Political Subjectivity Theories Analysis

Political Subjectivity Theories Analysis Power, Freedom, Justice: Explorations in Political Subjectivity Reflective Logs: The purpose of this paper is to reflect on how the following thinkers studied in the module engaged with Kant`s conception of subjectivity. I will address the following thinkers and topic in my reflective logs: Arendt, Berlin, Fanon, Marcuse, Foucault, Habermas, Rawis, MacIntyre, Rorty, and New Materialism. Immanuel Kant – Sapere AudeDate: 21st January 2014 Kant in his work â€Å"What is Enlightenment?† argues that â€Å"Enlightenment is man`s release from his self-incurred tutelage† (Kant, 1784). He means that one can only become enlightened when they find the courage to think/reason without the help of others. Hannah Arendt – Vita ActivaDate: 22nd January 2014 Hannah Arendt is truly one of the most significant thinkers of the 20th century, and one of the most influential to me in political subjectivity. The German born thinker introduces the term â€Å"vita activa† into political subjectivity. She differentiates between three basic human activities: â€Å"labour, work, action† (Arendt, 2000 p: 167-181). These conditions are necessary for a human being in order to live a life on earth. Labour is defined as the biological practice of the body, and it is a significant necessity of life. Work maintains a world that is â€Å"artificial† (Arendt, 2000), which is highly differentiated from every day’s environment. Action is defined by her as the ongoing activity that is not interfered by other things, and she connects this to the plurality of the human position. Arendt suggests that labour is repetitive, which is never ending, while work has an actual beginning and an end. While action is ongoing as revealing who we are has a beginning but no end. Because of this reasoning Action becomes immortal in her view. Arendt moves forward from the view of Kant as she develops thought to action while Kant`s view is based on reflective reasoning. Isaiah Berlin –Negative and Positive FreedomDate: 5th February 2014 Berlin`s biggest contribution to political subjectivity was his paper on the differentiation of two concepts of liberty. He distinguishes between positive freedom and negative freedom. He defines â€Å"negative freedom† as â€Å"freedom from† (Berlin, 1969 p.2), which implies the absence of pressure put on a human being by others. He describes positive freedom on two ways: Firstly, as â€Å"freedom to† (Berlin, 1969, p.8.) to be able to reach and seek one`s wished goals. Secondly, as being independent, and ruling one`s self without depending on other beings â€Å"the freedom which consists in being one`s own master† (Berlin, 1969, p. 8.) Even though, the basic notion of distinguishing different freedoms goes back to the time of Kant, Berlin further develops these notions, and he became the first to outline the ongoing debate. Berlin also contradicts the views of Arendt`s, even though he also believes that it is important that a line to be â€Å"drawn betw een the area of private life and that of public authority† (Berlin, 2002:171). While Arendt is a supporter of the freedom in the public sphere, Berlin`s freedom is based on the private sphere, as for him being free is â€Å"to the degree which no man or body of men interferes with my activity† (Berlin, 2002:169). Maurice Merleau-Ponty – EmbodimentDate: 12th February 2014 Maurice Merleau-Ponty argues that a human being cannot isolate himself/herself from the public realm and from the perceptions of the world. He suggests that the actions of an individual are guided by experiences, and subjectivity is established through the body and life experiences of a human being. Merleau-Ponty does not agree with the concept that â€Å"thinking subject can absorb into its thinking or appropriate without remainder the object of its thought†, and that â€Å"our being can be brought down to our knowledge† (Merleau-Ponty, 1962:72). For him freedom is a state of consciousness where personal actions and responsibilities can be chosen from a variety of possibilities. For him freedom is every time provided within a field of possibilities. He suggests that freedom is always an option for the being in every situation, unless we give up ourselves and our belonging to the situation. He also goes against the views and arguments of Kant and Descartes who â€Å"de tached the subject, or consciousness, by showing that I could not possibly apprehend anything as existing unless I first of all experienced myself as existing† (Merleau-Ponty, 1962:x). It is because to Merleau-Ponty it is only through the body that he â€Å"understand other people, just as it is through my body that I perceive `things`† (Merleau-Ponty, 1962:216). Herbert Marcuse – Agency and StructureDate: 19th February 2014 Marcuse in his