Este trabalho tem por objetivo apresentar o romance Assombro, de Chuck Palahniuk, como retrato e sintoma do comportamento da sociedade pós-moderna ocidental, cujos valores correspondem, de acordo com palavras do próprio autor, ao “inverso do sonho americano”. A principal característica de tal sociedade é a dificuldade dos indivíduos em lidar com as exigências e constantes mudanças nos âmbitos individual, social e psicológico, o que se configura na obra do escritor estadunidense através de personagens marginais em busca (na maioria das vezes, aparentemente inconsciente) de autoaceitação ou adaptação social. A leitura desenvolvida aqui se baseia principalmente nos escritos do teórico francês Jean Baudrillard, que apresenta o pressuposto de que o mundo contemporâneo encontra-se num estado de “pós-orgia”, assombrado por três fantasmas que o teórico chama de câncer, travesti e terrorismo, os quais simbolizam questões sociais contemporâneas relacionadas à política, sexualidade, comunicação e relacionamentos humanos, entre outros aspectos. Os conceitos de Baudrillard que norteiam a análise são: 'estado de pós-orgia', 'hiperrealidade', 'simulação', 'virulência' e 'sedução' e 'fantasmas'. O trabalho também apresenta as características da literatura de Chuck Palahniuk e sua recém-iniciada fortuna crítica, apontando os principais aspectos da sociedade pós-moderna presentes em suas obras e culminando em um cotejo de Assombro com o gótico e sua vertente pós-moderna, além de uma comparação entre a dinâmica estabelecida entre as personagens do romance e aquela percebida nos reality shows e falsos documentários (mock-documentaries). A conclusão retoma aspectos na estrutura, imaginário e conteúdo do romance, que permitem defini-lo como retrato e sintoma de uma nova configuração social, resultado das inevitáveis mudanças por que o mundo passa. / This dissertation aims at presenting Chuck Palahniuk‟s novel Haunted as a portrait and symptom of the behavior perceived in the postmodern Western society, whose values, according to the author himself, correspond to “the opposite of the American Dream”. The main characteristic of such society is the individuals‟ difficulty in dealing with demands and constant changes in the individual, social and psychological spheres, a fact observed in the work of this American writer through the presence of marginal characters in a more often than not apparently unconscious search of self-acceptance or social adaptation. The reading proposed is mainly based on the writings of French theoretician Jean Baudrillard, who presents the assumption that the contemporary world is in a “post-orgy” state, haunted by three phantasies he denominates cancer, transvestitism and terrorism, which symbolize contemporary social issues related to politics, sexuality, communication and human relationships, among other aspects. The concepts by Baudrillard that underlie the analysis are: 'post-orgy state', 'hyperreality', 'simulation', 'virulence', 'seduction' and 'phantasies'. The work also presents the features of the literature produced by Chuck Palahniuk and its newly-started critical fortune, highlighting the main aspects of postmodern society present in his works, culminating with an approximation of Haunted to the postmodern variation of Gothic literature, besides a comparison between the dynamics established among the characters in the novel to the one perceived in reality shows and mock-documentaries. The conclusion strengthens aspects in the structure, imaginary and content of the novel that enable the definition of Haunted as portrait and symptom of a new social organization, resulting from the inevitable changes the world goes through.

