3,103 research outputs found
Politics and loss in Philip Jeyaretnam's Singaporean fiction
Singapore’s Philip Jeyaretnam has now published two well-reviewed novels, a linked collection of short stories, as well as individual stories and reflective essays. In contemporary Singapore, politics and livelihood impinge on creative artists and their output as much, if not more than, other developed countries. It is the purpose of this paper to consider each of Philip Jeyaretnam’s major published works in turn for their insights into their author’s world view, and the social milieu in which he functions, the place where he chooses to live and work. The analysis draws on the key basic assumptions set out by Altick and Fenstermaker in The Art of Literary Research (1993), firstly, that to understand the meaning of a text, it is necessary to know as much as possible about its creator, the author; and secondly, that authors and texts are products of particular social and historical contexts. In the case of Philip Jeyaretnam's work, it is argued that the triumph of managerialism, the sheer economic progress, and the monopolistic political process in Singapore have prompted the author to convey a profound awareness of cost to individual human lives, in terms of loss of intellectual diversity and even destruction of spiritual values. He is especially disturbed with the 'very shallow form of materialism' that holds full sway, with what even the officially-oriented Straits Times has acknowledged as 'a kind of national ideology that is expressed in a relentless efficiency to ensure material well-being.' Whilst uneasy with the label of 'political writer', Philip Jeyaretnam nonetheless recognises that it is impossible to avoid political themes if the subject is the people of Singapore and how they think and feel, because of the formative and pervasive role of government in Singaporean society. In a plea for civil rather than official society, he suggests that there can be legitimate commitments to, and passionate visions of, Singapore which are other than those espoused by the incumbent government, and which involve participation by a broad range of the population
Politics and loss in Philip Jeyaretnam's Singaporean fiction
[Introduction]: Singapore’s Philip Jeyaretnam has now published two well-reviewed novels, a linked collection of short stories, as well as individual stories and reflective essays. This substantial literary achievement is more remarkable, given his relative youth, the controversial political circumstances of his paternal family, and his full-time career as a lawyer at the Singaporean Bar. Moreover, for Singaporeans, creative writing in the English language is, as pointed out in an editorial in the Straits Times newspaper, “a young flowering, struggling in new soil.”(1) In contemporary Singapore, politics and livelihood impinge on creative artists and their output as much, if not more than, other developed countries.
It is the purpose of this paper to consider each of Philip Jeyaretnam’s major published works in turn for their insights into their author’s world view, and the social milieu in which he functions, the place where he chooses to live and work. The analysis draws on the key basic assumptions set out by Altick and Fenstermaker in The Art of Literary Research (1993), firstly, that to understand the meaning of a text, it is necessary to know as much as possible about its creator, the author; and secondly, that authors and texts are products of particular social and historical contexts.(2) In the case of Philip Jeyaretnam’s work, it is argued that the triumph of managerialism, the sheer economic progress, and the monopolistic political process in Singapore have prompted the author to convey a profound awareness of cost to individual human lives, in terms of loss of intellectual diversity and even destruction of spiritual values. He is especially disturbed with the “very shallow form of materialism” that holds full sway, with what even the officially-oriented Straits Times has acknowledged as “a kind of national ideology that is expressed in a relentless efficiency to ensure material well-being.” (3) Whilst uneasy with the label of “political writer”, Philip Jeyaretnam nonetheless recognises that it is impossible to avoid political themes if the subject is the people of Singapore and how they think and feel , because of the formative and pervasive role of government in Singaporean society. (4) In a plea for civil rather than official society, he suggests that there can be legitimate commitments to, and passionate visions of, Singapore which are other than those espoused by the incumbent government, and which involve participation by a broad range of the population. Indeed, for the literary critic, Dudley de Souza, Philip Jeyaretnam’s creative work heralds the ‘emergence of a kind of Singaporean consciousness...”(5
Motion and mobility in the realist novels of Philip K Dick
This essay explores the ways that ideas of motion and mobility support readings of Philip K Dick's early novels that take full account of the changing geographical context. They are set during a period of rapid suburban expansion, the building of the interstate and the spread of automobility through car ownership, and their characters frequently exist in a state between continuity through conformity and the potential for change. The open ended forms of the novels reflect a world around Dick that was still under construction, and where alternative realities can be glimpsed between incomplete materialities
An analysis of the correspondence and hagiographical works of Philip of Harvengt
For every famous author of the twelfth-century renaissance, there are numerous lesser-known writers. Despite being overshadowed by more brilliant scholars or those closer to the centre of important events, their voices add depth to the study of the intellectual history of this period. A founding member of one of the earliest Premonstratensian houses; a highly-educated and prolific author, much in demand as a hagiographer; and a vigorous defender of the clerical order, Philip of Harvengt is one such writer, and a worthy subject for study. This thesis examines two bodies of Philip’s works – his letters and his hagiographical writings – analysing the predominant and recurrent concerns and ideals expressed in them, and the means by which they are expressed.
