Post-revolutionary post-modernism: Central American detective fiction by the turn of the 21st century

Contemporary Central American fiction has become a vital project of revision of the tragic events and the social conditions in the recent history of the countries from which they emerge. The literary projects of Sergio Ramirez (Nicaragua), Dante Liano (Guatemala), Horacio Castellanos Moya (El Salvador), and Ramon Fonseca Mora (Panama), are representative of the latest trends in Central American narrative. These trends conform to a new literary paradigm that consists of an amalgam of styles and discourses, which combine the testimonial, the historical, and the political with the mystery and suspense of noir thrillers. Contemporary Central American noir narrative depicts the persistent war against social injustice, violence, criminal activities, as well as the new technological advances and economic challenges of the post-war neo-liberal order that still prevails throughout the region. ^ Drawing on postmodernism theory proposed by Ihab Hassan, Linda Hutcheon and Brian MacHale, I argued that the new Central American literary paradigm exemplified by Sergio Ramirez's El cielo llora por mí, Dante Liano's El hombre de Montserrat, Horacio Castellanos Moya's El arma en el hombre and La diabla en el espejo , and Ramon Fonseca Mora's El desenterrador, are highly structured novels that display the characteristic marks of postmodern cultural expression through their ambivalence, which results from the coexistence of multiple styles and conflicting ideologies and narrative trends. The novels analyzed in this dissertation make use of a noir sensitivity in which corruption, decay and disillusionment are at their core to portray the events that shaped the modern history of the countries from which they emerge. The revolutionary armed struggle, the state of terror imposed by military regimes and the fight against drug trafficking and organized crime, are among the major themes of these contemporary works of fiction, which I have categorized as perfect examples of the post-revolutionary post-modernism Central American detective fiction at the turn of the 21st century.^

Talk and silence: instantiations and articulations

This paper considers the desire for unity, reconciliation and consensus underpinning three models of talking – namely, 'the meeting', 'the dyadic love relationship', and 'the psychoanalytic session'. We highlight the three domains’ shared intellectual and historical heritage wherein talk is seen as a mode of achieving unity (of the group, of the dyad, or of the self) and conversely 'silence' is seen as pathology. Through looking at the role of silence in the works of Lacan, Joyce, and Beckett, we then examine how conversations with a collective, an Other, the self, etc. can all be enriched by ambivalence, antagonism and, in particular, silence. In contrast to the conventional understanding, silence is not the 'end' of understanding, but rather a new beginning. From this perspective, silence can be the basis upon which we can begin to imagine a principled relationship with the Other.

Expanding Role Theory: US Responses to Hizb'allah and Iran

There are many sociopolitical theories to help explain why governments and actors do what they do. Securitization Theory is a process-oriented theory in international relations that focuses on how an actor defines another actor as an “existential threat,” and the resulting responses that can be taken in order to address that threat. While Securitization Theory is an acceptable method to analyze the relationships between actors in the international system, this thesis contends that the proper examination is multi-factorial, focusing on the addition of Role Theory to the analysis. Consideration of Role Theory, which is another international relations theory that explains how an actor’s strategies, relationships, and perceptions by others is based on pre-conceptualized definitions of that actor’s identity, is essential in order to fully explain why an actor might respond to another in a particular way. Certain roles an actor may enact produce a rival relationship with other actors in the system, and it is those rival roles that elicit securitized responses. The possibility of a securitized response lessens when a role or a relationship between roles becomes ambiguous. There are clear points of role rivalry and role ambiguity between Hizb’allah and Iran, which has directly impacted, and continues to impact, how the United States (US) responds to these actors. Because of role ambiguity, the US has still not conceptualized an effective way to deal with Hizb’allah and Iran holistically across all its various areas of operation and in its various enacted roles. It would be overly simplistic to see Hizb’allah and Iran solely through one lens depending on which hemisphere or continent one is observing. The reality is likely more nuanced. Both Role Theory and Securitization theory can help to understand and articulate those nuances. By examining two case studies of Hizb’allah and Iran’s enactment of various roles in both the Middle East and Latin America, the situations where roles cause a securitized response and where the response is less securitized due to role ambiguity will become clear. Using this augmented approach of combining both theories, along with supplementing the manner in which an actor, action, or role is analyzed, will produce better methods for policy-making that will be able to address the more ambiguous activities of Hizb’allah and Iran in these two regions.

