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"FUNNY GAMES. Spielräume des Sadomasochismus in Film und Medien" ist der Versuch, eine Geschichte medialer Schmerzlust zu rekonstruieren – in etwa von 1789 bis heute. Neben klassischer SM-Literatur sind es Spielfilme wie VIDEODROME (1983), FALSCHER BEKENNER (2005), THE HURT LOCKER (2008) oder SHORTBUS (2006), in denen modernes Schmerzlust-Empfinden und -Begehren offenbar wird. Die Untersuchung richtet sich dabei auf Konzepte technoimaginärer Wunsch- und Höllenmaschinen, dynamisierte Ich-Apparate, wie sie Donatien-Alphonse-François de Sade, Leopold und Wanda von Sacher-Masoch, Ernst Kapp, Sigmund Freud, Daniel Paul Schreber, Jacques Lacan, Gilles Deleuze und Félix Guattari, David Cronenberg, Michael Haneke, Kathryn Bigelow u.v.a. im Medienumfeld ihrer Zeit individuell erleben und auf ihre je eigene Art – meist sehr fantasiereich – bearbeiten. Der vorliegende Entwurf, medienarchäologische Spurensicherung und gleichsam Test-Spiel, ist vor allem eine Einladung zum Mitmachen: Beim obsessiven Durchschreiten virtueller (Alptraum-)Welten und realer Körper negative und positive Lust zu erfahren, sich neuen Sinnesreizqualitäten zu öffnen, um schließlich Mehr-Lust und -Wissen zu erwerben. Anti-Ödipus als interaktives Video(bei)spiel. Als Analysetools haben sich Erkenntnisse aus der (strukturalen) Psychoanalyse, der (technischen) Medienwissenschaft, (Film-)Philosophie, der Gender-, Gewalt-, Fetisch- und (kulturwissenschaftlichen) Spieltheorie als hilfreich erwiesen, um dem Geheimnis und Rätsel sadomasochistischer Schmerzlust – und ihrer crash-Medien – ein wenig näher zu kommen. / "FUNNY GAMES. Spielräume des Sadomasochismus in Film und Medien" aims to reconstruct a history of pleasure and gratification through pain in the media since the end of the eighteenth century. In addition to classical sado-masochistic literature, the thesis focuses on movies in which modern forms of experiencing and desiring pain such as VIDEODROME (1983), I AM GUILTY (2005), THE HURT LOCKER (2008) and SHORTBUS (2006) manifest themselves. Central to the study are concepts of techno-imaginary wish machines and infernal devices, dynamised ego-apparatuses, that are experienced and expressed through the media of their time by writers, philosophers, psychoanalysts and film directors such as Donatien-Alphonse-François de Sade, Leopold and Wanda von Sacher-Masoch, Ernst Kapp, Sigmund Freud, Daniel Paul Schreber, Jacques Lacan, Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari, David Cronenberg, Michael Haneke and Kathryn Bigelow. The present study, an attempt to secure the medial evidence and try it out at the same time, is meant most of all as an invitation to participate: to experience positive desire and lust while obsessively progressing through virtual worlds of dreams and nightmares and the real world of the human body, to open oneself to new experiences in order to gain both new knowledge and new desires. Anti-Oedipus as a textual videogame. The analytical tools employed in this study include findings from (structural) psychoanalysis, media sciences, (movie) philosophy, gender theory, the theory of violence, fetish theory and game theory as applied in cultural studies. They have proven to be very helpful in illuminating at least some aspects of the mystery that is the sado-masochist desire for pain.

Unter dem Begriff des Poststrukturalismus wird eine disparate, auf den Axiomen des Strukturalismus aufbauende und diese zugleich überwindende Strömung verstanden, die sowohl innerhalb der Sozial- und Kulturwissenschaften als auch in interdisziplinär organisierten Feldern wie den Gender Studies von großer Tragweite ist. Geteilt wird die Auffassung, dass kulturelle Phänomene allgemein sprachlich strukturiert sind. Seine Tendenz, unter die Oberfläche vermeintlich stabiler, monolithischer Strukturen zu schauen, qualifiziert den Poststrukturalismus für eine Anwendung auf genderwissenschaftliche Kategorien wie Weiblichkeit und Männlichkeit, deren Bedeutung nicht aus sich selbst erwächst, sondern die als Signifikate innerhalb eines (phallokratischen) Systems zu denken sind.

