Appropriating the abject: Witchcraft in Dario Argento and Daria Nicolodi’s Suspiria (1977) and David Kajganich and Luca Guadagnino’s 2018 remake

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-59
Author(s):  
Luke Lewin Davies
Keyword(s):  
Identity Formation ◽  
Horror Film ◽  
Religious Ritual ◽  
The Witch ◽  
Dario Argento

This article explores representations of witchcraft in relation to Julia Kristeva’s 1980 essay Powers of Horror. It begins by investigating the genesis of Dario Argento and Daria Nicolodi’s depiction of witchcraft in their 1977 horror film Suspiria, drawing on historical studies of witchcraft by Ronald Hutton and Marion Gibson. In particular, it examines the characterization of the witches’ coven as an all-female, all-powerful death cult ‐ before proposing that Kristeva’s essay on the abject can be seen to explain this specific conceptualization, in line with Barbara Creed’s analysis of how horror film has inherited the role of ‘purifying’ the abject from religious ritual. The second half of this article then focuses on David Kajganich and Luca Guadagnino’s 2018 remake of Suspiria, reflecting on how the later film can be seen to attempt to redeem the association between witchcraft and abjectness. In doing so, this article reflects on how the attempt to rescue the witch while maintaining an association with the abject is contiguous with other contemporary depictions of witchcraft. It is proposed that such efforts amount to a Foucauldian attempt at a ‘reverse discourse’ celebrating the subversive potential of an initially derogatory identity formation ‐ but that Kristeva’s writing points to the limitations of appropriating the abject in this way.

Digital x-ray mapping of nanometer-size supported bimetallic catalysts

1988 ◽  
Vol 46 ◽  
pp. 530-531
Author(s):  
L. T. Germinario
Keyword(s):  
Background Radiation ◽  
Metal Cluster ◽  
Single Element ◽  
Beam Diameter ◽  
X Rays ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Major Interest ◽  
Induced Changes

Understanding the role of metal cluster composition in determining catalytic selectivity and activity is of major interest in heterogeneous catalysis. The electron microscope is well established as a powerful tool for ultrastructural and compositional characterization of support and catalyst. Because the spatial resolution of x-ray microanalysis is defined by the smallest beam diameter into which the required number of electrons can be focused, the dedicated STEM with FEG is the instrument of choice. The main sources of errors in energy dispersive x-ray analysis (EDS) are: (1) beam-induced changes in specimen composition, (2) specimen drift, (3) instrumental factors which produce background radiation, and (4) basic statistical limitations which result in the detection of a finite number of x-ray photons. Digital beam techniques have been described for supported single-element metal clusters with spatial resolutions of about 10 nm. However, the detection of spurious characteristic x-rays away from catalyst particles produced images requiring several image processing steps.

Speculative Realism and Science Fiction

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Willems
Keyword(s):  
Science Fiction ◽  
Identity Formation ◽  
Cormac Mccarthy ◽  
Doris Lessing ◽  
Speculative Realism ◽  
Neil Gaiman ◽  
The World ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Quentin Meillassoux

A human-centred approach to the environment is leading to ecological collapse. One of the ways that speculative realism challenges anthropomorphism is by taking non-human things to be as valid objects of investivation as humans, allowing a more responsible and truthful view of the world to take place. Brian Willems uses a range of science fiction literature that questions anthropomorphism both to develop and challenge this philosophical position. He looks at how nonsense and sense exist together in science fiction, the way in which language is not a guarantee of personhood, the role of vision in relation to identity formation, the difference between metamorphosis and modulation, representations of non-human deaths and the function of plasticity within the Anthropocene. Willems considers the works of Cormac McCarthy, Paolo Bacigalupi, Neil Gaiman, China Miéville, Doris Lessing and Kim Stanley Robinson are considered alongside some of the main figures of speculative materialism including Graham Harman, Quentin Meillassoux and Jane Bennett.

Consideraciones en torno a la reducción solipsista

1970 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalia Carolina Petrillo

ResumenEn el presente trabajo se intentará mostrar que la fenomenología no conduce a una postura solipsista. Para ello, se caracterizará en qué consiste el solipsismo. Luego, se intentará refutar a lo que se ha de llamar “solipsismo metafísico” y “solipsismo gnoseológico”, con el objetivo principal de poner de manifiesto el fundamento de motivación para la salida de la ficción solipsista.Palabras claves:Phenomenology – solipsim – empatía - HusserlAbstractWith the aim of showing that phenomenology does not lead in solipsism, I will first attempt a characterization of it. Then, I will attempt a refutation of the so-called “metaphysical” and “epistemological” solipsisms. Finally, the nature and role of Husserl´s solipsistic fiction is examined, and the grounds that motivate the overcoming of this standpoint are disclosed.key wordsFenomenología – solipsismo - empathy – Husserl

ART STUDIOS – A WAY TO DEVELOPE CHILDREN’S IMAGINATION

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 144-148
Author(s):  
Liuba Zlatkova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Fairy Tale ◽  
Psychological Effects ◽  
Complete Product ◽  
The Arts ◽  
The Creation ◽  
Role Of Parents

The report describes the steps for creating a musical tale by children in the art studios of „Art Workshop“, Shumen. These studios are led by students volunteers related to the arts from pedagogical department of Shumen University, and are realized in time for optional activities in the school where the child studies. The stages of creating a complete product with the help of different arts are traced – from the birth of the idea; the creation of a fairy tale plot by the children; the characterization of the fairy-tale characters; dressing them in movement, song and speech; creating sets and costumes and creating a finished product to present on stage. The role of parents as a link and a necessary helper for children and leaders is also considered, as well as the positive psychological effects that this cooperation creates.

Witches and Forgers

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Mandelbrote
Keyword(s):  
Seventeenth Century ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
Republic Of Letters ◽  
The Bible ◽  
God's Word ◽  
1 Samuel ◽  
The Witch

Scepticism and loyalty represent the poles of van Dale’s career. Two contexts have been mentioned as relevant here: the seventeenth-century attack on magic and superstition, and the circles of friendship that created a contemporary Republic of Letters. This chapter evaluates both contexts, as well as others that may throw light on his relatively neglected attitude to the text of the Bible. It brings into focus two important intellectual episodes: his treatment of the account of the Witch of Endor (1 Samuel 28:3–25), and his engagement with Hellenistic sources relating to the text of the Old Testament, especially to the miraculous composition of the Septuagint. These issues brought van Dale to ask questions about God’s Word. The chapter explores the limits of his scepticism, the extent of his scholarship, and the role of friendship and isolation in his development. Finally, it draws attention to his place in contemporary Mennonite debates.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document