scholarly journals Running In (and Out) the Family Postcolonial Family Novels in Perspective

Il Tolomeo ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorenzo Mari
Keyword(s):  
Nation Building ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Literary Traditions ◽  
Junot Diaz ◽  
National Allegory ◽  
Family Narrative ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Us ◽  
Literary Cultures ◽  
Literary Market

The genre of the family novel can be identified in many postcolonial literary cultures. Initially, it was often read as an example of “national allegory” (Jameson 1986), thus considering family narrative in a tight relationship with postcolonial nation-building, but this theoretical framework has been later criticised from different perspectives, ranging from post-national to feminist critiques. Furthermore, the genre of the postcolonial family novel has been refashioned due to the emergence of diasporic narratives, leading to the diffusion of the “postcolonial fictions of adoption” (McLeod 2006). Nowadays, the high competition in the global literary market – namely, with family novels and sagas in the US literary market – drives this genre towards highly individualised, as well as hybridised, outcomes. While focusing, in particular, on The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz and Lara ([1997] 2009) by Bernardine Evaristo, this survey of family novels across different literary traditions aims to show the intrinsic porosity, as well as the strenuous resistance, of the genre.

California

2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberto Alvarez
Keyword(s):  
The State ◽  
Social Cartography ◽  
Family Network ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Us ◽  
Mexico Border ◽  
Police Surveillance ◽  
Us Mexico Border

I utilize my situated position as anthropologist, academician, and citizen to argue not only that we should “think” California, but also that we should “rethink” our state—both its condition and its social cartography. To be clear, I see all my research and endeavors—my research on the US/Mexico border; my time among the markets and entrepreneurs I have worked and lived with; my focus on those places in which I was raised: Lemon Grove, Logan Heights; the family network and my community ethnographic work—as personal. I am in this academic game and the telling of our story because it is personal. When Lemon Grove was segregated, it was about my family; when Logan Heights was split by the construction of Interstate 5 and threatened by police surveillance, it was about our community; when the border was sanctioned and militarized it again was about the communities of which I am a part. A rethinking California is rooted in the experience of living California, of knowing and feeling the condition and the struggles we are experiencing and the crises we have gone through. We need to rethink California, especially the current failure of the state. This too is ultimately personal, because it affects each and every one of us, especially those historically unrepresented folks who have endured over the decades.

scholarly journals Public Performance of Private Interviews: Reinserting the Self into the Family Narrative

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-52
Author(s):  
Alina Predescu
Keyword(s):  
The Self ◽  
Live Performance ◽  
Public Performance ◽  
Home Movies ◽  
Surgical Tool ◽  
Family Photographs ◽  
Family Narrative ◽  
The Family ◽  
Private And Public

Serban Oliver Tataru and Alfred Guzzetti are filmmakers that investigate on camera the role of memory in the construction of family history. They interview family members, gather old home movies and family photographs, and dig for public archival footage, in an effort to assume their position within a personal historical continuum, and to affirm their agency within their familial community. In their creative affirmation of generational subjectivity, they push against accepted familial narratives, and use the camera as a surgical tool that troubles lingering wounds beyond the surface of old images. In Anatomy of a Departure (2012), Romanian-German filmmaker Serban Oliver Tataru interviews his parents about their decision to emigrate from Ceausescu’s Romania while he was a teenager, scrutinizing on camera the conditions and consequence of a life-changing decision. While the dynamic of filming one’s own family is reminiscent of home movie tropes, and the tension built around sharing delicate memories reveals an intimacy usually intended to remain private, the film proposes a multilayered performance of the authorial self. As the film reveals a self-portrait set against the familial portrait (Marianne Hirsch), an inherent performative element acts as the necessary mediator between private and public, between ethic, aesthetic and politic. Negotiating between a restorative and a reflective nostalgia (Svetlana Boym), Tataru proposes a live performance of homecoming.

scholarly journals Limits and Possibilities of the United States Military in Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Stabilization

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alcir Santos Neto
Keyword(s):  
Nation Building ◽  
The United States ◽  
Humanitarian Assistance ◽  
Inspector General ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
Us Military ◽  
The Us ◽  
Us Government ◽  
Post War ◽  
Military Engagement