當代哲學家紀傑克以他對於政治與文化現象的拉岡式解讀而聞名，但他哲學中的核心母題是什麼？對紀傑克而言，哲學不是使人「安然棲身」的論述，而是跟陌生感與他異性更緊密相關。所以，在紀傑克的眼中，哲學家的工作，不在於提供具體的解決方案，而是在於「新問題的創造」，重塑爭論的框架本身。 　　這篇研究中，筆者使用「系統與他者」這組概念，來彰顯紀傑克的兩大核心母題，其一，便是在有限性的範圍之內主張的自由，其二，則是他對新穎與變化的追索。「他者」使得系統能夠不斷重新定向，並向根本的變化保持開放。 　　「脫節狀態」是紀傑克用以描述主體之基本自由的概念。主體活動不被自然或文化的任一方決定；於是，所有主體所作的系統整合，都是一種與他者建立暫態平衡的嘗試，而所有用以整合的意指活動，都是一種對於他異性的回應，一種安身立命的奠基姿態。 　　簡言之，所謂「象徵界與實在界的不協調性」，在紀傑克的術語中不是消極的意涵，而是積極的意涵：它使得意義建構得以開始，並且是人類自由的根源。透過「系統」與「他者」的互動，思想總是有能力重新定向，藉此維持其鮮活與彈性，而這正是紀傑克式主體在現今政治情境中所致力實現的。 / Contemporary philosopher Slavoj Žižek is well-known for his Lacanian reading on political and cultural phenomena, but what is the central motif of his philosophy? For Žižek, philosophy is not some discourse to make people feel “being at home”, but rather something more related to foreignness and otherness. In Žižek’s eyes, What a philosopher really does is not providing substantial solutions, but rather “inventing new problems”, reshaping the framework of argumentation itself. 　　In this thesis, ”System and other” is the term I introduce to thematize two central motifs in Žižek’s philosophy: the first motif is his tireless assertion of freedom within the realm of finitude, and the second one is his relentless seeking for innovations and changes. “Other” is what enables the system to continuously re-orientate itself, and keep the system open to fundamental changes. 　　Žižek uses “Out-of-jointedness” to describe the fundamental freedom of the subject, neither nature nor culture can determine the subject. Every system organized by the subject is an attempt to create a transient balance with the other, and every totalizing signification is s a response to the otherness, the founding gesture of situating the subject itself into a meaningful context. 　　To sum up, Žižek does not use “Inconsistency between the Symbolic and the Real” as a negative term, but rather a positive term, it is the very starting point of meaning construction, and the ground for human freedom. Through the interaction between ”system and other”, the thought is always ready for re-orientation, therefore the thought is kept alive and flexible, and this is exactly what a Žižekian subject wants to accomplish in the present political situations.

<p>This thesis examines the social theory of Lacanian philosopher Slavoj Žižek. It focuses on Žižek’s work between 1989 and 2006, and offers an interpretation based on a reading of three central concepts: the Other, fantasy, and the act. All these concepts occupy the intersection between Lacan’s three orders (Imaginary, Real, Symbolic), which in Žižek’s theory means that they express a tension shared by all social order. The first chapter approaches Žižek’s conception of “the social” through an introduction of the Lacanian concept of "the Other." Attention is paid to how (a) the Other is constitutively split between its role as a Symbolic network of signifiers, and its enigmatic (Real and Imaginary) capacity to support this Symbolic network; (b) a similar split marks several of Žižek’s Lacanian and Hegelian concepts. Moreover, the chapter contrasts Žižekian sociality with those of Giddens, Luhmann and Althusser. The second chapter gives an account of the topological place of fantasy in Žižek’s theory. Relating Žižek’s theory to Critical Theory, deconstruction and Deleuzian philosophy, fantasy is presented as a concept countering new forms of “bad infinity” (Hegel) in modern social theory. The third chapter links Žižek’s theory of the act to the theories of Judith Butler, Ernesto Laclau, and Alain Badiou. Commenting on Rex Butler’s brilliant reading of Žižek, the thesis argues that Butler’s definition of the act is too negative. Instead, the thesis proposes a definition which emphasises the act's productive dimension, insisting on how the act ultimately involves the transformation from masculine to feminine enjoyment. The last chapter critically observes the different treatments Lacan and Derrida receive in Žižek’s text. The argument concludes that the Žižekian text relapses into a "masculine logic of exception", insofar as it leaves Derrida’s phallus untouched, while treating Lacan as the only one lacking phallus.</p>

This thesis examines the social theory of Lacanian philosopher Slavoj Žižek. It focuses on Žižek’s work between 1989 and 2006, and offers an interpretation based on a reading of three central concepts: the Other, fantasy, and the act. All these concepts occupy the intersection between Lacan’s three orders (Imaginary, Real, Symbolic), which in Žižek’s theory means that they express a tension shared by all social order. The first chapter approaches Žižek’s conception of “the social” through an introduction of the Lacanian concept of "the Other." Attention is paid to how (a) the Other is constitutively split between its role as a Symbolic network of signifiers, and its enigmatic (Real and Imaginary) capacity to support this Symbolic network; (b) a similar split marks several of Žižek’s Lacanian and Hegelian concepts. Moreover, the chapter contrasts Žižekian sociality with those of Giddens, Luhmann and Althusser. The second chapter gives an account of the topological place of fantasy in Žižek’s theory. Relating Žižek’s theory to Critical Theory, deconstruction and Deleuzian philosophy, fantasy is presented as a concept countering new forms of “bad infinity” (Hegel) in modern social theory. The third chapter links Žižek’s theory of the act to the theories of Judith Butler, Ernesto Laclau, and Alain Badiou. Commenting on Rex Butler’s brilliant reading of Žižek, the thesis argues that Butler’s definition of the act is too negative. Instead, the thesis proposes a definition which emphasises the act's productive dimension, insisting on how the act ultimately involves the transformation from masculine to feminine enjoyment. The last chapter critically observes the different treatments Lacan and Derrida receive in Žižek’s text. The argument concludes that the Žižekian text relapses into a "masculine logic of exception", insofar as it leaves Derrida’s phallus untouched, while treating Lacan as the only one lacking phallus.

