Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-15T19:48:43Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Francisco Jose Barbosa.pdf: 2627691 bytes, checksum: 0ef75dadd5a3535596a9eb018ca8ff9e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-02-07 / This work has as main objective to analyze the history of the Assembly of God Gospel Church in Brazil, mainly in their first fifty years, when it gained an expressive growth. Being the Assembly of God and the Christian Congregation in Brazil the most ancient and the biggest Pentecostal churches of Brazil, from them the Brazilian Pentecostal matrix were formed, being the Assembly of God the main responsible. However, the Assembly of God is not a unique nor an homogeneous church, it is multiple in different aspects like the Assembly movement from 1911 to 1946 and the Assembly institution from 1946 to 1989. The Assembly of God Madureira Ministry, at São Mateus, São Paulo, is a church that arises between 1947 and 1948, tied with the Assembly of God Gospel Church Madureira s Ministry, Brás field, São Paulo, obtaining its emancipation in 1964, becoming a church directly linked to Madureira s National Convention. Regarding to the specific objectives, this work sets out to analyze the relation between the church leader s charisma with the church growth and to set out the survival of popular magic or institutionalized miracles in the everyday life of the church. Through this analysis it was possible to conclude that the present research contributed to demonstrate that the institutionalized religion has its place and prestige but it is a place, among others, necessary to demarcate the celebration and the rite. / Este trabalho tem como objetivo geral analisar a história da Igreja Evangélica Assembléia de Deus no Brasil, principalmente nos seus primeiros 50 anos em que apresentou um crescimento muito expressivo. Por serem as Assembléias de Deus e a Congregação Cristã no Brasil as mais antigas e maiores igrejas pentecostais do Brasil, formam-se a partir delas, as matrizes pentecostais brasileiras, sendo a Assembléia de Deus a principal responsável por essa matriz. Porém, a Assembléia de Deus não é uma igreja única nem homogênea, é múltipla em diferentes aspectos, como o movimento assembleiano de 1911-1946 e a instituição assembleiana de 1946 -1989. A Assembléia de Deus Ministério de Madureira, em São Mateus, São Paulo, é uma igreja que surge entre os anos de 1947 e 1948, vinculada à Igreja Evangélica Assembléia de Deus Ministério de Madureira, Campo do Brás, São Paulo, que obteve sua emancipação em 1964, tornando-se uma igreja vinculada diretamente à Convenção Nacional de Madureira. Em relação aos objetivos específicos, este trabalho se propõe a analisar a relação entre o carisma do líder máximo, do presidente do campo e o crescimento da Igreja. Também se propõe explicitar a sobrevivência das magias populares ou milagres institucionalizados no cotidiano da Igreja. Através desta análise foi possível concluir que a presente pesquisa contribui para demonstrar que a religião institucionalizada tem seu lugar e prestígio, mas é um lugar, entre outros, necessário para demarcar a festa e o rito.

La postmodernité, modifiant les repères essentiels de l'humanité que sont la durée, l'espace, la constitution du sujet, le statut de la mort et de l'absence, a affecté en profondeur le contexte dans lequel s'élabore le concept de sacré. Il en résulte une forme moderne de sacré dévoyé procédant davantage d'une mythologie résiduelle, d'une initiation tronquée ou, selon les mots de Mircea Eliade, de ritualismes dégradés, que d'un sacré systémique ayant une portée décisive, notamment, dans la détermination des valeurs et l'élaboration d'un destin commun. Or, la crise de l'éducation serait entée sur le déclin du sacré,départi de sa dimension structurelle. Le sujet contemporain, qui se cherche entre jouissance immédiate et relativisme désenchanté, ne semble plus pouvoir compter sur le potentiel fédérateur d'une éducation fragilisée, et l'altération de celle-ci paraît inéluctable, à moins que, nous engageant dans un autre temps nous n'admettions l'évidence de notre attachement phénoménologique et que nous ne sachions, en la préservant dans le langage, accepter la négativité du monde. / Postmodernity, modifying humanity's reference points - duration, space, subject's formation, status of death and non-attendance -, deeply affects the context in which the concept of sacred usually develops. The outcome is a kind of modern sacred, proceeding from a residual mythology, a rigged initiation or, in the own words of Mircea Eliade, from degraded ritualisms, and not a systemic sacred that would have any decisive impact on values determination or would draw up any common destiny.The education crisis would be a consequence of the declining sacred, deprived of its structural dimension. The contemporary subject, who is wavering between instantaneous enjoyment and disenchanted relativism, can't trust anymore the federating power of a weaken education, unless we admit the obvious of our phenomenologic statement and we are able to agree, preserving it inside the language, the negativity of the world.