La déconstruction de l'onto-théologie par Jacques Derrida : détour littéraire et mise en relief de la matrice langagière comme "différance".

Le mouvement derridien de la différance marque la rupture avec l'affirmation de la métaphysique de la présence, avec l'autorité du signifié transcendantal. Dans cet univers mouvant de signifiants qui se renvoient perpétuellement les uns aux autres, la logique d'univocité se disloque. La "présence" n'est que fantomatique, s'esquissant au sein d'une chaîne ininterrompue de signifiants et se laissant toujours creuser par la marque d'un irréductible manque. Face au logocentrisme, corollaire de l'affirmation de la présence, l'écriture se veut siège et articulation de la trace, d'une origine qui ne peut être que raturée, véhicule d'une irrémédiable fêlure. La volet littéraire de la déconstruction a pour but de mettre en évidence le fonctionnement de l'"indécidabilité" du discours, soit une certaine ambivalence dans la signification qui caractérise tout texte. L'objectif principal de la présente recherche est de fournir une compréhension plus approfondie de la déconstruction en insistant sur l'ancrage langagier de tout texte. Le discours philosophique n'échappe ainsi pas au mécanisme différentiel du langage et de la dérive métaphorique. La parenté entre la perspective déconstructiviste derridienne et la conception mallarméenne du langage poétique semble frappante. La mise en oeuvre, par Mallarmé, d'une dislocation de l'espace textuel, son minutieux "creusement" du vers après renoncement à toute quête d'"Idéal", la mise en relief du leurre de l'appropriation langagière, voilà qui trouve un écho particulier dans les thèses derridiennes. La "mimésis" platonicienne se voit au travers du prisme de la "mimique" mallarméenne. La déconstruction poursuit son travail de "luxation" de l'oreille philosophique, insérant les philosophèmes dans la matrice langagière, les livrant ainsi au hasard du cheminement textuel et les confrontant à l'aporie. La philosophie n'a alors d'autre choix que d'abandonner ses prétentions transcendantales. La marche de la "différance" instaure une inexorable distance qui prive le sujet de tout rapport direct avec une origine assurée et lui ôte toute possibilité de maîtrise sur le monde. Au travers de la langue, se profile la question de l'altérité, de la relation dissymétrique qui nous lie à cet "autre", ce "tout-autre" qui nous fonde et nous constitue. L'accueil inconditionnel de cette altérité nous mènera à l'étude de la "religion", la déconstruction se tournant vers le "religieux" tout en effectuant un "retournement" habile de tout credo essentialiste.

The Efficacy of San Lazaro and His Manifestations: Divine Mediators of Health Within Miami's Cuban-American Santeria Community.

This study explored the origins, evolution and influence of the tradition of San Lázaro as it currently pertains to the Cuban-American Santeria community in Miami. The main argument of the study is that in the context of the contemporary religious culture of Santeria in Miami, San Lázaro is a hybrid spirit. Many manifestations of healing entities have come to merge in the person of this spirit. Though practitioners identify with specific manifestations of this spirit, the processes of transmigration have blurred the lines of deep-rooted faiths and created a fusion of meanings from disparate traditions, making San Lázaro an ambivalent personality. San Lázaro’s ambivalence is the very quality that makes him such an important Orisha. As a deity whose personalities demonstrates the combination of a diversity of qualities, including those that contradict each other, San Lázaro is deployed in a very broad range of healing context, making him a versatile Orisha. This study clarified the contrasting qualities this deity embodies and traces the socio-historical context in which the deity acquires the layers of meanings it is currently associated with. Drawing on interviews with Lázaranian worshipers [Lázarenos] in Miami and engaging in Bourdieu’s concept of Habitus, the study provided a window into the nature of the tradition of San Lázaro and how its usage is linked with the African heritage of the worshipers.

