This thesis identifies a trend in recent postmodern dystopian fiction for writers to metafictionally dwell on the place of literature in a future context. This trend springs from similar concerns present in the two most influential dystopian novels of the 20th century, Brave New World and Nineteen Eighty-Four. Yet, unlike Huxley and Orwell, for whom the marginalization of literature is merely one symptom of the hegemonic control oppressing these future societies, the postmodern writers I identify situate the book’s future disappearance at the epicenter of culture’s demise. In Gary Shteyngart’s Super Sad True Love Story (2010), electronic technologies have virtually eradicated print literature and the novel’s protagonist, Lenny, mourns the changes in social interactions he sees this shift in technology bringing about. In Jeanette Winterson’s The Stone Gods (2007), marginalized book-lovers see the devastation humanity continuously wreaks on the environment as a product of culture’s disdain for literature.

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Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

Cette thèse, intitulée Le pohète initié : Illumination et esthétique ésotérique dans l’œuvre de Gellu Naum, analyse trois œuvres importantes de Gellu Naum, le roman Zenobia, les proses La voie du serpent et Medium, ainsi que le rapport entre la poésie picturale de Gellu Naum et la peinture narrative de Victor Brauner. Les œuvres de Gellu Naum que nous analysons possèdent des points communs synthétisés dans la figure de l’illumination, qui signale l’existence d’un régime de connaissance refondé. L’illumination se base sur des théories ésotériques et surréalistes et s’ouvre également sur une nouvelle interprétation du sacré, dénouée de tout caractère religieux. L’illumination institue et entretient un climat mystique à travers les écrits de Gellu Naum et les productions plastiques de Victor Brauner et consolide en même temps leurs doctrines esthétiques. Pour Gellu Naum, l’illumination est le but suprême de l’existence. Elle a affaire avec la capacité de voir avec les yeux du dedans. Dans ce registre ésotérique, la possibilité d’arriver de l’autre côté, c’est-à-dire dans la part invisible de la réalité, stratifiée jusqu’à son niveau archaïque, est réelle et révélatrice. Selon Gellu Naum, l’artiste doit mettre son œil à l’état sauvage pour décrire l’état transcendantal dans lequel résident ses héros; ceci en essayant de contrecarrer un grave bouleversement historique, puisque le totalitarisme roumain a éclipsé à tout jamais l’espace de l’existence. L’écriture de Naum porte les traces noires de cette incidence néfaste. Pour Victor Brauner, l’illumination a une fonction initiatrice. Elle cristallise l’art du peintre et l’éclaire tout au long de sa quête identitaire. L’illumination entretient et provoque une catharsis aux connotations inattendues dans la production artistique, s’articulant avec une consécration de l’ésotérisme. Partant d’une perspective interdisciplinaire, la thèse se divise en trois parties, Le roman Zenobia et la question de la pensée illuminée, L’état transcendantal et ses variables ou De la logique occulte de l’écriture et Les expressions de la poésie picturale et de la peinture narrative à travers les œuvres de Gellu Naum et de Victor Brauner, chacune d’entre elles analysant la figure de l’illumination et établissant aussi les invariantes esthétiques des deux Surréalistes. Dans leur quête de nouvelles formes de représentations artistiques, Gellu Naum et Victor Brauner ont recours à un surréalisme essentiellement cognitif. Les deux font appel à la rationalité, à la lucidité accrue, ce que les Surréalistes rejetaient parfois avec véhémence. / This thesis, entitled The Initiated pohet : Illumination and Esoteric Aesthetics in Gellu Naum’s work, analyzes three important literary productions by Gellu Naum, the novel Zenobia, his writings The Serpent’s Way and Medium, as well as the relationship between Gellu Naum’s pictorial poetry and Victor Bruner’s narrative painting. Gellu Naum’s works analyzed in this study have many similarities synthetized in the trope of illumination. The notion of illumination is based on esoteric and Surrealist theories, opening an interpretation of the sacred devoid of religious substance. Illumination develops a mystical climate throughout Gellu Naum’s writings and Victor Brauner’s art productions and consolidates their aesthetic doctrines. For Naum Gellu, illumination is the ultimate goal of existence. It has to do with the ability to see with the eyes within, revealing a blinding and terrifying alternative to the factual world. Within this esoteric tone, the possibility of reaching the other side – the invisible, advancing deep to the archaic level – is real and revealing. According to Gellu Naum, the artist must reach the wild state in order to describe the transcendental state infusing his heroes. This perspective counteracts a severe historical turmoil, since Romanian totalitarianism severely abbreviated life conditions. Naum’s writings bear the dark traces of this negative impact. For Victor Brauner, illumination has an initiation function. It crystallizes the painter's art throughout his quest for identity. Illumination causes and maintains catharsis, with unexpected connotations in the art production. It articulates a form of esotericism that only rarely infuses the Surrealist movement in the West. Advancing an interdisciplinary approach, my thesis is divided into three parts: The novel Zenobia and the Notion of "Illumination Thinking" The Transcendental State and Its Variables or The Occult Logic of Writing and Expressions of Pictorial Poetry and of Narrative Painting in the Works of Gellu Naum and Victor Brauner. These chapters analyze the figure of illumination and establish the aesthetic invariants grounding the works of the two Surrealists. In their quest for new forms of artistic representations, Gellu Naum and Victor Brauner employ a mainly cognitive form of Surrealism. Both appeal to rationality, to cruel lucidity, which often Surrealists strongly rejected.

