David M. Terman
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195379655
- eISBN:
- 9780199777334
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195379655.003.0002
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter situates the fundamentalist mindset in a group psychological context. A review of the psychoanalytic theory of groups shows some conflation between the psychology of the individual and ...
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This chapter situates the fundamentalist mindset in a group psychological context. A review of the psychoanalytic theory of groups shows some conflation between the psychology of the individual and that of the group. Several trends in research are evident. The group's history, values, and goals are central to the group's concerns, and threats to these elements — experienced by the group as assaults on its self-esteem — are increasingly cited as the source of violence. The history of the theory of paranoia shows the same direction: there is more recognition of the problems of fragile self-esteem, shame, and humiliation in the genesis of the paranoid structure. Intrinsic to the structure is dualistic thinking and the Manichaean view of the world. Work on violence in groups shows analogous psychological organization: great investment in the ideology of the group that contains its goals, values, and sense of group self-esteem. An injury to those goals and values produces a paranoid organization and an analogy to rage in the individual, and subsequent violence.Less
This chapter situates the fundamentalist mindset in a group psychological context. A review of the psychoanalytic theory of groups shows some conflation between the psychology of the individual and that of the group. Several trends in research are evident. The group's history, values, and goals are central to the group's concerns, and threats to these elements — experienced by the group as assaults on its self-esteem — are increasingly cited as the source of violence. The history of the theory of paranoia shows the same direction: there is more recognition of the problems of fragile self-esteem, shame, and humiliation in the genesis of the paranoid structure. Intrinsic to the structure is dualistic thinking and the Manichaean view of the world. Work on violence in groups shows analogous psychological organization: great investment in the ideology of the group that contains its goals, values, and sense of group self-esteem. An injury to those goals and values produces a paranoid organization and an analogy to rage in the individual, and subsequent violence.
Charles B. Strozier
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195379655
- eISBN:
- 9780199777334
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195379655.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
The apocalyptic is the death-drenched dimension of the fundamentalist mindset. Among religious fundamentalist believers there is nothing more basic to their belief system than hope for the coming (or ...
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The apocalyptic is the death-drenched dimension of the fundamentalist mindset. Among religious fundamentalist believers there is nothing more basic to their belief system than hope for the coming (or return) of the Messiah. For secular millennial movements, such as the Nazis, the redemptive goals are rather more vague but equally central to their aspirations. There can be ultimate salvation only with the absolute destruction of the world and its evils. The end of death overcomes death itself, however, in a remaking of the world that brings with it powerful hope. This transcendent process totalizes the other, requiring radical dualisms and evoking evil in paranoid ways. This chapter focuses on the link between paranoia and the apocalyptic, which gives us insight into the violent potentials in the fundamentalist mindset.Less
The apocalyptic is the death-drenched dimension of the fundamentalist mindset. Among religious fundamentalist believers there is nothing more basic to their belief system than hope for the coming (or return) of the Messiah. For secular millennial movements, such as the Nazis, the redemptive goals are rather more vague but equally central to their aspirations. There can be ultimate salvation only with the absolute destruction of the world and its evils. The end of death overcomes death itself, however, in a remaking of the world that brings with it powerful hope. This transcendent process totalizes the other, requiring radical dualisms and evoking evil in paranoid ways. This chapter focuses on the link between paranoia and the apocalyptic, which gives us insight into the violent potentials in the fundamentalist mindset.
David P. Jordan
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195379655
- eISBN:
- 9780199777334
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195379655.003.0014
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter argues that there is a fundamentalist mindset — and in the politics of the French Revolution it is an ideologically driven mindset — although that mindset is secular rather than ...
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This chapter argues that there is a fundamentalist mindset — and in the politics of the French Revolution it is an ideologically driven mindset — although that mindset is secular rather than religious. There was paranoia in the thinking of the revolutionaries, both individually and collectively. Paranoia in the French Revolution was an extreme form of fear during a time of exceptional crisis and genuine danger.Less
This chapter argues that there is a fundamentalist mindset — and in the politics of the French Revolution it is an ideologically driven mindset — although that mindset is secular rather than religious. There was paranoia in the thinking of the revolutionaries, both individually and collectively. Paranoia in the French Revolution was an extreme form of fear during a time of exceptional crisis and genuine danger.