Text in English with abstracts in English, Afrikaans and isiZulu / There has been considerable debate amongst feminist scholars as to whether the normalization of cosmetic surgery positively impacts women, empowers women by promoting agency and choice (Gimlin 2002, Kuczynski 2006), or oppresses women by propagating patriarchal ideologies that confine women’s bodies and consequently inhibit their voice (Blum 2003, Blood 2005, Heinricy 2006, Clarke and Griffin 2007, Tait, 2007). Rather than entering this debate my argument proceeds from a premise that the normalization of cosmetic surgery is a form of implicit and exclusive violence. Using a selection of post‐structuralist, feminist, and psychoanalytic theories, I analyze the manner in which this form of violence confines women’s bodies and structures the psyche. Using Jacques Lacan, Judith Butler, and Michel Foucault’s argument on pastoral power, I deconstruct the formation of the normalized self, the conscience, and the act of confession as it translates in the context of the cosmetic surgical body itself. Furthermore, I highlight liberal feminism’s role in this form of oppression. In so doing, I theoretically show the continual and effective functioning of pastoral power in the context of an individualization technique that oppresses women in the second decade of the twenty‐first century. I argue that the normalization of cosmetic surgery provokes a silencing of woman’s voices, an exploitation and oppression of the individual’s psyche, and an invalidation of the living body by a less visible, less explicit, mode of incarceration that is concealed by an aesthetic and moral veil. It is in this context that I present a counter discourse to the oppression that underlies the normalizing discourses promoted by the cosmetic surgical industry, a destabilization of patriarchal norms embedded within cosmetic surgical discourses, and a theoretical reconstruction that involves an inscription of what I refer to as an authentic feminist voice in contemporary consumer culture – a mode of intimate unconscious insurgence. I advocate a return to Julia Kristeva’s theory and the intimate revolt promoted by her ethical approach. Furthermore, I present a voice that demonstrates an intimate revolt – a voice that challenges patriarchal norms and is not exclusively confined by the mechanisms of normalization that shape the twenty‐first century woman with emphasis on the cosmetic surgical industry and its superincumbent discourses – the South African poet Antjie Krog. It is Krog’s skillfully structured poetic texts that facilitate my theoretical reconstruction. Applying Kristeva’s theory on semanalysis, I theoretically show that Krog’s work fabricates an excess to the confines of the law of the Father and the mechanisms of normalization itself. In addition, I present an “originary attachment” as an adaption of Kristeva’s argument on the chora and my proposal of an “originary ideal” challenges Kristeva’s emphasis on phonetic grams in the context of that which underlies the realm of the paternal metaphor. Using Louise Viljoen’s analysis of Krog’s work and Bridget Garnham’s research on emerging designer cosmetic surgical discourses as support, I then present Krog’s poetic texts as a counter discourse to the “moral” cosmetic surgical discourses that exploit the ageing individual in the second decade of the twenty‐first century. In addition, applying Kristeva’s theory on paragrams to Krog’s poetic text(s), I present a destabilization of the patriarchal norms implicit within cosmetic surgical discourses. Furthermore, I extend Kristeva’s theory on the principle of negativity to present a re‐translation of the act‐of‐confession in Krog’s poetic text(s), an extension of Foucault’s pastoral power and Butler’s argument on the exclusivity of normalization, and a reclamation of her ageing body in Verweersrkrif/Body Bereft (Krog 2006). / Feministiese geleerdes voer al geruime tyd 'n warm debat oor die kwessie of die normalisering van kosmetiese chirurgie vroue positief beïnvloed, vroue bemagtig deurdat dit volmag en keuse vir hulle in die hand werk (Gimlin 2002; Kuczynski 2006), of vroue onderdruk deurdat dit patriargale ideologieë voorstaan wat die vroueliggaam inperk en gevolglik die vrou inhibeer om haar stem te laat hoor (Blood 2005; Blum 2005; Clarke en Griffin 2007; Heinricy 2006; Tait 2007). In plaas daarvan om by hierdie debat betrokke te raak, gaan ek van die veronderstelling uit dat die normalisering van kosmetiese chirurgie 'n vorm van implisiete en eksklusiewe geweld is. Aan die hand van post-strukturalistiese, feministiese en psigoanalitiese teorieë ontleed ek die manier waarop hierdie vorm van geweld vroue se liggaam