The aim of this study is to analyze the construction of research culture and collaboration within the research studio Tools for Creativity, one node in the larger Interactive Institute. This studio is an arena that in today’s society is associated with boundary crossing, dynamics and variability: An environment with high-tech equipment, a staff equipped with diverse skills, and a flexible approach with the ambition of developing innovative tools based on ICT to strengthen human creativity. The present thesis is divided into four main parts. In Part One, culture as analytical framework is presented. This is followed by a presentation of field work, data and field site, the studio Tools for Creativity, and its employees. This includes a discussion of the methods of participant observations and deep inter-views. In the theoretical framework overview, perspectives used in this thesis is presented, including the so-called “new research landscape” debate, a background to this thesis. The introduction concludes with a chapter whith a reflexivity discussion including the making of the research self during field work and in the written text. In Part Two, entitled “Technology”, the informants’ definition of technology in relation ICT and the prototypes produced is ana-lyzed. The concepts “enlightenment optimism” and “romantic uneasiness” are presented as theoretical entrances to the chapter. This is the background for an analysis of the future- and speed-oriented discourse that characterizes the informants’ perception of technology. The aim of using technology to support human creativity, challenge presence and facilitate multi-cultural communication is further discussed. This is juxtaposed with another aspect of technol-ogy, namely the informant’s critique of technology’s impact on mankind, humanity and society. Part Three, “Re-search”, deals with interpretations and negotiations of the concept of research and the researcher conducted by the informants at Tools for Creativity. First, the concept of “boundary object” is presented followed by its use order to analyze the construction of research and the researcher in a multi-disciplinary arena like the studio. An important part of the making of the researcher is the trading of skills in the attempt of legitimizing the individuals’ efforts at conducting research. Here, focus is the negotiation of research as an activity between individuals representing the sciences and the arts, as well as those with formal education and autodidacts. Attempts to manage a broader research concept are placed in relation to academic quality demands. In this analysis, the point of departure is Pierre Bourdieu’s concepts of symbolic capital. Here, gender is included as symbolic capital. Part Four is called “Reflections” and contains a discussion of the study and reflections concerning field work. This is followed by a summation of what happened to Tools for Creativity and Interactive Institute after finished field work.