print One-Dimensional Man offers a different approach to political subjectivity. In his post-Marxist view he criticise the modern world and its contemporary capitalism. He addresses the industrial society, and he blames this capitalist industrialised civilisation for the loss of freedom. Reasonable democratic unfreedom prevails in advanced industrial civilisation (Marcuse, 1964:1). He suggests that the capitalist world produced a reality with created needs which eventually turned human beings into consumers and producers. This is shaped through the media, the management of consumption and contemporary modes of thought regarding what to consume (Marcuse, 1964). He argues that this results in the loss of the freedom of the individual and the loss of critical thought and the loss of oppositional behaviour. He also worries about the working class as they integrate into capitalist world, hence about the disappearance of the revolutionary Marxist society who fights capitalis m and the capitalist West. Michel Foucault – Subject and PowerDate: 26th February 2014 The main focus for Foucault has been on the connection between the subject and power. He argues that by power people are turned into subjects (Foucault, 1982:777). For Foucault subjectivity is viewed as a way to exercise power above others. This is demonstrated through the idea of the Panopticon where in the designed prison, prisoners would not be able to tell whether they are being watched or not. Therefore, they assume that they are being observe hence they act differently while under the assumption of observation. He acknowledges the component of fairly enlightened changes in the way of imprisonment, however he argues that these new method of punishment evolves into the new way in which society is controlled to punish less, perhaps; but certainly to punish better (Foucault, 1977:109). Schools, hospitals and other central significant buildings are being based on the following model. Therefore, he argues that this relationship enters the private by escalating from the public, and tu rning individuals into subjects. Foucault also tries to question and shape the values and elements of Kants Enlightenment via a discussion which should be used as a form of practice, and as motivation to change the way individuals think and act today. Jà ¼rgen Habermas – Communicative FreedomDate: 5th March 2014 Habermas takes the centre of the attention to language and to forms of communication. His term for this is lifeworld communications (Habermas, 1987, p.297). He suggests that this communicative sphere has a vital influence on ones private and public self. Unlike Foucault for Habermas reason must be acknowledged as social. While Foucaults subjectivity is the production of forces of power, Habermas believes that communication in the context of discussion enables individuals to demonstrate their positions in a mutual way. Habermas strongly believes that language and communication can alter the world, subjectivity and also freedom. A man from his private sphere can communicate their choices to the public sphere through the tools of communication and speech, while they also listen to the preferences of other private individuals. Habermas has been influence by Kant and Kants ethics, however he argues that his ethical concept is the improved version of the Kantian one. He does not agree with every point of Kant, such as the dual framework of his ethics. For Habermas, morals emerge from discussions which are fundamental due to their logic, instead of their freedom. John Rawls – Social JusticeDate: 12th March 2014 John Rawls is one of the thinkers who has been most influenced by Immanuel Kant. He proposes that a just society is the society that could be fair to all individuals universally. He created a new concept on justice. He mixes the elements of the philosophy of Kant and Utilitarianism in order to create a new method for the judgement of private and public institutions. Rawls proposes the idea of the usage a veil of ignorance (Rawls, 1999:11). Behind this veil, every individual is incapable of knowing anything about themselves, resulting in rational, free and equal individuals. He then argues that these rational individuals would create a society where mostly two principles would be most significant and fundamental: Principle of Liberty and Principle of Difference. Principle of Liberty is mainly Kantian in the sense that it offers primary and common respect to every individual as the minimum principle for every just establishments. The other one promotes inequality and believes that it w ill serve every individual for the better. Alasdair MacIntyre – Justice in Plural SocietiesDate: 19th March 2014 MacIntyre has been one of the major critics of Kant and those who are basing their theories on the Kantian model. He