onderwerp en hul psige vorm. Ek dekonstrueer die vorming van die genormaliseerde self, die bewussyn en die daad van belydenis, soos dit in die konteks oorgebring word, aan die hand van Jacques Lacan, Judith Butler en Michel Foucault se beskouings van herderlike oftewel pastorale mag. Hierbenewens onderstreep ek die rol wat liberale feminisme in hierdie vorm van onderwerping speel. Sodoende demonstreer ek teoreties hoe die voortdurende en effektiewe funksionering van pastorale mag in die konteks van ’n individualiseringstegniek vroue in die tweede dekade van die een-en-twintigste eeu onderdruk. Ek maak die aanname dat die normalisering van kosmetiese chirurgie daartoe bydra dat vroue die swye opgelê word, die individu se psige uitgebuit en onderdruk word en die lewende liggaam ontkragtig word deur middel van ’n inkerkering wat minder sigbaar en minder eksplisiet is en agter ’n estetiese en morele sluier verdoesel word. In hierdie konteks bied ek ’n teendiskoers aan vir die onderwerping wat onderliggend is aan die normaliseringsdiskoerse wat die kosmetiesechirurgiebedryf ondersteun, en ek bepleit dat die patriargale norme wat in diskoerse oor kosmetiese chirurgie vassit, gedestabiliseer word. Ek demonstreer verder ’n teoretiese rekonstruksie wat ’n inskripsie insluit van wat ek ’n geloofwaardige feministiese stem in die eietydse verbruikerskultuur noem – ’n modus van intieme, onbewuste opstandigheid. Ek bepleit 'n terugkeer na Julia Kristeva se teorie en die intieme oproer wat deur haar etiese benadering voorgestaan word. Afgesien hiervan stel ek ’n stem voor wat ’n intieme opstand demonstreer – ’n stem wat patriargale norme uitdaag en nie uitsluitlik onderdruk word deur die normaliseringsmeganismes wat vorm gee aan die vrou van die een-entwintigste eeu nie, waar die klem op die kosmetiesechirurgiebedryf en die boliggende diskoerse daarvan val – Antjie Krog, Suid-Afrikaanse digter. Dit is juis Krog se kunstig gestruktureerde digterlike tekste wat my teoretiese rekonstruksie fasiliteer. Aan die hand van Kristeva se teorie oor semanalise toon ek teoreties dat Krog se werk ’n ruimte daarstel wat "uitstyg" bo die grense wat die wet van die Vader en die normaliseringsmeganismes stel. Hierbenewens stel ek ’n "originêre gehegtheid" as aanpassing van Kristeva se beskouing van die chora voor, en my voorstel van ’n "originêre ideaal" daag Kristeva se opvating oor paragramme uit in die konteks van dit wat ten grondslag lê aan die gebied van die paternalistiese metafoor. Op grond van Louise Viljoen se ontleding van Krog se werk en Bridget Garnham se navorsing oor opkomende diskoerse oor ontwerpers- kosmetiese chirurgie bied ek Krog se digterlike tekste aan as ’n teendiskoers vir die "morele" diskoerse oor kosmetiese chirurgie wat die verouderende individu in die tweede dekade van die een-en-twintigste eeu uitbuit. Daarby, deur Kristeva se teorie oor paragramme op Krog se digterlike teks(te) toe te pas, demonstreer ek 'n destabilisering van die patriargale norme wat implisiet in diskoerse oor kosmetiese chirurgie teenwoordig is. Hierbenewens brei ek Kristeva se teorie oor die negatiwiteitsbeginsel uit deur middel van ’n heroorsetting van die belydenisdaad in Krog se digwerk(e), ’n uitbreiding van Foucault se pastorale mag en Butler se opvatting oor die eksklusiwiteit van normalisering, en ’n opeising van Krog se verouderende liggaam in Verweerskrif/Body Bereft (Krog 2006). / Sekubekhona izingxoxo-mpikiswano eziningi kwizifundiswa zama-feminist ukuthi ngabe ukwenza isurgery yohlinzo olungajulile ukuzishintsha ukubukeka ngokwemvelo (cosmetic plastic surgery) kunomphumela omuhle yini kwabesimame, ngabe kuhlinzeka ngamandla kwabesimame ngokuphakamisela phezulu ukuthi umuntu azenzele akufunayo kanye nokuzikhethela (Grimlin 2002, Kuczynski 2006) noma kuyinto ecindezela abesimame ngokuqhubela phambili indlela nama-idiyoloji abekwa ngabesilisa ukuthi imizimba yabesimame kumele ibukeke kanjani, kanti lokhu kucindezela izwi labesimame (Blum 2003, Blood 2005, Heinricy 2006, Clarke and Griffin 2007, Tait, 2007). Kunokuthi iphuzu nami ngingenele kule ngxoxo-mpikiswano, elami iphuzu lona liqhubeka ukusukela kwisimo sokuthi ukwamukela uhlujzo olungajulile lokuzitshintsha ukubukeka kwabesimame (cosmetic surgery) kuyindlela yodlame olungaqondile ngqo kanye nolukhipha inyumbazane abesimame. Ngokusebenzisa amathiyori epost-structuralist, awe-feminist kanye nawepsychoanalytical, ngihlaziya indlela le nhlobo yalolu dlame ecindezela ngayo imizimba yabesimame kanye nokuhlela indlela okumele bacabange nokuzibona ngayo. Ngokusebenzisa iphuzu likaJacques Lacan, Judith Buttle kanye noMichel Foucault lamandla okukhokhela ngokomoya, ngiqhaqha indlela okubumbeka ngayo isithombe sokuzibona, unembeza