<p>Denna uppsats är resultatet av en studie som genomförts i Norrala socken, med betoningen på folktro, vidskeplighet och skrock bland den äldre generationen jordbrukare på Hälsingegårdar. Även folktron bland nuvarande generationer hälsingebönder finns representerad, eftersom de yngre utgör dagens representanter på Hälsingegårdarna. Studien baseras på semistrukturella intervjuer utförda i maj 2007 och analysen av studien härleds till Ebbe Schöns teorier gällande folktron, där nödvändigheten av magi och vidskepelse bland bönder är framträdande. Sammanfattningen visar att folktro och vidskeplighet är begränsad, både bland de yngre och äldre generationerna i Norrala, även om de yngre till synes har en större förståelse för vidskeplighet och även anammar valda delar. Resultatet av studien visar att det finns möjliga samband mellan folktro, skrock och vidskeplighet, kristen tro och fornskandinavisk religion.</p> / <p>This essay is the result of a study carried out in Norrala County, which focuses on folklore and superstitious beliefs among older farmhouse holders in Hälsingland. The representation of folklore and superstition among younger generations is also dealt with, as they represent the Farmhouses of Hälsingland today. The study is based upon semi-structured interviews, carried out in May 2007 and the analysis is linked to the theories of Ebbe Schön, dealing with aspects of folklore as well as the necessity of magic and superstition among farmers from a historical perspective. The outcome shows that folklore and superstition is limited among the older generations in the Norrala surroundings as well as among the younger generation although the latter seem to have greater understandings towards superstitious beliefs and at times adhere to it. Furthermore, there are possible links to be found between folklore and superstitious beliefs, Christian worship and Old Norse Religions.</p>

The subject of this study is August Strindberg’s interaction with the visual media of his day. Its dual aim is to examine Strindberg’s work in the light of media history and to allow Strindberg’s work in turn to illuminate the media history of the fin de siècle. Taking its cue from the commonplace scholarly observation that Strindberg’s drama, particularly that of his later phase, is strikingly “cinematic”, it asks: What do such comparisons really tell us about Strindberg’s art and what, if anything, do they tell us about cinema? The thesis of this study is that the putatively “cinematic” style of Strindberg’s writings can only be understood against the backdrop of a mass culture, oriented towards the visual sense, which was undergoing rapid expansion at the turn of the last century. In devising his “dream play techniques”, it argues, Strindberg both drew on and reacted against various image-based modes of representation that had become extremely widespread in the late nineteenth century. The loss of reality that is so prominent a feature of works such as To Damascus (1898) or A Dream Play (1901) should in this sense be regarded as marked by an experience of mediatization, that is, the steady incorporation of all aspects of daily life by mass media technologies. Shifting the spotlight away from cinema, a critical encounter with Strindberg’s work can cast light on largely overlooked media practices such as magic lantern or Sciopticon exhibition, panoramic entertainments, instantaneous photography, and the introduction of the halftone process in printing. At the same time as it unsettles received notions of Strindberg’s drama as “cinematic”, the study seeks to show how the writings of this revolutionary artist can provide fresh material for a reassessment of life in a media-saturated age.