believes that the moral views and theses of Kant, Rawls and other thinkers are condemned to fail as they used the old irrational dialects of morality. These thinkers are doomed to decline as they share certain characteristics that are deriving from their eminently distinct historical background (MacIntyre, 1985). He claims that the theory of Rawls that is based on the individual and was influenced by the Kantian model does not realise the significance of the community as such. He suggest that the community has a major impact on the life of the individual and it is only possible to create a just society in the public sphere. As he puts it â€Å"a society is composed of individuals, each with his or her own interest, who then have to come together and formulate common rules of life† (MacIntyre, 1981: 232-233). He completely refuses to accept the Rawls-Kantian noti on where society is inferior and the individual is primary. He reaffirms that â€Å"the relationship between me, my social identity, and my good will preclude †¦ re-evaluation† (MacIntyre, 1982:664). Richard Rorty  ­Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Justice as a Larger Loyalty Date: 26th March 2014 Rorty is quiet alike MacIntyre, in the sense that individuals have different identities which pose an influence on the behaviour and actions of the individual. Although his thesis is based on the behaviour of public loyalty to certain companies. He realises the limitations of Kant`s foundationalist theory. He suggest that these theories are like mythological stories where the human brain as such was limited. He believes that it is wise to get rid of the â€Å"residual rationalism that we inherit from the Enlightenment† (Rorty, 2001:235). His main reason for this is that the elimination of rationalistic rhetoric would allow Western countries to purse the Non-Western areas â€Å"in the role of someone with an instructive story to tell, rather than in the role of someone purporting to be making better use of a universal human capacity (Rorty, 2001: 235). Finally, he argues that most of the philosophical debates are unnecessary and the centre of attention should not lay on the tr uth but rather on the betterment of humans. New Materialism Date: 2nd April 2014 New Materialism and the writer of the article, William Connolly draws upon some self-organizing preservation which provide assistance in the foundation of our world. These relating biological, geological and climate systems are seriously undervalued in today`s neoliberal economic markets. The reading engages with many influential thinkers and philosophers such as Immanuel Kant, Deacon, Foucault and Hayek. New-materialism reinvents and rethinks the ideology of freedom. Connolly in the reading encourages the left to take back the state and not to relinquish it. Conclusion Date: 2nd April 2014 To conclude, political subjectivity has been a very interesting module to attend in the last semester of my studies. I realised by the end of this tasks that each week my understanding of the different thinkers have developed significantly through the material provided by the module leader. I have discovered new thinkers in the module and broadened my vision of political subjectivity. It raised some serious questions and discussions which seems to be a never-ending position while individuals have their own ideas. Bibliography: Alasdair MacIntyre (1985) After Virtue, chapter 15, Duckworth, pp. 205-225 Arendt, H. (1958) The Human Condition, University of Chicago Press. Arendt, H. (1970) On Violence, Harvest Books. Arendt, H. (2007) ‘Introduction into Politics’. In The Promise of Politics, ed. Kohn, J. Schocken Books Herbert Marcuse (1964) One-Dimensional Man, Routledge Immanuel Kant (1784) ‘What is Enlightenment?’ Isaiah Berlin (1969) ‘Two Concepts of Liberty’. In Four Essays on Liberty, Oxford University Press Oxford John Rawls (2004) ‘On Justice as Fairness’. In Clayton and Williams (eds) Social Justice, Blackwell, pps. 49-84, extracts from (1999) Theory of Justice, (revised edition), Harvard University Press (pps. 6-9, 10-19, 52-58, 61-73, 130-39) Jà ¼rgen Habermas (1987) ‘An alternative Way out of the Philosophy of the Subject: Communicative versus Subject-Centred Reason’. In The Philosophical Discourse of Modernity, MIT Press (pps. 294-326) Maurice Merleau-Ponty (1958; reprinted 2003) ‘Freedom’. In Phenomenology of Perception, Routledge, pp. 504-530 Michel Foucault (1977) ‘Panopticism’. In Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prisons Richard Rorty (2001) ‘Justice as a Larger Loyalty’. In Festenstein, M. Thompson, S. (eds.), Richard Rorty Critical Dialogues, Polity Press, pps. 223-237 William Connolly (2013) ‘The New Materialism and the Fragility of Things’, Millennium Journal of International Studies, Vol. 41, I. 3, pp. 399-412.