kanye nomoya wokuhlambulula ngokuzidalula (confession) lapho kubhekwa izinto ngaphansi kwesimo somzimba wokuhlinzwa okungajulile ukuzishintsha ukubukeka ngokwakho. Nangaphezu kwalokho, ngigqamisa indima ye-liberal feminism ngokwayo kule nhlobo yencindezelo. Ngokwenza lokho, ngikhombisa ngokwethiyori ukuqhubeka nokusebenza kwamandla esikhokhelo ngokomoya ngaphansi kwethekniki yokuzazi komuntu eyedwa okucindezela abesimame kwiminyaka elishumi yesibili, yesenshuri yamashumi amabili nanye . Ngiqhubela phambili iphuzu lokuthi ukwenziwa kohlinzo olungajulile lokuzishintsha ukubukeka kuqala umoya wokucindezela izwi labesimame, ukuxhashazwa kwabo, kanye nendlela umuntu azibona ngayo ngokwengqondo, kanye nokucindezela umzimba ophilayo ngezindlela ezingazibonakalisi obala, ezifihlekile, indlela yokubopha efihlwa yindlela yokubukeka kanye nokwembozwa umoya. Kungaphansi kwalesi simo lapho ngethula khona i-discourse yencindezelo eyenza ukuthi imboni yohlinzo olungajulile ukuzishintsha ukubukeka kwabesimame kube yinto ephakanyiswayo nokubonwa iyinhle, ukuphazamiseka kwama-norm endlela yengcindezi yabesilisa, ngaphansi kwama-discourse okuhlinzwa okungajulile ukushintsha ukubukeka, kanye nokwakha ithiyori ebandakanya ukubona izinto ngendlela ethize, engikuchaza njengezwi okuyilo elifanele le-feminism, kwisimo sosiko esiphila ngaphansi kwaso samanje - okuyindlela abantu abazibuka ngayo ezingqondweni ngendlela engekho obala. Ngigcizelela ukubuyela kwithiyori kaKristeva, kanye nokuthi abantu babhoke indlobana ngezindlela eziphansi, okuyinto ayiphakamisayo yenkambiso yokwazi okulungile nokungalunganga (ethical approach). Naphezu kwalokho, ngiveza izwi elibonisa ukubhoka indlobana kwabesimame ngendlela engekho sobala - izwi elifaka inselele kuma-norm okubhozomelwa ngumqondo wokulawula kwabesilisa, kanti futhi leli zwi aligcinanga nje kuphela umumo wabesimame ngendlela ejwayelekile njengowesimame wesenshuri yamashumi amabili-nanye ngokugcizelela kwimboni yohlinzo olungajulile lokuzishintsha ukubukeka, kanye nendlela lokhu okuyisihibe ngayo – ngokusho kukasonkondlo waseNingizimu Afrika, u-Antjie Krog. Imibhalo yezinkondlo zikaKrog ezinobungcweti yiyo eyenze ukwakha kwami kabusha ithiyori. Ngokusebenzisa ithiyori kaKristeva ye-semanalysis, ngibonisa ngokwethiyori ukuthi umsebenzi kaKrog uqambe okweqele ngaleya kwizihibe zomthetho kubaba kanye nezindlela zokwenza izinto zibukeke ngendlela evamile noma zingavamile. Nangaphezu kwalokho, ngifakela i-"originary attachment" njengokwenza ukuthi kube kwesinye isimo, iphuzu likaKristeva ku-chora kanti isiphakamiso sami se-"originary ideal" sifaka inselele kusigcizelelo sikaKristeva ngamagremu efonethiki ngaphansi kwesimo esigcizelela umfanekiso ngasohlangothini lobaba. Ngokusebenzisa ukuhlaziya kukaLouise Viljoen kumsebenzi kaKrog kanye nocwaningo lukaBridget Garnham ngokuvela kwama-discourse ohlinzo olungajulile ukuzishintsha ukubukeka njengesisekelo, ngase ngethula imibhalo yezinkondlo zikaKrog njenge-discourse yokuphikisa ama-discourse e-"moral" yama-discourse ohlinzo olungajulile lokuzishintsha ukubukeka, elixhaphaza abantu abagugayo ngeminyaka eyishumi yesibili kwisenshuri yamashumi amabili-nanye. Naphezu kwalokho, ngisebenzise ithiyori kaKristeva kumapharagramu kwimibhalo yezinkondlo zikaKrog, ngaphazamisa imibono yokuphatha kwabesilisa equkethwe kuma-discourse ohlinzo ulungajulile ukuzishintsha ukubukeka. Ukuqhubekela phambili, nginwebe ithiyori kaKristeva ngesimiso se-negativity ukwethula ukuhumusha kabusha umoya wokuzihlambulula ngokuzidalula otholakala kwizinkondlozikaKrog, ukuwukunweba amandla umbono kaFaucault wamandla okuthi abantu bazibone ngenye indlela kanye nephuzu likaButler wlkuthi into engavamile engaphandle ibonwe njengento efanele, kanye nokwamukela umzimba ogugayo kwinkondlo ye- Verweerskrif/Body Bereft (Krog 2006). / English Studies / D. Litt. et Phil.(Theory of Literature)

Unter dem Begriff des Poststrukturalismus wird eine disparate, auf den Axiomen des Strukturalismus aufbauende und diese zugleich überwindende Strömung verstanden, die sowohl innerhalb der Sozial- und Kulturwissenschaften als auch in interdisziplinär organisierten Feldern wie den Gender Studies von großer Tragweite ist. Geteilt wird die Auffassung, dass kulturelle Phänomene allgemein sprachlich strukturiert sind. Seine Tendenz, unter die Oberfläche vermeintlich stabiler, monolithischer Strukturen zu schauen, qualifiziert den Poststrukturalismus für eine Anwendung auf genderwissenschaftliche Kategorien wie Weiblichkeit und Männlichkeit, deren Bedeutung nicht aus sich selbst erwächst, sondern die als Signifikate innerhalb eines (phallokratischen) Systems zu denken sind.