Este trabalho tem por objetivo apresentar o romance Assombro, de Chuck Palahniuk, como retrato e sintoma do comportamento da sociedade pós-moderna ocidental, cujos valores correspondem, de acordo com palavras do próprio autor, ao “inverso do sonho americano”. A principal característica de tal sociedade é a dificuldade dos indivíduos em lidar com as exigências e constantes mudanças nos âmbitos individual, social e psicológico, o que se configura na obra do escritor estadunidense através de personagens marginais em busca (na maioria das vezes, aparentemente inconsciente) de autoaceitação ou adaptação social. A leitura desenvolvida aqui se baseia principalmente nos escritos do teórico francês Jean Baudrillard, que apresenta o pressuposto de que o mundo contemporâneo encontra-se num estado de “pós-orgia”, assombrado por três fantasmas que o teórico chama de câncer, travesti e terrorismo, os quais simbolizam questões sociais contemporâneas relacionadas à política, sexualidade, comunicação e relacionamentos humanos, entre outros aspectos. Os conceitos de Baudrillard que norteiam a análise são: 'estado de pós-orgia', 'hiperrealidade', 'simulação', 'virulência' e 'sedução' e 'fantasmas'. O trabalho também apresenta as características da literatura de Chuck Palahniuk e sua recém-iniciada fortuna crítica, apontando os principais aspectos da sociedade pós-moderna presentes em suas obras e culminando em um cotejo de Assombro com o gótico e sua vertente pós-moderna, além de uma comparação entre a dinâmica estabelecida entre as personagens do romance e aquela percebida nos reality shows e falsos documentários (mock-documentaries). A conclusão retoma aspectos na estrutura, imaginário e conteúdo do romance, que permitem defini-lo como retrato e sintoma de uma nova configuração social, resultado das inevitáveis mudanças por que o mundo passa. / This dissertation aims at presenting Chuck Palahniuk‟s novel Haunted as a portrait and symptom of the behavior perceived in the postmodern Western society, whose values, according to the author himself, correspond to “the opposite of the American Dream”. The main characteristic of such society is the individuals‟ difficulty in dealing with demands and constant changes in the individual, social and psychological spheres, a fact observed in the work of this American writer through the presence of marginal characters in a more often than not apparently unconscious search of self-acceptance or social adaptation. The reading proposed is mainly based on the writings of French theoretician Jean Baudrillard, who presents the assumption that the contemporary world is in a “post-orgy” state, haunted by three phantasies he denominates cancer, transvestitism and terrorism, which symbolize contemporary social issues related to politics, sexuality, communication and human relationships, among other aspects. The concepts by Baudrillard that underlie the analysis are: 'post-orgy state', 'hyperreality', 'simulation', 'virulence', 'seduction' and 'phantasies'. The work also presents the features of the literature produced by Chuck Palahniuk and its newly-started critical fortune, highlighting the main aspects of postmodern society present in his works, culminating with an approximation of Haunted to the postmodern variation of Gothic literature, besides a comparison between the dynamics established among the characters in the novel to the one perceived in reality shows and mock-documentaries. The conclusion strengthens aspects in the structure, imaginary and content of the novel that enable the definition of Haunted as portrait and symptom of a new social organization, resulting from the inevitable changes the world goes through.

