This thesis analyzes the Apostle Paul’s approach to his own death. The term “approach” is deliberately vague and is intended to encompass a number of questions: What was Paul’s attitude toward his death? How did he act and what did he say and write in view of it? What hopes did he hold for himself beyond death? These questions are explored through a close reading of three Pauline letters that look forward to Paul’s death and other relevant texts in the first two generations after Paul’s death (A.D. 70–160). Thus, this thesis is a study of Paul’s death in prospect and retrospect. Starting with the latter, the first half of the thesis examines portraits of the departed Paul in Acts 20:17–38; 1 Clem. 5.1–6.1; Ign. Eph. 12.2; Rom. 4.3; Pol. Phil. 9.1–2; and the Martyrdom of Paul. It is argued that these portraits exhibit a complicated network of similarities that may be described using Wittgenstein’s concept of “family resemblances.” Viewed as a part of Paul’s early effective history, these early portraits of Paul offer substantial resources for the interpretation of his letters. The second half of the thesis examines portraits of the departing Paul in 2 Cor 1:8–14; 4:16–5:10; Phil 1:18d–26; 2:16b–18; 3:7–14; and 2 Tim 1:12; 4:6–8, 17–18. The “decision of death” referred to in 2 Cor 1:9 is highlighted as a religious experience and one which goaded Paul to formulate his approach to death. It is argued that his death did not primarily present an existential challenge, but a pastoral one. Although touching upon three areas of recent scholarly interest (Paul’s theology of death and beyond; Paul’s religious experience; and Pauline reception), this thesis sets forth a new research question and fresh interpretations of early Christian and Pauline texts.

This study examines the nature, function, and implications of Paul's Temple metaphors (1 Cor 3.16-17, 6.19-20; 2 Cor 6.14-7.1) and asks whether these metaphors indicate that the Jerusalem Temple has been superseded by the Christian community. Answers to this question have often relied upon the prioritization of particular backgrounds for Paul's language and the implementation of ideologically biased, interpretive models such as spiritualization. Issues arise in both these procedures due to the hermeneutical ambiguities involved in identifying metaphorical meaning. Our approach to Paul's Temple metaphors utilizes the analytical tools provided by Conceptual Metaphor Theory and calls for an awareness of these metaphors' early effective-history. Metaphors do not contain meaning but rather provide a conceptual structure that generates meaning through a hermeneutical act. Thus, in order to understand Paul's metaphors we must recognize not only their conceptual structures, but also how these structures have generated meanings and, as a result, how these meanings have shaped our interpretations of Paul himself. The historical setting of Paul's Temple metaphors is examined first in order to establish a set of assumptions and anticipations of meaning for when we encounter this type of language in this period. The public behaviour of the majority of Jews towards the Temple, as well as the presence of cultic criticisms, and conceptualizations in the Second Temple period demonstrate a widespread adherence to and support for the Temple. Turning to Paul's metaphors, we see how the Temple provides a conceptual model with which Paul can structure and reason about the status of both the community and body as indwelt and holy. While these metaphors do not suggest a deviation from Temple adherence, we demonstrate how they offer a set of conceptual and linguistic tools open to various interpretations and applications. We then examine a series of texts which highlight aspects of these metaphors' early effective-history: Ephesians 2.11-22, 1 Peter 2.4-10, Hebrews, and the Epistle of Barnabas. Through actualizing Paul's metaphors or by being associated with them, we observe how subsequent texts interpret, extend, and apply these metaphors to address their own particular questions. Awareness of this early effective-history reveals the semantic potential of these texts and allows us to reflect on the origins of some of our own interpretive tendencies, particularly those which lead us to supersessionist interpretations of Paul. Thus we conclude that a supersession of the Temple and its cult is not demonstrable from Paul's Temple metaphors as this is not the question these texts seek to answer. However, the conceptual framework provided by these metaphors places no observable hermeneutical constraints such that these texts could not be utilized in different historical circumstances to address the question of the validity of the Temple in relation to the Christian community. Observing how these metaphors provide conceptual structure and generate meaning enhances our understanding not only of Paul's texts, but also of ourselves as interpreters of Paul.