This dissertation examines how Philippine (or Filipino) authors emphasise the need for articulating or “re/membering” cultural identity. The researcher mainly draws from the theory of Caribbean critic, Stuart Hall, who views cultural identity as an articulation which allows “the fragmented, decentred human agent” to be considered as one who is both “subject-ed” by power but/and one who is capable of acting against those powers (Grossberg 1996 [1986]: 157, emphasis mine). Applied to the Philippine context, this writer argues that, instead of viewing an apparent fragmented Filipino identity as a hindrance to “defining” cultural identity, she views the “damaged” (Fallows 1987) Filipino history as a the material itself which allows articulation of identity. Instead of reducing the cultural identity of a people to what-they-could-have-been-had-history-not-intervened, she puts forward a vision of identity which attempts to transfigure these “damages” through the efforts of coming-to-terms with history. While this point of view has already been shared by other critics (such as Feria 1991 or Dalisay 1998:145), the author’s contribution lies in presenting re/membering to describe a specific type of articulation which neither permits one to deny wounds of the past nor stagnate in them. Moreover, re/membering allows one to understand continuous re-articulations of “new” identities (due to current migration), while putting an “arbitrary closure” (Hall) to simplistic re-articulations which may only further the “lines of tendential forces” (such as black or brown skin bias) or hegemonic practices. Written as such (with a slash),“re/membering” encapsulates the following three-fold meaning: (1) a “re-membering”, to indicate “a putting together of the dismembered past to make sense of the trauma of the present” (Bhabha 1994:63); as (2) a “re-membering” or a re-integration into a group and; as (3) “remembering” which implies possessing “memory or … set [ting] off in search of a memory” (Ricoeur 2004:4). As a morphological unit, “re/membering” designates, the ways in which Filipino authors try to articulate cultural identity through the routes of colonisation, migration and dictatorship. The authors studied in this thesis include: Carlos Bulosan, Bienvenido Santos, N.V.M. Gonzalez, Nick Joaquin, Frank Sionil José, Ninotchka Rosca, Jessica Hagedorn, and Merlinda Bobis. Sixty-years separate Bulosan’s America is in the Heart (1943) from Hagedorn’s Dream Jungle (2003). Analysis of these works reveals how articulation is both difficult and hopeful. On the one hand, authors criticize the lack of efforts and seriousness towards articulation of cultural identity as re/membering (coming to terms with the past, fostering belonging and cultivating memory). Not only is re/membering challenged by double-consciousness (Du Bois 1994), dismemberment and forgetting, moreover, its necessity is likewise hard to recognize because of pain, trauma, phenomena of splitting, escapist attitudes and preferences for a “comfortable captivity”. On the other hand, re/membering can also be described as hopeful by the way authors themselves make use of literature to articulate identity through research, dialogue, time, reconciliation and re-creation. Although painstaking and difficult, re/membering is important and necessary because what is at stake is an articulated Philippine cultural identity. However, who would be prepared to make the effort? ------ Cette thèse démontre que, pour les auteurs philippins, l’articulation ou « re/membering » l'identité culturelle, est nécessaire. Le chercheur s'appuie principalement sur la théorie de Stuart Hall, qui perçoit l'identité culturelle comme une articulation qui permet de considérer l’homme assujetti capable aussi d'agir contre des pouvoirs (cf. Grossberg 1996 [1986]: 157). Appliquée au contexte philippin, cet auteur soutient que, au lieu de la visualisation d'une identité fragmentée apparente comme un obstacle à une « définition » de l'identité culturelle, elle regarde l’histoire philippine «abîmée» (Fallows 1987) comme le matériel même qui permet l'articulation d’identité. Au lieu de réduire l'identité culturelle d'un peuple à ce qu’ ils auraint pû être avant les interventions de l’histoire, elle met en avant une vision de l'identité qui cherche à transfigurer ces "dommages" par un travail d’acceptation avec l'histoire. Bien que ce point de vue a déjà été partagé par d'autres critiques (tels que Feria 1991 ou Dalisay 1998:145), la contribution de l'auteur réside dans la présentation de « re/membering » pour décrire un type d'articulation sans refouler les plaies du passé, mais sans stagner en elles non plus. De plus, « re/membering » permet de comprendre de futures articulations de « nouvelles » identités