Frank Lloyd Wright

She has written several other books on American architecture Including On Architecture: Collected Reflections on a Century of Change and The unreal America: Architecture and Illusion. Her biography on Frank Lloyd Wright is both informative and entertaining; she not only reveals the long and harrowing Journey and the victories and defeats of the rebellious and egotistical architect, but also gives a clear view at the times in which he was most active and the ways in which the country and the world were reacting to his architecture while adapting with everything from changing architectural tastes and styles to economic depressions and the WorldWars. Beginning with his birth and childhood in Wisconsin all the way to his latter days of work and death in Arizona, Hustle details the journey and evolution of his legacy and the tragedies that failed to hinder his art in coherent chronological fashion. Hustle begins the first chapters of the biography with the birth of Frank Lloyd Wright and his beginnings as a child in Wisconsin. Hustle also Introduces the fact that Wright manipulated some details of his personal information throughout life to suit his ego and create his own elegantly presented persona, beginning with his birthday.Born truly in 1867, Wright later changed his birth date to 1869 which â€Å"made a case for a precocious talent with an impressively youthful, early success in Chicago in the 1 sass,† and more Importantly to Wright it â€Å"kept him shy of the dreaded 90-mark during his brilliant late work in the asses† (Hustle 1). In these acts of self- benefit, Hustle revealed the aesthetically egotistical side of Wright that I most certainly never realized was an active force in his life. From his birth, Wright was pampered and directed by his mother, Anna, who believed him to be destined for greatness. On conception, she decided that Frank would be a great architect one day and she was going to do everything in her power to help and guide hi m in that path, not only for his own benefit but for hers as well. She thought particular crib all to influence the newly born Wright towards a path of architectural nirvana. â€Å"He would deliver her from the despair and hardship of her life, make up for her thwarted ambitions; they would have a golden future together† (Hustle 7).Hustle describes Wright's childhood as a bittersweet mixture of hard labor on his uncles farm and alienation from his father mixed with glorious Sunday mornings at he Lloyd Jones family Unitarian chapel followed up by emotionally restorative nights spent singing songs while his father played piano. She illuminates how even though he was a small and weakly child, he learned to â€Å"pile tired on tired† (Hustle 14) working on his uncle's farm and how that strength and stamina of mind and body stayed with Wright even up to the final days of his career which was alive and well until his death.Hustle then begins to describe the evolution of Wrig ht's Journey to becoming an apprentice architect. He was given his first opportunity at a youthful age to assist in he design and construction of a family chapel and even added a windmill of his own design later which stood the test of time and physical stress against the disbelief of some in his family. Through his early life in the rolling hills of the scenic Helena Valley, Wisconsin, Wright planted the seeds of his ideas and passion for â€Å"organic architecture† (Hustle 27) which would be the basis of his unique art in his future works.Organic architecture makes the lay of land, its environmental atmosphere, and the nature of the construction materials the combined generators of the design f the building. His 1935 masterpiece, Billingsgate, built for Edgar Kaufmann over a waterfall is a perfect example of the mix between nature and architecture that makes it uniquely organic and uniquely Wright. Hustle does an amazing Job at keeping all of Wright's advancements in chrono logical order and in a way that is easy to understand how he built his way up to the famous architect that he is.Through his confidence given to him by his mother, Wright began to understand that he was destined for more than an ordinary mortal life because he had â€Å"God-given creativity' (Hustle 33). When Wright was twenty years of age, he moved to the booming cultural epicenter that was Chicago of the asses. He applied to many different architectural firms but only to the prestigious ones which he believed worthy of his gifts and unique abilities; ultimately reputation and image would be the factors Wright would take into account when choosing a firm to work for.He began with Joseph Lyman Sessile, moved on to Beers, Clay, and Dutton, went back to Sessile, and then found his first nest egg of architectural growth and education with Louis Sullivan and Dammar Adler of the Adler and Sullivan firm. Hustle describes Wright as being able to absorb and retain every bit of useful infor mation. He would act as a sponge to Louis Sullivan, soaking up every ounce of the architectural knowledge he found interesting or worthy and committing it to memory. Although you would think that Wright would credit Sullivan for his influence, Hustle defines Wright as notoriously self-centered and arrogant.He would never admit that his ideas or passions for architecture had been influenced by any other human or any culture. His ego made him believe that his forms of architecture were completely ewe and unheard of; it was truly Just a concoction of every bit of influence he had every received through both education and observation Just mixed and manifested biography, Hustle tells how Wright went from sponge-like apprentice to fully accredited and renowned architectural celebrity. As his experience and popularity grew, Wright was approached by clients seeking his work apart from Sullivan influence and he began â€Å"moonlighting† (Hustle 70).With a newly wedded wife and childre n on the way, Wright needed more money to support them and his notorious self-indulgence into Japanese prints and fine clothing. Moonlight work, which is working on secret drafts without company