James W. Jones
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195379655
- eISBN:
- 9780199777334
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195379655.003.0016
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter reviews the discussions in the preceding chapters. The argument of this book simultaneously narrows and broadens some common terms. Fundamentalism is not simply the orthodox or ...
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This chapter reviews the discussions in the preceding chapters. The argument of this book simultaneously narrows and broadens some common terms. Fundamentalism is not simply the orthodox or traditional form of a religion, as it is often portrayed in popular discourse. Rather it represents a mindset that can be found in both religious and secular movements. Paranoia is not here a psychiatric diagnosis or a synonym for insanity but a sensibility or way of experiencing the self and the world that can coexist with technical and literary skill. The apocalyptic is not primarily a theological category but a state of mind that dichotomizes the world in black-and-white terms and seeks a total, almost always violent, purification of the world. None of the editors or authors of this volume claims that this psychologically oriented approach is the only approach to take to understanding fundamentalism. However, it is an important approach and one that has been neglected. That neglect has been detrimental to our understanding of these movements, and this psychologically oriented approach brings with it significant insights into fundamentalism.Less
This chapter reviews the discussions in the preceding chapters. The argument of this book simultaneously narrows and broadens some common terms. Fundamentalism is not simply the orthodox or traditional form of a religion, as it is often portrayed in popular discourse. Rather it represents a mindset that can be found in both religious and secular movements. Paranoia is not here a psychiatric diagnosis or a synonym for insanity but a sensibility or way of experiencing the self and the world that can coexist with technical and literary skill. The apocalyptic is not primarily a theological category but a state of mind that dichotomizes the world in black-and-white terms and seeks a total, almost always violent, purification of the world. None of the editors or authors of this volume claims that this psychologically oriented approach is the only approach to take to understanding fundamentalism. However, it is an important approach and one that has been neglected. That neglect has been detrimental to our understanding of these movements, and this psychologically oriented approach brings with it significant insights into fundamentalism.
Catharine Cookson
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195129441
- eISBN:
- 9780199834105
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/019512944X.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Unusual societal flux and social stress causes fear, and a fearful, paranoid society is tempted greatly to take extreme measures to protect itself. Pressured politicians may be unable or unwilling to ...
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Unusual societal flux and social stress causes fear, and a fearful, paranoid society is tempted greatly to take extreme measures to protect itself. Pressured politicians may be unable or unwilling to enact reasonably narrow and limited legislation designed to address the actual harm, and, indeed, not only may cast a wide net but also limit if not disregard individual protections under the Constitution. While the courts may be tempted (if not politically pressured) to give a conclusive presumption deferring to the legislature, this chapter argues that it is the duty of the courts, especially in times of moral panic or societal “ill humors” (Alexander Hamilton's phrase), to protect the individual's right to the free exercise of religion by a searching scrutiny of the context of each case. The courts must be exceptionally careful to understand both the religious framework within which the religiously compelled behavior is situated and the actual, paradigmatic harm anticipated by the statute.Less
Unusual societal flux and social stress causes fear, and a fearful, paranoid society is tempted greatly to take extreme measures to protect itself. Pressured politicians may be unable or unwilling to enact reasonably narrow and limited legislation designed to address the actual harm, and, indeed, not only may cast a wide net but also limit if not disregard individual protections under the Constitution. While the courts may be tempted (if not politically pressured) to give a conclusive presumption deferring to the legislature, this chapter argues that it is the duty of the courts, especially in times of moral panic or societal “ill humors” (Alexander Hamilton's phrase), to protect the individual's right to the free exercise of religion by a searching scrutiny of the context of each case. The courts must be exceptionally careful to understand both the religious framework within which the religiously compelled behavior is situated and the actual, paradigmatic harm anticipated by the statute.
Richard M. Fried
- Published in print:
- 1991
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195043617
- eISBN:
- 9780199853724
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195043617.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, American History: 20th Century
This book provides an account of the rise and fall of the House Committee on Un-American activities. The book describes the growth of the kind of paranoid and xenophobic anti-communism which ...
