Doctorat en philosophie et lettres / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Doctorat en philosophie et lettres / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

In this dissertation the author argued for a postcolonial reading of the sublime that takes into account the racial and gendered underpinnings of Immanuel Kant's and Edmund Burke's classic theories. The thesis used the understanding of the sublime as a lens for an analysis of the cultural politics of landscape in a range of late imperial and early modern texts about Africa. A re-reading of Henry Morton Stanley's central African exploration narratives, John Buchan's African fiction and political writing, and later texts such as Alan Paton's fiction, autobiographies and travel writing, together with an analysis of colonial mountaineering discourse, suggest that non-metropolitan discourses of the sublime, far from being an outmoded rhetoric, could manage and contain the contradictions inherent in the aesthetic appreciation and appropriation of contested colonial landscapes.

In this dissertation the author argued for a postcolonial reading of the sublime that takes into account the racial and gendered underpinnings of Immanuel Kant's and Edmund Burke's classic theories. The thesis used the understanding of the sublime as a lens for an analysis of the cultural politics of landscape in a range of late imperial and early modern texts about Africa. A re-reading of Henry Morton Stanley's central African exploration narratives, John Buchan's African fiction and political writing, and later texts such as Alan Paton's fiction, autobiographies and travel writing, together with an analysis of colonial mountaineering discourse, suggest that non-metropolitan discourses of the sublime, far from being an outmoded rhetoric, could manage and contain the contradictions inherent in the aesthetic appreciation and appropriation of contested colonial landscapes.

This thesis is an investigation into the simplest material entities recognised by Aristotle's theory of nature. In general, the position I defend is that the four 'so-called elements' fire, air, water, and earth are, for Aristotle, genuine elements, i.e., the simplest material constituents, of bodies. In particular, I deal with two problems, the first concerning the relationship between the four 'so-called elements' and the primary contraries, hot-cold, dry-wet; and the second concerning the nature of the matter from which the latter come to be. Responses to these problems in the secondary literature tend to conclude that the contraries (usually together with 'prime matter'), are constitutive of the so-called elements. I reject this conclusion. In the first part of this thesis I consider, and dismiss, the alleged evidence that Aristotle denies to fire, air, water, and earth the status of genuine elements, and I argue that the status of the contraries as the differentiae of the elements effectively rules out the possibility that they could be the constituents of the latter. In the second part of this thesis I attempt to unpack Aristotle's assertion at De Gen. et Cor. II. 1 that the matter of the perceptible bodies is that from which the so-called elements come to be. I argue that the matter of the perceptible bodies, although it is that from which the elements come to be, is not the 'matter of the elements', in the sense of a matter that composes the elements. On the contrary, the 'matter of the perceptible bodies', i.e., the constitutive matter of composite bodies, is itself composed of the elements: it is a mixture of the four elements. Thus the latter can be said to come to be 'from' the 'matter of the perceptible bodies', but this must be understood in a non-constitutive sense of 'from'.

University of Macau / Faculty of Social Sciences. / Department of History

Bzhad pa'i rdo rje (1697-1740), the Fifth Sle lung Rin po che, was a religiously and politically controversial figure and an incredibly prolific author, having written or compiled over 46 volumes worth of mainly religious texts. A high-ranking Dge lugs pa sprul sku, Sle lung is seen as having gradually "defected" to the Rnying ma school, although he self-identified as a follower of the "non-sectarian" (ris med) perspective. Sle lung also acted as a spiritual advisor to most of the major central Tibetan rulers during the course of his life, most significantly Mi dbang Pho lha nas (r. 1729-1747). But despite numerous features of fascinating interest, Sle lung and his writings have received very little scholarly attention, and this thesis is intended to fill this unfortunate lacuna. The present study begins with an extended biographical examination of Sle lung's life, and the political and religious unrest in central Tibet at the time in which he was deeply invested. I pay special attention to the controversies that surrounded him, particularly his purported sexual licentiousness and his ecumenical work which was unpopular among his more sectarian Dge lugs pa critics. This opening biography provides critical historical context as I move on to examine two of Sle lung's most important literary works. The first is the sixteen-volume Gsang ba ye shes chos skor, a massive cycle of teachings by Sle lung and his students that integrates tantric theories derived from Sle lung's experience with Gsar ma (specifically Dge lugs pa) teachings. The second work is the Bstan srung rgya mtsho'i rnam thar, a unique text in Tibetan literature which consists of an apparently unprecedented compilation of Tibetan Buddhist protector deity (bstan srung, chos skyong) origin myths. I will make sense of key features of these two works within the larger context of Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, as well as the political and personal concerns of Sle lung himself.

