Apodictic Irony and the Production of Well-Structured Uncertainty: Tosafot Gornish and the Talmud as the Political after Kant

Other Others ◽  
2018 ◽  
pp. 105-138
Author(s):  
Sergey Dolgopolski
Keyword(s):  
Early Modern ◽  
Thirteenth Century ◽  
Second Step ◽  
The Political ◽  
Ancient Text ◽  
Early Modernity ◽  
Structured Uncertainty ◽  
Multistep Process ◽  
Aristotelian Tradition

This chapter addresses an early modern instantiation of the effacement of the interpersonal political in the Talmud by conceptions of universal (inter)subjectivity and logical-apodictic reasoning. This process first tacitly erases the interpersonal political in the late ancient Talmud by reducing it to dialectical irony. In a second step, the erasure advances from irony, a Platonic concept, to logical-apodictic reading of it in the Aristotelian tradition. Only when viewed through a post-Kantian lens could it become clear that this was not merely a Platonic interpretation of the late ancient Talmud in early modernity, followed by an Aristotelian interpretation, but rather a complex and multistep process of the effacement of the interpersonal at the advent of intersubjective. The chapter arrives to that result through a case-study of staging and analyzing of a fourteenth century logical commentary on the thirteenth century rhetorical interpretation of a discussion in a late ancient text in the Talmud.

Mathematical Metaphors Gone Wild

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roi Wagner
Keyword(s):  
Early Modern ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Cognitive Theory ◽  
Early Modernity ◽  
First Case ◽  
Mathematical Life ◽  
George Lakoff

This chapter examines two case studies that illustrate the limitations of the cognitive theory of mathematical metaphor in accounting for the formation of actual historical mathematical life worlds. The first case study deals with four medieval and early modern examples of relating algebra to geometry. These examples show that when two mathematical domains are linked, what passes between them cannot be reduced to “inferences,” as assumed by the theory of mathematical metaphor. The second case study reviews notions of infinity since early modernity and demonstrates that these notions are far too variegated and complex to be subsumed under a single metaphor—namely, George Lakoff and Rafael Núñez's basic metaphor of infinity, which tries to read all mathematical infinities as metaphorically projecting final destinations on indefinite sequences.

Edward II as Political Exemplum

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kit Heyam
Keyword(s):  
Seventeenth Century ◽  
Early Modern ◽  
Spectrum Analysis ◽  
Political Discourse ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Debate ◽  
Edward Ii ◽  
Political Spectrum

This chapter discusses the continuing political relevance of Edward II’s narrative during the late sixteenth and seventeenth century in England and France. As the first English King to have been deposed, and a paradigmatic example of the dangers of overmighty favourites, Edward was a compelling precedent for writers across the political spectrum. Analysis of the ways in which writers deployed his example provides a valuable case study for investigating how historical examples functioned in early modern political discourse, and reveals the hermeneutic agency of political writers in the process of ‘using’ history, when examples such as Edward’s deposition could be interpreted as supporting either side of a political debate.

Princes’ Justifications of War in Early Modern Europe: The Constitution of an International Community by Communication

2021 ◽  
pp. 65-80
Author(s):  
Anuschka Tischer
Keyword(s):  
Early Modern ◽  
International Law ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
International Order ◽  
The Political ◽  
Early Modern Europe ◽  
Power Politics ◽  
Early Modernity ◽  
The Public ◽  
Modern Europe

Anuschka Tischer starts out with the historical analyses of the book by elaborating the dialectic of war discourses and international order in early modernity: according to Tischer, nearly every prince in early modern Europe came up with a ‘just reason’ when going to war. Whereas the theory of international law represented academic opinions, the political justifications offered the official view which fed into the public discourse. By referring to a general international law in their war declarations (and counter-declarations), the belligerent parties shaped the pattern of today’s modern international law. However, the early modern justifications represented the political and social values of pre-revolutionary Europe. While international law was regarded as universal, the European Christian powers distinguished between wars in and outside of Europe. The chapter reveals the contradictions inherent in this distinction by analysing how princes in early modern Europe justified their wars, which norms and orders were accepted, and how far international law was the result of elaborate discussions and power politics. Tischer’s findings are picked up by Hendrik Simon in his contribution on the nineteenth-century discourse of war and international order.