permission and reaping all the profit, was forbidden in his contract with Adler and Sullivan and he was eventually found out and immediately fired. The blow to Sullivan was disastrous and the master and apprentice lost touch for years. When he had established himself well enough in the Chicago architectural scene, Wright began taking on employees as draftsman in his home-studio in the Oak Park suburb of Chicago.His Prairie House design and the Larking Administration Building were two of his greatest creations during this period. Wright was Just setting himself up with a good starting out career when Hustle delivers arguably the most controversial and disliked decision that Wright ever made: with children disturbing his concentration and the stresses of marriage and bills weighed together, Wr ight went through a mental breakdown and â€Å"in the fall of 1909, he left, abruptly cutting all ties.He abandoned a wife and six children and closed his practice, leaving debts and unfinished projects behind† (Hustle 106). Hustle describes how the newspapers and tabloids had a field day with reproving Wright's deplorable actions. He embarked on a two year Journey to Europe with his mistress Amah Cheney. While she worked as a translator in Germany, Wright worked in Florence with his son Lloyd and draftsman Taylor Woolly observing the Italian and Germanic architecture.Upon moving back to the United States, his mother Anna purchased the land in Wisconsin that would soon be the birthplace of his completely tailored and architecturally unique home, Totalities. â€Å"Wright would survive tragedy and disasters there, the murder of a lover and her children, desperate financial crises, and three destructive fires, rebuilding each time† (Hustle 34) from the ashes f the previou s. Shortly after the first Totalities was built, Amah and her children from her previous marriage were brutally murdered and Totalities was burnt to the ground.Accounts given by survivors of the disaster, gardeners and other Totalities workman, explained that the cook had some dispute with Amah and went ballistic. It took Wright several years, a new and blessedly time-consuming project, a new female companion, and Totalities II to bring him back out from a depressed slump. Wright gained instant international success upon the completion of the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, Japan. In 1923, the hotel was completed and was one of the only structures that survived the great Kant Earthquake that struck Japan that same year.

What the Experts Arent Saying About Essay Topics on Native Son and What This Means For You

What the Experts Aren't Saying About Essay Topics on Native Son and What This Means For You A student ought to keep in contact with the hottest trends and know which persuasive essay topics are related to sound convincing in regards to defending personal opinions. So as to write a superior academic essay on animals, you must comprehend the subject really well. It is the principal portion of the essay. Essay about the principal character is based on tv and need to talk about richard wright and. Conclusion ought to be concise and logical. Conclusion as soon as you are done placing all of your information in the body paragraphs, you must compose a conclusion. Relevant Topics that are related to your society will engage the reader in the finest possible way. Introduction Your introduction ought to be compelling. Make sure your essay topic isn't broad, as it'll not be possible that you reveal the key points. The first thing which you may want to do once you've chosen your topic is to begin by writing an outline. Contradictive Your topic should stir a number of opinions among the general public. You could possibly be given the topic straight away by your professor, or maybe you be free to pick the topic yourself. Many students don't have any idea about which topic will suit them to compose an argumentative essay. When you have your ideas sorted, it'll be a great deal simpler to compose this essay. By viewing this list, you will find a number of suggestions for your essay topics ideas. Don't hesitate to take help, if you're facing any difficulty. It's not that easier since any topic you finalize is likely to follow your resume so be sure that you don't choose something unlikely of yourself. Then use that information to make a paper that states at least three unique explanations for why you believe your side of the problem. Jot down the principal explanations for why you believe your side of the problem and one belief of your opposition. Our writers will make certain you are entirely pleased with the last version. Women continue to be thought of as the underdogs in outdoor games. Both women and men need psychological rehabilitation following an injury. The cherry on top is it will also help you secure a few really excellent grades and you may be recognized among lots of different candidates. Many professional athletes need to deal with what would typically be a private matter being exposed to the general public. It may be intriguing to talk about the value of sports in student's life and tackle a few of the problems that college students face in college. Nearly all the teachers follow this pattern when checking your essays. So How About Essay Topics on Native Son? The essays represent various genres. Other essays provide critique. Writing a superb persuasive essay is not a simple task, however, it's achievable. It is a great way to impress both your teacher and peers. The complicated part however is the decoding of the info that's reflected. Naturally, it's the topics you may have a tiny laugh about! Within this speech, you can concentrate on the influence of sports on adolescents' skeletal improvement. The language shouldn't be verbose and involved. When prior brainstorming is finished, you can begin drafting your essay. By doing this you will be in a position to come across more ideas than you know what things to do with. These are just of the best sports topic ideas that you're able to earn a selection from. Bringing up to be an in depth lesson plans is made up of.

