This thesis explores ways in which T. S. Eliot, when he wrote his most autobiographical poetic work<em> Four Quartets</em>, might have been influenced by Thoreaus famously autobiographical prose work <em>Walden</em>, written nearly a century earlier<em>.</em> Much evidence suggests that Eliot knew of the earlier writer and his work. Not only did Eliot assign <em>Walden</em> as suggested reading in a course he taught, but as time went on Eliot also admitted that he was influenced by the New England literary tradition. Reading <em>Four Quartets</em> in light of <em>Walden</em> and its context not only helps a reader understand the connections between the two works, it also gives a reader a better understanding of <em>Four Quartets</em>' fundamental meanings. Although Eliot in <em>Four Quartets</em> adds another layer of his spiritual goals beyond those expressed in <em>Walden</em>, he expresses his religio-philosophical quest for Incarnational "still point[s] of the turning world" (<em>Burnt Norton</em> 62) using autobiographical aspects and poetic tropes that are in many ways strikingly similar to the expressions also present in <em>Walden</em>. </p> <p>The chapters of this thesis unfold these concepts. My Introduction highlights some of the key connections. Chapter One sets the stage for the discussion of the Incarnation by explaining how <em>Four Quartets</em>' spiritual round-trip journey from England to America is grounded in real world places and experiences. This chapter also explains how this guardedly autobiographical re-collection of an almost-real journey includes a response to Eliots personal history and to his literary ancestors, including Thoreau<em>.</em> In Chapter Two, I unpack the similarities and differences between many of the religio-philosophical questions asked in the two works, focusing in on Eliots and Thoreau's complex handlings of such themes as simplicity versus complexity, Incarnation, stillness versus activity, and the difficulty of achieving spiritual goals. Finally, these religio-philosophical questions are incarnated in very similar poetic devices and tropes within both works; in Chapter Three, I describe the most important of these. The "still point of the turning world" (Eliot, <em>Burnt Norton</em> 62) and the "mathematical point" (Thoreau, <em>Walden</em> 1.100) are rich metaphors that form the heart of this chapter.</p>

According to the National Rites of Passage Institute (NROPI), African Americans have lost their authentic identity, which has led to inauthentic, broken individuals and communities. In order to reverse these trends, according to NROPI, African Americans must rediscover their authentic identity through a rites of passage program that plucks them from a Eurocentric narrative and places them into an Afrocentric one. This thesis explores how NROPI is a religious response to adversity that takes on a decidedly American form of contemporary religiosity. I argue that by analyzing NROPI and other contemporary rites of passage programs through the lens of religious studies, scholars can gain a deeper understanding of how these programs fit into the broader American religious landscape, and provide commentary on the changing nature of that religiosity, and how their language and rituals can be used as rhetorical strategies for social cohesion and control.

This thesis explores ways in which T. S. Eliot, when he wrote his most autobiographical poetic work<em> Four Quartets</em>, might have been influenced by Thoreaus famously autobiographical prose work <em>Walden</em>, written nearly a century earlier<em>.</em> Much evidence suggests that Eliot knew of the earlier writer and his work. Not only did Eliot assign <em>Walden</em> as suggested reading in a course he taught, but as time went on Eliot also admitted that he was influenced by the New England literary tradition. Reading <em>Four Quartets</em> in light of <em>Walden</em> and its context not only helps a reader understand the connections between the two works, it also gives a reader a better understanding of <em>Four Quartets</em>' fundamental meanings. Although Eliot in <em>Four Quartets</em> adds another layer of his spiritual goals beyond those expressed in <em>Walden</em>, he expresses his religio-philosophical quest for Incarnational "still point[s] of the turning world" (<em>Burnt Norton</em> 62) using autobiographical aspects and poetic tropes that are in many ways strikingly similar to the expressions also present in <em>Walden</em>. </p> <p>The chapters of this thesis unfold these concepts. My Introduction highlights some of the key connections. Chapter One sets the stage for the discussion of the Incarnation by explaining how <em>Four Quartets</em>' spiritual round-trip journey from England to America is grounded in real world places and experiences. This chapter also explains how this guardedly autobiographical re-collection of an almost-real journey includes a response to Eliots personal history and to his literary ancestors, including Thoreau<em>.