The making and unmaking of heritage

Heritage is defined by history which is by nature multi layered. The passage of time and the perspectives it affords, enables and even necessitates constant reexamination and reinterpretation of history. What effect do changes in historical perspective then have upon the definition of heritage which relies on an understanding of its history? The present paper attempts to engage with the notion of heritage, criteria of its definition, and the mutable nature of such designations with specific reference to architectural constructions and historical cities that enjoy or have enjoyed in the past the status of a ‘World Heritage Site’. Examples such as the Louvre museum in Paris or the King’s Cross station in London make an interesting study as they not only allow insight into the past but reflect the changes and adaptation over a period of time. Multiple alterations, some very recently, have modified them extensively since the time they were accorded the ‘World Heritage Site’ status. The above examples are contrasted by sites ridden with conflict such as the Bamiyan Valley. This site has been placed under the ‘World Heritage In Danger’ list by UNESCO taking into account the destruction of the Buddha statues in the region. The act of vandalism itself has had dual implications. While causing an irreparable loss to mankind of its heritage, it also serves as an effective symbol of religious fanaticism that is a pressing concern of our times. The paper then moves on to explore the case of Dresden which lost its ‘World Heritage’ status with the construction of the Waldschlösschen Bridge. This is a particularly interesting case because with the absolute destruction of the city during the Second World War, it was necessary to reconstruct the historical city while simultaneously acknowledging and addressing the modern day requirements. During the reconstruction, with the readaptation of the spaces, it was almost impossible to replicate the original architectural program or to undertake such a large reconstruction project employing only the traditional techniques and materials. This essentially made it a new city constructed in the image of the old. The recent necessity of a growing city was met by the construction of a bridge that has caused it to lose its ‘World Heritage’ status. Finally, this paper endeavours to foster discussion of questions central to the definition of heritage such as what happens when we have to adapt a living space to avoid its deterioration and descent into dereliction by overuse. Does it necessarily lose its historical value? What exactly is Historical value?.

El mar y la mediterraneidad en la narrativa de Elsa Morante

This doctoral Thesis aims to approach the philosophical significance of the Italian author Elsa Morante, expressed through poetic narrative of her second great novel L'isola di Arturo (1957). For this reason, the inductive knowledge has been opted, which can be reached through the symbolic study of the sea and the mediterranean. From the philosophical and psychoanalytical research from such authors as Mircea Eliade, Gaston Bachelard and Carl Jung, linked to the circle of the Eranos Foundation in Switzerland, where the most rigorous multidisciplinary science theories of nature and man converged, and the Grenoble imaginary Center of Research, driven by anthropologist Gilbert Durand in 1966, a revealing investigation of aquatic and marine image has been carried out. In this context of convergence, the work Las estructuras antropológicas del imaginario by Durand, has fulfilled the important catalytic role, of both the Renaissance conception that wants to observe certain universal components in the symbolic vision that nourishes literary expression, as well as the compilation of large images that illuminate the human imaginary of all time. Objectives and results In this regard, it has been considered that the appropriate approach to morantiano imaginary, could only be done thoroughly, based on a repertoire of images as complete as possible, which, if performed from the anthropological compendium of people and civilization of the world, it is offered as a study backed by profound consistency which is the basis of the method. Therefore, it is said, the imaginary is studied and understood through itself. Thus, the internal coherence of this method is seen to be configured as a form of knowledge of human thought because research, from the symbolic point of view, dissects reality in various ways, however, the most seductive is to consider the possibility of an internal coherence between them to converge at a common conclusion which includes all of them. This fact determines the systematization which is shown in the first part of this thesis, as the image and symbol have a close homogeneity between the signifier and the meaning, so that metaphorical expression is established as the structuring element of the human imaginary and the literary representation...

Tener hambre de luz y devorar una estrella: la poesía de J.E. Eielson

The present Doctoral Thesis is framed within the study of the poetry of the great Peruvian artist Jorge Eduardo Eielson (April 13, 1924 – March 8, 2006). In general terms, it focuses on the symbols that articulate both his literary productions and his work in the field of visual arts. Throughout this project, I used the principles of the modern semiotics as well the myth criticism theory developed by Gilbert Durand in his work The Anthropological Structures of the Imaginary as the basis. Following the assumption of considering Eielsońs work as an indivisible whole, in contrast to many studies that often attempted to analyse part of his creative work by privileging one medium over the others, I analyzed each symbol in all its forms, looked at its presence and relevance in his entire work and sought the archetypal level of each term. For this task, the works of Joseph Campbell and Mircea Eliade provided valuable guidances. At the beginning of this study I present a short author's biography, in order to help to understand the circumstances under which his poems were composed. (Let us remember that most of his books were published many years after their conception). Throughout this chapter, I have carefully considered the Lima period, his relationship with his first mentor, the anthropologist and writer José María Arguedas who introduced him to the knowledge of the ancient civilizations of Peru, his link with the literary circles of Lima and his first acknowledgments: the National Poetry Award (1944) and the National Drama Award (1948)...