A Guide to Shanghainese

Since Shanghai is in the Peoples Republic of China (PRC), the official language of the city is standard Mandarin Chinese, also known as  Putonghua. However, the traditional language of the Shanghai region is Shanghainese, which is a dialect of Wu Chinese which is not mutually intelligible with Mandarin Chinese. Shanghainese is spoken by about 14 million people. It has retained its cultural significance for the Shanghai region, despite the introduction of Mandarin Chinese as the official language in 1949. For many years, Shanghainese was banned from primary and secondary schools, with the result that many young residents of Shanghai do not speak the language. Recently, however, there has been a movement to protect the language and to reintroduce it into the education system. Shanghai Shanghai is the largest city in the PRC, with a population of more than 24 million people. It is a major cultural and financial center and an important port for container shipments. The Chinese characters for this city are ä ¸Å Ã¦ µ ·, which is pronounced Shà  nghÇŽi. The first character ä ¸Å  (shà  ng) means on, and the second character æ µ · (hÇŽi) means ocean. The name ä ¸Å Ã¦ µ · (Shà  nghÇŽi) adequately describes the location of this city, since it is a port city on the mouth of the Yangtze River by the East China Sea. Mandarin vs Shanghainese Mandarin and Shanghainese are distinct languages which are mutually unintelligible. For example, there are 5 tones in Shanghainese versus only 4 tones in Mandarin. Voiced initials are used in Shanghainese, but not in Mandarin. Also, changing tones affects both words and phrases in Shanghainese, while it only affects words in Mandarin. Writing Chinese characters are used to write Shanghainese. The written language is one of the most important factors in unifying the various Chinese cultures, since it can be read by most Chinese, regardless of their spoken language or dialect. The primary exception to this is the split between traditional and simplified Chinese characters. Simplified Chinese characters were introduced by the PRC in the 1950s, and can differ greatly from the traditional Chinese characters still used in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, and many overseas Chinese communities. Shanghai, as part of the PRC, uses simplified characters. Sometimes Chinese characters are used for their Mandarin sounds to write Shanghainese. This type of Shanghainese writing is seen on Internet blog posts and chat rooms as well as in some Shanghainese textbooks. Decline of Shanghainese From the early 1990s, the PRC banned Shanghainese from the education system, with the result that many of the young residents of Shanghai no longer speak the language fluently. Because the younger generation of Shanghai residents has been educated in Mandarin Chinese, the Shanghainese they speak is often mixed with Mandarin words and expressions. This type of Shanghainese is quite different from the language that older generations speak, which has created fears that real Shanghainese is a dying language. Modern Shanghainese In recent years, a movement has started to try to preserve the Shanghai language by promoting its cultural roots. The Shanghai government is sponsoring educational programs, and there is a movement to reintroduce Shanghainese language learning from kindergarten through to university. Interest in preserving Shanghainese is strong, and many young people, even though they speak a mixture of Mandarin and Shanghainese, see Shanghainese as a badge of distinction. Shanghai, as one of the most important cities of the PRC, has important cultural and financial ties with the rest of the world. The city is using those ties to promote Shanghai culture and the Shanghainese language.