</em> In Chapter Two, I unpack the similarities and differences between many of the religio-philosophical questions asked in the two works, focusing in on Eliots and Thoreau's complex handlings of such themes as simplicity versus complexity, Incarnation, stillness versus activity, and the difficulty of achieving spiritual goals. Finally, these religio-philosophical questions are incarnated in very similar poetic devices and tropes within both works; in Chapter Three, I describe the most important of these. The "still point of the turning world" (Eliot, <em>Burnt Norton</em> 62) and the "mathematical point" (Thoreau, <em>Walden</em> 1.100) are rich metaphors that form the heart of this chapter.</p>

This dissertation aimed to investigate the use of Multi-User Virtual Environments (MUVEs) as supportive materials in students&rsquo / learning process. In this respect, a MUVE named Quest Atlantis had been used by students in formal and informal learning settings. The students participated in a project that was developed based on an ecological problem resulted in fish decline in a river. As being a multiple case study research, data were collected from four separate cases, selected from three different places. Specifically, students&rsquo / and teachers&rsquo / perceptions were gathered, and challenges and barriers of implementations were investigated. The research results indicated that most of the students liked learning in environments using MUVEs. Besides being intrinsically motivated towards learning science topics, the students stated that it was a good way of reinforcing what they learn in school settings. Students found MUVEs effective learning environments as it allowed them to learn with active participation / rather than being taught as it usually happens in school context. The teachers had positive opinions about the use of MUVEs. They claimed that MUVEs have the potential to support students&rsquo / learning visually and let students learn through an inquiry-based learning approach with situated information to virtual settings. According to the teachers, MUVEs allowed various skill developments of the students and it created a dynamic learning environment in which students interacted and collaborated with each other. Even though students and teachers have positive perception about the use of MUVEs in learning setting, it is quite challenging to place these applications to learning settings, especially to formal ones. There are numerous challenges and barriers that can be faced with during the implementation process. In this research, the challenges and barriers are grouped under four main categories: 1) teacher related, 2) student related, 3) system related, and 4) technology related. When the implementation results of formal and informal learning setting were compared, it was possible to see how the very dimensions of formal learning settings made the innovative technology-based implementations difficult. On the other hand, informal learning settings were more flexible learning environments allowing a better learning experience for the students.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:46:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 LanissaCFMC.pdf: 8373174 bytes, checksum: 3a223721249467af92bf6dd4f0889d4c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-11-27 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / In contemporaneousness watches in Brazil the emergence of a "new" relationship between State and society based on partnership, which will allow the growing playacting organizations "non-profit" and "public interest" in the management of social public policies. In that sense, as part of a logic of global restructuring of the Capital, under the aegis of the neoliberal project, starting from the years of 1990, an administration model is had in favor of the market that looks for to minimize the actions of the State, reinforcing the outsourcing of the social public politics, and consequently, debilitating rights legally conquered. In