Nineteenth century narratives reveal historic catch rates for Australian snapper (Pagrus auratus)

Snapper (Pagrus auratus) is widely distributed throughout subtropical and temperate southern oceans and forms a significant recreational and commercial fishery in Queensland, Australia. Using data from government reports, media sources, popular publications and a government fisheries survey carried out in 1910, we compiled information on individual snapper fishing trips that took place prior to the commencement of fisherywide organized data collection, from 1871 to 1939. In addition to extracting all available quantitative data, we translated qualitative information into bounded estimates and used multiple imputation to handle missing values, forming 287 records for which catch rate (snapper fisher−1 h−1) could be derived. Uncertainty was handled through a parametric maximum likelihood framework (a transformed trivariate Gaussian), which facilitated statistical comparisons between data sources. No statistically significant differences in catch rates were found among media sources and the government fisheries survey. Catch rates remained stable throughout the time series, averaging 3.75 snapper fisher−1 h−1 (95% confidence interval, 3.42–4.09) as the fishery expanded into new grounds. In comparison, a contemporary (1993–2002) south-east Queensland charter fishery produced an average catch rate of 0.4 snapper fisher−1 h−1 (95% confidence interval, 0.31–0.58). These data illustrate the productivity of a fishery during its earliest years of development and represent the earliest catch rate data globally for this species. By adopting a formalized approach to address issues common to many historical records – missing data, a lack of quantitative information and reporting bias – our analysis demonstrates the potential for historical narratives to contribute to contemporary fisheries management.

The interpersonal and mental health implications of the coherence of coming out narratives for a sample of gay men in committed romantic relationships

The coming out process has been conceptualized as a developmental imperative for those who will eventually accept their same-sex attractions. It is widely accepted that homophobia, heterosexism, and homonegativity are cultural realities that may complicate this developmental process for gay men. The current study views coming out as an extra-developmental life task that is at best a stressful event, and at worst traumatic when coming out results in the rupture of salient relationships with parents, siblings, and/or close friends. To date, the minority stress model (Meyer, 1995; 2003) has been utilized as an organizing framework for how to empirically examine external stressors and mental health disparities for lesbians, gay men, and bisexual individuals in the United States. The current study builds on this literature by focusing on the influence of how gay men make sense of and represent the coming out process in a semi-structured interview, more specifically, by examining the legacy of the coming out process on indicators of wellness. In a two-part process, this study first employs the framework well articulated in the adult attachment literature of coherence of narratives to explore both variation and implications of the coming out experience for a sample of gay men (n = 60) in romantic relationships (n = 30). In particular, this study employed constructs identified in the adult attachment literature, namely Preoccupied and Dismissing current state of mind, to code a Coming Out Interview (COI). In the present study current state of mind refers to the degree of coherent discourse produced about coming out experiences as relayed during the COI. Multilevel analyses tested the extent to which these COI dimensions, as revealed through an analysis of coming out narratives in the COI, were associated with relationship quality, including self-reported satisfaction and observed emotional tone in a standard laboratory interaction task and self-reported symptoms of psychopathology. In addition, multilevel analyses also assessed the Acceptance by primary relationship figures at the time of disclosure, as well as the degree of Outness at the time of the study. Results revealed that participant’s narratives on the COI varied with regard to Preoccupied and Dismissing current state of mind, suggesting that the AAI coding system provides a viable organizing framework for extracting meaning from coming out narratives as related to attachment relevant constructs. Multilevel modeling revealed construct validity of the attachment dimensions assessed via the COI; attachment (i.e., Preoccupied and Dismissing current state of mind) as assessed via the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) was significantly correlated with the corresponding COI variables. These finding suggest both methodological and conceptual convergence between these two measures. However, with one exception, COI Preoccupied and Dismissing current state of mind did not predict relationship outcomes or self-reported internalizing and externalizing symptoms. However, further analyses revealed that the degree to which one is out to others moderated the relationship between COI Preoccupied and internalizing. Specifically, for those who were less out to others, there was a significant and positive relationship between Preoccupied current state of mind towards coming out and internalizing symptoms. In addition, the degree of perceived acceptance of sexual orientation by salient relationship figures at the time of disclosure emerged as a predictor of mental health. In particular, Acceptance was significantly negatively related to internalizing symptoms. Overall, the results offer preliminary support that gay men’s narratives do reflect variation as assessed by attachment dimensions and highlights the role of Acceptance by salient relationship figures at the time of disclosure. Still, for the most part, current state of mind towards coming out in this study was not associated with relationship quality and self-reported indicators of mental health. This finding may be a function of low statistical power given the modest sample size. However, the relationship between Preoccupied current state of mind and mental health (i.e., internalizing) appears to depend on degree of Outness. In addition, the response of primary relationships figures to coming out may be a relevant factor in shaping mental health outcomes for gay men. Limitations and suggestions for future research and clinical intervention are offered.

