Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2002. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 704-723). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

The dissertation explores traditions of expressing the body and sexuality in nineteenth-century Russia and how these traditions affect the literature of Russia’s Silver Age (1890-1921). The period's modernizing intellectuals had at their disposal two strategies: – a tradition of silence, which is used to avoid the very theme of sex and eroticism; – a tradition of representation associated with the burlesque, in which the author presents carnality and eroticism in a deliberately ludicrous, grotesque way. European literatures of the era were developing highly nuanced representations of sexuality, often in relation to social functions. Conversely, the Russian authors confront notable deficits as they revert to indigenous traditions of expression. How these authors move beyond these defi-cits is the core of the project. Chapter 1 explores three historical determinants for the “strategy of silence” and the “strategy of burlesque” marking the history of Russia's literary representation. The first is a set of profound differences between Western and Russian medical science, sexology and psychopathology. The second is a divide in perceptions of sexuality between Roman Catholic and Russian Orthodox traditions. The third is embodied in some of the earliest canonical representations of sexuality in literary history, including the Archpriest Avvakum’s Life (1682). Chapter 2 begins by taking up Aleksandr Pushkin and Nikolai Gogol as exemplars for Russian approaches to sexuality – with Pushkin exemplifying pro-erotic expression, and Gogol the opposite. The chapter concludes with analyses from late-nineteenth-century texts by Leskov, Tolstoy, Chekhov and Dostoevsky. Chapter 3 is focused on the ways some of the most emblematic works of the Silver Age (e.g., Sanin by Mikhail Artsybashev) emerge as deconstructions of the term “literary pornography” and as attempts to find new social representations of sexuality. Chapters 4 and 5 take up some major post-Silver Age texts and then Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita (1955). The Conclusion argues that during the Silver Age, Russian popular culture found itself in direct confrontation with the high cultures of the nation’s upper classes and intelligentsia. This Russian version of modernization is described as a full-blown Foucauldian “bio-history” of Russian culture: a history of indigenous representations of sexuality and the eroticized body. / text

The purpose of this research was to identify the contributors to optimal sexual experiences. At present, there is a lack of clinical knowledge, research knowledge and in-depth public discourse concerning the nature of healthy sexuality. The theoretical and research literature in this area has focused almost exclusively on defining and conceptualizing sexual dysfunctions with little attention paid to either normal or satisfactory experiences. Very little theory exists on the nature and components of optimal sexuality. To date, no empirical investigations have been done to determine the contributors to optimal sexual experiences. In order to identify the contributors to optimal sexual experiences, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 individuals who reported having experienced “great sex”. A phenomenologically-oriented content analysis was performed on interview transcripts to determine the contributors to optimal sexual experiences. Analysis led to the identification of seven major contributors, two pathways towards optimal sexual experiences and two minor contributors. The major contributors included developmental contributors, individual qualities overall, individual qualities in-the moment, skills, relationship qualities overall, relationship qualities in-the-moment and environmental, situational and preparatory contributors. Each of these larger themes was also characterized by a variety of more specific themes. The two pathways that led to optimal sexual experiences included individual qualities that facilitated relationship qualities and relationship qualities that facilitated individual qualities. Finally, the minor contributors consisted of personal proclivities and miscellaneous contributors. Noteworthy findings of this investigation are discussed and then compared and contrasted with existing research and theory. The implications of this work for the general public, sex therapy, sex education, theory and research are considered as well as the strengths and limitations of this study.