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This book provides an account of the rise and fall of the House Committee on Un-American activities. The book describes the growth of the kind of paranoid and xenophobic anti-communism which characterized the HUAC and traces its origins from the New Deal to the post-war periods. Along the way we meet important actors in the Red-baiting drama, including Presidents Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, the young Richard Nixon, Alger Hiss, the Rosenbergs, the Hollywood Ten, and, of course, Wisconsin Senator Joseph McCarthy. The book, however, also documents the more sweeping and less public effects of McCarthyism on thousands of people, from teachers and lawyers to washroom attendants forced to take loyalty tests. As the book shows, these “insignificant” stories are perhaps the strongest testament to the social and political climate which terrorized many ordinary citizens during the McCarthy years.Less
This book provides an account of the rise and fall of the House Committee on Un-American activities. The book describes the growth of the kind of paranoid and xenophobic anti-communism which characterized the HUAC and traces its origins from the New Deal to the post-war periods. Along the way we meet important actors in the Red-baiting drama, including Presidents Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, the young Richard Nixon, Alger Hiss, the Rosenbergs, the Hollywood Ten, and, of course, Wisconsin Senator Joseph McCarthy. The book, however, also documents the more sweeping and less public effects of McCarthyism on thousands of people, from teachers and lawyers to washroom attendants forced to take loyalty tests. As the book shows, these “insignificant” stories are perhaps the strongest testament to the social and political climate which terrorized many ordinary citizens during the McCarthy years.
A. S. Morrison
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780199547371
- eISBN:
- 9780191720710
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199547371.003.0003
- Subject:
- History, Asian History
This chapter covers the colonial regime's fraught relationship with Islam. Whilst expressing deep suspicion and hostility towards Islam, whether in traditional or reformist guise, administrators were ...
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This chapter covers the colonial regime's fraught relationship with Islam. Whilst expressing deep suspicion and hostility towards Islam, whether in traditional or reformist guise, administrators were far too worried about provoking a revolt akin to that in the Caucasus, or the Indian Mutiny, to make any serious attempt to undermine it.Less
This chapter covers the colonial regime's fraught relationship with Islam. Whilst expressing deep suspicion and hostility towards Islam, whether in traditional or reformist guise, administrators were far too worried about provoking a revolt akin to that in the Caucasus, or the Indian Mutiny, to make any serious attempt to undermine it.
Priya Satia
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195331417
- eISBN:
- 9780199868070
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195331417.003.0009
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History
This chapter describes the postwar consolidation of a new style of covert empire, in which real executive power in the Middle Eastern colonies was held by intelligence agents operating in hidden ...
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This chapter describes the postwar consolidation of a new style of covert empire, in which real executive power in the Middle Eastern colonies was held by intelligence agents operating in hidden reaches of the bureaucracy. The scheme evolved informally after the failure of proposals for a more formal intelligence network, which were deemed impolitic. The covert style allowed colonial control in the increasingly anti-imperial postwar world, in places where more overt control would be strenuously resisted but where paranoia dictated some kind of control. The discreet air control scheme was the centerpiece of this system. The covert mode enabled the British to remain in Iraq well after the declaration of Iraqi independence in 1932, through the fifties. The chapter closes with a description of the growing paranoia of Iraqis and other powers in the region about the British presence and British incredulity in response.Less
This chapter describes the postwar consolidation of a new style of covert empire, in which real executive power in the Middle Eastern colonies was held by intelligence agents operating in hidden reaches of the bureaucracy. The scheme evolved informally after the failure of proposals for a more formal intelligence network, which were deemed impolitic. The covert style allowed colonial control in the increasingly anti-imperial postwar world, in places where more overt control would be strenuously resisted but where paranoia dictated some kind of control. The discreet air control scheme was the centerpiece of this system. The covert mode enabled the British to remain in Iraq well after the declaration of Iraqi independence in 1932, through the fifties. The chapter closes with a description of the growing paranoia of Iraqis and other powers in the region about the British presence and British incredulity in response.