Este trabalho tem por objetivo apresentar o romance Assombro, de Chuck Palahniuk, como retrato e sintoma do comportamento da sociedade pós-moderna ocidental, cujos valores correspondem, de acordo com palavras do próprio autor, ao “inverso do sonho americano”. A principal característica de tal sociedade é a dificuldade dos indivíduos em lidar com as exigências e constantes mudanças nos âmbitos individual, social e psicológico, o que se configura na obra do escritor estadunidense através de personagens marginais em busca (na maioria das vezes, aparentemente inconsciente) de autoaceitação ou adaptação social. A leitura desenvolvida aqui se baseia principalmente nos escritos do teórico francês Jean Baudrillard, que apresenta o pressuposto de que o mundo contemporâneo encontra-se num estado de “pós-orgia”, assombrado por três fantasmas que o teórico chama de câncer, travesti e terrorismo, os quais simbolizam questões sociais contemporâneas relacionadas à política, sexualidade, comunicação e relacionamentos humanos, entre outros aspectos. Os conceitos de Baudrillard que norteiam a análise são: 'estado de pós-orgia', 'hiperrealidade', 'simulação', 'virulência' e 'sedução' e 'fantasmas'. O trabalho também apresenta as características da literatura de Chuck Palahniuk e sua recém-iniciada fortuna crítica, apontando os principais aspectos da sociedade pós-moderna presentes em suas obras e culminando em um cotejo de Assombro com o gótico e sua vertente pós-moderna, além de uma comparação entre a dinâmica estabelecida entre as personagens do romance e aquela percebida nos reality shows e falsos documentários (mock-documentaries). A conclusão retoma aspectos na estrutura, imaginário e conteúdo do romance, que permitem defini-lo como retrato e sintoma de uma nova configuração social, resultado das inevitáveis mudanças por que o mundo passa. / This dissertation aims at presenting Chuck Palahniuk‟s novel Haunted as a portrait and symptom of the behavior perceived in the postmodern Western society, whose values, according to the author himself, correspond to “the opposite of the American Dream”. The main characteristic of such society is the individuals‟ difficulty in dealing with demands and constant changes in the individual, social and psychological spheres, a fact observed in the work of this American writer through the presence of marginal characters in a more often than not apparently unconscious search of self-acceptance or social adaptation. The reading proposed is mainly based on the writings of French theoretician Jean Baudrillard, who presents the assumption that the contemporary world is in a “post-orgy” state, haunted by three phantasies he denominates cancer, transvestitism and terrorism, which symbolize contemporary social issues related to politics, sexuality, communication and human relationships, among other aspects. The concepts by Baudrillard that underlie the analysis are: 'post-orgy state', 'hyperreality', 'simulation', 'virulence', 'seduction' and 'phantasies'. The work also presents the features of the literature produced by Chuck Palahniuk and its newly-started critical fortune, highlighting the main aspects of postmodern society present in his works, culminating with an approximation of Haunted to the postmodern variation of Gothic literature, besides a comparison between the dynamics established among the characters in the novel to the one perceived in reality shows and mock-documentaries. The conclusion strengthens aspects in the structure, imaginary and content of the novel that enable the definition of Haunted as portrait and symptom of a new social organization, resulting from the inevitable changes the world goes through.

Bakgrund Det som idag beskrivs som e-sport har funnits sedan 1940-talet i en eller annan form. Med teknologiers framfart har detta kommit till att bli en del av den stora globala marknaden och även idrottsorganisationer investerar i e-sportlag som en del i att följa utvecklingen. Syftet med denna uppsats är att söka förståelse kring relationen kring e-sport och sport. Vidare har lyfts vad som händer just inom ramarna för corona- pandemin i sammanhanget. Metod Med etnografisk metod erbjuds här ett perspektiv på hur det kan se ut i samspelet mellan e-sport och sport, för idrotten i allmänhet, och för fotbollen i synnerhet. Data samlades in på ett online-baserat evenemang kallat Stay And Play Cup som arrangerades av EA Sports i tider av corona-pandemi. Analysen gjordes med teoribildningen som Jean Baudrillard står för i sin bok Simulacra & Simulation där han avhandlar relationen mellan verklighet, symboler och samhälle med fokus på kultur och media. Resultat Här bekräftas att de finns en relation kring e-sport och sport som kan behöva tittas närmare på ur ett idrottsvetenskapligt perspektiv. Vidare diskuteras vad det kan komma att innebära för idrott att e-sporten tar mark på en global marknad. Slutsats Fotbollen visar tecken på att bära på kulturella drag där spelandet av FIFA ingår. Strömningar om e-sportens närmare relation till fotbollen bekräftas. / Background What is now described as eSports has existed in one form or another since the 1940s. With the advancement of technologies, this has become part of the large global market and sports organizations are also investing in eSport-teams as part of following developments. Purpose of this essay is to seek an understanding of the relationship between e-sports and sports. Furthermore, what is happening within the context of the corona pandemic has been highlighted in this context. Method With ethnographic methodology, a perspective is offered here of what it might look like in the interaction between eSports and sports, for sports in general, and for football in particular. Data was collected at an online-based event called Stay and Play Cup, organized by EA Sports in times of corona pandemic. The analysis was done with the theory formation that Jean Baudrillard stands for in his book Simulacra & Simulation where he deals with the relationship between reality, symbols and society with a focus on culture and media. Result The result confirms that there is a relationship around e- sports and sports that may need to be looked at more closely from a sports science perspective. Furthermore, it is discussed what it could mean for sports that e-sports take ground in a global market. Conclusion Football shows signs of carrying on cultural traits that include the playing of the game FIFA. Currents about e-sport's closer relationship with football are confirmed.