The letters are carefully crafted works, examples of the literary labour which Philip writes is incumbent upon the cleric. The first part of this thesis approaches these letters in chapters on four themes: the role of the ecclesiastical prelate; the importance of learning; the relationship between religious orders; and Philip’s use of the motif of friendship. His hagiographical works, too, are examples of literary artistry, to move as well as to educate the audience. In the second part of the thesis, these will be discussed individually, with the first chapter analysing his vita of Oda, a nun attached to his own house, whom he portrays as a martyr. The succeeding chapters consider Philip’s rewritings of earlier vitae, and show how he managed his sources in order to produce vitae depicting their subjects according to his ideal model of sanctity.
Philip’s letters express concerns shared by contemporaries, reflecting anxieties surrounding roles and ideal forms of living in a period immediately following the first fervour of religious renewal. His hagiographies articulate ideals of sanctity, clarifying these when they are not made sufficiently explicit in earlier works, for the better edification of an audience pursuing this vita perfecta. Both letters and hagiographies are designed to exhort and instruct the reader or listener: above all, Philip is a teacher
Philip P. Neely scrapbook of fugitive fiction, W.0022
Abstract: Scrapbook containing handwritten notes and newspaper clippings related to Philip P. Neely's writingsScope and Content Note: This scrapbook contains newspaper clippings and handwritten notes related to Philip P. Neely's writings. Highlights of the collection include copies of the short story series "Threads: From the Life-Woof of Hal Hankins, Esq.," selections from the autobiographical column "Leaves from my Life-Book," and selections from a social column entitled "Pen and Ink Gossip."Biographical/Historical Note: Philip Philips Neely was born on 8 September 1819 in Rutherford County, Tennessee. He was a Methodist minister and author of several serialized novellas as well as several books of sermons. Neely and his first wife, Henrietta, had one child, John Edwin Polk, before she died in 1847 (presumably in childbirth) with the couple's second child. With his second wife, J. Alice, they had at least one daughter, Julia E.Philip Neely died on 9 November 1868, in Mobile, Alabama
As narrativas em Nêmesis, de Philip Roth
Esta resenha trata das perspectivas narrativas no romance Nêmesis, do autor americano Philip Roth. A partir de dois olhares, o da narrativa territorial da Newark dos anos 1940, cidade natal do autor e local de ambientação do romance, e da interpretação do livro no contexto pós-pandemia, é traçada uma breve análise crítica da obra.This review deals with narrative perspectives in the novel Nemesis, by the American author Philip Roth. From two points of view: the territorial narrative of 1940’s Newark, the author\u27s hometown and the novel\u27s setting, and the interpretation of the book in the post-pandemic context, a brief critical analysis of the work is outlined
Forecasting banknotes
A central bank’s liquidity forecast is important in ensuring that it supplies the banking system’s need for central bank money. Banknote (or currency in circulation) demand is the largest and for some central banks the most variable component of the liquidity forecast. Accurate forecasting of banknotes is essential in ensuring an accurate liquidity forecast and in turn effective monetary policy implementation. This Handbook discusses these issues and outlines a structural time series state space (STSSS) model which is now used by central banks including the Bank of England and ECB to forecast banknotes (currency in circulation).Forecasting banknotes
Opening spatial hinges with mindful writing practice: negotiating Philip Pullman’s secret commonwealth
This article enquires how ‘spatial hinges’ between author Philip Pullman’s series The Book of Dust and different sites are unexpected and elusive, but may opened by mindfulness. Natalie Goldberg’s mindful writing practice techniques are used as an interpretative instrument to measure this hinging together of parallel worlds. The research data amalgamates interviews with Oxford fantasy tour guides conducted before COVID 19 restrictions with writing sprints about Lockdown walks in both a local park and on a guided tour of ‘Philip Pullman’s Oxford’. The data reveals how a secret commonwealth of elves and fairies infuse the parks with otherworldly, unexpected and exaggerated bucolic awakenings and intersubjectivity, exposing ancient mythical places, including a holloway. On a tour of Oxford, the imaginative storytelling techniques of the guide include impromptu flights of fancy and tilted perspectives that contribute to an atmosphere of unlikeliness, suggestive of Pullman’s texts. In addition, an experience of getting lost or ‘de-touring’, leads to unexpected encounters with the affective mystical presence of Pullman’s novels. The findings conclude that mindfulness may create a state of attunement to the reverberations of the opening of spatial hinges, allowing stories to reveal themselves spontaneously
A generalizable data-driven model of atrophy heterogeneity and progression in memory clinic settings
Abstract
Memory clinic patients are a heterogeneous population representing various aetiologies of pathological aging. It is unknown if divergent spatiotemporal progression patterns of brain atrophy, as previously described in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients, are prevalent and clinically meaningful in this group of older adults.