De advocaat in de vroegmoderne stedelijke justitie

Pro Memorie ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 206-236
Author(s):  
Tim van Polanen
Keyword(s):  
Early Modern ◽  
The Political ◽  
Court Case ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Modern City ◽  
The Public ◽  
Virtuous Character ◽  
General Tone ◽  
The Ideal

Abstract Hermanus Noordkerk was a famous barrister in eighteenth-century Amsterdam. After his death multiple necrologies were written in which the general tone was laudatory. This article investigates the reliability of the necrologies by answering the question why Noordkerk became such a famous barrister. What qualities did he have that made him so memorable? It becomes clear that together with his virtuous character Noordkerk was considered to be an inventive lawyer as well as an outstanding pleader and that, by combining these three characteristics, he embodied for contemporaries the ideal barrister. But besides, Noordkerk had another quality: he had the ability to exploit the public interest of a court case for the benefit of his client. Due to the political dynamics within an early modern city this might have been important for Noordkerk’s fame. The case study of Noordkerk thus sheds light on the qualities that a barrister should have in an early modern city.

ANTI-EPISCOPACY AND GRAPHIC SATIRE IN ENGLAND, 1640–1645

2004 ◽  
Vol 47 (4) ◽  
pp. 809-848 ◽  
Author(s):  
HELEN PIERCE
Keyword(s):  
Early Modern ◽  
Visual Media ◽  
Early Modern England ◽  
The Political ◽  
Graphic Arts ◽  
Graphic Satire ◽  
Low Culture ◽  
Diverse Audience

This article examines the role of graphic satire as a tool of agitation and criticism during the early 1640s, taking as its case study the treatment of the archbishop of Canterbury and his episcopal associates at the hands of engravers, etchers, and pamphlet illustrators. Previous research into the political ephemera of early modern England has been inclined to sideline its pictorial aspects in favour of predominantly textual material, employing engravings and woodcuts in a merely illustrative capacity. Similarly, studies into the contemporary relationship between art, politics, and power have marginalized certain forms of visual media, in particular the engravings and woodcuts which commonly constitute graphic satire, focusing instead on elite displays of authority and promoting the concept of a distinct dichotomy between ‘high’ and ‘low’ culture and their consumers. It is argued here that the pictorial, and in particular graphic, arts formed an integral part of a wider culture of propaganda and critique during this period, incorporating drama, satire, reportage, and verse, manipulating and appropriating ideas and imagery familiar to a diverse audience. It is further proposed that such a culture was both in its own time and at present only fully understood and appreciated when consumed and considered in these interdisciplinary terms.

The Dutch factory at Vengurla

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 724-732
Author(s):  
Sachin Pendse
Keyword(s):  
Early Modern ◽  
Arabian Sea ◽  
Local Environment ◽  
Research Note ◽  
The Political ◽  
Trading Patterns ◽  
Direct Administration ◽  
Early Modern Era ◽  
Modern Era

The arrival of European maritime powers altered the trading patterns and shipping practices of the Arabian Sea region. One development was the establishment by Europeans of commercial bases known as factories. These factories were often built according to European styles, which added a new and very different spectacle to the local environment. This research note focuses on a small factory established by the Dutch at Vengurla on the Konkan Coast, which forms part of the western seaboard of India. The factory was established in 1637 and was under direct administration of Batavia (Jakarta). It initially had a strategic function in the context of the rivalry between the Dutch and the Portuguese based at Goa. Eventually, as the political scenario changed, the factory began to trade in local products. It was finally abandoned in 1682, and although it now lies in ruins it offers an insightful case study of how and why factories operated in the European maritime empires of the early modern era.

Kämpfe um Bergbau und die Möglichkeiten demokratischer Transformation

2017 ◽  
Vol 47 (189) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristina Dietz
Keyword(s):  
Direct Democracy ◽  
Social Power ◽  
Political Agenda ◽  
The Political ◽  
Liberal Democratic ◽  
Political Effects ◽  
Mining Project ◽  
National Governments ◽  
The Relationship

The article explores the political effects of popular consultations as a means of direct democracy in struggles over mining. Building on concepts from participatory and materialist democracy theory, it shows the transformative potentials of processes of direct democracy towards democratization and emancipation under, and beyond, capitalist and liberal democratic conditions. Empirically the analysis is based on a case study on the protests against the La Colosa gold mining project in Colombia. The analysis reveals that although processes of direct democracy in conflicts over mining cannot transform existing class inequalities and social power relations fundamentally, they can nevertheless alter elements thereof. These are for example the relationship between local and national governments, changes of the political agenda of mining and the opening of new spaces for political participation, where previously there were none. It is here where it’s emancipatory potential can be found.