This study probes the limits and possibilities of US military efforts to facilitate the transition from warfighting to nation-building. Most comparative studies conceive the complexity of this transition along a spectrum from conflict to humanitarian assistance to post-conflict stabilization. While the last two stages have often been interpreted as a coordinated act of civil-military ‘nation-building’; the spectrum, in fact, represents an ideal type simplification. At one level, outcomes depend on the players involved, including: sovereign nations, national militaries, international and regional institutions, UN peacekeepers, private security contractors, and non-governmental humanitarian providers, among others. On the other hand, because the number, types, and causes of case outcomes are highly diverse and contingent upon many possible factors (among them for example: political, economic, military, organizational, humanitarian, cultural, and religious), institutions like the US military face serious difficulties both planning and coordinating post-conflict scenarios. Assuming this complex backdrop, the present study offers a qualitative analysis of two recent US government reports by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) and the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR) on US military engagement in Afghanistan and Iraq. In both cases, the US government sought to ‘nation-build’ by facilitating post-war stabilization and humanitarian assistance, detailing its genuine efforts to record both processes. While results indicate some limited successes in both cases, they also indicate a familiar pattern of uneven performance failures consistent with other cases internationally. The analysis concludes with recommendations for further research that may better control the contingencies of post-conflict management.

scholarly journals Eligibility Criteria for the Upper Middle Class

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Meilutė Taljūnaitė
Keyword(s):  
Middle Class ◽  
Social Stratification ◽  
Social Role ◽  
Class Model ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
Self Employment ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Us ◽  
Upper Middle Class

Each country has its own criteria for the upper middle class. On the other hand, it is clear that even the general principles that define the middle class in different countries differ markedly between them. The US and British criteria are often compared. The role of the family as an element of social stratification is important in the British upper middle class model. The article advocates the influence of family stratification on the formation of the upper (and not only) middle class in Lithuania. Not only does the upper middle class have self-employment, its income is above average and it has higher education, it also influences, identifies trends and fundamentally shapes public opinion (an aspect of its ‘social role’). The broad upper middle class is not so much a guarantor of the welfare state but of social stability in the country.

scholarly journals Quid estClea helena?Evidence for a previously unrecognized radiation of assassin snails (Gastropoda: Buccinoidea: Nassariidae)

PeerJ ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. e3638 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ellen E. Strong ◽  
Lee Ann Galindo ◽  
Yuri I. Kantor
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Type Species ◽  
Species Complex ◽  
Aquarium Trade ◽  
Systematic Revision ◽  
Mitochondrial Coi ◽  
Phylogenetic Placement ◽  
Se Asia ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Us

The genusCleafrom SE Asia is from one of only two unrelated families among the megadiverse predatory marine Neogastropoda to have successfully conquered continental waters. While little is known about their anatomy, life history and ecology, interest has grown exponentially in recent years owing to their increasing popularity as aquarium pets. However, the systematic affinities of the genus and the validity of the included species have not been robustly explored. Differences in shell, operculum and radula characters support separation ofCleaas presently defined into two distinct genera:Clea, for the type speciesClea nigricansand its allies, andAnentomeforClea helenaand allies. A five-gene mitochondrial (COI, 16S, 12S) and nuclear (H3, 28S) gene dataset confirms the placement ofAnentomeas a somewhat isolated offshoot of the family Nassariidae and sister to the estuarineNassodonta. Anatomical data corroborate this grouping and, in conjunction with their phylogenetic placement, support their recognition as a new subfamily, the Anentominae. The assassin snailAnentome helena, a popular import through the aquarium trade so named for their voracious appetite for other snails, is found to comprise a complex of at least four species. None of these likely represents trueAnentome helenadescribed from Java, including a specimen purchased through the aquarium trade under this name in the US and one that was recently found introduced in Singapore, both of which were supported as conspecific with a species from Thailand. The introduction ofAnentome“helena” through the aquarium trade constitutes a significant threat to native aquatic snail faunas which are often already highly imperiled. Comprehensive systematic revision of this previously unrecognized species complex is urgently needed to facilitate communication and manage this emerging threat.

Willing and Able? The Screening and Adoption of Habitual Family Venture Opportunities

2021 ◽  
pp. 089448652110594
Author(s):  
James M. Vardaman ◽  
Erik T. Markin ◽  
Christopher R. Penney ◽  
Laura E. Marler ◽  
D’Lisa N. Mckee
Keyword(s):  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Image Theory ◽  
New Venture ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Socioemotional Wealth ◽  
The Family ◽  
Family Decision

This article develops a two-part theoretical framework synthesizing the socioemotional wealth (SEW) perspective with image theory to explain the ways in which family decision makers screen and potentially adopt habitual new venture opportunities. The model theorizes that opportunities are initially screened according to their ability to preserve SEW and fit with the family’s value images and subsequently explains how SEW willingness interacts with the family entrepreneur’s trajectory and strategic images to predict whether the venture will be pursued as a serial or portfolio opportunity. Theoretical implications and directions for future research are also discussed.