The thesis addresses a mode of visual art criticism that it characterizes as “antipodal”. Antipodality is a false image of the world, a phantasm. An antipodal simulacrum could be described by what Jurgis Baltrusaitus has called a “depraved perspective”, which is a procedure of investigation dominated by the passion to objectify the empirical sign in a conceit of perverse logic. A perspective rendering taken to literalist excess (comparable to the literalising of figurative language) causes anomalies in and corruptions of what is depicted. The invention of the antipodes by cartographers of early modern Europe—a “logical” necessity of mapping that then required discovery of the antipodal land as a lost object—might be such an instance of a depraved perspective. In Baltrusaitus’s terms, we could say such depravity produces an “aberration” in the manner of the optical phenomenon in which a celestial body is apparently displaced and viewed as if it were elsewhere. Such an aberration forms the thematic content of this thesis; content which is the proposition of an aberrant critical conceit of “antipodality” as a simulacrum. This was a formative concept for my own activity of art criticism, in that it allowed a defining moment for an Australian postmodernism (notably in the 1980s) as an evacuated sign-system of art, a styling of art as pseudo-art. But it has acquired a trajectory for art criticism beyond the definition of Australian postmodern style. An antipodal art criticism is likewise a pseudo-criticism, that’s to say, it is a performative enunciation of falseness: it addresses a pseudo-object. Like the antipodes, art is a necessary fiction for criticism, a lost object that needs to be discovered. The most potent pseudo-art for Australian postmodernism was kitsch, and its style was camp. For contemporary art criticism, however, in a digital era, the most potent pseudo-art is pornography, notably digital pornography. Kitsch is the simulacrum of aesthetic form. Pornography is the simulacrum of eroticism. The thesis develops a critical discussion of works of art through the perverse logic of pornography as a depraved perspective. In this respect, “antipodality” provides the conceptual structure of this thesis, which polemically reflects on art criticism and the simulacrum through the media of visual art, film and literature. In a specific Australian context, the thesis discusses the work of Imants Tillers and Lindy Lee as oeuvres that have dealt with the false identity of the artist as originator of their performative but empty signature styles. The pornographic impulse of antipodality is dealt with through other modes of self-portraiture and performativity, notably in three generations of photographic technique and genre: Diane Arbus, Merry Alpern and Natacha Merritt. The performative nature of a pseudo-art is correlative to the performativity of pornography as pseudo-eroticism: both render dubious any authenticity of the desire motivating the performances. The thesis examines in detail three instances of falsely performative identities in film: the alluring and haunted figure of Madeleine in Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo; the ingenue, picaresque protagonist of Roger Vadim’s sci-fi fantasy Barbarella; and Gough Lewis’s humanistic documentary on a porn star whose notoriety derived from subjecting herself to “the world’s largest gang bang”, Sex: The Annabel Chong Story. Each of these cinematic portraits operates, with varying degrees and moments of artifice, a metafictional transgression of figural borders. This strategy as a type of erotic theatricality is considered in detail with, among other passing examples, two celebrated short works of libertine literature (by Vivant Denon and Jean-François de Bastide); two paintings—one by nineteenth-century French academic artist Jules-Joseph Lefebvre, the other by the quite un-academic painter Pierre Bonnard; and with an erotic, theatrical innovation called the “Attitude”, introduced by Emma Hamilton as an amateur drawing room entertainment in the late eighteenth century. Hamilton’s captivating tableaux are discussed in terms of the phantasm, and the thesis is inspired by two literary exemplars of phantasmic portraiture: Edgar Allan Poe’s figure of “the man of the crowd” and Guy de Maupassant’s “Horla”. The latter, in particular, is presented as an analogy for the performative effect of antipodal simulacrum of art criticism.

Thesis (MA)--University of Stellenbosch, 2005. / Bibliography. Also available via the Internet.

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro / O presente trabalho tem como intuito investigar as possíveis implicações entre a angústia e a mulher. Nosso objetivo principal é pesquisar de que maneira a mulher experimenta a angústia e como este estado afetivo irrompe na vida psíquica feminina. Para tanto, recorremos a uma pesquisa na bibliografia psicanalítica sobre o tema, sobretudo na obra de Freud e no ensino de Lacan. Partimos da indicação daquele autor de que a angústia de castração, que se demonstra estruturante da vida psíquica do homem, não se apresenta como a base da angústia no outro sexo. O correlato da angústia de castração é o medo de perder o amor, que nos remete à investigação de um período arcaico da história da mulher: sua relação pré-edipiana com a mãe. Este primeiro enlace amoroso, que a mulher reeditará constantemente a cada novo encontro amoroso, servirá de base para toda sua vida erótica. Serviremo-nos, a fim de ilustrar esta questão, do romance O Amante, de Marguerite Duras, e da obra de Camille Claudel que demonstram a intrínseca relação devastadora entre a mulher, a angústia, o amor e a mãe. / The present work aims to investigate the possible implications between the woman and anguish. Our main focus is to research the ways that the woman experiences anguish and how such an affective state bursts out in the psychic feminine life. In order to conduct the research, a psychoanalytical bibliography about the topic was revisited, especially in Freuds work and Lacans studies. The research was based upon Freuds indication that castration anguish, shown as structuring in a mans psychic life, does not present itself as the basis of anguish in the other sex. The correlate to the anguish of castration, for a woman, is the fear of the loss of love, which leads to the investigation of an archaic period in a womans history: her pre-oedipal relation with the mother. This first love bond, which the woman will re-edit several times in each new love encounter, will serve as a basis throughout all her erotic life. In order to illustrate such an issue, Marguerite Durass novel,The Lover, and Camille Claudels works have been chosen to show the intrinsic devastating relation among the woman, anguish, love and the mother.