Under 2000-talet har medie- och musikklimatet varit i omstöpning. Förutsättningar för att dela, distribuera och upptäcka musik har förändrats i grunden. Soundcloud, en digital musikplattform som startade sin verksamhet hösten 2008, står på många sätt i centrum för denna utveckling. Det övergripande syftet med föreliggande uppsats är att utifrån ett antal ämnesområden kopplade till teknik och musik, sociala funktioner och relationer, ett förändrat musiklandskap samt Soundclouds samarbete med Audible Magic tematiskt analysera och problematisera den digitala musikplattformen Soundcloud med utgångspunkt i kvalitativa intervjuer med artister/producenter/DJ:s verkandes inom den elektroniska scenen. Mer specifikt behandlas användarnas förhållning till upplevelsen av musik genom den särskilda teknologi och grafiska inramning som Soundcloud tillhandahåller samt de sociala funktioner som implementerats. Vidare problematiseras synen på Soundcloud som ett community, förhållandet mellan global och lokal tillhörighet samt hur artister respektive lyssnare förhåller sig till ett nytt medie- och musikklimat. Slutligen belyser uppsatsen Soundclouds nyligen initierade partnerskap med Audible Magic – ett företag som specialiserat sig på automatiserad identifiering av medieinnehåll. I tidigare forskning behandlas den så kallade modscenen samt den forskning som bedrivits kring det komplexa förhållandet mellan musik, teknologi och sociala praktiker. Det teoretiska ramverket är baserat på Chris Andersons ”Long Tail”-teori, med betoning på demokratiseringen av distributionsmedel respektive produktionsverktyg samt nya filter för urval och sammankoppling mellan utbud och efterfrågan. Vidare berörs Gerd Leonhards samtidsforskning om det nya medie- och musikklimat som står inför dörren. Studien har belyst Soundclouds distinkta grafiska gränssnitt och sociala funktioner och dess inverkan, i både positiv och negative bemärkelse, för hur musik upplevs. Studien visar att Soundcloud kan ses ett steg framåt i processen att göra delning av musik i digital tidsålder mer social, en utveckling som emellertid bromsas av faktum av att banden mellan användarna i många fall är allt för svaga, vilket bland annat beror på Soundclouds allt för kraftfulla filtrering- och urvalsmekanismer. En konsekvens av detta är att Soundcloud i sig ofta inte ses som ett community, utan blott som ett verktyg eller en länk mellan lokala noder. Denna slutsats stärks av faktum att samtliga informanter framhöll lokal tillhörighet som grundläggande. Musikaliska samarbeten via en digital musikplattform som Soundcloud menar man aldrig kommer att kunna ersätta det kreativa utbyte som sker fysisk mellan människor. Partnerskapet med Audible Magic är ännu i ett tidigt stadium. Studien visar att samarbete kan få både negativa och positiva följder. Det negativa består i att DJ-mixar kan komma att försvinna från Soundcloud. Det positiva i att en ökad upphovsrättslig kontroll kan fungera som ett incitament för att göra artister mer originella i sitt arbete

Denna uppsats är resultatet av en studie som genomförts i Norrala socken, med betoningen på folktro, vidskeplighet och skrock bland den äldre generationen jordbrukare på Hälsingegårdar. Även folktron bland nuvarande generationer hälsingebönder finns representerad, eftersom de yngre utgör dagens representanter på Hälsingegårdarna. Studien baseras på semistrukturella intervjuer utförda i maj 2007 och analysen av studien härleds till Ebbe Schöns teorier gällande folktron, där nödvändigheten av magi och vidskepelse bland bönder är framträdande. Sammanfattningen visar att folktro och vidskeplighet är begränsad, både bland de yngre och äldre generationerna i Norrala, även om de yngre till synes har en större förståelse för vidskeplighet och även anammar valda delar. Resultatet av studien visar att det finns möjliga samband mellan folktro, skrock och vidskeplighet, kristen tro och fornskandinavisk religion. / This essay is the result of a study carried out in Norrala County, which focuses on folklore and superstitious beliefs among older farmhouse holders in Hälsingland. The representation of folklore and superstition among younger generations is also dealt with, as they represent the Farmhouses of Hälsingland today. The study is based upon semi-structured interviews, carried out in May 2007 and the analysis is linked to the theories of Ebbe Schön, dealing with aspects of folklore as well as the necessity of magic and superstition among farmers from a historical perspective. The outcome shows that folklore and superstition is limited among the older generations in the Norrala surroundings as well as among the younger generation although the latter seem to have greater understandings towards superstitious beliefs and at times adhere to it. Furthermore, there are possible links to be found between folklore and superstitious beliefs, Christian worship and Old Norse Religions.