Clear hero and dark hero in the cinematographic narration

The role of the hero is changing, slightly irregular, but it’s purpose is constant. The line that separates good from evil is frequently so thin that sometimes the main hero can act in a negative way, casting doubts about his own nature in the pursuit of good. This paper aims to inquire into the character’s heroic condition showing two variations of this archetype in the context of postmodern cinema: the “clear hero”, and the “dark hero”. The former keeps the most traditional values of the hero, while the latter provides a dimension which distinguishes it from the previous one: his experience executing evil as a part of his process to heroici­ty. Postmodernity implies an ambivalence in the character’s identity which can be comparable to the hero’s role, and to his way of making good. The “clear hero” does not imply negative features in the active nature of the hero, whilst the “dark hero” does include them. Through the protagonists of Gladiator (Scott, 2000) and Batman Begins (Nolan, 2005) are offered both heroic perspectives based on a selection of their principal ac­tions which have been subjected to analysis according to some parameters: behavior, implication, and cause. The decisive action will also be signalized, according to the narration’s teleonomy in reason of the favorable or unfavorable sense for the hero. Finally, each character will be observed from its archetype. By analyzing their actions from these perspectives, we observe the clear hero and the dark hero as affordable categories for the heroic role.

Rightful Resistance in the Colombian conflict. A theoretical reflection based on a Peace Community

This article considers the opportunities of civilians to peacefully resist violent conflicts or civil wars. The argument developed here is based on a field-based research on the peace community San José de Apartadó in Colombia. The analytical and theoretical framework, which delimits the use of the term ‘resistance’ in this article, builds on the conceptual considerations of Hollander and Einwohner (2004) and on the theoretical concept of ‘rightful resistance’ developed by O’Brien (1996). Beginning with a conflict-analytical classification of the case study, we will describe the long-term socio-historical processes and the organizational experiences of the civilian population, which favoured the emergence of this resistance initiative. The analytical approach to the dimensions and aims of the resistance of this peace community leads to the differentiation of O`Brian’s concept of ‘rightful resistance’.

Fronteras en construcción: Diferenciación social y desterritorialización en el Sur ibérico (siglos IX-VI a.C.)

Durante las tres últimas décadas, numerosos/as arqueólogos/as han discutido extensamente sobre el ritual funerario original de las poblaciones del sur ibérico entre los siglos ix y vi a.c., esto es, cremación o inhumación. Este debate está además conectado con la existencia o no de complejidad social antes de la llegada fenicia, con la aparición de una élite “orientalizada” y con la adopción de nuevos objetos y prácticas por las poblaciones locales. En este artículo hago uso del concepto deleuziano de “desterritorialización” y lo asocio con el de “frontera” desarrollado por anzaldúa para interpretar la sociedad del sur ibérico. Para ello, analizo la evidencia funeraria indígena y cuestiono la división estricta entre cremación e inhumación en la región; así como examino la profundidad y significado de los cambios funerarios en las comunidades locales.

Validação Transcultural das Escalas ZKPQ-50-CC (Personalidade), BAS (Imagem Corporal) e AS (Ambivalência na Decisão de Ter Relações Sexuais) para Adolescentes

Introdução: A adolescência é um período onde se operam muitas mudanças tanto físicas como psíquicas. É comum o surgimento de algumas perturbações que devem ser convenientemente avaliadas pelo Psicólogo. É assim, muito importante o rigor na avaliação em Psicologia sendo essencial a utilização de instrumentos que sejam válidos e fiáveis. Metodologia: O principal objetivo deste estudo foi traduzir e validar, para a população portuguesa, três instrumentos de avaliação de adolescentes: O Zuckerman Kuhlman Personality Questionnaire Cross-cultural 50 items version (ZKPQ-50-CC) (Aluja, Rossier, García, Angleitner, Kuhlman, & Zuckerman, 2006), para avaliação da personalidade; a Body Appreciation Scale (BAS) (Avalos, Tylka & Wood-Barcalow, 2005), para avaliação da apreciação corporal positiva e; a Ambivalence Scale (AS) (Pinquart, 2009) para avaliação da ambivalência na decisão de ter relações sexuais. Este estudo metodológico incidiu sobre 877 a adolescentes das escolas secundárias em Leiria e Porto de Mós sendo maioritariamente (64,08%) do sexo feminino e com média de 16,70 anos (DP = 1,21) de idade. Na validação seguiu-se a mesma metodologia dos autores das escalas originais a quem foi solicitada autorização, assim como às direções das instituições onde recolhemos os dados. Solicitou-se igualmente consentimento aos pais e aos adolescentes. Resultados: A Body Appreciation Scale (BAS) e a Ambivalence Scale (AS) constituídas por 7 itens, permitem obter uma pontuação global e apenas um fator. Por seu lado, a determinação das caraterísticas psicométricas do ZKPQ-50-CC permite manter as 5 escalas da estrutura do original. Conclusão: Os três instrumentos apresentam valores de consistência interna e validade que permitem que sejam considerados rigorosos e fiáveis podendo ser utilizados futuramente em avaliação e investigação. / Introduction: Adolescence is a period of a lot of changes both physical and psychic. It´s common the emergence of some disorders that should be properly evaluated by the Psychologist. It is thus very important the rigor of Psychological Evaluation and it´s essential to use instruments that are valid and reliable. Metodology: The main objective of this study was to translate and validate, for the Portuguese population, three assessment instruments in adolescence: The Zuckerman Kuhlman Personality Questionnaire Cross-cultural 50 items version (ZKPQ-50-CC) (Aluja, Rossier, García, Angleitner, Kuhlman , & Zuckerman, 2006) for personality assessment, the Body Appreciation Scale (BAS) (Avalos, Tylka, & Wood Barcalow, 2005), to evaluate the positive body assessment; and the Ambivalence Scale (AS) (Pinquart, 2009) for assessment of ambivalence in the decision about having sexual intercourse. This methodological study focused on 877 adolescents from high schools in Leiria and Porto de Mós, mostly females (64,08%), mean age of 16,70 years old (SD = 1,21). The validation followed the same methodology the authors of the scale, to whom consent was requested, as well as to directors of the institutions where we collect data. We also asked for consent to parents and adolescents. Results: The Body Appreciation Scale (BAS) and the Ambivalence Scale (AS), both with seven items, allow to obtain an overall score and only one factor. For its part, the determination of the psychometric features of QPZK-50-CC allows to maintain the five scales of the original structure. Conclusion: The three instruments show internal consistency and validity that allow them to be considered accurate and reliable and used in future evaluation and research.

(Des)igualdades de Género nas Organizações de Trabalho: o caso de uma autarquia local