El país enemigo: México en la obra de Roberto Bolaño, 1980-2004 propone, en un primer momento, un análisis del papel central que juega México en la obra del autor chileno, Roberto Bolaño. La exploración de la obsesiva representación literaria del país hispanoamericano, su paisaje y sus habitantes en la narrativa de Bolaño revela una visión profundamente pesimista, distópica y con rasgos escatológico-apocalípticos, según la cual México es primordialmente o el espacio nostálgico de la juventud perdida o el territorio de la muerte, del crimen y del Mal. En un segundo momento, se argumenta que tales elecciones narrativas vinculan a Roberto Bolaño con una larga tradición discursiva de representación literaria de la realidad mexicana que se actualiza en la novela anglosajona del siglo XX, particularmente en la obra de tema mexicano de D.H. Lawrence. El estudio de ese vínculo permite afirmar que Roberto Bolaño no rebasa críticamente tal tradición discursiva; sino que la repite y reafirma, con consecuencias éticas y artísticas cuestionables. / The Enemy Country: Mexico in Roberto Bolaño´s Work, 1980-2004 analyzes, firstly, the key role of Mexico in the work of the Chilean author, Roberto Bolaño. The study of the obsessive representation of the Hispano-American country, its landscape, and people in Bolaño´s literature reveals a pessimistic, dystopian and apocalyptical vision, in which Mexico becomes the nostalgic place of the lost youth or the territory of death, crime and Evil. Secondly, it is argued that such narrative choices link Bolaño´s work with an old discourse of literary representation of Mexico that the 20th English and American novel, particularly D.H. Lawrence´s Mexican work, exemplify and confirms. The consideration of this link ascertains the fact that Roberto Bolaño does not critically renew or surmount that old discourse of representation; rather he repeats and affirms it, not without ethical and artistic consequences.

The following study examines the construction of political identities in the cinematic adaptations of Suzanne Collins "The Hunger Games". This is done through the lense of a post-structuralist, discourse-oriented, theoretical framework. Drawing on Chantal Mouffe's and Ernesto Laclau's concept of hegemony as well as Kimberle Crenshaw's theory of intersectionality (amongst others), I used the series main protagonist - Katniss Everdeen - as the focal point of my analysis. Situated in the intersection between class, gender and race, she is a pivotal subject in the hegemonic struggle of the films, having been labelled as a feminist icon. My aims were as follows: Firstly, I wished to establish the hegemonic structures of The Hunger Games. Secondly, I interpreted in what ways Katniss Everdeen related to these, and lastly, I sought to connect my findings to central concepts of school democracy - as I am to become an upper secondary teacher in social studies.       The analysis leaves one ambiguous as to whether Katniss is to be seen as a subversive or conformist figure. If we look at the narrative where she acts as the unifying "Mockingjay" in the struggle against "The Capitol", several subversive acts can be found - especially concerning class. However - the parallell narrative of the love-triangle, the one between Katniss, Peeta and Gale, distorts the picture. The revolutionary subversiveness of Gale is contrasted with the democratic conformity of Peeta. In the end, Katniss chooses the latter. This is to be seen against the horizon that most characters in disadvantaged positions die in their hegemonic resistance. Democracy is thus construed as the safe option, whereas heteronormativity and racism remain largely unchallenged. Regarding the reality of pupils - Katniss can be used to illustrate the limits and possibilities of the intersectional experience, and more so, to demonstrate the precariousness of diverging from the norm.

Using postmodern, feminist and queer notions of utopia/dystopia and narrative theory, this thesis contains an analysis of The Handmaid’s Tale (novel 1985; film 1990; TV series S01 2017) based on theoretical and methodological understandings of utopia/dystopia and narrative as deeply connected with notions of temporality and relationality, and of violence and resistance as the modes of expression of utopia and dystopia in the source texts. The analysis is carried out in an explorative manner (Czarniawska 2004) and utilises the notion of “disidentification” (Butler 1993; Muñoz 1999) and the concepts of “diffraction” (Haraway 1992, 1997; Barad 2007, 2010), and “entanglement” (Barad 2007). The conclusion becomes that utopia and dystopia in The Handmaid’s Tale are, to a great extent, imagined within the same system of understanding, but that utopian hope can be found in the relationality and temporality of resistance, and that the radically different utopian place is the queer horizon.

