scholarly journals Philomaths, Herschel, and the myth of the self-taught man

2014 ◽  
Vol 68 (3) ◽  
pp. 207-225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily Winterburn
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
The Self ◽  
University Education ◽  
Learning Science ◽  
Collective Effort ◽  
History Of ◽  
William Herschel ◽  
Practice Of Science

The role of technicians and background characters in the historical practice of science is slowly gaining recognition. This paper looks at the collective effort involved in learning science, using as my case study the eighteenth-century musician turned astronomer, William Herschel. Lacking a university education, Herschel, like many contemporaries, presented himself as self-taught, thereby hiding his engagement with a rich network of didactic resources. Placing Herschel's story within the history of pedagogy, I argue that this network, previously discussed only in the context of popular or marketplace science, was an important resource for science education at its highest level.

scholarly journals THE 1951 DIPLOMATIC GIFT: THE ROLE OF A GERMAN EIGHTEENTH CENTURY HANUKKAH LAMP IN ISRAELI-AMERICAN RELATIONS

ARTis ON ◽  
2018 ◽  
pp. 67-77
Author(s):  
Shir Kochavi
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Prime Minister ◽  
Jewish People ◽  
The United States ◽  
Primary Sources ◽  
The Gift ◽  
History Of

A diplomatic gift in the form of a Hanukkah Lamp, given to President Harry Truman by the Prime Minister of Israel, David Ben-Gurion in 1951 was selected for this occasion by museum personnel from the Bezalel Museum in Jerusalem and the Jewish Museum in New York. Based on primary sources found in archives in Israel and in the United States, this case study investigates the process of objects exchange between two museums, orchestrated on the basis of an existing collegial relationship, and illustrates how the Hanukkah Lamp becomes more than itself and signifies both the history of the Jewish people and the mutual obligations between the two nations. Drawing on the theories of Marcel Mauss, Arjun Appadurai, and Igor Kopytoff on the notion of the gift, the article highlights the layers of meanings attributed to a gifted object.

Genius in France

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Jefferson
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Cultural History ◽  
Medical Literature ◽  
The Self ◽  
Full Account ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Realist Novels ◽  
History Of

This book spans three centuries to provide the first full account of the long and diverse history of genius in France. Exploring a wide range of examples from literature, philosophy, and history, as well as medicine, psychology, and journalism, the book examines the ways in which the idea of genius has been ceaselessly reflected on and redefined through its uses in these different contexts. The book traces its varying fortunes through the madness and imposture with which genius is often associated, and through the observations of those who determine its presence in others. The book considers the modern beginnings of genius in eighteenth-century aesthetics and the works of philosophes such as Diderot. It then investigates the nineteenth-century notion of national and collective genius, the self-appointed role of Romantic poets as misunderstood geniuses, the recurrent obsession with failed genius in the realist novels of writers like Balzac and Zola, the contested category of female genius, and the medical literature that viewed genius as a form of pathology. The book shows how twentieth-century views of genius narrowed through its association with IQ and child prodigies, and discusses the different ways major theorists—including Sartre, Barthes, Derrida, and Kristeva—have repudiated and subsequently revived the concept. The book brings a fresh approach to French intellectual and cultural history, and to the burgeoning field of genius studies.

The Role of the Anak Raja in Malay History: A Case Study from Eighteenth-Century Kedah

1976 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 162-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Watson Andaya
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Balance Of Power ◽  
The Other ◽  
The Political ◽  
Social Category ◽  
Ruling Class ◽  
Shifting Balance ◽  
History Of

The history of the Malay world in the eighteenth century is characterised by a constantly shifting balance of power, extreme flexibility in the political patterns, and an ongoing search for strong friends and advantageous allies. Malay and European sources relating to the period contain an often overwhelming amount of information concerning seemingly endless conspiracies, broken treaties, negotiations, and re-alignments. Yet from this maze of detail distinct themes emerge, one of which concerns the activities of various Malay anak raja (sons of kings and pirates) and anak baik (sons of nobles). Existing material allows for the compilation of a number of interesting biographies. We can, for instance, follow the career of Perak's Raja 'Alim, who might have successfully unseated his cousin and become ruler himself had it not been for Dutch intervention. The wandering life led by a Siak prince, Raja Ismail, and his unceasing efforts to rally support for a triumphant return to his homeland are similarly described in both Malay chronicles and the missives of Dutch governors. Such accounts make for absorbing reading and undoubtedly have their own intrinsic historical value. On the other hand, it is perhaps more fruitful to regard anak raja like Raja 'Alim and Raja Ismail not so much as individuals as representatives of a distinct social category within what has been called the “ruling class.” If viewed in this light, the activities of many anak raja mentioned in the records take on a new dimension, and comments concerning their role in Malay history assume a wider application.