that way, with this study it was pursued as general objective to apprehend the actions developed by Non-governmental Organizations NGOs in the child's area and of the adolescent in Natal / RN, verifying in that measured, these contribute to the warranty of rights or they reproduce practices of welfare work, and as specific objectives: to identify the group of the actions developed by NGOs in the child's area and of the adolescent in Natal / RN; to analyze the practice of NGOs of the point of view of the human resources, of the administration, of the financing, of the user's participation in the decision processes, as well as the quality of the services and the continuity of the actions of these organizations; and to apprehend the relationship between the researched organizations and users in the process of implantation of the actions, in order to identify the perspective that guide the practice of NGOs is going in the direction of contributing in the warranty of rights or in the reinforcement to the welfare work. In summary the results showed two trends in the actions of the NGOs, in the direction of the provision of services, which still unfurls in two perspectives of handouts. The other trend will give priority to the defense of rights of children and adolescents, with actions of political impact strengthen the promotion of public policies state, thus contributing to guarantee rights / Na contemporaneidade assiste-se no Brasil a emers?o de uma nova rela??o Estado/sociedade baseada na parceria, que vai possibilitar a crescente atua??o das organiza??es sem fins lucrativos e de interesse p?blico na gest?o de pol?ticas p?blicas sociais. Nesse sentido, como parte de uma l?gica de reestrutura??o global do Capital, sob a ?gide do projeto neoliberal, a partir dos anos de 1990, tem-se um modelo de gest?o a favor do mercado que busca minimizar as a??es do Estado, refor?ando a terceiriza??o das pol?ticas p?blicas sociais, e conseq?entemente, desconstruindo direitos legalmente conquistados. Dessa forma, com este estudo perseguiu-se como objetivo geral apreender as a??es desenvolvidas por ONGs na ?rea da crian?a e do adolescente em Natal/RN, verificando em que medida, estas contribuem para a garantia de direitos ou reproduzem pr?ticas assistencialistas, e como objetivos espec?ficos: identificar o conjunto das a??es desenvolvidas por ONGs na ?rea da crian?a e do adolescente em Natal/RN; analisar a pr?tica das ONGs do ponto de vista dos recursos humanos, da gest?o, do financiamento, da participa??o do usu?rio nos processos decis?rios, bem como a qualidade dos servi?os e a continuidade das a??es destas organiza??es; e apreender a rela??o entre as organiza??es pesquisadas e usu?rios no processo de implanta??o das a??es, a fim de identificar se a perspectiva que perpassa a pr?tica das ONGs vai em dire??o de contribuir na garantia de direitos ou no refor?o ao assistencialismo. Sinteticamente os resultados apontaram duas tend?ncias nas a??es das ONGs, uma na dire??o da presta??o de servi?os, que ainda desdobra-se em duas perspectivas de assistencialismo. A outra tend?ncia vai priorizar a defesa dos direitos infanto-juvenis, com a??es de incid?ncia pol?tica para refor?ar a promo??o de pol?ticas p?blicas estatais, contribuindo assim, para garantir direitos.

This doctoral research is dedicated to the study of identity issues in contexts of renewal or appropriation of ethnic traditions and their displacement, by specific actors, within the realm of holistic spiritualities. These issues revolve around quests for authenticity, legitimacy and negotiation of (intra)-cultural differences. This research problematizes the relationships among mobility, spirituality and Mayan ethnicity, from the perspective of Transnational Studies and life stories, through the concept of neo-Mayanity. These relationships have been embedded in the broader context of "religious change" and its forms since the 1950s and 1960s. On the one hand, these changes imply the rise of New Age currents in the wake of 1968 counter-culture. On the other hand, they stem from the emergence of new forms of "religious or spiritual mobility", more specifically in the transnational circulation of actors, practices, imaginations and symbols. This research features qualitative case studies conducted in different national contexts. Six field studies were carried out as part of a multi-situated ethnography spanning Mexico, Guatemala, Switzerland and Germany, using methods such as narrative interviews, direct participant observations, cyber-ethnography, and ethno-photography. The research aims to show current transformations in the field of Mayan ethnicity, ever since contact with globalized New Age spiritualities. A variety of empirical examples reveal that since the "2012 Phenomenon", the accelerated transnationalization of spiritual leaders has involved a resemantization of symbolic contents and rituals through processes of rearrangement, visual innovation and cohabitation.