This dissertation contains two significant investigations. One is the development of the broadband microwave bandpass filters with high out-of-band performance. The other is the development of low-loss hybrids. These researches are parts of the National Aeronautic and Space Administrator (NASA)s mission to explore the universe. The former is focused on the techniques used in microstrip line bandpass filter design that help achieving both low in-band insertion loss and high out-of-band attenuation level. Moreover, these filters achieve very broadband out-of-band attenuation bandwidth. These techniques are related to the improvement of stepped impedance resonators, coupling between resonators and effective methods to allocate transmission zeros to suppress filters out-of-band spurious responses. The later is focused on the techniques used in planar magic-T designs such that the developed magic-T obtains high isolation between port E (difference port) and port H (sum port). Moreover, it obtains low-loss and broadband characteristics. These techniques are related to the development of the low-loss broadband microstrip-toslotline (MS-to-SL transition and the magic-T with a highly symmetric structure. The theoretical analysis and experimental measurements have been performed. The experimental results of both the filter and magic-T researches show significant improvement over their prior state-of-the-art designs by number of magnitude. The designs also reduce fabrication complexity.

Background Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most frequently diagnosed malignant disease among adult males in the USA and the second leading cause of cancer deaths in men. Due to the lack of diagnostic tools that are able to differentiate highly malignant and aggressive cases from indolent tumors, overtreatment has become very common in the era of prostate specific antigen (PSA) screening. New diagnostic methods to determine biological status, malignancy, aggressiveness and extent of PCa are urgently needed. 1H High Resolution Magic Angle Spinning Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (1H HRMAS MRS) can be used to establish PCa metabolomic profiles while preserving tissue architecture for subsequent histopathological analysis. Immunohistochemistry (IHC), as opposed to conventional histopathology methods, has the potential to provide objective, more accurate and quantitative knowledge of tissue pathology. This diagnostic- accuracy study sought to evaluate a novel approach to quantitatively identify metabolomic markers of PCa by exploring the potential of PCa immunomarkers to quantify metabolomic profiles established by 1H HRMAS MRS. Material and Methods 1H HRMAS MRS was performed on tissue samples of 51 prostate cancer patients using a 14.1 Tesla NMR spectrometer (BRUKER Biospin, Billerica, MA) with a rotor synchronized CPMG pulse sequence. Spectral intensities of 36 regions of interest were measured as integrals of curve fittings with Lorentzian-Gaussian line shapes. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was carried out following the spectroscopy scan, using three prostate immunomarkers to identify cancerous and benign glands: P504S (Alpha-methylacyl-CoA-racemace), CK903 (high-molecular weight cytokeratin) and p63. The immunostaining quality following 1H HRMAS MRS was evaluated and compared to unscanned sections of the same sample, to verify the stability and accessibility of the proposed immunomarkers. IHC images were automatically and quantitatively evaluated, using a quantitative image analysis program (QIAP), to determine the percentage of cancerous and benign epithelia in the tissue cross- sections. The results of the program were validated by a correlation with the results of a quantitative IHC review and quantitative conventional histopathology analysis performed by an experienced pathologist. Ultimately, spectral intensities and the cancer epithelium percentage, obtained from quantitative immunohistochemistry, were correlated in order to validate PCa metabolomic markers identified by 1H HRMAS MRS. Patient outcomes and incidence of recurrence were determined by retrospective review of medical records five years after initial surgery. Categories of recurrence were correlated to spectral intensities to explore potential metabolomic markers of recurrence in the cohort. Results Immunostainings with P504S and CK903 showed