribuições para o debate crítico feminista atual, dentre os quais estão as relações de gênero, a busca da identidade autêntica, e o papel da narrativa nessas questões. Na leitura do texto, focalizamos os processos de tecnologia de gênero, presentes em Isobel Gunn numa abordagem que aponta possibilidades de interferência e subversão nas suas relações com a visão tradicional. Nosso embasamento teórico ancora-se nas perspectivas dos estudos femininos da contemporaneidade e nos princípios da hermenêutica moderna.The feminine cross-dressing is a frequent theme in the literary history. However, we do
not find as much studies as the significance of the motif suggests, and most of them do
not take into consideration its history. In this research we follow representative
occurrences of the motif in literature, through a diachronic study of this figure.
Presenting this panorama, we delineate a way to investigate the problematic in the feminine discourse. The cross-dressing, in this context, becomes a special tool to (de)construct identity possibilities of the female self. The narrative we analyze is Isobel Gunn (1999), written by the Canadian author Audrey Thomas. In the artistic perspective of this novel, Thomas presents crossdressing techniques that disestablish the cultural notion of gender and promote identity autonomy to the female individual. In this study we observe how this sign, within a literary environment of woman in(ter)vention, makes relevant contributions to the contemporary feminist critical debate, like gender relations, the search for an authentic identity and the role and influence of narrative on these issues. When reading the text, we focus on the processes of gender technology, presented in Isobel Gunn with an
approach that provides possibilities of interference and subversion in relation to the traditional view. The contemporaneous female studies and the principles of the modern hermeneutic are the theoretical support of this research
Depression and Gender: The Expression and Experience of Melancholy in the Eighteenth Century
No full textThis thesis investigates the life and work of six eighteenth-century writers, two male and four female. It explores their experience of depression through their letters and other autobiographical material, and examines the ways in which they represent melancholy in their poetry and prose. The subject of Chapter Two is Thomas Gray, whose real life persona as the lonely intellectual is also identifiable in his poetry. The Scottish poet Robert Fergusson is studied in Chapter Three. Fergusson’s lively and vigorous mind was shattered in the months leading up to his death, during which time some of his writing became darkly nihilistic. Chapter Four looks at Anne Finch, Countess of Winchilsea, a lifelong depressive who often wrote about her feelings of despair in her poetry. Chapter Five explores Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. She was a courageous and controversial figure, but despite her resilience, on occasion in her letters she reveals her vulnerability and susceptibility to low spirits, a mood which is sometimes expressed in her creative writing. Sarah Scott, whose life and work have not yet been considered in relation to the subject of melancholy, is examined in Chapter Six. Her novel includes several low-spirited and depressed female characters who are continually seeking asylum from a hostile world. Chapter Seven analyses Charlotte Smith, a mother of twelve children whose unhappy marriage ended in separation. Smith wrote extensively about her depression in her letters, prefaces, poetry and novels.
This study shows that the women in particular use their writing on melancholy and depression to express their discontent with the confined way in which they are often expected to live out their lives
George Eliot, Spinoza, and the emotions
No full textThe author concentrates on traditions governing the affects and the expression of emotion available to George Eliot. There is expressive emotion in Eliot's novels. Eliot herself, in her “Notes on Form in Art,” affirmed that poetry, by which she included all literary production, consisted of “relations and groups of relations” that “are more or less not only determined by emotion but intended to express it”. “Sympathy” is less likely to explain these “emotional states,” the author believes, than an understanding of Eliot's response to Spinoza. The author turns to what Eliot's translation of the Ethics would have shown her. In the Ethics Spinoza sets up both a logic and a phenomenology of the affects. There is no unconscious in Spinoza's logic. Pleasure and pain have their counterparts in love and hatred. The final section considers form and emotional states in Daniel Deronda, with a brief preface on Middlemarch
Insights into organisational capabilities that influence innovation and organisational competitiveness in SMEs (small and medium enterprises).