Conclusion

2019 ◽  
pp. 228-240
Author(s):  
Jean H. Baker
Keyword(s):  
Financial Support ◽  
Early Republic ◽  
Rational Model ◽  
Communication Education ◽  
Civic Leaders ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Us ◽  
Private Homes ◽  
Benjamin Latrobe ◽  
Engineering Projects

The conclusion covers the life of Latrobe’s widow and children after his death. On the advice of Latrobe’s friend Robert Harper the family settled in Baltimore, where Harper could serve as a surrogate father, giving advice and financial support. In this city, Latrobe’s sons John and Ben became civic leaders, while unmarried Julie stayed at home with her mother. Both sons worked in different capacities with the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad; both contributed to the community. The chapter ends with a brief summary of Latrobe’s contributions to the early republic. Benjamin Latrobe left professional legacies, principally his architecture such as the US Capitol, the Bank of Pennsylvania, the Baltimore Basilica, and the Merchants Exchange. His design for nearly seventy private homes established a more rational model for American domestic arrangements. He had adapted the classical style known in Europe to the climate, habits, and political ideals of his new homeland. Latrobe’s buildings and his engineering projects affected every aspect of life in the early republic—its worship, governance, communication, education, and domesticity.

The Triple-Point Planet

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ben McFarland
Keyword(s):  
Middle English ◽  
Family Resemblance ◽  
The Moon ◽  
The Road ◽  
Naked Eye ◽  
Third Phase ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Us ◽  
Let's Move ◽  
The Difference

Let’s move to a vantage point a little quieter: the surface of the moon. It is so still that Neil Armstrong’s footprints remain undisturbed. The only reason the US flag there appears to “fly” is that a wire holds it up. The moon and Mercury stayed still as Mars, Venus, and Earth moved on down the road of geological development. The moon is a “steady” environment, a word whose Middle English roots are appropriately tangled with the word for “sterile.” Nothing moves on the moon, but in its sky Mars, Venus, and Earth move in their orbits, just as they moved on in complexity 4 billion years ago. Out of the whole solar system, Mars and Venus are the most like Earth in size, position, and composition. Mars is smaller, but Venus could be Earth’s twin in size. If Earth and Venus were separated at birth, then something happened to obscure the family resemblance: liquid water brought life. To chemists, liquid is the third phase of matter, between solid and gas, and its presence made all the difference. Mars gleams a bright blood red even to the naked eye, while Venus is choked with thick yellow bands of clouds. Mars is cold enough to have carbon dioxide snow, while Venus is hot enough to melt tin and boil water. Earth’s blue oceans and green continents provide a bright, primary contrast. These three siblings have drastically different fortunes. At first, they looked the same, colored with black mafic basalt and glowing red magma. The original planets were all so hot that their atmospheres were driven off into space. The oceans and the air came from within. Steam condensed into oceans on each planet’s cool basalt surface. Oceans changed the planet. Water is a transformative chemical, small yet highly charged, seeping into the smallest cracks, dissolving what it can and carrying those things long distances. Venus, Earth, and Mars do not look like the moon because they have been washed in water. Mars is dry now, but the Curiosity rover left no doubt that the red planet was first blue with water.

scholarly journals Indigenous Child Welfare in Canada

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-28
Author(s):  
Christian Zukowski
Keyword(s):  
Child Welfare ◽  
Social Reproduction ◽  
Nation Building ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Perceived Threat ◽  
Canadian Identity ◽  
Indigenous Child

This paper is primarily a case study of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal case Caring Society v Canada and seeks to accomplish three things. First, create a theoretical foundation built upon historic instances of discriminatory/assimilationist policies based upon theoretical understandings of social reproduction, biopolitics, and neoliberalism. Second, to situate Caring Society within said theoretical framework for the purpose of determining the context in which it occurs and the role of the case's context in producing discriminatory/assimilationist policy. Third is the application of both the theoretical framework as well as Caring Society to determine how the Canadian state engages in nation building through processes of othering and framing Indigenous peoples as a foreign threat to the security of the Canadian identity. In doing so, I not only argue that Indigenous child welfare is the perpetuation of residential schools, but that it systematically breaks down Indigenous children and Indigenous communities in response to their perceived threat through processes of othering and nation-building.

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