The thesis deals with the theory of simulation and simulacra by French representative of postmodernism Jean Baudrillard. It focuses on way how Baudrillard thematises gradual extinction of signs connected with their representational function and the emergence of hyperreality which contains simulation. The attention is also focused on concept of reality, virtuality, simulation and illusion. The thesis includes Paul Virilio's thoughts and also Manuel Castells'. The basic framework of research is completed by a theory of fictional worlds. The second part of thesis includes an analysis of how this issue is reflected in present film production via analysis of content of the films The Matrix (Wachowski, 1999) and Mulholland Drive (Lynch, 2001). The analysis reflects different interpretation of illusive/virtual space and its relation to reality. The aim of thesis is to analyse the selected concepts which describe an emergence and interaction of simulation focusing on contemporary society which is connected with modern technology and also to point at reflection of conceptions mentioned in the films. The goal of thesis is also to explore the films, compare them and show the way how they contain the theme of reality, simulation and illusion and how much is the content of these films connected with the action...

本篇論文企圖運用三種不同之理論架構分別來詮釋詹涅特•溫特森（Jeanette Winterson）的第二本小說《激情》（The Passion）。小說中的兩位敘述者，亨利（Henri）與薇菈妮爾（Villanelle）各自在不同的城市□（Paris and Venice）遭受當權者的操縱與剝削，因此下定決心脫離宰制的空間，進而在逃亡的過程中彼此相識。不過由於諸多的因素，這對無緣的戀人終究以悲劇收場，分別在不同的空間□尋找自我生存的意義。論文第二章以克麗絲蒂娃（Julia Kristeva）的理論為基礎，探討小說人物的主體性如何受到兩種空間（the semiotic and the symbolic）的相互拉扯，而呈現出不穩定的狀態。第三章運用布希亞（Jean Baudrillard）所提出的擬像（simulation）與內爆（implosion）等觀念，分析小說人物如何在真實界與擬像界中來回擺盪。第四章從列菲弗爾（Henri Lefebvre）的空間概念為出發點，透過三種空間（spatial practice, representations of space, and representational spaces）的交互辯證關係，一方面挑戰傳統二分法的制式化對立，一方面藉由檢視小說人物與城市空間的互動，賦予空間議題某種顛覆傳統的可能性。最後在論文的結論部分，首先歸納出三位理論家一致的共通性—空間共生與空間擺盪，並以此做為貫穿理論架構與小說文本的中心概念，希冀將小說《激情》做更全面的詮釋與研究。 / This thesis aims to interpret Jeanette Winterson’s The Passion through three different theoretical frameworks, including Julia Kristeva’s feminism, Jean Baudrillard’s postmodernism, and Henri Lefebvre’s spatial theory. Interwoven with two narrators, The Passion describes the ill-starred lovers, Henri and Villanelle, both of whom undergo a series of manipulations and exploitations from those-in-power in Paris and Venice respectively, later determine to escape, and encounter each other in Russia unexpectedly. On account of the radical differences in personality and preference, this romantic story of Henri and Villanelle ends up with the permanent separation in two diverse spaces where both protagonists eventually feel the sense of belonging. Accordingly, this thesis pays much attention to the function of space in the novel, which is conducive to the dissection of Winterson’s characters and which becomes a crucial perspective penetrating these three theorists’ assertions. In Chapter Two, The Passion is first scrutinized in terms of Kristeva’s theory, particularly from the viewpoint of the semiotic and symbolic spaces, between which the subjectivity of the characters ineluctably oscillates. Chapter Three applies the operation of simulation and implosion within Baudrillard’s spectrum as the groundwork to elaborate The Passion, in which the characters again are entrapped in the oscillation of the real and simulated spaces. In Chapter Four, the focus is laid on the elucidation of how Lefebvre’s spatial trialectics, namely, spatial practice, representations of space, and representational spaces, interact with each other in the world of the novel. This dialectical relation of oscillation between the spatial triad not only challenges the oppositional rigidity of the traditional dichotomy but implies a possibility of subversion against the dominant space as well. Finally in the last chapter, I attempt to deduce the interrelation from three theorists in the scope of the novel, concluding my thesis with the concept—spatial symbiosis and spatial oscillation—as the major one probing into these four littérateurs of different fields.