To uncover distinct atrophy subtypes, we applied the Subtype and Stage Inference (SuStaIn) algorithm to baseline structural MRI data from 813 participants enrolled in the DELCODE cohort (mean ± SD age = 70.67 ± 6.07 years, 52% females). Participants were cognitively unimpaired (CU; n = 285) or fulfilled diagnostic criteria for subjective cognitive decline (SCD; n = 342), mild cognitive impairment (MCI; n = 118), or dementia of the Alzheimer’s type (n = 68). Atrophy subtypes were compared in baseline demographics, fluid AD biomarker levels, the Preclinical Alzheimer Cognitive Composite (PACC-5), as well as episodic memory and executive functioning. PACC-5 trajectories over up to 240 weeks were examined. To test if baseline atrophy subtype and stage predicted clinical trajectories before manifest cognitive impairment, we analysed PACC-5 trajectories and MCI conversion rates of CU and SCD participants.
Limbic-predominant and hippocampal-sparing atrophy subtypes were identified. Limbic-predominant atrophy first affected the medial temporal lobes, followed by further temporal and, finally, the remaining cortical regions. At baseline, this subtype was related to older age, more pathological AD biomarker levels, APOE ε4 carriership, and an amnestic cognitive impairment. Hippocampal-sparing atrophy initially occurred outside the temporal lobe with the medial temporal lobe spared up to advanced atrophy stages. This atrophy pattern also affected individuals with positive AD biomarkers and was associated with more generalised cognitive impairment. Limbic-predominant atrophy, in all and in only unimpaired participants, was linked to more negative longitudinal PACC-5 slopes than observed in participants without or with hippocampal-sparing atrophy and increased the risk of MCI conversion.
SuStaIn modelling was repeated in a sample from the Swedish BioFINDER-2 cohort. Highly similar atrophy progression patterns and associated cognitive profiles were identified. Cross-cohort model generalizability, both on the subject and group level, were excellent, indicating reliable performance in previously unseen data.
The proposed model is a promising tool for capturing heterogeneity among older adults at early at-risk states for AD in applied settings. The implementation of atrophy subtype- and stage-specific end-points may increase the statistical power of pharmacological trials targeting early AD
Financial safety nets and incentive structures in Latin America
The literature on safety nets has become technically more precise by drawing on advances in contract theory and optimal governance structure. This paper begins with a treatment of some aspects of the theory. The author's approach draws more on institutional economics, and more precisely on the approach taken by Kindleberger (1978), in the sense that he believes the design of good financial safety nets for Latin America depends upon an understanding of the way that formal ex-ante safety nets have broken down during times of crisis over the past one hundred years. In this paper then author explores issues surrounding safety nets for financial systems in small open economies like those in Latin America. The starting point in Section 2 is the idea that asymmetric information will generally restrict the scope for lending to potential borrowers. Section 3 shows that government regulation of financial intermediaries can frequently lower the cost of lending. Section 4 discusses the creation of central banks in Latin America in the 1920s as an innovation to promote financial deepening. Section 5 shows that the extension of the safety net to depositors is a relatively new and untested development. Section 6 concludes with a discussion of the design of safety nets that takes into account the principles developed in the paper.Financial Crisis Management&Restructuring,Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Financial Intermediation,Banks&Banking Reform,Labor Policies,Financial Intermediation,Financial Crisis Management&Restructuring,Economic Theory&Research,Environmental Economics&Policies,Banks&Banking Reform
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