2018 Fiji Election Results: Patterns of Voting by Provinces, Rural-Urban Localities, and by Candidates

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Haruo Nakagawa
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Interesting Case ◽  
The Political ◽  
Quantitative Analyses ◽  
Election Results

Akin to the previous, 2014 event, with no data on voter ethnicity, no exit polls, and few post-election analyses, the 2018 Fiji election results remain something of a mystery despite the fact that there had been a significant swing in voting in favour of Opposition political parties. There have been several studies about the election results, but most of them have been done without much quantitative analyses. This study examines voting patterns of Fiji’s 2018 election by provinces, and rural-urban localities, as well as by candidates, and also compares the 2018 and 2014 elections by spending a substantial time classifying officially released data by polling stations and individual candidates. Some of the data are then further aggregated according to the political parties to which those candidates belonged. The current electoral system in Fiji is a version of a proportional system, but its use is rare and this study will provide an interesting case study of the Open List Proportional System. At the end of the analyses, this study considers possible reasons for the swing in favour of the Opposition.

“I'd make thee eat the mischief thou hast vented”: Discourse of Law in Ben Jonson's Catiline His Conspiracy

2017 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-45
Author(s):  
Akihiko Shimizu
Keyword(s):  
Early Modern ◽  
Political Discourse ◽  
Legal Discourse ◽  
The State ◽  
The Political ◽  
State Of Emergency ◽  
Gunpowder Plot ◽  
Effective Use ◽  
Legal Procedures ◽  
The Way

This essay explores the discourse of law that constitutes the controversial apprehension of Cicero's issuing of the ultimate decree of the Senate (senatus consultum ultimum) in Catiline. The play juxtaposes the struggle of Cicero, whose moral character and legitimacy are at stake in regards to the extra-legal uses of espionage, with the supposedly mischievous Catilinarians who appear to observe legal procedures more carefully throughout their plot. To mitigate this ambivalence, the play defends Cicero's actions by depicting the way in which Cicero establishes the rhetoric of public counsel to convince the citizens of his legitimacy in his unprecedented dealing with Catiline. To understand the contemporaneousness of Catiline, I will explore the way the play integrates the early modern discourses of counsel and the legal maxim of ‘better to suffer an inconvenience than mischief,’ suggesting Jonson's subtle sensibility towards King James's legal reformation which aimed to establish and deploy monarchical authority in the state of emergency (such as the Gunpowder Plot of 1605). The play's climactic trial scene highlights the display of the collected evidence, such as hand-written letters and the testimonies obtained through Cicero's spies, the Allbroges, as proof of Catiline's mischievous character. I argue that the tactical negotiating skills of the virtuous and vicious characters rely heavily on the effective use of rhetoric exemplified by both the political discourse of classical Rome and the legal discourse of Tudor and Jacobean England.

Islamic and Jewish Religious Feminists Tackle Islamic and Jewish Oral Law: Maintenance and Rebellion of Wives

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-63
Author(s):  
Ruth Roded
Keyword(s):  
State Policy ◽  
Political System ◽  
Daily Life ◽  
The State ◽  
The Political ◽  
Jewish Law ◽  
Modern Times ◽  
Parallel Case ◽  
First Time

Beginning in the early 1970s, Jewish and Muslim feminists, tackled “oral law”—Mishna and Talmud, in Judaism, and the parallel Hadith and Fiqh in Islam, and several analogous methodologies were devised. A parallel case study of maintenance and rebellion of wives —mezonoteha, moredet al ba?ala; nafaqa al-mar?a and nush?z—in classical Jewish and Islamic oral law demonstrates similarities in content and discourse. Differences between the two, however, were found in the application of oral law to daily life, as reflected in “responsa”—piskei halacha and fatwas. In modern times, as the state became more involved in regulating maintenance and disobedience, and Jewish law was backed for the first time in history by a state, state policy and implementation were influenced by the political system and socioeconomic circumstances of the country. Despite their similar origin in oral law, maintenance and rebellion have divergent relevance to modern Jews and Muslims.

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