Tom Jones

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henry Fielding
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Public Sphere ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Fourth Edition ◽  
Tom Jones ◽  
History Of

Fielding's comic masterpiece of 1749 was immediately attacked as `A motley history of bastardism, fornication, and adultery'. Indeed, his populous novel overflows with a marvellous assortment of prudes, whores, libertines, bumpkins, misanthropes, hypocrites, scoundrels, virgins, and all too fallible humanitarians. At the centre of one of the most ingenious plots in English fiction stands a hero whose actions were, in 1749, as shocking as they are funny today. Expelled from Mr Allworthy's country estate for his wild temper and sexual conquests, the good-hearted foundling Tom Jones loses his money, joins the army, and pursues his beloved across Britain to London, where he becomes a kept lover and confronts the possibility of incest. Tom Jones is rightly regarded as Fielding's greatest work, and one of the first and most influential of English novels. This carefully modernized edition is based on Fielding's emended fourth edition text and offers the most thorough notes, maps, and bibliography. The introduction uses the latest scholarship to examine how Tom Jones exemplifies the role of the novel in the emerging eighteenth-century public sphere.

Case Study: Rome's House of Memory and History: The Politics of Memory and Public Institutions

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Portelli
Keyword(s):  
Oral History ◽  
Cultural Policy ◽  
Public Institutions ◽  
Politics Of Memory ◽  
Political Events ◽  
History Of ◽  
Ambitious Program ◽  
The City

This article centers around the case study of Rome's House of Memory and History to understand the politics of memory and public institutions. This case study is about the organization and politics of public memory: the House of Memory and History, established by the city of Rome in 2006, in the framework of an ambitious program of cultural policy. It summarizes the history of the House's conception and founding, describes its activities and the role of oral history in them, and discusses some of the problems it faces. The idea of a House of Memory and History grew in this cultural and political context. This article traces several political events that led to the culmination of the politics of memory and its effect on public institutions. It says that the House of Memory and History can be considered a success. A discussion on a cultural future winds up this article.

scholarly journals Twin-To-Twin Transfusion Syndrome Donor and Recipient and Their Subsequent Cognitive Functioning in Late Childhood as Juvenile Athletes—A Case Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 2545
Author(s):  
Ilona Bidzan-Bluma
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Functioning ◽  
Motor Skills ◽  
Cognitive Functions ◽  
Late Childhood ◽  
Semantic Fluency ◽  
Motor Functioning ◽  
Gross Motor Skills ◽  
History Of

Objective: It is estimated that twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) occurs in 10–15% of monochorionic twin pregnancies. One of the fetuses takes on the role of donor and the other of recipient. The treatment administered involves serial amnioreduction and laser photocoagulation of the communicating blood vessels. After TTTS, children may have deficiencies in psychomotor functioning, in particular in cognitive functions, expressive language, and motor skills. Few scientific reports indicate that twins after TTTS do not demonstrate significant differences in tests which measure intellectual functioning. Methods: The cognitive functioning of twins in the late childhood period was compared using the following tools: an analysis of their medical history, an interview with their parents, and neuropsychological tests allowing the evaluation of their whole profile of cognitive functions. Case Study: Cognitive functioning in the late childhood period was analyzed in a pair of 11-year-old male twins (juvenile athletes), a donor and a recipient, who had developed TTTS syndrome in the prenatal period. Results: Comparison of the cognitive functioning profile of the donor and recipient revealed that children with a history of TTTS develop normally in terms of cognitive and motor functioning in late childhood. A comparative analysis of the donor and recipient was more favorable for the recipient, who had a higher level of general intelligence, visual–motor memory, and semantic fluency. Conclusions: The fact that both the donor and the recipient chose to pursue athletics suggests that gross motor skills are their strongest suit. Playing sports as a method of rehabilitation of cognitive function of children born prematurely after TTTS could contribute to the improvement of cognitive functioning.