No full textThis thesis seeks to develop insights into the nature of organisational capabilities that influence organisational competitiveness and innovation amongst a selection of SMEs. An interpretivist approach was followed to understand the phenomena from the participants point perspective. Participants in the study were the key players in the selected organisations, and had the experience and knowledge base to help the author develop deep insights into the research subject. The emerging analysis shaped the theory which the study set out to generate. This thesis generates an understanding and insights into the role of leadership, organisational structure and culture and a company's relationships with stakeholders in making an SME company innovative and competitively sustainable.The influence of the role of leadership, the influence of organisational culture on performance and their relationships and collaborations within companies and with others towards competitiveness and innovation is explored in this study. However, the author felt that whilst previous research were interesting, they did not fully explain the nature of innovation and its relationship to the ability of a company to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. It is for this reason the author wished to put extant literature to one side and take a fresh look at innovation from the perspective of companies that had a successful innovative culture and had achieved sustainable growth through a strong track record of innovation.This research treats the innovation phenomena holistically and draws on the stories and views of company managers to develop insights into the true nature of a strong innovative culture and it relationships with sustainable competitive advantage from the perspective of the managers building the strategy and the culture of the company. The findings of this research are explained in the formulated theory which highlights the importance of creating innovative leadership, innovative structure and culture and innovative relationships and collaboration capabilities. These elements are linked by an open organisational mindset, effective internal and external relationships and proactive and supportive knowledge systems and resourcing to create a culture of innovation
The First Cut; the locus of decision at the limits of subjectivity
No full textThis project examines the concept of decision in philosophical writing, in particular the question of whether subjectivity can be said to constitute a ‘locus’ of decision. The writing of Søren Kierkegaard is the main focus of discussion. Giorgio Agamben, Michel Henry and Jacques Derrida also provide important contributions.
Although for Kierkegaard ‘all decisiveness is rooted in subjectivity’, subjective agency takes the form of an active surrendering to an external unknown authority (God). Kierkegaard uses the term ‘leap of faith’ to describe the moment of decision where subjective transformation occurs.
For Derrida, any decision requires an undecidable leap beyond all reasoning made in preparation for that decision. He extends a reading of faith beyond the theistic by suggesting that Kierkegaard’s unknowable God could also be another name for the ‘structure of subjectivity.’
Giorgio Agamben’s writing on the concept of human life situated at the threshold of categories (socio-political, philosophical, physiological and so on), helps to further the exploration of subjectivity as the ‘locus’ of decision. Michel Henry’s work on The Essence of Manifestation provides a focus for a discussion on the ‘radical subjectivity’ that Kierkegaard proposes as the fulcrum of decision.
The research project as a whole maintains a synergy between these philosophical concerns and the form of their explication. The thesis is made up of both written text and DVD documentation of live works. These instances of practice, whose form and mode of presentation were informed by a specific aspect of the research, are integrated into the thesis to constitute ‘chapters’. The practice can and does function independently in other contexts. However, what is presented in this research document constitutes the outcome of my practice-based PhD project and includes both the ‘theoretical’ and ‘practice’ elements.
Supervisors: Neil Cummings and Howard Caygil
Body culture: Max Dupain and the social recreation of the body, c.1919-1939
No full textDeposited with permission of the author © 1999 Isobel Leila CrombieMax Dupain is regarded as the most significant photographer working in Australia during the 1930s. In this thesis I examine his work in relationship to the impact in Australia of what has been called the 'body culture' movement. After world war one, many western countries enthusiastically subscribed to schemes designed to control, regulate and develop the body as a means of building individual health and fitness and assisting communal regeneration. Drawing on the pseudo-scientific theories of eugenics, ideas and methods concerning the revitalisation of the body became popular among a diverse range of groups. In a number of countries, including Australia, such discourses were linked to nationalism.
The primary focus of my investigation is to explore how 'body culture' developed in Australia and how it was expressed in public culture, education and the visual arts. In particular, I investigate the relationship of Dupain's work to the 'body culture' movement and the role that photography played in general to the imaginative rendering of utopian and dystopian ideas concerning the body in the interwar period in Australia.
Using a cultural studies methodology I investigate the dynamic interchange that evolved as photographs were used in a range of popular magazines, specialist publications and high art journals to record, authorise and perpetuate a range of ideological and social constructs regarding the body. As part of this examination, I propose that Australia's most distinctive contribution to 'body culture' was through the development of two physical archetypes associated with the beach - namely, the lifesaver and the surfer – and that the popularity of these icons was largely enabled through photography.
In a biographical study of the artist, I investigate the impact of Max's father, George Dupain, a pioneer physical educator and supporter of eugenics, arguing that his influence was significant in the formation of Max's attitude to photographing the body. I examine the influence of vitalism on Dupain's creative development and conclude that his reputation as an exemplar of modernist photography in Australia should more properly be seen as residing in his contributions in the 1930s to classical modernism rather than the broader context into which he is customarily placed.
I argue that our understanding of commercial and art photographs of the body, taken by Dupain and others, is both broadened and enlivened when it is seen as embedded in the discourses of 'body culture'. Likewise, I propose that the field of 'body culture' itself could not have captured the public's imagination with as much force as it did in the intelWar period without the aid of this most protean of mediums
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