Search

The following article examines the treatment of subjectivity in Alain Mabanckou's Blue White Red and African Psycho from an African postmodernist perspective. My argument is that this Afrodiasporic writer from the Republic of Congo localizes in a postcolonial context the postmodernist motif of fragmented subjectivity in order to critique the psychological effects of enforced modernity on the protagonists of the two novels, namely Massala-Massala and Gregoire Nabomakoyo, respectively. In developing this argument, I show how the former's immigrant experiences in Paris and the latter's traumatic childhood in the fictitious Congolese city of He-Who-Drinks-Water-Is-An-Idiot reduce their respective selves to a flux of personalities. In other words, the two protagonists display conflicting personalities and so their selfhood, indeed their self-perception, is always in a process of perpetual deferment, uncertainty, instability, and indeterminacy. As I proceed, it will become clear that their fragmented subjectivities manifest in self-contradictions and ambivalent adoption of criminal identities., I Alain Mabanckou's debut novel, Blue White Red, and its immediate successor, African Psycho, register his formative critique of the psychological effects of French colonial legacy and Congolese postcolonial governance. [...]

This study examines the ironic vision in Musa Idris Okpanachi's debut volume of poetry titled The Eaters of the Living. The study argues that owing to pervasive disillusionment of third world writers with the appalling sociopolitical and economic conditions of their societies, African writers, in their quest for social renaissance, tend to evolve different artistic media to historicize society. In this context, this exploration of Okpanachi's artistic vision is anchored on the poetics of irony through which the poet offers important sociopolitical commentaries on postcolonial Nigeria. Specifically, the study examines how the representations of the themes of leadership and marriage, respectively, animate Okpanachi's ironic vision in the text. The conclusion is that, through the use of this aesthetic medium, the poet is contributing to the discourse of nation-formation by critiquing the gross contradictions of postcolonial Nigerian experience., INTRODUCTION The history of Africa is undeniably implicated in what Femi Abodunrin describes as the "unending presence of disorder and disorder" (9). This unending state of chaos in Africa is [...]

In the 18th century, Europe was swept by a trend for art that revealed the sentimental inner lives of its subjects. The painter Angelica Kauffman encapsulated the ideas of the [...]

Taking photography as his starting point, Sammy Baloji unearths the hidden connections between European colonialism and modern-day Africa. It has made him an in-demand figure on both continents In the [...]

Two hundred years after his death, much of Gericault's work, including his most famous painting, still has the power to shock. Yet his life remains shrouded in mystery After Gericault [...]

In 1890, Vincent Van Gogh painted a portrait of Dr Paul-Ferdinand Gachet in a brooding pose reminiscent of Durer's Melencolia I, his clenched fist to his cheek (Fig. 1). A [...]

In 2016, the slash youth phenomenon gained attention in mainland China. It was seen as an ideal work plan to adapt to contemporary conditions, and was even endorsed by Chinese state media. However, this paper challenges these narratives and examines the practicality of slash youth as a work plan. Through in-depth research and interviews with 20 slash workers, it explores the work problems faced by young people in mainland China and highlights the discrepancies between practice and narrative. In reality, most slash youth work as flow workers, a new type of labor subject shaped by the specific contextual conditions of mainland China. This type of work typically fails to provide a decent income or opportunities for personal growth, contradicting the promises of slash youth narratives. The transition from slash workers to flow workers reveals the limited employment options available and underscores the need for systemic changes in the nature of work. An integrated work culture and system that adapts to new forms of work is needed to avoid dire consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Edward Lear was in the vanguard of cultural assimilation of evolutionary theory. In what amounts to a gestalt relationship, some of his published "nonsense" figures against, and largely derives its meaning from, innovation in the natural sciences. Certain of his works, some not previously interpreted, are specific in their engagement with evolutionists, including Erasmus and Charles Darwin, Etienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, and Robert Grant. Before and after the appearance of On the Origin of Species (1859), Lear backs one side against another in public debates sparked by evolutionary theory. His implicit engagement with the new biology becomes evident in close attention to the drawings, which are essential components of Lear's innovative hybridization of visual and literary artforms., Huxleyism and Darwinism may be true--but are uncomfortable. --Edward Lear, Diary (24 April 1870) Recent commentators have asserted, but mainly in general terms, that Edward Lear's published "nonsense" (1) reflects [...]

This article examines intratextual connections with Kazuo Ishiguro's body of work. Using the notion of the repertoire, it argues that these connections among texts enable the reader to perceive commonalities of experience across disparate contexts without the specifics of those contexts being erased. More specifically, the article argues that the cognitive burden of bringing together such echoes works to unbind readers from their position within a particular interpretative community. KEYWORDS: Kazuo Ishiguro, intertextual, intratextual, interpretative community, reader-response, TOWARD THE END OF THE BURIED Giant (2015), the Saxon warrior Wistan kills the dragon Querig. His reaction to this supposed triumph is described as follows: Without a word, he [...]