Friends of Rose Canyon

2018 ◽  
Vol 95 (3) ◽  
pp. 2-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Wiese
Keyword(s):  
Open Space ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
First Century ◽  
Grassroots Politics ◽  
History Of ◽  
University City ◽  
Participant Observer ◽  
The Rose

Place-based activism has played a critical role in the history of urban and environmental politics in California. This article explores the continuing significance of environmental place making to grassroots politics through a case study of Friends of Rose Canyon, an environmental group in San Diego. Based in the fast-growing University City neighborhood, Friends of Rose Canyon waged a long, successful campaign between 2002 and 2018 to prevent construction of a bridge in the Rose Canyon Open Space Park in their community. Using historical and participant observer methodologies, this study reveals how twenty-first-century California urbanites claimed and created meaningful local places and mobilized effective politics around them. It illuminates the critical role of individual activists; suggests practical, replicable strategies for community mobilization; and demonstrates the significant impact of local activism at the urban and metropolitan scales.

Exploring the boundaries of rhetoric

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 793-806 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eduard Bonet
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
The Self ◽  
History Of Rhetoric ◽  
Content Type ◽  
History Of ◽  
Practical Development ◽  
The Subject

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine how the boundaries of rhetoric have excluded important theoretical and practical subjects and how these subjects are recuperated and extended since the twentieth century. Its purpose is to foster the awareness on emerging new trends of rhetoric. Design/methodology/approach – The methodology is based on an interpretation of the history of rhetoric and on the construction of a conceptual framework of the rhetoric of judgment, which is introduced in this paper. Findings – On the subject of the extension of rhetoric from public speeches to any kinds of persuasive situations, the paper emphasizes some stimulating relationships between the theory of communication and rhetoric. On the exclusion and recuperation of the subject of rhetorical arguments, it presents the changing relationships between rhetoric and dialectics and emphasizes the role of rhetoric in scientific research. On the introduction of rhetoric of judgment and meanings it creates a conceptual framework based on a re-examination of the concept of judgment and the phenomenological foundations of the interpretative methods of social sciences by Alfred Schutz, relating them to symbolic interactionism and theories of the self. Originality/value – The study on the changing boundaries of rhetoric and the introduction of the rhetoric of judgment offers a new view on the present theoretical and practical development of rhetoric, which opens new subjects of research and new fields of applications.

scholarly journals Storytelling and `Character': Victims, Villains and Heroes in a Case of Technological Change

Organization ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 425-442 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Whittle ◽  
Frank Mueller ◽  
Anita Mangan
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Technological Change ◽  
Moral Status ◽  
The Self ◽  
Routine Work ◽  
Social Positioning ◽  
Face Saving ◽  
Positive Light

In this article we examine the role of stories in the temporal development of images of the self at work. Drawing on an in-depth case study of technological change in a UK public-private partnership, we highlight the role of stories in the construction, maintenance and defence of actors' moral status and organizational reputation. The analysis focuses on the development of one `character' as he shifted from the role of innocent victim to implied villain to heroic survivor within the stories constructed during routine work conversations. We argue that stories are intimately linked to the forms of `moral accounting' that serve to deal with the challenges to `face' and social positioning that accompany `failed' organizational change. Stories, we suggest, are likely to be invoked when an interactional encounter threatens the participants' sense of social worth. Stories in which we present ourselves in a positive light—for instance as virtuous, honourable, courageous, caring, committed, competent— comprise a key component of face-saving strategies designed to maintain our social positioning: processes that are often intensified during periods of organizational change.

A Hero to Be Remembered:EbonyMagazine, Critical Memory and the “Real Meaning” of the King Holiday

2016 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 503-527
Author(s):  
E. JAMES WEST
Keyword(s):  
Ronald Reagan ◽  
Important Case ◽  
Living History ◽  
Black America ◽  
Senior Editor ◽  
History Of ◽  
Color Blind ◽  
Martin Luther King

This article explores the role ofEbonymagazine as a key staging ground for competing political and ideological debates over Martin Luther King Jr's legacy, and the struggle for a national holiday in his name. In doing so, it provides an important case study into the contestations between what Houston Baker has described as “black critical memory” and “black conservative nostalgia.” In response to attempts by Ronald Reagan and other politicians to reimagine King as an advocate for color-blind conservatism,Ebony’s senior editor, Lerone Bennett Jr., sought to situate King's legacy within a radical “living history” of black America. However, the magazine's broader coverage of the King holiday movement betrayed underlying tensions within its discussion of King's legacy, and fed into the magazine's role as an inadvertent frame for color-blind ideologies during the 1980s.

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