Heterotopic Proliferation in E. S. Thomson’s Jem Flockhart Series

This article explores the convergence, inversion, and collapse of heterotopic spaces in E. S. Thomson’s neo-Victorian Jem Flockhart series about a cross-dressing female apothecary in mid-nineteenth-century London. The eponymous first-person narrator becomes embroiled in the detection of horrific murder cases, with the action traversing a wide range of Michel Foucault’s exemplary Other spaces, including hospitals, graveyards, brothels, prisons, asylums, and colonies, with the series substituting the garden for Foucault’s ship as the paradigmatic heterotopia. These myriad juxtaposed sites, which facilitate divergence from societal norms while seemingly sequestering forms of alterity and resistance, repeatedly merge into one another in Thomson’s novels, destabilising distinct kinds of heterotopias and heterotopic functions. Jem’s doubled queerness as a cross-dressing lesbian beloved by their Watsonean side-kick, the junior architect William Quartermain, complicates the protagonist’s role in helping readers negotiate the re-imagined Victorian metropolis and its unequal power structures. Simultaneously defending/reaffirming and contesting/subverting the status quo, Jem’s body itself becomes a microcosmic heterotopia, problematising the elision of agency in Foucault’s conceptualisation of the term. The proliferation of heterotopias in Thomson’s series suggests that neo-Victorian fiction reconfigures the nineteenth century into a vast network of confining, contested, and liberating Other spaces.

“The Internal Police Officer Has Not Retired but Has Slowed Down”: Israeli Women Reframe Their Aging Experiences in the Second Half of Life

Compared with gains, losses have received a substantial amount of research and public attention. The present study aims to shed light on the positive gains associated with older age from the perspective of older women. Five focus groups with 19 Israeli women over the age of 54 were conducted. Trailers of three different films were used to stimulate discussion about old age and aging and allow for reflections on societal norms in light of personal experiences. Focus group interviews were analyzed thematically. Respondents identified four contexts, characterized by reframing their experiences against societal norms. These included gender stereotypes, physical appearance, interpersonal relations, and employment. This study represents an opening to a different discourse around old age, which is characterized by gains and possibilities brought about by changes in reframing one’s experiences, while distancing oneself and exerting free will vis à vis social norms.

Drawgasms: Playing with expectations and experiences of pleasure through multimodal accounts

Drawing on a study consisting of 29 multimodal accounts of orgasms, we make visible processes, emotions, and notions of playfulness that highlight the critical role of orgasms in transcending the fleeting distinction between reality and play. As sexual pleasure does not necessarily result from experiencing an orgasm, our data also reveals how playful strategies are enacted in order to mitigate ambiguity and societal norms. Instead of seeing the orgasm as a physiological or psychological change in an individual or as an epitome of “good” sex, the multimodal accounts employed in the study reveal attitudes, assumptions, and expectations related to playful pleasure.

Enhancing Autonomy, Authenticity And Selecting The Child With The Best Moral Life

In the human enhancement literature, there is a recurrent fear that biomedical technologies will negatively impact the autonomy and authenticity of moral agents, even when the agents would end up having better capacities and an improved life with the aid of these technologies. I will explore several ways in which biomedical enhancement may improve the autonomy of moral agents and try to show that biomedical methods are, all things considered, beneficial to our autonomy and authenticity. I will argue that there are instances when it’s desirable to limit the autonomy of moral agents and that strict regulations are to be put in place if a great number of people will have easy access to powerful, genetic-altering technologies which can impact the life of future children. I will advocate for using assisted reproductive technologies in order to select the child with the best chance of the best moral life and in doing so I will analyse several procreative principles which have been proposed by different scholars in the genetic enhancement debate and try to determine which one would be best to adhere to. Usually, people place high value on the concept of autonomy and there are many cases in which they end up overestimating autonomy in relation to other moral values. While autonomy is important, it’s also important to know how to limit it when reasonable societal norms require it. Sometimes autonomy is defined in strong connection with the concept of authenticity, in the sense that it’s not sufficient for our choices to be autonomous if they are not also authentic. I will try to defend the idea that authenticity can be enhanced as well with the aid of enhancement technologies which can actually prove beneficial in our quest to improve our own self.

Mitos Gajah : Relasi Gajah – Manusia di Balai Raja Bengkalis

This study discussed the myths of elephants in the community of Balai Raja Village, Pinggir District, Bengkalis Regency. The elephant myths are the patterns of human-elephant relationships. Before the 1980s, the relationship between elephants and humans was very harmonious. After 1980, the forestry and oil palm industries caused between elephants and humans, which has been occurring until now. This study is categorized into qualitative research with an ethnographic design. Researchers stayed in the field for 2 months to explore information in depth through observation and in-depth interviews. The data was analyzed qualitatively and then written in this report. This study has found out that the conflict between elephants and humans is determined by human attitudes and behavior. The myth of the elephant is a symbol of efforts to conserve natural resources and a tool for compliance with societal norms and values. Elephants have protective properties and are very empathetic to babies. This study proposes that elephant mitigation can use a mythical approach by combining elephants’ and human’s habitation. This study contributes to the science of Anthropology, especially about the conservation of animals and nature. This study proposes that elephants should not be called pests, but a chain of human mutualism, where the elephants and humans live in harmony as a unified ecosystem.