No description available.

Wong, Helen Kin Hoi. / "December 2009." / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2010. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 70-108). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Abstract --- p.i / Acknowledgements --- p.iii / Introduction --- p.1 / Chapter Chapter 1. --- Luther´ةs Ideas about Music: A Historical Precursor to Musica Poetica --- p.7 / Luther´ةs Educational Background --- p.7 / Luther´ةs Aesthetic --- p.11 / The Greek Doctrine of Ethos --- p.12 / Biblical Reference to Music --- p.13 / Luther´ةs Parting with the Church Fathers --- p.15 / The Place of Music within Luther´ةs Theology --- p.16 / The Function of Music within the Lutheran Theology --- p.17 / Chorales --- p.19 / The Use of Polyphonic Music in the Lutheran Liturgy --- p.21 / Luther´ةs Views on the Importance of Music in Education --- p.23 / Chapter 2. --- The Rise of Musica Poetica in Sixteenth-Century Lutheran Germany --- p.25 / Definition of Musica Poetica --- p.33 / "Heinrich Faber: De Musica Poetica, 1548" --- p.38 / "Gallus Dressier: Praecepta Musica Poeticae, 1563" --- p.39 / "Seth Calvisius: Melopoiia Sive Melodiae Condendae Ratio, Quam Vulgo Musicam Poeticam Vocant (Erfurt, 1592)" --- p.41 / "Joachim Burmeister: Hypomnematum Musicae Poeticae, 1599" --- p.42 / Chapter 3. --- Musica Poetica in the Lutheran Latin School: Rhetorically Inspired Compositional Instruction --- p.46 / Teachers of Musica Poetica --- p.46 / Students of Musica Poetica --- p.49 / The Pedagogical Method of Musica Poetica: / Praeceptum-Exemplum-Imitatio --- p.54 / Praceptum --- p.56 / Exemplum --- p.60 / Imitatio --- p.61 / Chapter 4. --- Conclusion - Understanding Musica Poetica in Sixteenth-Century Lutheran Germany --- p.67 / Religious Functions as Expressive Goals --- p.67 / "From Context to Method, or Vice Versa" --- p.68 / Bibliography --- p.70

This thesis presents the first critical edition of the Tratado de la lepra by Enrique de Villena, and proposes to determine its relationship with the biblical exegesis of the Middle Ages. The study connects the treatise firmly with the exegetical tradition represented by Nicholas of Lyra. Enrique de Villena (1384? -1434) is a controversial figure of the late Castilian Middle Ages. Of noble birth, his quest for knowledge set him apart from his social class who traditionally pursued military careers at a time when Spain was still engaged in the Reconquista with the Moors. Villena's neglect of his role, together with the antagonism between his grandfather and the Castilian Court, deprived Don Enrique of the wealth and property that was rightfully his and forced him to lead a life not befitting a man of his social status. Villena was a self-educated 'humanist'. His pursuit of knowledge took him to the most varied disciplines, as is amply shown in the themes of his many writings. They range from lessons on how to become a 'royal carver' to rules for writing poetry, from superstitions to mythological and biblical exegesis. He supports his points of view with great agility, quoting renowned authorities of the Middle Ages and the Antiquity. Because of his vast knowledge and his attraction to unusual and obscure matters, Villena developed an unjustified and enduring reputation as a sorcerer. This reputation was specially reinforced after his death, when most of his books were sent to destruction by a royal edict. The Tratado de la lepra is a treatise on the interpretation of several passages of the biblical book of Leviticus, related to the occurrence of leprosy in walls, furniture, and garments. Villena tries to demonstrate 'scientifically' the feasibility of such an event, conferring absolute authority on the Bible. This work has been relatively overlooked by modern scholars, partly because the biblical passages it refers to are not ambiguous enough to justify the need for interpretation.