Esta pesquisa de doutorado em Educação, realizada com recorte etnográfico, analisa um determinado lugar na cidade de Porto Alegre, reconhecido como um lugar de sociabilidades e práticas homossexuais, mas que se diferencia ao acolher qualquer público adulto (homens heterossexuais, travestis, mulheres). Mesmo se tratando de lugar reconhecidamente gay, paradoxalmente se percebem indicações eróticas e hierarquizações a partir de comportamentos e práticas heterossexuais. Inspirado na obra do Marques de Sade, Os 120 dias de Sodoma ou a Escola de Libertinagem, penso nesse local com a ajuda da metáfora do Castelo de Silling, que sofreu inúmeras adaptações para comportar tantas atuações a partir de manifestações eróticas e das próprias práticas sexuais. O ‘castelo’ pesquisado também possibilitou a análise de uma específica prática corporal, o strip tease masculino, a partir de variados investimentos no substrato corporal de homens jovens, masculinos, que diariamente exibem-se para uma plateia predominantemente homossexual. Nesses shows foram percebidos elementos pedagógicos relacionados a gênero e sexualidade, pautados em uma possível supremacia da heterossexualidade que se apresenta no palco, ao mesmo tempo em que se desvalorizam as próprias homossexualidades dos clientes, o gênero feminino e a condição travesti. Portanto, tal ‘castelo’ pode ser também analisado a partir de referenciais heteronormativos percebidos em alguns espaços e nesses shows com o rechaço das homossexualidades e feminilidades ali representadas. / This qualitative doctoral research in education, conducted with ethnographic inspiration, examines a particular place in the city of Porto Alegre, recognised as a place of homosexual sociabilities and practices, but that also excepts any adult audience (heterosexual men, transvestites, women). Even if it came to be recognized as a gay place, paradoxically it is possible to notice some hierarchies based upon heterosexual practices and behaviors. Inspired by the work of Marquis de Sade, The 120 days of Sodom, or the School of Licentiouness, I see this particular research field as he metaphor of the Silling castle, which suffered numerous adaptations to accommodate several performances and erotic practices. The ' Castle ' that was researched also enabled the analysis of a specific bodily practice, the male strip tease. The analysis problematized the various investments in the body young masculine men who, daily entertain an audience that is predominantly homosexual. In these shows pedagogical elements related to gender and sexuality were perceived. These elements presented on stage were mosty based on a possible supremacy of heterosexuality, which at the same time that devalues the homosexuality of the customers, the feminine and transvestite conditions. Therefore, though being mostly dedicated to gay customers the shows presented in this “castle” also have heteronormative referentials like the rejection of feminine traits and homosexuality.