Pathogens Are Linked to Human Moral Systems Across Time and Space

Infectious diseases have been an impending threat to the survival of individuals and groups throughout our evolutionary history. As a result, humans have developed psychological pathogen-avoidance mechanisms and groups have developed societal norms that respond to the presence of disease-causing microorganisms in the environment. In this work, we demonstrate that morality plays a central role in the cultural and psychological architectures that help humans avoid pathogens. We present a collection of studies which together provide an integrated understanding of the socio-ecological and psychological impacts of pathogens on human morality. Specifically, in Studies 1 (2,834 U.S. counties) and 2 (67 nations), we show that regional variation in pathogen prevalence is consistently related to aggregate moral Purity. In Study 3, we use computational linguistic methods to show that pathogen-related words co-occur with Purity words across multiple languages. In Studies 4 (n = 513) and 5 (n = 334), we used surveys and social psychological experimentation to show that pathogen-avoidance attitudes are correlated with Purity. Finally, in Study 6, we found that historical prevalence of pathogens is linked to Care, Loyalty, and Purity. We argue that particular adaptive moral systems are developed and maintained in response to the threat of pathogen occurrence in the environment. We draw on multiple methods to establish connections between pathogens and moral codes in multiple languages, experimentally induced situations, individual differences, U.S. counties, 67 countries, and historical periods over the last century.

Tangata Ngākau: Māori Boys and Masculinity in the Writing of Bruce Stewart, Witi Ihimaera, and Whiti Hereaka

<p>This thesis surveys a selection of writing by Bruce Stewart, Witi Ihimaera, and Whiti Hereaka, and considers how these texts represent varying modes of masculinity available to and expressed by Māori boys and young men. Whilst the three authors present starkly different characters, all of these characters challenge pre-existing claims about Māori men and masculinity propagated by earlier, predominantly Pākehā writers. The first chapter focuses on the collection Tama and Other Stories by Bruce Stewart (1989). Many of the characters in this collection feel pressured to be tough and stoic, but I argue that such pressures are shown to come largely from Pākehā father figures. The modes of masculinity that the boys either portray or wish to portray are much less focused on stoicism, aggression, and physicality than what they see from their fathers. I suggest that Stewart sees instruction in tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori as useful if not essential for young Māori men to escape the pressure of oppressive colonial narratives about Māori masculinity. The second chapter discusses Witi Ihimaera’s novel Bulibasha (1994). In contrast to Stewart’s stories, Bulibasha presents a young boy largely isolated from Pākehā society, but I argue that this does not mean that he is free from the influence of Pākehā masculinity. The novel presents many different expressions of masculinity but only those that are influenced by colonial narratives and which reinforce Pākehā hegemony seem to prosper. Such colonial narratives and influences are arguably less visible than they are in Tama and Other Stories, but this does not make them any less insidious nor damaging to the men in Bulibasha. I suggest that spaces where Pākehā masculinity is less dominant, men are shown to be less stoic, domineering, and oppressive. Likewise, characters who appear to be more immersed in te ao Māori also seem to promote a greater sense of balance and equity between men and women. The final chapter looks at the novel Bugs by Whiti Hereaka (2013). The influence of Pākehā societal norms and narratives on Māori masculinity is shown to be more acute in the setting of this text than in the mid-20th century setting of Tama and Other Stories and Bulibasha. Characters in Stewart’s writing are able to construct their own decolonised spaces where Māori masculinity can be expressed, whilst Ihimaera’s characters struggle to avoid colonial influences even in a predominantly Māori community. By contrast, Hereaka shows characters who feel the full effect of urbanisation and the inherent marginalisation of te ao Māori. For characters in the urban 21st century setting of Bugs, connection to te ao Māori and the ability to access knowledge of tikanga Māori is severely restricted. Whilst Stewart’s and Ihimaera’s characters had access to different visions of Māori masculinity, and varying access to te ao Māori, characters in Bugs are more isolated. I argue that because of this, their ability to reject Pākehā narratives is more limited, and after rejecting the influence of Pākehā masculinity it is not always obvious what alternatives are available. Throughout this thesis deference is given to critics who write from a decolonising and kaupapa Māori perspective. In particular, the works of Brendan Hokowhitu on Māori masculinities, Ani Mikaere on gender in Māori society, Linda Tuhiwai Smith on decolonizing methodologies, Elizabeth Kerekere on sexuality, gender, and Māori, and Belinda Borell on cultural identity and urban Māori, inform the reading and analysis of each of the texts.</p>