This article offers an introduction to the Kazuo Ishiguro Papers, which are preserved and accessible for research at the Harry Ransom Center, a humanities research library at the University of Texas at Austin. The article explains how and when Ishiguro's archive was placed at the Ransom Center and describes a sampling of its contents. The article also describes how Ishiguro prepared his papers before sending them to the Ransom Center, highlighting some of the reflections and "archive notes" he recorded. The article introduces readers to a unique archive that offers extensive opportunities for research and contains materials that cannot be found anywhere else. KEYWORDS: Kazuo Ishiguro, Harry Ransom Center, archives and records, English literature, contemporary literature, WHEN RESEARCHERS AT THE Harry Ransom Center open the first box of Kazuo Ishiguro's archive, the first folder-labeled "1.0" in the upper left corner--contains a typed document Ishiguro wrote in [...]

When James W. Marshall found shiny metal that turned out to be gold in 1848 near Sacramento, he intended to keep it quiet, but his secret reached around the world [...]

I Certain critics have suggested that Cormac McCarthy's novels are based on pointless violence. It's a common experience to read a book in which the world is portrayed as a [...]

In Balaclava (1876) by Elizabeth Thompson (later known as Lady Butler) the central figure of a traumatized survivor of the Charge of the Light Brigade, modeled after real-life veteran of the Charge William Henry Pennington, was criticized as being overdramatic. The criticism of Pennington's pose and demeanor shows the inability of the Victorian definition of "shock" to encompass what today would be termed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A shift in the Victorian model of trauma has been connected to railway travel; unrecognized has been the connection between the discourses on trauma in railway accidents and from warfare based on the vulnerability of the body. The mechanization of transport led to new anxieties about the precarity of the railway passenger's body and engendered an analogy between railway accident trauma and warfare. Surgeon Edwin Morris's A Practical Treatise on Shock After Surgical Operations and Injuries: With Especial Reference to Shock Caused by Railway Accidents (1867) made this connection explicit. Morris considered physical war wounds specific and verifiable but criticized claims against railway companies for the psychological aftereffects of accidents as unverifiable. Morris expressed the fear that both railway passengers and soldiers could simulate the effects of trauma in the absence of any physiological injury that would make their symptoms verifiable, revealing the shortcomings of the Victorian diagnosis of shock and the privileging of physical over psychological wounds., Elizabeth Thompson's Balaclava (1876) depicts the aftermath of the Charge of the Light Brigade. Held at the Manchester Art Gallery, the painting focuses on a traumatized survivor who was portrayed [...]

This article presents a critical analysis of the African vernacular-rooted imagery represented in Yemi Ijisakin's stone sculptures produced between the years 2006 and 2016. The focus on this period is to study the kinds of imagery he represents when there is a global artistic shift to installation and conceptual art. In doing this, I argue that even though Ijisakin's stone sculptures are deemed vernacular art, they are not indigenous or historical African art, but a rethinking that references indigenous African cultural registers. The article also focuses on the ideas and meanings the interpretations of the works communicate to the audience. Thus, this article presents his artworks to a mainstream journal given that they have not received any critical analysis on the grounds that his works are regressive and outside the normative standards for referencing African/Nigerian/Yoruba contexts. But his works are important for demonstrating the interdependence of art and culture in Nigeria and producing knowledge on cultural practices. Key words: African, Vernacular Imagery, Stone Sculpture, Ijisakin, Contemporary Art, Introduction Yemi Olaolu Ijisakin is a contemporary Nigerian artist who works in different sculptural media but his preferred medium has been stone. He trained as a sculptor at Obafemi Awolowo [...]

In February 2016, after the publication of his energetic, imaginative, Cairoset novel, Using Life, Ahmed Naji became the first writer in Egyptian history to be imprisoned for "offending public morality," [...]

Four artists of Iraqi descent are achieving global recognition for their paintings and handbag design. Both proud of their culture of origin and open to resources beyond national designations, these [...]

In early 2020, concerns about the spread of SARSCoV-2 halted all but essential travel, causing bustling seaports, airports, and railroad stations around the world to go quiet. The same scenario [...]

Copyright of GeSec: Revista de Gestao e Secretariado is the property of Sindicato das Secretarias e Secretarios do Estado de Sao Paulo (SINSESP) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article presents a systematic review of studies on the construction of current policy on labor inclusion, highlighting the role of the arts in the international landscape. The aim of this article is to analyze studies that address inclusive labor policies, highlighting the arts as a labor sector in the international context. A systematic review of articles published in scientific journals on the new international social structure and the inclusion of people with disabilities has been carried out using the PRISMA system to synthesize the search carried out with Mendeley's tool for storage. Ten databases have been used in the exhaustive search and selection: 1Findr, Semantic Scholar, Scopus, Google Scholar, Microsoft Academi Search, Wos, Dialnet, Miar, Circ, Eric. Among the conclusions obtained, the importance of inclusive policies is highlighted, arts organizations are increasingly promoting intervention and research actions, but they need academic, university and political support. Moreover, some inclusion policies need to be questioned when parameters of positive discrimination or action are observed. Education will give us the keys to improve as a society and the generation of more egalitarian policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]