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / Pretendemos analisar nesta tese as semelhanças entre o discurso do literário e o discurso do sagrado em dois poetas místicos: San Juan de la Cruz e Murilo Mendes. Vamos perceber os pontos de junção entre os dois discursos. Apesar de terem obras poéticas tão afastadas no tempo, encontramos como pontos de semelhança nelas a relação entre o humano e o divino, o erotismo, a expressão barroca. Como diferenças, podemos perceber que em San Juan de la Cruz encontramos a expressão da subjetividade, enquanto, em Murilo Mendes, vemos Deus como visão da externalidade. Também veremos como os dois poetas subvertem a teologia escolástica, ao escolherem a via da teologia mística, buscando anelos não-racionais e afetivos na construção poética do sagrado. O diálogo entre amante e Amado será valorizado a partir de uma linguagem carregada de erotismo que faz ressaltar um tributo à forma que permeia os dois poetas em questão. Por sua vez, o jogo entre imanência e transcendência aparecerá na poesia de tais autores como forma de demonstrar uma poesia que não apenas segue um caminho, mas que aponta para a complexidade da pluralidade dos discursos. Portanto, tais poetas escolherão vias próximas e longínquas ao falar do sagrado / We will analyze the resemblances between discourse of literature and discourse of Sacred in two mystic poets: San Juan de La Cruz and Murilo Mendes. We will understand the points of contact between the two works. In spite of the two poetical works be so far in time, we find as points of resemblances in them the relationship of Humane and Divine, Eroticism, the Baroque expression. As a difference, we can understand that in San Juan de La Cruzs works we find the expression of subjectivity while, in Murilo Mendes, we see God as a vision of external. We also will see how the two poets overthrow the Scholastic Theology, in choosing the path of mystic theology, searching no-rational but affective desires in the poetical construction of Sacred. The dialogue between lover and beloved will be enriched through a language full of eroticism that makes stand out a tribute to the form that permeates these two poets. Also, the play between immanence and transcendence will appear in the poetry of these authors as a way to demonstrate a poetry that not only follow one path, but indicates a complexity of plural discourses. So, these poets will choose close and distant paths as they speak about the sacred

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro / O presente trabalho tem como intuito investigar as possíveis implicações entre a angústia e a mulher. Nosso objetivo principal é pesquisar de que maneira a mulher experimenta a angústia e como este estado afetivo irrompe na vida psíquica feminina. Para tanto, recorremos a uma pesquisa na bibliografia psicanalítica sobre o tema, sobretudo na obra de Freud e no ensino de Lacan. Partimos da indicação daquele autor de que a angústia de castração, que se demonstra estruturante da vida psíquica do homem, não se apresenta como a base da angústia no outro sexo. O correlato da angústia de castração é o medo de perder o amor, que nos remete à investigação de um período arcaico da história da mulher: sua relação pré-edipiana com a mãe. Este primeiro enlace amoroso, que a mulher reeditará constantemente a cada novo encontro amoroso, servirá de base para toda sua vida erótica. Serviremo-nos, a fim de ilustrar esta questão, do romance O Amante, de Marguerite Duras, e da obra de Camille Claudel que demonstram a intrínseca relação devastadora entre a mulher, a angústia, o amor e a mãe. / The present work aims to investigate the possible implications between the woman and anguish. Our main focus is to research the ways that the woman experiences anguish and how such an affective state bursts out in the psychic feminine life. In order to conduct the research, a psychoanalytical bibliography about the topic was revisited, especially in Freuds work and Lacans studies. The research was based upon Freuds indication that castration anguish, shown as structuring in a mans psychic life, does not present itself as the basis of anguish in the other sex. The correlate to the anguish of castration, for a woman, is the fear of the loss of love, which leads to the investigation of an archaic period in a womans history: her pre-oedipal relation with the mother. This first love bond, which the woman will re-edit several times in each new love encounter, will serve as a basis throughout all her erotic life. In order to illustrate such an issue, Marguerite Durass novel,The Lover, and Camille Claudels works have been chosen to show the intrinsic devastating relation among the woman, anguish, love and the mother.

This collection of short stories and the accompanying critical exegesis interrogates whether eroticism, as defined by Georges Bataille, is possible in contemporary erotic writing. The project employs a Lacanian lens through which to examine the notions of transgression, selfhood, transcendence and language as aspects of Bataillean eroticism. It argues that works in the erotica genre such as 'Fifty Shades of Grey' rely on nostalgia for the transgression of prohibitions that no longer hold moral authority. This project argues, theoretically and creatively, that we must discover and define what constitutes contemporary taboos and prohibitions in mainstream society if we are to formulate new erotic works that explore their transgression.