culturelles (en raison de la migration en cours), tout en mettant une «fermeture arbitraire» (Hall) aux ré-articulations simplistes qui ne font que promouvoir des “lines of tendential forces” (Hall) (tels que des préjugés sur la couleur brune ou noire de peau) ou des pratiques hégémoniques. Rédigé en tant que telle (avec /), « re/membering » comporte une triple signification: (1) une «re-membering », pour indiquer une mise ensemble d’un passé fragmenté pour donner un sens au traumatisme du présent (cf. Bhabha, 1994:63); (2) une «re-membering» ou une ré-intégration dans un groupe et finalement, comme (3)"remembering", qui suppose la possession de mémoire ou une recherche d'une mémoire »(Ricoeur 2004:4). Comme unité morphologique, « re/membering » désigne la manière dont les auteurs philippins tentent d'articuler l'identité culturelle à travers les routes de la colonisation, les migrations et la dictature. Les auteurs inclus dans cette thèse sont: Carlos Bulosan, Bienvenido Santos, NVM Gonzalez, Nick Joaquin, Frank Sionil José, Ninotchka Rosca, Jessica Hagedorn, et Merlinda Bobis. Soixante ans séparent America is in the Heart (1943) du Bulosan et le Dream Jungle (2003) du Hagedorn. L'analyse de ces œuvres révèle la façon dont l'articulation est à la fois difficile et pleine d'espoir. D'une part, les auteurs critiquent le manque d'efforts envers l'articulation en tant que « re/membering » (confrontation avec le passé, reconnaissance de l'appartenance et cultivation de la mémoire). Non seulement est « re/membering » heurté par le double conscience (Du Bois 1994), le démembrement et l'oubli, en outre, sa nécessité est également difficile à reconnaître en raison de la douleur, les traumatismes, les phénomènes de scission, les attitudes et les préférences d'évasion pour une captivité "confortable" . En même temps, « re/membering » peut également être décrit comme plein d'espoir par la façon dont les auteurs eux-mêmes utilisent la littérature pour articuler l'identité à travers la recherche, le dialogue, la durée, la réconciliation et la re-création. Bien que laborieux et difficile, « re/membering » est important et nécessaire car ce qui est en jeu, c'est une identité culturelle articulée des Philippines. Mais qui serait prêt à l'effort?

This dissertation examines how Philippine (or Filipino) authors emphasise the need for articulating or “re/membering” cultural identity. The researcher mainly draws from the theory of Caribbean critic, Stuart Hall, who views cultural identity as an articulation which allows “the fragmented, decentred human agent” to be considered as one who is both “subject-ed” by power but/and one who is capable of acting against those powers (Grossberg 1996 [1986]: 157, emphasis mine). Applied to the Philippine context, this writer argues that, instead of viewing an apparent fragmented Filipino identity as a hindrance to “defining” cultural identity, she views the “damaged” (Fallows 1987) Filipino history as a the material itself which allows articulation of identity. Instead of reducing the cultural identity of a people to what-they-could-have-been-had-history-not-intervened, she puts forward a vision of identity which attempts to transfigure these “damages” through the efforts of coming-to-terms with history. While this point of view has already been shared by other critics (such as Feria 1991 or Dalisay 1998:145), the author’s contribution lies in presenting re/membering to describe a specific type of articulation which neither permits one to deny wounds of the past nor stagnate in them. Moreover, re/membering allows one to understand continuous re-articulations of “new” identities (due to current migration), while putting an “arbitrary closure” (Hall) to simplistic re-articulations which may only further the “lines of tendential forces” (such as black or brown skin bias) or hegemonic practices.<p><p>Written as such (with a slash),“re/membering” encapsulates the following three-fold meaning: (1) a “re-membering”, to indicate “a putting together of the dismembered past to make sense of the trauma of the present” (Bhabha 1994:63); as (2) a “re-membering” or a re-integration into a group and; as (3) “remembering” which implies possessing “memory or … set [ting] off in search of a memory” (Ricoeur 2004:4). As a morphological unit, “re/membering” designates, the ways in which Filipino authors try to articulate cultural identity through the routes of colonisation, migration and dictatorship. <p><p>The authors studied in this thesis include: Carlos Bulosan, Bienvenido Santos, N.V.M. Gonzalez, Nick Joaquin, Frank Sionil José, Ninotchka Rosca, Jessica Hagedorn, and Merlinda Bobis. Sixty-years separate Bulosan’s America is in the Heart (1943) from