This thesis describes René Girards mimetic theory of desire and explicates its relevance for a critique of consumerism, emphasizing the loss of identity that can result from mimesis in a consumer society. It first presents Girards theory of desire, giving special attention to its implications for identity development. It then discusses more directly both his limited, explicit treatment of consumerism and the unspoken ways in which his theory can elucidate the situation of the consumer, focusing on how consumer society may manage to prevent the violence that often results from mimetic contagion, but does nothing to prevent what Girard calls metaphysical desire. Finally, it turns to Girards analysis of novelistic and Christian conversions and suggests how these may be seen as salvific alternatives to consumerism. I hope thereby to develop an effective tool for critiquing consumer society and for advocating Christian compassion and humility as the means of allowing identities stunted by consumerism to flourish.

This thesis examines the role of Reason-guided reason-giving in the deliberative democratic arena as a response to the theories of Iris Young, Chantal Mouffe and Lynn Sanders. I will aim to do two things. First, I will trace some path of logic-centered political philosophy and understand the role of reason as both subject and object in this genealogy. Secondly, and in the final sections I shall move to articulate the role of Reason, explicitly, in democratic philosophy. The theory that I will put forth is that the privileging of Reason, or of Reason-guided reason-giving, should be the ultimate standard for deliberative democratic discourse.

This thesis argues that, contrary to some prevalent intuitions, national borders are not being rendered obsolete by the increasingly global or deterritorialized character of social and political life. Rather, as state sovereignty becomes less and less anchored to geographic territory, borders have replaced land as an interpellative strategy with which states construct a demos or public over which power can be exercised. State borders work to supply this public with a coherent and homogenous national-political identity that frames, and in many contexts occludes, the articulation of specific heterogeneous identities within that public. <p> Of course, borders by themselves do not do anything. I argue that political geography and political anthropology commit a serious mistake when they treat borders as independent things or processes that act upon individuals and peoples. Borders are not extra-personal third parties to the interactions of persons. Rather, they are instances of bordering, the discursive activity through which subjects articulate difference in ways that construct their identities in relation to others. However, borders appear as independent agents because they have been separated from other operations of bordering-- and, most importantly, from the bordering subjects themselves-- by processes of alienation, objectification and abstraction. Consequently, the articulation of national-political identities occurs primarily by means of a suppression of the concrete subjects whose life-activity in fact structures-- and is deeply structured by-- these identities.

No description available.

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / O presente estudo pretende observar as relações entre as imagens do homem existentes nas páginas da revista Cultura Política (1941-1945) e os projetos de educação que disputaram espaço no debate público a partir da década de 1930. O periódico, editado por Almir de Andrade no âmbito do Departamento de Imprensa e Propaganda, consistiu num dos mais importantes veículos oficiais de comunicação ao longo do Estado Novo. Ao pesquisar o conceito de homem em Cultura Política, fica evidente a exigência constante de um processo formador para este homem, ao final do qual um novo tipo humano emergirá. Este novo tipo humano é apresentado, então, como a base de uma nova sociedade e de um novo Estado. O protagonista destas reflexões na revista é o autor Paulo Augusto de Figueiredo, que tem seu pensamento e obra analisados em maior detalhe. O argumento central deste trabalho é que a imagem de homem construída por Figueiredo e outros articulistas do periódico, bem como os artigos educacionais publicados na revista, apontam para o favorecimento do projeto católico de educação para o país, apenas um dentre outros que disputavam hegemonia sobre o processo de formação dos homens no período / The present work aims to observe the existing relation between the concept of man in the pages of Political Culture (1941-1945) and the different educational projects that have fought for hegemony in public space during the 1930&#8223;s. The review, edited by Almir de Andrade, was one of the most important intellectual instrument in the Estado Novo regime. When we look to the concept of man in Political Culture, the demand for formation process becomes evident. The request for a new man, compatible with the new society emerging is a common point in the texts analyzed. The main author in this effort is Paulo Augusto de Figueiredo, whose work is discussed in detail. Through the analysis of Figueiredo&#8223;s writings, along with the educational articles published in Political Culture, we conclude that the periodical adopted a line of proximity with the catholic educational thought, only one among other available at the time..

[pt] A presente tese trata da constituição da União das Nações Sul-Americanas – Unasul à luz do pensamento social e político brasileiro. A Unasul é uma organização internacional composta pelos doze Estados independentes da América do Sul e que almeja estabelecer ampla integração regional conforme seu tratado constitutivo. O Brasil desempenhou um papel fundamental em sua criação devido a seu peso geopolítico no espaço regional. A lógica política subjacente ao processo emula características que são homólogas a uma determinada linhagem do pensamento social e político brasileiro de natureza identitária, que pode ser designada por terminologias diversas: saquarema, idealista orgânica, iberista, desenvolvimentista. / [en] This thesis deals with the constitution of the Union of South American Nations – UNASUL in the light of Brazilian social and political thought. UNASUR is an international organization composed of the twelve independent states of South America and which aims to establish broad regional integration according to its constitutional treaty. Brazil played a fundamental role in its creation due to its geopolitical weight in the regional space. The political logic underlying the process emulates characteristics that are homologous to a particular line of Brazilian social and political thought of an identity nature, which can be termed various terminologies: saquarema, organic idealist, iberista, developmentalist.

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / O presente estudo pretende observar as relações entre as imagens do homem existentes nas páginas da revista Cultura Política (1941-1945) e os projetos de educação que disputaram espaço no debate público a partir da década de 1930. O periódico, editado por Almir de Andrade no âmbito do Departamento de Imprensa e Propaganda, consistiu num dos mais importantes veículos oficiais de comunicação ao longo do Estado Novo. Ao pesquisar o conceito de homem em Cultura Política, fica evidente a exigência constante de um processo formador para este homem, ao final do qual um novo tipo humano emergirá. Este novo tipo humano é apresentado, então, como a base de uma nova sociedade e de um novo Estado. O protagonista destas reflexões na revista é o autor Paulo Augusto de Figueiredo, que tem seu pensamento e obra analisados em maior detalhe. O argumento central deste trabalho é que a imagem de homem construída por Figueiredo e outros articulistas do periódico, bem como os artigos educacionais publicados na revista, apontam para o favorecimento do projeto católico de educação para o país, apenas um dentre outros que disputavam hegemonia sobre o processo de formação dos homens no período / The present work aims to observe the existing relation between the concept of man in the pages of Political Culture (1941-1945) and the different educational projects that have fought for hegemony in public space during the 1930&#8223;s. The review, edited by Almir de Andrade, was one of the most important intellectual instrument in the Estado Novo regime. When we look to the concept of man in Political Culture, the demand for formation process becomes evident. The request for a new man, compatible with the new society emerging is a common point in the texts analyzed. The main author in this effort is Paulo Augusto de Figueiredo, whose work is discussed in detail. Through the analysis of Figueiredo&#8223;s writings, along with the educational articles published in Political Culture, we conclude that the periodical adopted a line of proximity with the catholic educational thought, only one among other available at the time..