CoordenaÃÃo de AperfeiÃoamento de Pessoal de NÃvel Superior / Hans-Georg Gadamer, na sua obra Verdade e MÃtodo (1960), pÃs como questÃo central de suas reflexÃes a pergunta pelas condiÃÃes de possibilidade de nossa compreensÃo. Na busca por uma possÃvel resposta, ele tentou revelar um tipo de acontecimento que precede aquele comportamento cientÃfico, ainda hoje predominante, guiado pelo paradigma do mÃtodo. NÃo se trata de negar a importÃncia dos resultados das ciÃncias empÃrico-analÃticas, nem de buscar um novo mÃtodo que contemple outras formas de experiÃncia humana, que nÃo seja a experiÃncia cientÃfica. Trata-se, em todo caso, de reconhecer que existe uma verdade apesar do predomÃnio do modelo cientÃfico, a qual està relacionada à experiÃncia compreensiva do homem. Isto Ã, està em questÃo uma prÃxis da vida que nÃo pode ser refletida em sua completude por meio de uma lÃgica matemÃtica, senÃo a partir de dentro da prÃpria experiÃncia, ou seja, implicando aquele que experimenta ao mesmo movimento da compreensÃo. Por isso, Gadamer tomou como base para as suas preocupaÃÃes filosÃficas a ontologia fundamental de Martin Heidegger. Todavia, diferente deste, no lugar de pensar a questÃo do sentido do Ser, Gadamer decidiu pÃr como centro de suas preocupaÃÃes teÃricas a âtradiÃÃo de linguagemâ, ou seja, aquilo que, segundo ele, pode ser compreendido. Nesse trabalho refletiremos sobre o princÃpio da âhistÃria continuamente influenteâ, o qual, conforme nossa interpretaÃÃo, sustenta todas as consideraÃÃes de Gadamer na obra Verdade e MÃtodo acerca da questÃo da compreensÃo. Nossa proposta à mostrar, portanto, como a consciÃncia da constante influÃncia da histÃria sobre a nossa compreensÃo revela-nos tanto o sentido da compreensÃo como as suas possibilidades dentro das diversas conexÃes histÃricas da tradiÃÃo, isto Ã, os limites de nossas teorias. E essa à uma verdade que deve valer tanto para a Filosofia como para as ciÃncias, se ambas tiverem como meta uma compreensÃo autÃntica das coisas.

PEREIRA, Viviane Magalhães. Compreensão e tradição: a primazia do princípio da “História continuamente influente” na obra Verdade e método de Gadamer. 2012. 129f. – Dissertação (Mestrado) – Universidade Federal do Ceará, Programa de Pós-graduação em Filosofia, Fortaleza (CE), 2012. / Submitted by Márcia Araújo (marcia_m_bezerra@yahoo.com.br) on 2013-11-12T12:45:34Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2012-DIS-VMPEREIRA.pdf: 1027178 bytes, checksum: 20c2c0f552082ab9bf9fb167b4036c93 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Márcia Araújo(marcia_m_bezerra@yahoo.com.br) on 2013-11-12T14:14:28Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 2012-DIS-VMPEREIRA.pdf: 1027178 bytes, checksum: 20c2c0f552082ab9bf9fb167b4036c93 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2013-11-12T14:14:28Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2012-DIS-VMPEREIRA.pdf: 1027178 bytes, checksum: 20c2c0f552082ab9bf9fb167b4036c93 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012 / Hans-Georg Gadamer, na sua obra Verdade e Método (1960), pôs como questão central de suas reflexões a pergunta pelas condições de possibilidade de nossa compreensão. Na busca por uma possível resposta, ele tentou revelar um tipo de acontecimento que precede aquele comportamento científico, ainda hoje predominante, guiado pelo paradigma do método. Não se trata de negar a importância dos resultados das ciências empírico-analíticas, nem de buscar um novo método que contemple outras formas de experiência humana, que não seja a experiência científica. Trata-se, em todo caso, de reconhecer que existe uma verdade apesar do predomínio do modelo científico, a qual está relacionada à experiência compreensiva do homem. Isto é, está em questão uma práxis da vida que não pode ser refletida em sua completude por meio de uma lógica matemática, senão a partir de dentro da própria experiência, ou seja, implicando aquele que experimenta ao mesmo movimento da compreensão. Por isso, Gadamer tomou como base para as suas preocupações filosóficas a ontologia fundamental de Martin Heidegger. Todavia, diferente deste, no lugar de pensar a questão do sentido do Ser, Gadamer decidiu pôr como centro de suas preocupações teóricas a “tradição de linguagem”, ou seja, aquilo que, segundo ele, pode ser compreendido. Nesse trabalho refletiremos sobre o princípio da “história continuamente influente”, o qual, conforme nossa interpretação, sustenta todas as considerações de Gadamer na obra Verdade e Método acerca da questão da compreensão. Nossa proposta é mostrar, portanto, como a consciência da constante influência da história sobre a nossa compreensão revela-nos tanto o sentido da compreensão como as suas possibilidades dentro das diversas conexões históricas da tradição, isto é, os limites de nossas teorias. E essa é uma verdade que deve valer tanto para a Filosofia como para as ciências, se ambas tiverem como meta uma compreensão autêntica das coisas.

There appears to be little doubt about the nature of the relationship between the fashion model and the young girl in contemporary Western culture. Dominant literature, emerging from medico-psychological and feminist research, situates the model as a disorderly influence, imbued with the capacity to infect and, hence, distort the healthy minds and bodies of 'suggestible' young girls. Opposing these perspectives is a smaller, more recent body of literature, emerging from post-feminist work that argues that the model-girl relationship is a delightful influence. Thus, the contemporary field of scholarship reveals an increasingly dichotomous way of thinking about fashion model influence: the model influences young girls in ways that are disorderly or delightful, never both. This thesis argues that to assume that the model-girl encounter is 'neatly' disorderly or delightful is shifty at best. It suggests that, in their rush to judge the fashion model as either pernicious or pleasurable, existing literature fails to account for the precision with which young girls know the fashion model. Using poststructuralist theory, the thesis argues that 'influence' may be more usefully thought of as a discursive effect, which may produce a range of effects for better and worse. Following Foucault (1972), fashion model influence is interrogated as a regime of truth about the model-girl encounter, constituted discursively under specific social, cultural and historical conditions. In so doing, the thesis makes different sense of fashion model influence, and questions influence as an independently-existing 'force' that bears down on vulnerable young girls. Drawing on a poststructural conceptual architecture, this thesis re-conceptualises the model-girl encounter as a pedagogical relationship focused on the (ideal) female body. It suggests that the fashion model, as an authoritative embodied pedagogue, transmits knowledge about 'ideal' feminine bodily conduct to the young girl, as attentive gazing apprentice. Fashion model influence is re-interrogated as the product of certain forms of disciplinary training (Foucault, 1977a), with young girls learning a discursive knowledge about how to discipline the body in ways that are properly feminine. Such a perspective departs from the notion that fashion model influence is necessarily disorderly or delightful, and makes possible a re-reading of influence in terms of learning outcomes. A problematic arises conceptualising the fashion model in this way. To consider the model as a 'good' teacher breaches a number of discursive rules for best pedagogical practice in postmodern times: She is not a pedagogue of the mind; she is not student-centred, facilitative, asexual, interpersonally engaged, relational, or authentic. To create a space for thinking differently about the model as a teacher, then, the thesis looks to ancient historical times and places in which female-to-female and body-to-body pedagogies were practised and understood. The first phase of the research project embedded in this thesis defamiliarises pedagogical work using historical texts from ancient Greece. It examines in particular the erotically embodied pedagogical relationships conducted between older, authoritative elite prostitutes known as hetairae, and their younger female apprentices. The discursive rules governing these pedagogical relationships are examined with a view to diagnosing the model-girl encounter in terms of these rules. These rules are then used to interrogate ethnographic data generated through observation of the model-girl encounter in situ in a modelling course, and through focus group interviews with groups of young girls. Working through notions of corporeal embodiment, self as art, desire, discipline, stillness, spectacle, the gaze and the conduct of conduct, the study interrogates the model-girl encounter as a contemporary pedagogical encounter. To avoid reaffirming more traditional binaries, the reading of data is ironic, working within and between binaries such as disorder/delight. Three ironic categories of femininity are produced out of the analysis: unnaturally natural, stompy grace and beautifully grotesque. These categories 'speak' the fragmentation, fissure, contradiction, inconsistency and absurdity that permeate the talk of young girls and model-girl pedagogy in the modelling classroom. Thus, the thesis offers up an analysis of the model-girl encounter that refuses the neatness and uni-dimensionality that characterises existing literature.