Hagedorn’s Dream Jungle (2003). Analysis of these works reveals how articulation is both difficult and hopeful. On the one hand, authors criticize the lack of efforts and seriousness towards articulation of cultural identity as re/membering (coming to terms with the past, fostering belonging and cultivating memory). Not only is re/membering challenged by double-consciousness (Du Bois 1994), dismemberment and forgetting, moreover, its necessity is likewise hard to recognize because of pain, trauma, phenomena of splitting, escapist attitudes and preferences for a “comfortable captivity”. <p><p>On the other hand, re/membering can also be described as hopeful by the way authors themselves make use of literature to articulate identity through research, dialogue, time, reconciliation and re-creation. Although painstaking and difficult, re/membering is important and necessary because what is at stake is an articulated Philippine cultural identity. However, who would be prepared to make the effort?<p>------<p><p>Cette thèse démontre que, pour les auteurs philippins, l’articulation ou « re/membering » l'identité culturelle, est nécessaire. Le chercheur s'appuie principalement sur la théorie de Stuart Hall, qui perçoit l'identité culturelle comme une articulation qui permet de considérer l’homme assujetti capable aussi d'agir contre des pouvoirs (cf. Grossberg 1996 [1986]: 157). Appliquée au contexte philippin, cet auteur soutient que, au lieu de la visualisation d'une identité fragmentée apparente comme un obstacle à une « définition » de l'identité culturelle, elle regarde l’histoire philippine «abîmée» (Fallows 1987) comme le matériel même qui permet l'articulation d’identité. Au lieu de réduire l'identité culturelle d'un peuple à ce qu’ ils auraint pû être avant les interventions de l’histoire, elle met en avant une vision de l'identité qui cherche à transfigurer ces "dommages" par un travail d’acceptation avec l'histoire. <p><p>Bien que ce point de vue a déjà été partagé par d'autres critiques (tels que Feria 1991 ou Dalisay 1998:145), la contribution de l'auteur réside dans la présentation de « re/membering » pour décrire un type d'articulation sans refouler les plaies du passé, mais sans stagner en elles non plus. De plus, « re/membering » permet de comprendre de futures articulations de « nouvelles » identités culturelles (en raison de la migration en cours), tout en mettant une «fermeture arbitraire» (Hall) aux ré-articulations simplistes qui ne font que promouvoir des “lines of tendential forces” (Hall) (tels que des préjugés sur la couleur brune ou noire de peau) ou des pratiques hégémoniques.<p><p>Rédigé en tant que telle (avec /), « re/membering » comporte une triple signification: (1) une «re-membering », pour indiquer une mise ensemble d’un passé fragmenté pour donner un sens au traumatisme du présent (cf. Bhabha, 1994:63); (2) une «re-membering» ou une ré-intégration dans un groupe et finalement, comme (3)"remembering", qui suppose la possession de mémoire ou une recherche d'une mémoire »(Ricoeur 2004:4). Comme unité morphologique, « re/membering » désigne la manière dont les auteurs philippins tentent d'articuler l'identité culturelle à travers les routes de la colonisation, les migrations et la dictature. <p><p>Les auteurs inclus dans cette thèse sont: Carlos Bulosan, Bienvenido Santos, NVM Gonzalez, Nick Joaquin, Frank Sionil José, Ninotchka Rosca, Jessica Hagedorn, et Merlinda Bobis. Soixante ans séparent America is in the Heart (1943) du Bulosan et le Dream Jungle (2003) du Hagedorn. L'analyse de ces œuvres révèle la façon dont l'articulation est à la fois difficile et pleine d'espoir. D'une part, les auteurs critiquent le manque d'efforts envers l'articulation en tant que « re/membering » (confrontation avec le passé, reconnaissance de l'appartenance et cultivation de la mémoire). Non seulement est « re/membering » heurté par le double conscience (Du Bois 1994), le démembrement et l'oubli, en outre, sa nécessité est également difficile à reconnaître en raison de la douleur, les traumatismes, les phénomènes de scission, les attitudes et les préférences d'évasion pour une captivité "confortable" .<p><p>En même temps, « re/membering » peut également être décrit comme plein d'espoir par la façon dont les auteurs eux-mêmes utilisent la littérature pour articuler l'identité à travers la recherche, le dialogue, la durée, la réconciliation et la re-création. Bien que laborieux et difficile, « re/membering » est important et nécessaire car ce qui est en jeu, c'est une identité culturelle articulée des Philippines. Mais qui serait prêt à l'effort? <p> / Doctorat en Langues et lettres / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished