Suchergebnisse

Communicating faithfully in a culture of ideological division -- Cultivating a prophetic voice -- Becoming burdened -- Considering humanity's plight -- Rejecting a spirit of acceptance -- Shocking the complacent -- Promoting prophetic critique of technology: a case study -- Conclusion: considering the downs and ups of prophetic media -- Criticism

To whom do you pretend to make believe that a man can be the property of a sovereign, that a child can be the property of his father, that a woman can be the property of her husband, that a servant can be the property of his master, that a negro can be the property of the colonist? (Diderot, History of the Two Indies. OC III, 740).
This paper addresses the issue how Diderot displays a free analysis thanks to anonymity in the History of Two Indies. I claim that the author criticizes without any roundabout style colonialism and slavery, focusing first on the fragments of this work attributed to Diderot. Second, I tackle the fact that Diderot argues in this work for the right to hospitality and breaks down the consequences stemming from trade under an inspiring view for contemporary analyses. I also attempt to cast light on Diderot's view of other peoples and cultures traditionally considered 'wild', drawing a conclusion that they are useful to identify the boundaries of European bourgeois moral codes, usually considered 'civilizised'. In this vein I also address in the paper the Addendum to the Journey of Bougainville, a key writing for appraising issues as anticolonialism and cosmopolitanism in Diderot's thought.

This book looks at the relationship of literary criticism to the social construction of race in Brazil. Isfahani-Hammond considers Gilberto Freyre's model of master/slave synthesis and examines what "multiculturalism" means after the turn of the century

The mid-seventeenth century English social movement known as the Levellers was perhaps the first liberal-democratic social movement. Among their communicative strategies, to garner supporters while challenging the authorities, humor figured prominently. In this article, the nature of this levelling laughter is highlighted and juxtaposed against Puritan injunctions to mourning and objections against humor. Regarding the latter, four such objections are distinguished and elucidated: "damnable heresies", "strange opinions", "fearful divisions", and "loosenesse of life and manners". Finally, it is suggested that the Puritan repudiation of the Levellers highlights the need for social movements of democratic dissent against various aspects of the given status quo to use incongruous and relief humor to prompt reflection without relying too heavily on boorishly flouting social prohibitions for the sake of the pleasures of superiority and release. It also suggests that humor will do better in a culture already tolerant of pluralism, comfortable with a measure of non-literal ambiguity, and committed to democratic deliberation.