William A. Richards and G. William Barnard
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780231174060
- eISBN:
- 9780231540919
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231174060.003.0009
- Subject:
- Psychology, Psychopharmacology
Difficult psychedelic experiences.
Difficult psychedelic experiences.
Paul Robinson
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199250219
- eISBN:
- 9780191719547
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199250219.003.0013
- Subject:
- History, European Modern History
In the late 1930s, splits within Russian military organizations widened. For instance, a bitter dispute opened up between the NSNP (now renamed the NTSNP) and ROVS over the subject of the Inner Line, ...
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In the late 1930s, splits within Russian military organizations widened. For instance, a bitter dispute opened up between the NSNP (now renamed the NTSNP) and ROVS over the subject of the Inner Line, and in Bulgaria another dispute erupted between ROVS and the émigré journalists Boris and Ivan Solonevich. The abduction of General Miller in 1937 added fuel to the fire once it emerged that General Skoblin was a Soviet agent, revealing that the Soviets had penetrated almost to the top of émigré organizations. Mutual accusations mounted and paranoia steamed out of control. ROVS's reputation never recovered.Less
In the late 1930s, splits within Russian military organizations widened. For instance, a bitter dispute opened up between the NSNP (now renamed the NTSNP) and ROVS over the subject of the Inner Line, and in Bulgaria another dispute erupted between ROVS and the émigré journalists Boris and Ivan Solonevich. The abduction of General Miller in 1937 added fuel to the fire once it emerged that General Skoblin was a Soviet agent, revealing that the Soviets had penetrated almost to the top of émigré organizations. Mutual accusations mounted and paranoia steamed out of control. ROVS's reputation never recovered.
Susannah Wilson
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- January 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199579358
- eISBN:
- 9780191595226
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199579358.003.0006
- Subject:
- Literature, Prose (inc. letters, diaries), European Literature
This chapter considers the case of the sculptor Camille Claudel, Rodin's most famous lover who, despite her enormous talent, was committed to an asylum in 1913 where she would die 30 years later. ...
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This chapter considers the case of the sculptor Camille Claudel, Rodin's most famous lover who, despite her enormous talent, was committed to an asylum in 1913 where she would die 30 years later. This analysis considers two pieces of Claudel's correspondence from 1909 and 1917–18, respectively. The first letter from Camille to her brother (the French poet Paul Claudel), written before her committal to the asylum, is strongly themed along the lines of her feelings of persecution by Rodin. The second letter from Claudel to Docteur Michaux, the doctor who wrote her ‘certificat d'internement’, gives a detailed and compelling account of the reality of her artistically unproductive and pitiful life in the asylum, and appears—superficially, at least—as an attempt at a more plausibly ‘sane’ request for clemency on the part of the medical establishment. The chapter argues that Claudel's delusions of persecution are a metaphorical representation of the genuine suffering and injustice that she endured in a society antagonistic to the potential achievements of women artists.Less
This chapter considers the case of the sculptor Camille Claudel, Rodin's most famous lover who, despite her enormous talent, was committed to an asylum in 1913 where she would die 30 years later. This analysis considers two pieces of Claudel's correspondence from 1909 and 1917–18, respectively. The first letter from Camille to her brother (the French poet Paul Claudel), written before her committal to the asylum, is strongly themed along the lines of her feelings of persecution by Rodin. The second letter from Claudel to Docteur Michaux, the doctor who wrote her ‘certificat d'internement’, gives a detailed and compelling account of the reality of her artistically unproductive and pitiful life in the asylum, and appears—superficially, at least—as an attempt at a more plausibly ‘sane’ request for clemency on the part of the medical establishment. The chapter argues that Claudel's delusions of persecution are a metaphorical representation of the genuine suffering and injustice that she endured in a society antagonistic to the potential achievements of women artists.
Richard Landes
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199753598
- eISBN:
- 9780199897445
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199753598.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, World Religions
This chapter goes into the psychology of apocalyptic believers, the megalomanic (and often paranoid) belief that they are at the center of a cosmic drama, and explores why, despite so many ...