In the early twentieth century, the modernists problematized ornament in their refashioning of architecture for the industrial age. Today, architects are formulating different responses to image and its (re)production in the information age. In both discourses of ornament and image, surfaces are often the perpetrators: visual boundaries that facilitate false appearances, imprisoning humanity in a shadowy cave of illusion. Such views follow a familiar metaphysical model characterized by the opposition between inside and outside and the opaque boundary that acts as a barrier. This model determines the traditional (Platonic) philosophical approach that follows a distinct hierarchical order and a perpendicular movement of thought that seeks to penetrate appearances in order to arrive at the essence of things. This thesis deploys Gilles Deleuze’s philosophy to advance a different understanding of surface, image and appearance in architecture. Using the Bilbao Guggenheim Museum as a catalyst, the thesis argues that many of the concepts with which commentators and critics analyse contemporary architecture follow models of thought that consider surfaces and their effects as secondary categories. Given the significance of visual (re)production and communication for contemporary society, the thesis proposes a different model based on surface as that which simultaneously produces, connects and separates image and reality. This non-hierarchical approach is inspired by surficial philosophy, which relates to Earth, to geology and topology, conjuring up a diversity of concepts from the thickness of the crust to the smooth fluidity of the seas. The result is an unfamiliar, polemical model of thought that does not define surface as a limit or barrier, rather a medium, a pliable space of smooth mixture. In this model, difference is not in the opposition between the two sides of a boundary line, rather it occurs upon and within the surficial landscape that consumes categories, promoting nomadic movements of thought that offer greater flexibility towards creativity and new possibilities. In surficial thought, images and appearances are not artificial copies of an originary reality, rather they possess a unique reality of their own. This approach allows architectural imagery to be theorised as a positive surfacing of architecture beyond disciplinary lines and the locality of a specific time and place.

Within and Without is a document which illustrates my personal and artistic research into the nature of the postmodern conception of the self: that self is unfixed, multiple, and reactive. It explicates my myriad and explorative approaches to photographic portraiture. Furthermore, it indicates many of my theoretical and artistic references and how I have applied my lessons both as an artist and a researcher to maximize the effect of my concepts within the formal and aesthetic confines of my photographs. Finally, this document explains my own beliefs concerning the nature of self and how a synthesis of my influences has led me to these beliefs.

This thesis explores how the aura of the artworks changes in the age of digital reproduction through the empirical experiments conducted in Uppsala Konstmuseum. By employing the definition of the aura given by Benjamin in The work of art in the age of the mechanical reproduction and The arcade project, this thesis conceptualizes the “aura” into eight dimensions and then operationalizes the eight dimensions in order to find whether audience’s evaluation of the artwork changes when they are given different stimulus in the control experiment. From the control experiment, the quantitative data will be obtained from a questionnaire and non-participant observation. The qualitative data will be obtained from the interviews. By also applying the simulacra theory of Baudrillard to the analysis part, this thesis finds that there exists a small difference in the perception of the aura between the people who see a digital copy and who see a real painting. The aura still has its power. However, such power is really weak, as many dimensions of the aura have been weakened by the digital simulacra. Through this study, I suggest the museums to take cautious steps to digitalize their artworks though there is no evidence that virtual museums can replace real museums.

This thesis, which supports an exhibition of visual art, develops from Jean Baudrillard's philosophy of seduction. I have focused on the representation of the bachelor and his pad in American men's magazines from the mid-twentieth century. During this period, magazines such as Playboy, Escapade and Rogue created features on modern living to reassure an independent and affluent man that a dwelling with style and taste would ensure a happy bachelor life and facilitate intimacy. My photographs and collages add complexity to this portrait by framing this unique space as a stage where an unmarried man encircled by his lusty decor acted to entrance a woman.