excellent staining quality and accessibility following 1H HRMAS MRS, suggesting these markers to be suitable for the presented quantitative approach to determine metabolomics profiles of PCa. In contrast, the quality of p63 IHC was impaired after previously performed spectroscopy. IHC using the immunomarkers P504S and CK903 on adjacent slides was found to present a feasible quantitative diagnostic method to distinguish between benign and cancerous conditions in prostate tissue. The cancer epithelium percentage as determined by QIAP showed a significant correlation to the results of quantitative IHC analysis performed by a pathologist (p < 0.001), as well as to a quantitative conventional histopathology review (p = 0.001). The same was true for the benign epithelium percentage (p < 0.001 and p = 0.0183), validating the presented approach. Two metabolomic regions showed a significant correlation between relative spectral intensities and the cancer epithelium percentage as determined by QIAP: 3.22 ppm (p = 0.015) and 2.68 ppm (p = 0.0144). The metabolites corresponding to these regions, phosphocholine and citrate, could be identified as metabolomic markers of PCa in the present cohort. 45 patients were followed for more than 12 months. Of these, 97.8% were still alive five years after initial surgery. 11 patients (24.4%) experienced a recurrence during the follow- up time. The categories of recurrence showed a correlation to the spectral intensities of two regions, 2.33 – 2.3 ppm (p = 0.0403) and 1.28 ppm (p = 0.0144), corresponding to the metabolites phosphocreatine and lipids. Conclusion This study introduces a method that allows an observer-independent, quantitative analysis of IHC to help establish metabolomic profiles and identify metabolomic markers of PCa from spectral intensities obtained with 1H HRMAS NMR Spectroscopy. The immunomarkers P504S and CK903 have been found suitable IHC analysis following 1H HRMAS MRS. A prospective in vivo application of PCa metabolite profiles and metabolomic markers determined by the presented method could serve as highly sensitive, non- invasive diagnostic tool. This observer- independent, computer- automated, quantitative analysis could help to distinguish highly aggressive tumors from low-malignant conditions, avoid overtreatment and reduce risks and complications for cancer patients in the future. Further studies are needed to verify the identified PCa metabolomic markers and to establish clinical applicability. / Einführung Prostatakrebs ist eine häufigsten Krebserkrankungen in den USA und die zweithäufigste malignom- assoziierte Todesursache männlicher Patienten weltweit. Seit der Einführung des Prostata- spezifischen Antigen (PSA)- Screeningtests wird diese Krebsart in früheren Stadien diagnostiziert und therapiert, wodurch die Mortalitätsrate in den letzten Jahren deutlich reduziert werden konnte. Da moderne diagnostische Methoden bislang jedoch nicht ausreichend in der Lage sind, suffizient zwischen hochmalignen und weniger aggressiven Varianten dieses bösartigen Krebsleidens zu unterscheiden, werden häufig auch Patienten aggressiv therapiert, deren niedriggradiges Prostatakarzinom keine klinische Relevanz gehabt hätte. Es besteht daher ein großes wissenschaftliches Interesse an der Entwicklung neuer diagnostischer Methoden zur akkuraten Bestimmung von biologischem Status, Malignität, Aggressivität und Ausmaß einer Prostatakrebserkrankung. \\\\\\\"1H High Resolution Magic Angle Spinning Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy\\\\\\\" (1H HRMAS MRS) ist eine vielversprechende diagnostische Methode, welche es ermöglicht, metabolomische Profile von Prostatakrebs zu erstellen, ohne die Gewebsstruktur der analysierten Proben zu zerstören. Durch anschließende histopathologische Begutachtung lassen sich die erstellten Metabolitprofile validieren und evaluieren. Im Gegensatz zu konventionellen histopathologischen Methoden können durch immunhistochemische Verfahren dabei objektivere, akkuratere und quantifizierbare histopathologische Erkenntnisse gewonnen werden. Die vorliegende Studie präsentiert einen neuentwickelten diagnostischen Ansatz zur quantitativen Bestimmung von metabolomischen Markern von Prostatakrebs, basierend auf der Durchführung von 1H HRMAS NMR Spektroskopie und quantitativer Immunhistochemie. Material und Methoden Einundfünfzig Gewebsproben von Prostatakrebspatienten