Tangata Ngākau: Māori Boys and Masculinity in the Writing of Bruce Stewart, Witi Ihimaera, and Whiti Hereaka

<p>This thesis surveys a selection of writing by Bruce Stewart, Witi Ihimaera, and Whiti Hereaka, and considers how these texts represent varying modes of masculinity available to and expressed by Māori boys and young men. Whilst the three authors present starkly different characters, all of these characters challenge pre-existing claims about Māori men and masculinity propagated by earlier, predominantly Pākehā writers. The first chapter focuses on the collection Tama and Other Stories by Bruce Stewart (1989). Many of the characters in this collection feel pressured to be tough and stoic, but I argue that such pressures are shown to come largely from Pākehā father figures. The modes of masculinity that the boys either portray or wish to portray are much less focused on stoicism, aggression, and physicality than what they see from their fathers. I suggest that Stewart sees instruction in tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori as useful if not essential for young Māori men to escape the pressure of oppressive colonial narratives about Māori masculinity. The second chapter discusses Witi Ihimaera’s novel Bulibasha (1994). In contrast to Stewart’s stories, Bulibasha presents a young boy largely isolated from Pākehā society, but I argue that this does not mean that he is free from the influence of Pākehā masculinity. The novel presents many different expressions of masculinity but only those that are influenced by colonial narratives and which reinforce Pākehā hegemony seem to prosper. Such colonial narratives and influences are arguably less visible than they are in Tama and Other Stories, but this does not make them any less insidious nor damaging to the men in Bulibasha. I suggest that spaces where Pākehā masculinity is less dominant, men are shown to be less stoic, domineering, and oppressive. Likewise, characters who appear to be more immersed in te ao Māori also seem to promote a greater sense of balance and equity between men and women. The final chapter looks at the novel Bugs by Whiti Hereaka (2013). The influence of Pākehā societal norms and narratives on Māori masculinity is shown to be more acute in the setting of this text than in the mid-20th century setting of Tama and Other Stories and Bulibasha. Characters in Stewart’s writing are able to construct their own decolonised spaces where Māori masculinity can be expressed, whilst Ihimaera’s characters struggle to avoid colonial influences even in a predominantly Māori community. By contrast, Hereaka shows characters who feel the full effect of urbanisation and the inherent marginalisation of te ao Māori. For characters in the urban 21st century setting of Bugs, connection to te ao Māori and the ability to access knowledge of tikanga Māori is severely restricted. Whilst Stewart’s and Ihimaera’s characters had access to different visions of Māori masculinity, and varying access to te ao Māori, characters in Bugs are more isolated. I argue that because of this, their ability to reject Pākehā narratives is more limited, and after rejecting the influence of Pākehā masculinity it is not always obvious what alternatives are available. Throughout this thesis deference is given to critics who write from a decolonising and kaupapa Māori perspective. In particular, the works of Brendan Hokowhitu on Māori masculinities, Ani Mikaere on gender in Māori society, Linda Tuhiwai Smith on decolonizing methodologies, Elizabeth Kerekere on sexuality, gender, and Māori, and Belinda Borell on cultural identity and urban Māori, inform the reading and analysis of each of the texts.</p>

The Ideal and the Real: interior linings in 1930s New Zealand homes

The choices made by New Zealanders in terms of how they line the floors, walls and ceilings of their homes, both today and in the past, is driven by various influencing factors. These include economic factors such as supply and demand, changes in technology, societal norms, as well as the agency of people themselves, ranging from the manufacturer and supplier to the designer and homeowner. In 1930s' New Zealand, architectural and building publications aimed to influence consumer behavior in terms of the products and methods used to design, construct and decorate buildings. These magazines also played a pivotal role in both reflecting and shaping current societal ideals and the associated ideal homes, which are almost always the homes of the middle and upper classes. This paper takes a case study approach by looking at the first eleven issues of the Home & Building magazine between October/November 1936 and November 1939, extracting from these the construct of the ideal home interior and the types of interior linings that were advertised and used for this purpose in the homes that are presented. To investigate the extent to which these trends are reflected in the homes of real New Zealanders, a sample of Wellington building consents and historical interior photographs available through DigitalNZ are used.

Brief History of Ethics in the Presence of a Pandemic

The current COVID-19 pandemic has had a strong effect on individual liberty versus a consequentialist ideal of the greater good for societal norms. Rather than arguing for the current situation, I have chosen to take a historical approach to address the ethics of dealing with these health situations in the past. Ultimately, I conclude that, while at risk of individual liberty, a rule utilitarian approach, as backed up by epidemiolocal data suggests that a mandate for the greater good is more ethical than a simple approach to individual liberty.