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:35:47Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 WilmaNBC.pdf: 917333 bytes, checksum: 54c4bcdb2cc7769e996b048a169018e3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2005-06-30 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / The subject of study of this work is the teacher spawning of the Instituto de Educa??o do Par? in the decades of 1970 and 1980. It aims the enablement offered by the institute concerning the racial issue. The thesis highlights the inferior condition to which the black student is relegated and the discrimination it suffers. Our argument is to affirm the omission of the curriculum and the reference resources as far as the racial issue is concerned. Before the singularity of the Brazilian case a country with a slavish background, with serious social unbalance problems, many of them resulting from the racial segregation implemented by that slavish system , this work claims that the preparation of the teachers for dealing with this issue is crucial, since the absence of this preparation leads to the reproduction of the prejudice inside the classroom. This thesis is based on the theory of Pierre Bourdieu on the notion of habitus and symbolic power / O tema de estudo deste trabalho ? a forma??o de professores oferecida pelo Instituto de Educa??o do Estado do Par?, nas d?cadas de 1970 e 1980. Ele se ocupa com a capacita??o oferecida pelo Instituto para o trato da quest?o racial. A tese evidencia a condi??o inferior a que o aluno negro ? relegado e a discrimina??o de que ele ? objeto. Nosso argumento se encaminha no sentido de afirmar a omiss?o presente nos processos de forma??o planos e na bibliografia de forma??o, em rela??o ? quest?o racial. Diante da singularidade do caso brasileiro um pa?s de passado escravista, com graves problemas de desigualdade social, muitos deles oriundos da segrega??o racial implementada por aquele sistema escravista , este trabalho argumenta ser crucial a prepara??o dos professores para o trato da quest?o, uma vez que a aus?ncia desta leva ? reprodu??o do preconceito em sala de aula. A tese tem como base te?rica as formula??es de Pierre Bourdieu, relativas ? no??o de habitus e poder simb?lico

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:04:55Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 WilsonCS_DISSERT.pdf: 1873595 bytes, checksum: f22e7d918c49de1808d0dcc3035768f3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-08-16 / Las pruebas de vestibular, en los ?ltimos a?os en el Brasil, han sido objeto de diversas investigaciones, considerando que ese proceso selectivo es una de las vias para ingresar en las universidades p?blicas y termina por influenciar la ense?anza en las escuelas. De esa forma, algunos vestibulares han pasado por cambios, de un simple proceso selectivo clasificatorio a un proceso fundamentado en reflexiones sociol?gica, pedag?gica y cr?tica, lo que ha promovido cuestionamientos respecto del aprendizaje y de su papel en la escuela. Delante de esa realidad, la Universidad Federal de Rio Grande del Norte (UFRN) ha implementado cambios en sus vestibulares procurando una aproximaci?n a las Orientaciones Curriculares Nacionales, como los PCNEM, los PCN+ y las OCEM. Siendo as?, el objetivo de este estudio fue caracterizar el avance cualitativo en las pruebas de preguntas objetivas a partir de los cambios ocurridos en el vestibular de la UFRN en el periodo de 1997 a 2010, defini?ndose las siguientes cuestiones de estudio: ?Cu?les son los tipos de preguntas que caracterizan las pruebas objetivas de Qu?mica del vestibular? ?Cu?les cuestiones presentan las mayores dificultades para los candidatos? ?Cu?les son los contenidos conceptuales privilegiados? ?En qu? tipo de preguntas los candidatos presentan mayores ?ndices de ?xitos? ?Qu? diferencias pueden ser establecidas entre las preguntas antes y despu?s del periodo que establece los cambios en el vestibular de la UFRN? Las discusiones te?ricas del estudio est?n fundamentadas en las siguientes referencias: PCNEM (BRASIL, 