Narratives great and small: neighbourhood change, place and identity in Notting Hill

The area of Notting Hill in west London has been subject to much media coverage in recent years, which, along with substantial gentrification, has given rise to an image of the area as the epitome of fashionable London. This study investigates the views of those marginal to gentrification and mediated representation on their feelings about the local area, its image and their changing neighbourhoods. Many participants in the research resented some of the more recent changes in Notting Hill and the area's representation in the media. However, in contrast to expectations, most of the more working-class respondents involved in the research did not articulate much emotional attachment to the area. They were more concerned with what might be termed the material aspects of life in Notting Hill: convenience, facilities, safety and so on. In contrast, the more middle-class respondents frequently spoke of their regret of the changes to the area, such as the loss of independent shops, and the reduction in diversity. Paradoxically, the loss of working-class landscapes seems a relatively middle-class worry. The symbolically important landscapes described by working-class respondents were related to more immediate, material issues, in which gentrification was only a relatively minor concern. The definitive version is available at www.blackwell-synergy.com

ABLE-BODIED WOMANHOOD: DISABILITY AND CORPOREALLY EXCLUSIONARY NARRATIVES IN BLACK AND WHITE WOMEN’S RIGHTS DISCOURSES, 1832-1932

This project is a feminist disability rhetorical analysis of US black and white women’s rights movements from 1832-1932. Guided by Disability and Feminist Theory, it works to identify the presence and use of patterns of disability tropes in women’s rights discourses. From Lucretia Coffin Mott to Sojourner Truth, Elizabeth Cady Stanton to Mary Church Terrell, and Charlotte Perkins Gilman to Addie Hunton, this project interrogates the rhetorical work of dominant narratives and lesser known voices in women’s rights discourses. I argue that early black and white women’s rights advocates often utilized and repeated a disability rhetoric that relied on disability metaphor, narrative prosthesis, and corporeally exclusionary narratives in order to construct definitions of womanhood. Their insistence on cognitive ability as a marker of “fitness” and “ability” provided the foundation for rights arguments based on ableist assumptions of autonomy and citizenship. I also argue that this use of disability rhetoric relied on and furthered a pervasive ableist ideology present not only in many of these movements, but in US society. In the process, US black and white women’s rights discourses have continually elided women with disabilities from women’s rights discourses because their bodies (physically, cognitively, and/or psychologically) did not meet the ableist prerequisites set for claiming women’s rights during this time period.

Should female health providers be involved in medical male circumcision? Narratives of newly circumcised men in Malawi

Background The Malawi government has endorsed voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) as a biomedical strategy for HIV prevention after a decade of debating its effectiveness in the local setting. The “policy” recommends that male circumcision (MC) should be clinically based, as opposed to the alternative of traditional male circumcision (TMC). Limited finances, acceptability concerns, and the health system’s limited capacity to meet demand are among the challenges threatening the mass rollout of VMMC. In terms of acceptability, the gender of clinicians conducting the operations may particularly influence health facility-based circumcision. This study explored the acceptability, by male clients, of female clinicians taking part in the circumcision procedure. Methods Six focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted, with a total of 47 newly circumcised men from non-circumcising ethnic groups in Malawi participating in this study. The men had been circumcised at three health facilities in Lilongwe District in 2010. Data were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data were analysed using narrative analysis. Results Participants in the FGDs indicated that they were not comfortable with women clinicians being part of the circumcising team. While few mentioned that they were not entirely opposed to female health providers’ participation, arguing that their involvement was similar to male clinicians’ involvement in child delivery, most of them opposed to female involvement, arguing that MC was not an illness that necessitates the involvement of clinicians regardless of their gender. Most of the participants said that it was not negotiable for females to be involved, as they could wait until an all-male clinician team could be available. Thematically, the arguments against female clinicians’ involvement include sexual undertones and the influences of traditional male circumcision practices, among others. Conclusion Men preferred that VMMC should be conducted by male health providers only. Traditionally, male circumcision has been a male-only affair shrouded in secrecy and rituals. Although being medical, this study strongly suggested that it may be difficult for VMMC to immediately move to a public space where female health providers can participate, even for men coming from traditionally non-circumcising backgrounds.

La literatura y el cine: una historia de relaciones

La literatura y el cine se relacionan en cuatro aspectos básicos: la literatura determina, en sus orígenes, la naturaleza de los filmes, sus motivos y estrategias; la literatura y el cine son formas narrativas, por lo que comparten estructuras míticas, populares y de relato; ambos se vinculan mediante el problema de la adaptación; y el cine ejerce una influencia estética en las obras literarias y en el concepto tradicional de literatura. Este artículo examina estos vínculos desde una perspectiva conceptual e histórica.Literature and cinema are related in four main aspects: in its origins literature determines the nature of films; literature and motion pictures are narratives, and share mythical, popular and narrative structures; both are linked because of the issue of adaptation; and movies influence literary works and the traditional concept of literature. This article examines these relationships from a conceptual and historic perspective.

Promoting reflective assessing practices through narratives: An action research project in early childhood

This project aims at describing the use of Action Research in the development of more structured assessment practices in Early Childhood Portuguese contexts. The teacher had always observed young learners’ activities and progress, and registered them in the form of “critical incidents”. This reflective process structured through this type of narratives helps “tune” the Class Curriculum firstly designed without much knowledge about the kids and so, difficultly responding to their specific needs and interests. The results achieved suggest kids become better prepared to face further education and life. Being early childhood assessment felt by most Portuguese kindergarten teachers as an innovative procedure, the project was seen as the launching of roots for “new” practices.

«Horions», roman (extraits) ; suivi de Les fonctions extra-narratives dans "Trou de mémoire" d’Hubert Aquin

Ce mémoire de recherche-création porte sur les fonctions extra-narratives telles que définies par Gérard Genette, soit les fonctions de régie, testimoniale, de communication et idéologique, dans le contexte d’un récit à narrateurs multiples. Deux approches ont été privilégiées ici : l’écriture d’un roman comportant plusieurs instances de narration, et l’analyse d’un roman offrant un type comparable de structure narrative, soit Trou de mémoire d’Hubert Aquin. Ainsi, la partie création comprend des extraits d’Horions, roman hybride combinant les formes romanesque, poétique et dramatique, et dont ne figurent dans ce mémoire que des extraits des passages romanesques. Une instance narrative d’abord anonyme, puis nommée à la toute fin, retrace son passé en prêtant une voix à des êtres qui l’habitent, notamment un homme violent et un fils aphasique. Ces personnages-narrateurs exercent, outre la fonction narrative, d’autres fonctions qui justifient en quelque sorte leur présence : l’un est témoin de l’intrigue qu’il rapporte, l’autre communique avec un narrataire intra-diégétique, un troisième rend compte des émotions du protagoniste… Quant à la partie réflexion, elle se fonde sur les notions de narrateur, de narrataire et de situation narrative, mais se concentre sur les fonctions extra-narratives exercées par les diverses instances prenant la parole au fil du récit. Ces notions permettent de rendre compte de la structure narrative d’ensemble du roman Trou de mémoire d’Hubert Aquin, lequel juxtapose plusieurs voix, soit celles de Pierre X. Magnant, Rachel Ruskin, Olympe Ghezzo-Quénum et Charles-Édouard Mullahy. Un bref retour sur l’écriture d’Horions et sur les enjeux du récit à plusieurs narrateurs se prévalant des diverses fonctions extra-narratives complète la démarche.

Monomanias - auto-narrativas e auto-ficções: estudo sobre as manias do eu como sintoma civilizacional e seu reflexo nas artes plásticas : Monomanias - auto narratives and auto-fictions: study on the manias of the self as a civilizational symptom and their reflection in contemporay art

A palavra monomania provém do grego monos que se traduz por "um" e mania que significa "mania". O emprego do termo em psiquiatria deve-se a Esquirol e mais tarde a Pierre Janet. Contudo, o uso da palavra não se circunscreve ao campo da psiquiatria, o conceito de monomania é também usado para definir as denominadas "manias do eu". Nos dias de hoje, a subjectividade, a particularidade de cada indivíduo apartou-se da noção de Homem como um todo objectivo. A massificação gerou a sociedade do narcisismo. A World Wide Web permitiu ao sujeito dar a conhecer ao mundo a sua individualidade. O sujeito é livre de se mostrar, de se fazer ouvir, de contar as suas histórias e principalmente a sua própria. À semelhança do nosso quotidiano, podemos encontrar na arte contemporânea propostas artísticas que se prendem com o conceito de monomania, como o exemplo das mitologias individuais, auto-narrativas e auto-ficções de Sophie Calle: "de vivre sa vie pour faire ceuvre et de faire ceuvre pour vivre sa vie." ABSTRACT: Etymologically, "monomania" originates from the Greek words "monos" and "mania". The former refers to the notion of "one" and the latter to "mania". The term's introduction in the field of psychiatry is attributed first to Esquirol and later Pierre Janet. Usage of the word isn’t, however, exclusive to psychiatric jargon: the concept of monomania is also used to define so called "manias of the self’. Today, the subjectivity and specificity of each individual have distanced themselves from the notion of Man as an objective whole. Massification has led to a society of narcissism. The World Wide Web has allowed the subject to make her individuality known to the world at large. The subject is free to exhibit herself, make herself heard, tell her stories, and especially her own. ln a way similar to daily life, we find agendas in contemporary art that approach the concept of monomania, such as the personal mythologies, self-narratives and selffictions of Sophie Calle: "de vivre sa vie pour faire oeuvre et de faire oeuvre pour vivre sa vie."

Remembering the Vietnam War in Graphic Narratives

This project discusses the relation between memory and graphic novels, mainly focusing on the ongoing narration of the Vietnam War. It adopts a diachronic and philological approach to reconstruct the history of the medium and its entanglement with war, be it as instrument of propaganda or as a memory project. It follows the development of the medium in Hearst and Pulitzer newspapers, analyzing how mass culture helped consolidating a persuasive ‘war mentality’. It reflects on the role that comics played in the creation of the myth of the ‘good war’. It also shows how the ‘god war’ pattern became increasingly contested during the Vietnam War, following the questioning of the traditional “American values” promoted by the counterculture of the time. Finally, it explores how the narration (and memory) of the Vietnam War has changed after September 11, 2001, and it describes the emergence of graphic narratives written by diasporic Vietnamese graphic artists.

Oto-Bio-Graphies: auditory perception in twentieth-century self-narratives

Throughout the twentieth century, the study of auditory perception emerged as a significant area of inquiry across various disciplines, particularly within the fields of poststructuralism and psychoanalysis. These theories converge in their understanding of hearing as a fundamental aspect of the development of the subject, leading to a decentering and reformulation of the autobiographical subject, suggesting that the rhythmic is a state of being outside of and prior to the social, verbal, thinking subject. This research aims to examine the connection between auditory perception and the formation of subjectivity in twentieth-century self-narratives. Drawing both from psychoanalysis and poststructuralism, this research proposes a reading of three autobiographical works, namely Elias Canetti’s Die gerettete Zunge, Nathalie Ginzburg’s Lessico famigliare and Nathalie Sarraute’s Enfance. By highlighting the importance of the voice and of the sonorous envelope of childhood, these works artistically anticipate what would be theorised only a few decades later and create the conditions for a pre-verbal apprehension of the world, raising questions about the ineffable source of writing and the writing process itself.

Emotions in legal decisions: the construction of objective narratives in Italian criminal trials

Drawing on ethnographic data collected in Italian courts and prosecution offices, this dissertation offers new perspectives on legal decision-making by highlighting the importance of emotions for constructing and evaluating legal narratives. Focusing on criminal cases, it describes and dissects how judges and prosecutors use emotions in reflection and action tied to lay narratives and legal constraints. The analysis shows that legal professionals engage in different types of emotional dynamics when dealing with stories; first, they develop gut feelings, which are either endorsed or kept at distance by means of emotional reflexivity, to comply with legal ideals of objectivity and impartiality. Second, empathy emerges as a crucial tool to direct the interaction with lay people and to interpret legal prerequisites, such as credibility, and intent. Finally, the dissertation shows that lay stories lead legal professionals to become passionate and committed towards the correct application of the law, the restoration of the moral order, and the achievement of justice. In light of the empirical findings, this thesis strives to develop a theoretical understanding of legal decision-making as narrative work that includes emotional dynamics consistent with rational, objective action.

Power in public art spaces. F(r)ictions, performativity and the generation of counter-hegemonic narratives

Abstract This thesis applies queer theories to the examination of experiences which go beyond queerness. Queer, decolonial, antiracist and feminist new materialist concepts are implemented to the analysis of four case studies dealing with power and art in public spaces. By applying concepts as methodologies, autoethnographic reflections and f(r)ictions as research alternatives, the thesis brings up new diffractive readings from where to perform those scenarios differently. In doing so, the thesis disentangles the historical, material, philosophical, political and disruptive meanings which haunt the four case studies and triggers the artivist potential of their counter-hegemonic narratives.

[lay Agency And Healthcare: Producing Healthcare Maps].

This study aimed to characterize which regulatory logics (other than government regulation) result in healthcare output, using a two-stage qualitative study in two municipalities in the ABCD Paulista region in São Paulo State, Brazil. The first stage included interviews with strategic actors (managers and policymakers) and key health professionals. The second phase collected life histories from 18 individuals with high health-services utilization rates. An analysis of the researchers' involvement in the field allowed a better understanding of the narratives. Four regulatory systems were characterized (governmental, professional, clientelistic, and lay), indicating that regulation is a field in constant dispute, a social production. Users' action produces healthcare maps that reveal the existence of other possible health system arrangements, calling on us to test shared management of healthcare between health teams and users as a promising path to the urgent need to reinvent health.