Em Portugal, cerca de duas centenas de organizações estão empenhadas a criar e implementar Planos para a igualdade de homens e mulheres. Entre elas estão empresas públicas e privadas, autarquias, associações empresariais, organizações do setor terciário, associações de desenvolvimento, universidades, ministérios e outros departamentos governativos. A pesquisa que aqui se expõe inscreveu-se num projeto mais amplo de diagnóstico em realização na Câmara Municipal da Lousã, que se encontra a promover um Plano Municipal para a Igualdade. Nesse âmbito mostrou-se necessário fazer um diagnóstico interno à organização com uma perspetiva de género, quer em termos de desigualdades de género na composição e situação dos seus efetivos quer de forma a conhecer as representações das pessoas que trabalham na autarquia, em torno do fenómeno da (des)igualdade de mulheres e homens. Para a sua realização foi feita análise estatística a dados fornecidos pela organização, e aplicou-se um inquérito por questionário ao pessoal ao serviço da autarquia. Concluiu-se que estamos na presença do fenómeno da desigualdade em função do sexo na estrutura da organização traduzida pela segregação ocupacional e segregação vertical, sendo os homens que apresentam os maiores níveis de antiguidade, que justificarão, de certa forma, as disparidades salariais existentes. Confirmamos uma dualidade entre o ideal de mulher como mãe e dona-de-casa e o de mulher como pessoa independente, especialmente quando são evocadas as consequências da sua atividade profissional sobre os/as filhos/as e a vida familiar. O papel de cuidar surge assim como o obstáculo a conceções menos tradicionalistas e individualizadoras da identidade feminina que nos remete para uma mudança na atribuição do lugar social de homens e mulheres dentro e fora da família. Sobressai a valorização e enfatização da maternidade e do cuidado das crianças na identidade feminina; ao passo que aos homens se atribui uma maior valorização da atividade profissional. Esta constatação comprova a ambivalência e dicotomia de valores e atitudes entre uma fuga à convencional polarização entre papéis “masculinos” e “femininos” rígida e estereotipadamente definidos. / In Portugal, about two hundred organizations are committed to create and implement plans for men and women’s equality. These include public and private companies, local authorities, business associations, third sector organizations, development associations, universities, ministries and other governmental departments. The research exposed here is part of a broader diagnostic project taking placa in the City Hall, of Lousã which is promoting a Municipal Plan for Equality. In this context it was necessary to make an internal diagnosis to the organization from a perspective of gender, either in terms of gender inequalities in the composition and status of their workers or in order to know the workers representations around the phenomenon of women and men’s equality. To make it passible the organization provided statistical data which was analysed and subsequentaly a questionnaire was applied to the municipality staff. We concluded that there is the phenomenon of gender inequality in the structure of the organization namely occupational/professional segregation and vertical segregation, - men having the highest levels of seniority, which may justify in some way the existing wage gap. The study confirms a duality between the ideal of woman as a mother and housewife and the woman as an independent person, especially when the consequences suggested are related to their professional activity on their children and life family. The role of caring emerges as the obstacle to less traditionalist conceptions of female identity and individualization, which leads us to talk about a change of the social position of men and women within and outside the family. It points out the valuation and emphasizing of motherhood and care in female identity, whereas men are given a greater appreciation of the professional activity. This conclusion confirms the ambivalence and dichotomy of values and attitudes between escape from the conventional polarization between rigid and stereotypically defined roles of "male" and "female".

La Dolce Morta: Space, Modernity and the Giallo

Mikel J Koven argues for the Italian giallo tradition as a "cinema of ambivalence; specifically, ambivalence towards modernity." His discussion highlights the giallo's fluctuating, often contradictory takes on language, on modernity's creature comforts, on its breaking down of geographic boundaries and on "modernity's pluralism and the changing social and cultural mores."

Vocational Rehabilitation in Early Psychosis: Cluster Randomised Trial

Background Individual placement and support (IPS) is effective in helping patients return to work but is poorly implemented because of clinical ambivalence and fears of relapse. Aims To assess whether a motivational intervention (motivational interviewing) directed at clinical staff to address ambivalence about employment improved patients’ occupational outcomes. Method Two of four early intervention teams that already provided IPS were randomised to receive motivational interviewing training for clinicians, focused on attitudinal barriers to employment. The trial was registered with the International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Register (ISRCTN71943786). Results Of 300 eligible participants, 159 consented to the research. Occupational outcomes were obtained for 134 patients (85%) at 12-month follow-up. More patients in the intervention teams than in the IPS-only teams achieved employment by 12 months (29/68 v. 12/66). A random effects logistic regression accounting for clustering by care coordinator, and adjusted for participants’ gender, ethnicity, educational and employment history and clinical status scores, confirmed superiority of the intervention (odds ratio = 4.3, 95% CI 1.5-16.6). Conclusions Employment outcomes were enhanced by addressing clinicians’ ambivalence about their patients returning to work.

We’re just like everyone else!’ Rethinking the cultural politics of the London Asian urban music scene

This article engages with the practices of politics and its presence and meanings within the Asian scene. Despite work that has taken youth cultures beyond the framework of ‘resistance’ youth cultures are often still imagined and understood through the lens of ‘resistance’. Yet, within the Asian scene, the tensions, disavowal and ambivalence towards politics points toward a more complex, multilayered understanding of contemporary youth cultural forms. This article takes into account the politics of location and of belonging that Asians within this scene are negotiating that are shaping the kind of political outlooks and attitudes that are being voiced. The growth of a middle-class 'desi' community in the UK and the rise of neoliberalism has led to a significant decline in the practice of a radical, deliberative politics within this 'desi' scene.