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This chapter goes into the psychology of apocalyptic believers, the megalomanic (and often paranoid) belief that they are at the center of a cosmic drama, and explores why, despite so many spectacular failures in announcing the coming kingdom of heaven, the belief has not abated even in the modern, “rational,” and secular world. It then offers a set of definitions for terms the book will use repeatedly: apocalyptic, millennial, eschatological. It lays out two sets of variables that allow one to map the phenomena: for millennialism, demotic (egalitarian) versus imperial (hierarchical), progressive versus restorative; for apocalyptic, cataclysmic (violent destruction) versus transformative (change of will), active (human participation) versus passive (divine action).Less
This chapter goes into the psychology of apocalyptic believers, the megalomanic (and often paranoid) belief that they are at the center of a cosmic drama, and explores why, despite so many spectacular failures in announcing the coming kingdom of heaven, the belief has not abated even in the modern, “rational,” and secular world. It then offers a set of definitions for terms the book will use repeatedly: apocalyptic, millennial, eschatological. It lays out two sets of variables that allow one to map the phenomena: for millennialism, demotic (egalitarian) versus imperial (hierarchical), progressive versus restorative; for apocalyptic, cataclysmic (violent destruction) versus transformative (change of will), active (human participation) versus passive (divine action).
John Dunn
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780300179910
- eISBN:
- 9780300206562
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300179910.003.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Political Philosophy
This book examines the complex processes that make up democracy and the way people place their trust in it as a political idea or a specifiable form of government. It suggests that democracy, when ...
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This book examines the complex processes that make up democracy and the way people place their trust in it as a political idea or a specifiable form of government. It suggests that democracy, when applied to politics, is an idea that hovers constantly between credulity and paranoia. Its central thesis is that this faith in the vindicatory and directive force of our conception of democracy is utterly misplaced. It argues that in order to improve political judgment, it is necessary to recognize just what has recently happened to and through the still sometimes charismatic but almost never clarificatory meaning of democracy.Less
This book examines the complex processes that make up democracy and the way people place their trust in it as a political idea or a specifiable form of government. It suggests that democracy, when applied to politics, is an idea that hovers constantly between credulity and paranoia. Its central thesis is that this faith in the vindicatory and directive force of our conception of democracy is utterly misplaced. It argues that in order to improve political judgment, it is necessary to recognize just what has recently happened to and through the still sometimes charismatic but almost never clarificatory meaning of democracy.
Robert C. Solomon
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195134674
- eISBN:
- 9780199833733
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195134672.003.0004
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
Spirituality involves trust, a broader concept than the Judeo–Christian notion of faith. Authentic trust is an emotional matter, based in relationships, and well aware of the possibility of betrayal. ...
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Spirituality involves trust, a broader concept than the Judeo–Christian notion of faith. Authentic trust is an emotional matter, based in relationships, and well aware of the possibility of betrayal. It is undermined by envy and resentment but encourages forgiveness.Less
Spirituality involves trust, a broader concept than the Judeo–Christian notion of faith. Authentic trust is an emotional matter, based in relationships, and well aware of the possibility of betrayal. It is undermined by envy and resentment but encourages forgiveness.
Todd McGowan
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- April 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780252038143
- eISBN:
- 9780252095405
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of Illinois Press
- DOI:
- 10.5406/illinois/9780252038143.001.0001
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
Since the release of Do the Right Thing in 1989, Spike Lee has established himself as a cinematic icon. Lee's mostly independent films garner popular audiences while at the same time engaging in ...