wurden mittels 1H HRMAS MRS an einem 14.1 T BRUKER NMR Spektrometer unter Einsatz einer CPMG-Pulssequenz untersucht. Spektrale Intensitäten in 36 Metabolitregionen wurden gemessen. Anschließend wurden die analysierten Gewebeproben mit drei Immunfärbemarkern für sowohl malignes (P504S, Alpha-methylacyl-CoA-racemase) als auch benignes (CK903, High-molecular weight cytokeratin, und p63) Prostatagewebe angefärbt und quantitativ mit Hilfe eines Bildanalyseprogramms (QIAP) ausgewertet. Die Anwendbarkeit und Auswertbarkeit der genannten Immunomarker nach Spektroskopie wurde evaluiert und mit der Färbungsqualität von nicht- gescannten Schnitten verglichen. Die Resultate der automatischen Auswertung durch QIAP konnten durch einen erfahrenen Pathologen in einer quantitativen Analyse der Immunfärbungen sowie konventioneller histologischer Färbungen derselben Gewebsproben validiert werden. Die spektralen Intensitäten aus den Messungen mit 1H HRMAS MRS wurden mit den korrespondierenden Ergebnissen der quantitativen Auswertung der Immunfärbungen korreliert, um metabolomische Marker von Prostatakrebs zu identifizieren. Der klinische Verlauf und die Rezidivrate der Patienten wurden 5 Jahre nach der initialen Prostatektomie retrospektiv bestimmt. Rezidivkategorien wurden erstellt und mit den bestimmten spektralen Intensitäten korreliert, um metabolomische Marker für das Auftreten von Prostatakrebsrezidiven zu identifizieren. Ergebnisse Die Immunfärbungen mit P504S und CK903 zeigten exzellente Qualität und Auswertbarkeit nach vorheriger 1H HRMAS MRS. Beide Marker eigneten sich zur Durchführung von quantitativer Immunhistochemie an spektroskopierten Gewebeproben. Im Gegensatz dazu war die Qualität der Immunfärbungen mit p63 nach Spektroskopie vermindert. Quantitative Immunfärbungen unter Einsatz der Immunmarker P504S und CK903 stellten eine praktikable diagnostische Methode dar, um zwischen malignen und benignem Prostatagewebe zu unterscheiden. Der Anteil von bösartig verändertem Prostatagewebe, bestimmt durch QIAP, korrelierte signifikant mit den Ergebnissen der quantitativen Analyse der Immunfärbungen durch den Pathologen (p < 0.001), sowie mit der quantitativen Auswertung der konventionellen histopathologischen Färbung (p = 0.001). Ebenso ließ sich die Bestimmung des Anteils von benignem Gewebe mit QIAP zu den Ergebnissen der pathologischen Analyse korrelieren (p < 0.001 und p = 0.0183). Für zwei metabolomische Regionen konnte ein signifikante Korrelation zwischen relativen spektralen Intensitäten, bestimmt mit 1H HRMAS NMR Spektroskopie, und dem Anteil von malignem Epithelium in derselben Gewebeprobe, ermittelt durch QIAP, festgestellt werden: 3.22 ppm (p = 0.015) und 2.68 ppm (p = 0.0144). Die zu diesen Regionen korrespondierenden Metaboliten, Phosphocholin und Zitrat, konnten als potentielle metabolomische Marker für Prostatakrebs identifiziert werden. Die retrospektiven Analyse der klinischen Daten der Patienten fünf Jahre nach Prostatektomie ergab eine Überlebensrate von 97.8%. Elf dieser Patienten (24.4%) erlitten ein Rezidiv ihrer Erkrankung. Die bestimmten Rezidivkategorien korrelierten signifikant mit zwei metabolomischen Regionen (2.33 – 2.3 ppm, p = 0.0403 und 1.28 ppm, p = 0.0144), welche zu den Metaboliten Phosphokreatin und Lipiden korrespondierten. Schlussfolgerung Die vorliegende Studie präsentiert einen diagnostischen Ansatz zur objektiven und quantitativen Bestimmung metabolomischer Marker von Prostatakrebs unter Verwendung von 1H HRMAS MRS und Immunhistochemie. P504S und CK903 eignen sich als Immunmarker für quantitative Immunfärbungen nach vorheriger Durchführung von 1H HRMAS MRS. Die Metaboliten Phosphocholin und Zitrat konnten in der vorliegenden Patientenkohorte als potentielle metabolomische Marker für Prostatakrebs identifiziert werden. Eine mögliche in vivo Anwendung der gefundenen metabolomischen Marker könnte als hochsensitives, objektives und nicht- invasives diagnostisches Werkzeug der Prostatakrebsdiagnostik dienen. Der vorliegende untersucherunabhängige, automatisierte und quantitative diagnostischer Ansatz hat das Potential, zwischen hochmalignen und weniger aggressiven Krebsfällen zu unterscheiden und somit unnötige Risiken und Komplikationen für Prostatakrebspatienten zu reduzieren. Weitere Untersuchungen sind notwendig, um die identifizierten metabolomischen Marker zu verifizieren und eine klinische Anwendung zu etablieren.