Submitted by Geandra Rodrigues (geandrar@gmail.com) on 2018-04-10T19:18:59Z No. of bitstreams: 1 lucasfazolamiguel.pdf: 7948999 bytes, checksum: d1fa53335cfcae9999e759982d1faf59 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2018-04-11T15:07:54Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 lucasfazolamiguel.pdf: 7948999 bytes, checksum: d1fa53335cfcae9999e759982d1faf59 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-04-11T15:07:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 lucasfazolamiguel.pdf: 7948999 bytes, checksum: d1fa53335cfcae9999e759982d1faf59 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-02-27 / Essa pesquisa propõe o estudo da história em quadrinhos V de Vingança, de autoria dos britânicos Alan Moore e David Lloyd, a partir da análise estrutural da linguagem do meio, bem como do cenário teórico no qual a obra se insere, para identificarmos o diálogo existente entre os quadrinhos e a literatura. Lançaremos o olhar para uma investigação do meio a partir de sua composição estrutural inerentemente híbrida, tendo como apoio teórico as proposições de Thierry Groensteen (2015) e Scott McCloud (2005), bem como realizaremos um apanhado histórico das histórias em quadrinhos, com o suporte de García (2012) e Campos (2015). Pretendemos observar, a partir de Linda Hutcheon (1991), Lyotard (2009) e Compagnon (1999), os pressupostos que compõem o cenário teórico pós-moderno com o qual V de Vingança dialoga, ressaltando sua narrativa intertextual e fragmentária, de modo a destacar a aproximação entre a obra de Moore e Lloyd com o romance pós-moderno V. (1988), de Thomas Pynchon. Ao realizarmos uma leitura analítica da história em quadrinhos, verificaremos o diálogo da mesma com as distopias modernas, como 1984 (2009) de George Orwell, sob o aporte teórico de Jacoby (2007), Kopp (2011) e Hilario (2013), de modo a evidenciarmos como o contato com a literatura corroborou para o amadurecimento do meio proporcionando novas possibilidades narrativas para os quadrinhos. / This research proposes the study of the comic book V for Vendetta, written by the british Alan Moore and David Lloyd, from the structural analysis of the comic books language, as well as the analysis of the theoretical scenario in which the work is inserted, in order to identify the existence of a dialogue between comics and literature. The focus of this work is on the inherently hybrid structural creation of this language. The theoretical support are the proposals of Thierry Groensteen (2015) and Scott McCloud (2005). Furthermore we will make a historical catch of the comic books, with the support of García (2012) and Campos (2015). We intend to observe, from Linda Hutcheon (1991), Lyotard (2009) and Compagnon (1999), the assumptions that compose the postmodern theoretical scenario with which V for Vendetta dialogues, emphasizing its intertextual and fragmentary narrative, in order to highlight the approximation between the work of Moore and Lloyd with Thomas Pynchon's postmodern novel V. (1988). This analytical reading of comics will enable us to verify the dialogue of the comic books with the modern dystopias, such as 1984 (2009) by George Orwell, with the theoretical contribution of Jacoby (2007), Kopp (2011) and Hilario (2013), in order to show how the contact with a literature corroborated the ripening of the medium, providing new narrative possibilities for comics.

This essay shows how Margaret Atwood’s novel The Handmaid’s Tale (1985) functions as a critique of patriarchal society as it depicts a dystopic, dismantled society where women are divided into societal groups on biological grounds. Based on socialist feminist literary theory, an analysis is carried out of two of the female characters, Offred and Serena Joy, who are both oppressed by a patriarchal, totalitarian government; an oppression that is manifested in different ways. Offred is used as a tool to provide children and Serena Joy is confined within the home. The focus of the analysis is on the oppression of these two characters by the patriarchal government through the removal of their rights due to their gender. Red and blue, the two colors used to mark their different societal groups, are analyzed to show how they affect the reader’s perception of these characters and how the novel demonstrates the division of women visually. / Denna uppsats visar hur Margaret Atwoods roman Tjänarinnans berättelse (1985) fungerar som en kritik mot ett patriarkalt samhälle. Denna kritik tar sig uttryck genom en dystopisk skildring av ett samhälle där kvinnor delas in i sociala grupper baserat på deras biologiska förutsättningar. Med utgångspunkt i socialistisk feministisk litteraturteori görs en karaktärsanalys av två av de kvinnliga karaktärerna, Offred och Serena Joy. De är båda förtryckta av det patriarkala, totalitära styret, ett förtryck som tar sig uttryck på olika sätt. Offred används som ett verktyg för att öka barnafödandet och Serena Joy är isolerad i hemmet. Analysen fokuserar på förtryckandet av de två karaktärerna baserat på borttagandet av deras tidigare rättigheter på grund av deras kön. Röd och blå, två färger som används för att markera deras sociala grupp, analyseras för att påvisa hur de påverkar läsarens uppfattning av karaktärerna och hur romanen rent visuellt kategoriserar kvinnor i olika grupper.