1999), PCN+ (BRASIL, 2001), OCEM (BRASIL, 2006), Zabala (1999), Jim?nez Aleixandre et al. (2003), Pozo (1999), ?lvarez de Zayas (1992), N??ez (2009), Relatorios Comperve/UFRN (1997 a 2010), e en relaci?n a las evaluaciones: Pasquali et al. (2003), Silva y N??ez (2008), Mar?n y Benarrouch (2009). Para el estudio fueran construidas las siguientes categor?as que permitieran el an?lisis de las cuestiones: contextualizaci?n de la cuesti?n, temas conceptuales, problema, representaci?n semi?tica, c?lculo matem?tico, pertinencia de la cuesti?n e ?ndice de acierto. Los resultados muestran un avance cualitativo de las preguntas de Qu?mica, en los cuales se observa un modelo de prueba que prioriza el uso de verdaderos problemas, de situaciones contextualizadas, de pocos c?lculos, d?ndose prioridad al razonamiento que implica la comprensi?n, la aplicaci?n y la interpretaci?n de los conocimientos conceptuales, todo lo que puede estimular una ense?anza m?s adecuada en relaci?n a las exigencias actuales de la Educaci?n en Qu?mica / As provas de vestibular, nos ?ltimos anos no Brasil, t?m sido foco de diversas pesquisas, tendo em vista que esse processo seletivo ? requisito para ingressar nas universidades p?blicas e acaba influenciando o que deve ser ensinado no Ensino M?dio. Nesse contexto, os vestibulares t?m passado por mudan?as deixando de ser um simples processo seletivo classificat?rio a um objeto de reflex?o sociol?gica, pedag?gica e cr?tica, o qual tem instigado questionamentos a respeito da aprendizagem e do papel que ele deve desempenhar junto ? escola do Ensino M?dio. Diante desta realidade, a Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN) tem implementado mudan?as em seus vestibulares buscando uma aproxima??o aos PCNEM (BRASIL, 1999), PCN+ (BRASIL, 2001) e OCEM (BRASIL, 2006). Sendo assim, o objetivo deste estudo foi caracterizar o avan?o qualitativo das provas objetivas a partir das mudan?as ocorridas no vestibular da UFRN no per?odo compreendido entre 1997 a 2010, tendo as seguintes quest?es de estudo: Quais s?o os tipos de perguntas que caracterizam as provas objetivas de Qu?mica no vestibular? Quais perguntas apresentam as maiores dificuldades para os candidatos? Quais s?o os conte?dos conceituais privilegiados? Em que tipo de perguntas os candidatos apresentam maiores ?ndices de sucesso? Quais as diferen?as podem ser estabelecidas entre as perguntas antes e depois do per?odo que configuram as mudan?as no vestibular da UFRN? As discuss?es te?ricas do estudo t?m como suporte as seguintes refer?ncias: PCNEM (BRASIL, 1999), PCN+ (BRASIL, 2001), OCEM (BRASIL, 2006), Zabala (1999), Jim?nez Aleixandre et al. (2003), Pozo (1999), Alvarez de Zayas (1992), N??ez (2009), relat?rios Comperve/UFRN (1997 a 2010), e sobre avalia??es: Pasquali et al. (2003), Silva e N??ez (2008), Mar?n e Benarrouch (2009). Para o estudo, foram constru?das as seguintes categorias que serviram para a an?lise das quest?es: contextualiza??o da pergunta, temas conceituais, problema, representa??o semi?tica, c?lculo matem?tico, pertin?ncia da quest?o e ?ndice de acerto. Os resultados mostram um avan?o qualitativo das perguntas de Qu?mica, em que se observa um modelo de prova que prioriza o uso de problema verdadeiro, de situa??es contextualizadas, de poucos c?lculos, dando-se prioridade ao racioc?nio que implica a compreens?o, a aplica??o e a interpreta??o dos conhecimentos conceituais, o que pode estimular um ensino mais adequado ?s exig?ncias atuais da educa??o em Qu?mica

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:06:58Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 CeliaMS_DISSERT.pdf: 679549 bytes, checksum: 277a60aa77540a0f815106290bb48fa4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-09-25 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / This work brings up a review on the poetic works of Cruz e Sousa, a nineteenth-century Brazilian poet. Laughter has been chosen as an analytical category, because it is a pertinent theme which makes possible a more accurate comprehension of the lyric content of Cruz e Sousa s poetic works. The laughter manifested in his verses is seen as a mechanism which compensates both normativeness and seriousness, as well as turns inside out whatever society establishes as being natural or an absolute truth. Amongst his poems, we will focus on the ones which express their lyric nature both through laughter and irony, since these elements serve as a means to criticize the Brazilian society in the late nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century. This study is guided by theories of laughter proposed by Minois (2003), Bakhtin (1993), Bergson (2007), as well as Adorno s (2003) and Antonio Candido s (2010) theoretical assumptions concerning lyric poetry and society / O presente trabalho apresenta uma an?lise sobre a poesia de Cruz e Sousa, poeta brasileiro do s?culo XIX. Para este fim, toma-se o riso como categoria anal?tica por se tratar de um tema pertinente que possibilita uma melhor compreens?o do teor l?rico de sua obra po?tica. O riso nos versos de Cruz e Sousa ? visto como mecanismo de contrapeso ? normatividade e ao princ?pio de seriedade estabelecidos, al?m de colocar pelo avesso o que a sociedade institui como sendo verdade natural ou absoluta. No conjunto po?tico, interessa-nos analisar os poemas que expressam o teor l?rico na dupla vertente do riso e da ironia, visto que s?o usados como meios de cr?tica ? sociedade, em especial ? sociedade brasileira do final do s?culo XIX e in?cio do s?culo XX. Para tanto, utilizamos como suporte te?rico as teorias sobre o riso elaboradas por Minois (2003), Bakhtin (1993) e Bergson (2007), bem como as teorias referentes ? l?rica e ? sociedade de Adorno (2003), e Antonio Candido (2010)

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:25:17Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 SaulEF_DISSERT.pdf: 1819726 bytes, checksum: 95428ad427ba2ab00eb5e6c7c9f5727f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-03-30 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / This study s main goal is to analyze the way the limits between Cear? and Rio Grande do Norte states, the so called Grossos matter, has been associated to the norte-rio-grandense spacial and identity formation during the first republic period. Thus, a consistet number of sources: RN and CE old newspapers, as well as a rep?blica from Natal and Fortaleza and o mossoroense ; historical drafts from the historical and geographical institute associated and historical, gographical and anthropological institute of Cear?; the A??o C?vel Origin?ria de n? 6 from the supreme federal tribunal and many other cartographies. The documents haven t been hierarchized, neither accepted as proof effects, but understood as the base matter for this text composition by the deconstruction of the analyzed discusses. In order to do that the abla??o or bricolagem method, without quotations marks or long quotations themselves, has been used. Along the three analyzed charpters: the two phases the litigious was found, since its beginning yet in the XVIII century until 1888 and its return within the republic proclamation, in the 1920 resolution; the development of the documental, historical and identity dispute between IHGA-CE and IHG-RN; and, at last, the political game existing between the Albuquerque Maranh?o oligarchy , Manuel Pereira Reis and Rui Barbosa, explaining the intentions, silent and miths built along the time by these intellectual participations / O objetivo deste trabalho ? analisar de que maneira a quest?o de limites entre o Cear? e o Rio Grande do Norte, a chamada de Quest?o de Grossos, esteve associada na forma??o espacial e identit?ria norte-rio-grandense na Primeira Rep?blica. Para tanto, utilizamos um elevado n?mero de fontes: jornais norte-rio-grandenses e cearenses da ?poca, como A Rep?blica de Natal e Fortaleza e O Mossoroense; escritos historiogr?ficos dos s?cios do Instituto Hist?rico e Geogr?fico do Rio Grande do Norte (IHG-RN) e do Instituto Hist?rico, Geogr?fico e Antropol?gico do Cear? (IHGA-CE) presentes em suas revistas; a A??o C?vel Origin?ria de n? 6 do Supremo Tribunal Federal (STF) e diversas cartografias. N?o hierarquizamos os documentos analisados, nem tampouco os compreendemos como efeitos de provas, mas como material de trabalho que constr?i o texto a partir da desconstru??o dos discursos analisados. Para tanto, fazemos uso do m?todo abla??o ou bricolagem, n?o utilizando aspas, nem tampouco cita??es longas. Ao longo dos tr?s cap?tulos analisamos: as duas fases que o lit?gio se encontrou, desde o seu come?o ainda no s?culo XVIII at? 1888 e sua retomada com a Proclama??o da Rep?blica, com sua resolu??o em 1920; o desenrolar da disputa no plano documental, historiogr?fico e identit?rio entre o IHGA-CE e o IHG-RN; e, por fim, o jogo pol?tico existente entre a oligarquia Albuquerque Maranh?o, Manuel Pereira Reis e Rui Barbosa, explicitando ainda as inten??es, sil?ncios e mitos constru?dos ao longo do tempo nas participa??es desses intelectuais