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Since the release of Do the Right Thing in 1989, Spike Lee has established himself as a cinematic icon. Lee's mostly independent films garner popular audiences while at the same time engaging in substantial political and social commentary. He is arguably the most accomplished African American filmmaker in cinematic history, and his breakthrough paved the way for the success of many other African Americans in film. This book shows how Lee's films, from She's Gotta Have It through Red Hook Summer, address crucial social issues such as racism, paranoia, and economic exploitation in a formally inventive manner. The book argues that Lee uses excess in his films to intervene in issues of philosophy, politics, and art. It contends that it is impossible to watch a Spike Lee film in the way that one watches a typical Hollywood film. By forcing observers to recognize their unconscious enjoyment of violence, paranoia, racism, sexism, and oppression, Lee's films prod spectators to see differently and to confront their own excess. In the process, his films reveal what is at stake in desire, interpersonal relations, work, and artistic creation itself.Less
Since the release of Do the Right Thing in 1989, Spike Lee has established himself as a cinematic icon. Lee's mostly independent films garner popular audiences while at the same time engaging in substantial political and social commentary. He is arguably the most accomplished African American filmmaker in cinematic history, and his breakthrough paved the way for the success of many other African Americans in film. This book shows how Lee's films, from She's Gotta Have It through Red Hook Summer, address crucial social issues such as racism, paranoia, and economic exploitation in a formally inventive manner. The book argues that Lee uses excess in his films to intervene in issues of philosophy, politics, and art. It contends that it is impossible to watch a Spike Lee film in the way that one watches a typical Hollywood film. By forcing observers to recognize their unconscious enjoyment of violence, paranoia, racism, sexism, and oppression, Lee's films prod spectators to see differently and to confront their own excess. In the process, his films reveal what is at stake in desire, interpersonal relations, work, and artistic creation itself.
Elliott King
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781781381434
- eISBN:
- 9781781382387
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5949/liverpool/9781781381434.003.0011
- Subject:
- Literature, 20th-century and Contemporary Literature
From recent scholarship on the artist, one might take it that Salvador Dalí was extremely well versed in scientific theories, however the extent of his understanding is not clear. A discovery of ...
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From recent scholarship on the artist, one might take it that Salvador Dalí was extremely well versed in scientific theories, however the extent of his understanding is not clear. A discovery of physics evidently informed works such as Saint Surrounded by Three Pi-Mesons (1956) but that is not the totality of the painting. His ‘scientific’ canvases consist of both the initial scientific or technological inspiration and, more dominantly, the fantastical narrative Dalí develops from it. Dalí gave himself permission through the paranoiac-critical method to illustrate not simply what was directly observable but additionally – or even instead – his own unique associations. Indeed, he might wholly misunderstand a scientific concept and then, even upon realising it, deliberately build upon his ‘error’. It is here that science fiction becomes a useful lens for considering the legitimacy of Dalí’s projections, which otherwise may strike the educated viewer as irresponsibly loose applications of scientific ideas. When SF employs scientific or technological innovations as springboards for creativity, one accepts – indeed, praises – it as a product of the imagination unconstrained by the parameters of fact. Similarly, Dalí’s pseudo-scientific ‘fictions’ should not necessarily be read as evidence that he simply did not sufficiently understand his sources; rather, he was – quite openly – drawing upon science in a specifically artistic way. This chapter explores Dalí’s Dix recettes d’immortalité (1973), which has never been discussed in the scholarly literature on the artist, under the rubric of SF, demonstrating how the genre allows us to appreciate both the science and subversion of that profoundly imaginative volume.Less
From recent scholarship on the artist, one might take it that Salvador Dalí was extremely well versed in scientific theories, however the extent of his understanding is not clear. A discovery of physics evidently informed works such as Saint Surrounded by Three Pi-Mesons (1956) but that is not the totality of the painting. His ‘scientific’ canvases consist of both the initial scientific or technological inspiration and, more dominantly, the fantastical narrative Dalí develops from it. Dalí gave himself permission through the paranoiac-critical method to illustrate not simply what was directly observable but additionally – or even instead – his own unique associations. Indeed, he might wholly misunderstand a scientific concept and then, even upon realising it, deliberately build upon his ‘error’. It is here that science fiction becomes a useful lens for considering the legitimacy of Dalí’s projections, which otherwise may strike the educated viewer as irresponsibly loose applications of scientific ideas. When SF employs scientific or technological innovations as springboards for creativity, one accepts – indeed, praises – it as a product of the imagination unconstrained by the parameters of fact. Similarly, Dalí’s pseudo-scientific ‘fictions’ should not necessarily be read as evidence that he simply did not sufficiently understand his sources; rather, he was – quite openly – drawing upon science in a specifically artistic way. This chapter explores Dalí’s Dix recettes d’immortalité (1973), which has never been discussed in the scholarly literature on the artist, under the rubric of SF, demonstrating how the genre allows us to appreciate both the science and subversion of that profoundly imaginative volume.
Jeremy Tambling
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9789622098244
- eISBN:
- 9789882207158
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Hong Kong University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5790/hongkong/9789622098244.003.0003
- Subject:
- Literature, World Literature
This chapter presents a reading of A Madman's Diary, the first, and one of the most influential of Lu Xun's short stories. It seems that two possible sources for A Madman's Diary were personal: the ...
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This chapter presents a reading of A Madman's Diary, the first, and one of the most influential of Lu Xun's short stories. It seems that two possible sources for A Madman's Diary were personal: the “feverish intensity” of the mental state of the madman “recalls Lu Xun's description of his father on his deathbed,” which Lu Xun wrote about in an essay, “Father's Illness.”. There was another incident, which one of Lu Xun's biographers describes as a real-life paranoia, where everything that happens becomes circumstantial evidence to prove that the person is being persecuted. The diary shows the loneliness involved in madness, in the way the “madman” wanted to write everything down, as if trying to avoid his loneliness that way.Less
This chapter presents a reading of A Madman's Diary, the first, and one of the most influential of Lu Xun's short stories. It seems that two possible sources for A Madman's Diary were personal: the “feverish intensity” of the mental state of the madman “recalls Lu Xun's description of his father on his deathbed,” which Lu Xun wrote about in an essay, “Father's Illness.”. There was another incident, which one of Lu Xun's biographers describes as a real-life paranoia, where everything that happens becomes circumstantial evidence to prove that the person is being persecuted. The diary shows the loneliness involved in madness, in the way the “madman” wanted to write everything down, as if trying to avoid his loneliness that way.
David Greven
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- March 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780190214166
- eISBN:
- 9780190214197
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190214166.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies, 20th-century Literature and Modernism
Intimate Violence explores the consistent cold war in Hitchcock's films between his heterosexual heroines and his queer characters, usually though not always male. From a reparative psychoanalytic ...
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Intimate Violence explores the consistent cold war in Hitchcock's films between his heterosexual heroines and his queer characters, usually though not always male. From a reparative psychoanalytic perspective, David Greven merges queer and feminist approaches to Hitchcock. Using the theories of Melanie Klein, Greven argues that Hitchcock's work thematizes a constant battle between desires to injure and to repair the loved object. The feminine versus the queer conflict, as he calls it, in Hitchcock films illuminates the shared but rivalrous struggles for autonomy and visibility on the part of female and queer subjects. The heroine is vulnerable to misogyny, but she often gains an access to agency that the queer subject longs for, mistaking her partial autonomy for social power. Hitchcock's queer personae, however, wield a seductive power over his heterosexual subjects, having access to illusion and masquerade that the knowledge-seeking heroine must destroy. Freud's theory of paranoia, understood as a tool for the dissection of cultural homophobia, illuminates the feminine versus the queer conflict, the female subject position, and the consistent forms of homoerotic antagonism in the Hitchcock film. Through close readings of such key Hitchcock works as North by Northwest, Psycho, Strangers on a Train, Spellbound, Rope, Marnie, and The Birds, Greven explores the ongoing conflicts between the heroine and queer subjects and the simultaneous allure and horror of same-sex relationships in the director's films.Less
Intimate Violence explores the consistent cold war in Hitchcock's films between his heterosexual heroines and his queer characters, usually though not always male. From a reparative psychoanalytic perspective, David Greven merges queer and feminist approaches to Hitchcock. Using the theories of Melanie Klein, Greven argues that Hitchcock's work thematizes a constant battle between desires to injure and to repair the loved object. The feminine versus the queer conflict, as he calls it, in Hitchcock films illuminates the shared but rivalrous struggles for autonomy and visibility on the part of female and queer subjects. The heroine is vulnerable to misogyny, but she often gains an access to agency that the queer subject longs for, mistaking her partial autonomy for social power. Hitchcock's queer personae, however, wield a seductive power over his heterosexual subjects, having access to illusion and masquerade that the knowledge-seeking heroine must destroy. Freud's theory of paranoia, understood as a tool for the dissection of cultural homophobia, illuminates the feminine versus the queer conflict, the female subject position, and the consistent forms of homoerotic antagonism in the Hitchcock film. Through close readings of such key Hitchcock works as North by Northwest, Psycho, Strangers on a Train, Spellbound, Rope, Marnie, and The Birds, Greven explores the ongoing conflicts between the heroine and queer subjects and the simultaneous allure and horror of same-sex relationships in the director's films.
Jeffrey Spivak
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780813126432
- eISBN:
- 9780813135663
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813126432.003.0002
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
Busby Berkeley William Enos was born on November 29, 1895. His parents were Gertrude Berkeley and Francis Enos. Gertrude returned to the stage soon after giving birth. She found her first marked ...
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Busby Berkeley William Enos was born on November 29, 1895. His parents were Gertrude Berkeley and Francis Enos. Gertrude returned to the stage soon after giving birth. She found her first marked success in the play The Girl I Left Behind Me. Later, however, the strain of putting on a new production every week, of performing every evening and rehearsing when not performing, was taking its toll on Gertrude. On March 17, 1901, Darkest Russia was staged for the first time as a matinee. Following the evening performance, Gertrude Berkeley Enos lost her mind. Ten months after her mental breakdown, Gertrude recovered. After the death of Francis Enos, Gertrude sent Busby to boarding school over the next couple of years, along with camps in the summer, while she found work touring with various companies.Less
Busby Berkeley William Enos was born on November 29, 1895. His parents were Gertrude Berkeley and Francis Enos. Gertrude returned to the stage soon after giving birth. She found her first marked success in the play The Girl I Left Behind Me. Later, however, the strain of putting on a new production every week, of performing every evening and rehearsing when not performing, was taking its toll on Gertrude. On March 17, 1901, Darkest Russia was staged for the first time as a matinee. Following the evening performance, Gertrude Berkeley Enos lost her mind. Ten months after her mental breakdown, Gertrude recovered. After the death of Francis Enos, Gertrude sent Busby to boarding school over the next couple of years, along with camps in the summer, while she found work touring with various companies.
Wheeler Winston Dixon
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748623990
- eISBN:
- 9780748653614
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748623990.003.0007
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
With the decline in cinema attendance in the early 2000s eerily mimicking the same pattern in the early 1950s, television programs have become a new and potent source of noir. From CSI to Law and ...
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With the decline in cinema attendance in the early 2000s eerily mimicking the same pattern in the early 1950s, television programs have become a new and potent source of noir. From CSI to Law and Order: Special Victims Unit and Moment of Truth, television depicts the true ‘reality’ of life in the twenty-first century; rapacious greed, fear, violence, endless war, terrorism and the continual droning of either threats or assurances from impotent authority figures. The new breed of television reality shows, such as Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, I Want a Famous Face and The Swan, create the impression that one can ‘buy’ whatever one wants. In a post-9/11 cinematic landscape, we must fight to find a path towards reason and understanding of a new cinematic landscape in which violence and catastrophe are viewed as constants. Even the news has become noir, dealing in paranoia, fear and obsessive speculation. In the world of film noir, our lot is to seek continually the phantom reassurance of a new social construct that can never fulfill our spectatorial desires.Less
With the decline in cinema attendance in the early 2000s eerily mimicking the same pattern in the early 1950s, television programs have become a new and potent source of noir. From CSI to Law and Order: Special Victims Unit and Moment of Truth, television depicts the true ‘reality’ of life in the twenty-first century; rapacious greed, fear, violence, endless war, terrorism and the continual droning of either threats or assurances from impotent authority figures. The new breed of television reality shows, such as Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, I Want a Famous Face and The Swan, create the impression that one can ‘buy’ whatever one wants. In a post-9/11 cinematic landscape, we must fight to find a path towards reason and understanding of a new cinematic landscape in which violence and catastrophe are viewed as constants. Even the news has become noir, dealing in paranoia, fear and obsessive speculation. In the world of film noir, our lot is to seek continually the phantom reassurance of a new social construct that can never fulfill our spectatorial desires.