Through a critical examination of the works of Tom Robbins, this thesis interrogates the historical evolution and appropriation of the magic(al) realist tradition. In so doing, it situates Robbins’ writing within the framework of postmodernism, and explores the ontological implications inherent in Robbins’ use of magic(al) realist concepts and conventions. With a specific emphasis on the notion of cultural consciousness, this thesis analyzes the object- oriented cosmologies embodied and espoused in three of Robbins’ novels: Still Life with Woodpecker (1980), Skinny Legs and All (1990), and B is for Beer (2009). It unpacks the ideological figuration of various textual devices evident in Another Roadside Attraction (1971) and Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1976) – particularly the gendered use of unreliable narrators – and, with reference to Jitterbug Perfume (1984), relates Robbins’ appropriation of the magic(al) realist tradition to the American counterculture movement of the 1960s and 70s. Employing poststructuralist, feminist, ecofeminist, and postcolonial discourses, this thesis ultimately seeks to position Robbins’ writing within the context of a radical emancipatory politics that views (and uses) literature as an ideological space in which to challenge, reinterpret, and democratize Western metanarratives.

Magistro darbe „Mirties įvaizdis Sauliaus Tomo Kondroto romane „Ir apsiniauks žvelgiantys pro langą“ (1985) analizuojama mirties tema lietuvių prozoje. Remiantis Vakarų kultūrologijoje ir tanatologijoje susiformavusia mirties samprata, yra ginamas teiginys, kad šiame romane sukurtas literatūrinis (estetinis) mirties įvaizdis, kuris gali pristatyti skaitytojui visuminę mirties pajautą ir praplėsti bei pagilinti kultūrologinę (mitologinę, religinę ir filosofinę) mirties fenomeno interpretaciją. XX a. lietuvių prozoje mirtis yra viena svarbiausių jos tematikos krypčių. Darbo objektu pasirinktame S. T. Kondroto romane mirties įvaizdis yra kūrinio siužeto epicentras ir išeities taškas kuriant kitus literatūrinius įvaizdžius, simbolius, metaforas. Romane vartojama magiškojo realizmo poetika, kuri literatūriniam mirties įvaizdžiui romane „Ir apsiniauks žvelgiantys pro langą“ suteikia kasdieniškumo pobūdį, „paprasto stebuklo“ įspūdį. Analizė atskleidžia literatūros kūrinyje atsirandantį meninį mirties įvaizdį ir jo aspektus, kurie praplečia ir pagilina mitinę, religinę ir filosofinę mirties interpretaciją. Darbe aiškinamasi, kodėl mirties įvaizdžio šiame romane analizė leidžia pereiti prie gilesnių laisvės, valdžios, diktatūros ir kitų klausimų tyrinėjimų, be to, padeda suvokti romano meninės raiškos priemones. / The Masters Research presented is based on the impressions of death in the novel ”Ir apsiniauks žvelgiantys pro langą” (The Devouring Gaze of the Window Lookers), published 1985. The research presents an analysis of the theme of death in Lithuanian literature as written by Saulius Tomas Kondrotas. In the XX Century, the theme and analysis of death in Lithuanian literature is a main focus. Western literature, as presented in the book, with its thanatology and perception of death is often conceptionalized with an incomplete impression of thanatology focusing on saving, protecting and keeping alive in its cultural values, philosophy and theology. For the purpose of this study, analysing the novel of S.T. Kondrotas was selected as death is the epicenter of its theme. In the book Magic Realism as an art form is used as a means of expression. In the novel plain, simple, miracles of ordinary daily life are absolutely essential . In the novel, the meaning of death is expanded by the use of myths, religion, and philosophy to extend and broaden its perception. Death’s impression in the analysis of the book deepens the knowledge of government control, dictatorship, and freedom with the questions this poses. Forms of art presented as Magic Realism in the book assist the reader in understanding what the book intends to reveal. Significant language in the book include the author’s view of the death experience, the magic art of dying, and the tone in which it is written. The novel also... [to full text]