Aposição da lateralidade prática e simbólica: contributos do design

A presente dissertação foca-se na análise do dualismo esquerda-direita tanto em termos de motricidade humana, como em relação ao universo material e simbólico criado pelo homem. Para além do contraste simbólico entre a esquerda, com carácter negativo, e a direita, com carácter positivo, o mundo artificial está claramente orientado para promover a preferência de utilização da mão direita. Esta condição acentua uma maior assimetria na preferência e desempenho manuais dos destros, mas, em contrapartida, incentiva involuntariamente a que a generalidade dos esquerdinos apresente uma maior ambivalência motora entre as duas mãos. Neste documento são analisadas as vantagens desta estimulação psicomotora tanto com o objectivo de compensar o desequilíbrio motor entre esquerda e direita, como na consequente acepção simbólica e psicológica dos termos. A investigação resulta na aplicação prática da concepção de um jogo / brinquedo que, sob a forma de uma luva calçada pela mão preferida, permitirá o desenvolvimento de exercícios de motricidade fina realizados pela mão preterida. Com este projecto julgamos poder contribuir para uma sociedade mais inclusiva e desenvolvimento do potencial humano.

Viver com úlcera crónica nos membros inferiores: análise qualitativa de narrações significativas de pessoas idosas

O envelhecimento populacional é uma realidade mundial que altera a sociedade de forma complexa, implicando a necessidade de criação de estratégias de adaptação a esta realidade. A população idosa portuguesa apresenta também um aumento exponencial, e este fenómeno está frequentemente associado à perda de capacidades e dependência e ao aumento da incidência de patologias crónicas, como por exemplo as úlceras crónicas nos membros inferiores. Esta realidade verifica-se através de uma maior procura de cuidados de saúde e também no aumento dos encargos para a família e segurança social. Assim, a aquisição de conhecimentos sobre as implicações da úlcera crónica nos membros inferiores permite, aos profissionais de saúde, melhorar a prestação de cuidados às pessoas idosas, possibilitando a gestão eficaz de recursos e a melhoria da qualidade de vida dos utentes. Neste contexto, emergiu o nosso estudo que tem como objetivo conhecer as principais implicações da presença de uma úlcera crónica, nos membros inferiores, no quotidiano de pessoas idosas. A metodologia utilizada foi qualitativa, com um tipo de estudo exploratório-descritivo, em que foram realizadas 16 entrevistas a pessoas idosas portadoras de úlcera crónica nos membros inferiores e posteriormente analisadas as narrações de vivências ou experiências significativas dos participantes, utilizando as etapas metodológicas da análise de conteúdo segundo Bardin (2011). Os resultados encontrados foram incluídos em três áreas temáticas: Sentimentos e preocupações vividos com o aparecimento e desenvolvimento da úlcera crónica, Alterações no quotidiano das pessoas idosas com úlcera crónica e a Rede de apoio da pessoa idosa com úlcera crónica. A primeira área temática demostrou que as pessoas idosas apresentam sentimentos negativos de tristeza e dor em relação às suas vivências com a úlcera crónica, e receios futuros relacionados com a incerteza da evolução da úlcera, verificando-se alguma ambivalência entre a esperança e o desespero. As alterações no quotidiano verificaram-se na mobilidade física prejudicada, na interferência em atividades de vida diária e através da necessidade de tratamento. Na mobilidade física prejudicada foi o caminhar o mais mencionado pelos participantes e na interferência em atividades de vida diária foram as atividades domésticas, sociais e de lazer. A terceira área temática incluiu a rede de apoio da pessoa idosa com úlcera crónica identificando a família, a instituição e o convivente significativo como o principal apoio dos participantes. A família apresentou um papel de destaque, através do apoio prestado pelo cônjuge e pelos filhos. A realização deste estudo proporcionou conhecer melhor a realidade das pessoas idosas com úlceras crónicas nos membros inferiores, os seus sentimentos, dificuldades e/ou incapacidades, permitindo aos profissionais de saúde aumentar os conhecimentos e elaborar estratégias para auxiliar no seu dia-a-dia, ambicionando-se uma melhoria na prestação de cuidados às pessoas idosas, famílias e sociedade.