The main goal of this thesis is to describe the evolution of the concept of a world soul in the thought of Cambridge Platonist Henry More (1614-1687). However, this topic is discussed within the broader context of early modern philosophy and the birth of modern science. The philosophy of Henry More presents a very interesting confrontation between Renaissance Neo-Platonism and Cartesianism, early modern mechanicism and the newest scientific discoveries of his age, the notion of a world soul being exactly the point where all these thought currents meet. The classical conception of a platonic world soul in More's early thought later becomes the Spirit of Nature, a principle complimentary to mechanicism (and at the same time acting as its metaphysical foundation). Yet in order for the regularity of such phenomena as gravitation to be guaranteed, the Spirit of Nature has to be rid of any conscience and will of its own. However, besides this tendency to "strip" the world soul of its personal aspects, leading ultimately to the notion of a completely impersonal natural law, a deeper analysis of certain aspects of More's philosophical system shows also a determination to preserve the broader connections that tie the classical notion of a world soul to a specific world picture that does not necessarily fit...

Title: Metaphor and Contemporary Art Author: Mgr. et MgA. Markéta Magidová Department: Department of Aesthetics Supervisor: Mgr. Ondřej Dadejík, Ph.D Abstract In my dissertation I present arguments for the validity of the aesthetic conception of art (a conception based on the notion of aesthetic experience) also in relation to the development of art movements in the last half century. I do so on the basis of an interpretation of the aesthetic dimension of art through art theory as an extended concept of metaphor. I argue that it is the living metaphor that functions in works of (not only) contemporary art as their aesthetic model. I elaborate this idea through the interconnection of three convergent and currently influential concepts: Paul Ricoeur's hermeneutic theory of living metaphor, Martin Seel's aesthetics of appearing, and Alva Noë's theory of art as a strange tool. I lay out the key conditions and characteristics of the process of the emergence of metaphorical meaning and then relate these to the characteristics of artistic appearance. In the perspective of art as living metaphor, the myths and misunderstandings between aesthetics and artistic practice caused by the transformation of artistic production, especially with the advent of the neo-avant-gardes, persisting to the present day, can be...

Dissertation Abstract Introduction to the conceptual basis of Vratislav Effenberger's thought (Dialectics of the genesis of the concept of idea models) Mgr. Šimon Svěrák The thesis introduces a reader to the basic aspects of the theoretical system of Vratislav Effenberger, the main theoretician of post-war Czech surrealism. It does so through the construction of a developmental dialectic of the main concepts of Effenberger's work of the 1960s, which culminates in the concept of so-called idea models. In this period, Effenberger primarily addresses the question of the nature of the existential forms of the concept of total meaning in the post-war social and psychological situation. He formulates his reflections as a critical reassessment of the theoretical legacy of Karl Teige and a question of the possibility of further continuity of the Surrealist worldview. The thesis demonstrates that Effenberger first rejects the notion of ultimate meaning, through which psychosocial reality can be grasped as a meaningful whole, and replaces it with a notion of conflict. However, the internal logic of his theoretical system gradually leads him to the conclusion that human consciousness cannot exist without the idea of ultimate meaning and that such meaning exists only in the form of the idea model. The idea model is...

In my master thesis I realize the set of pictures and painterly objects, which should imitate principles of augmented reality by analogial form. From technical standpoint Im interested in question of bidirectional remediation of new media and painting and how its evolution supports ilussion and imagination. In ontologiacal way im looking for mystical nature of picture. Final exhibition is an metaphor composed in hybryd picture based on technological and theoretical experiences in Painting. The result is little synthetic reality.

8 Univerzita Karlova v Praze Filozofická fakulta Katedra filmových studií Diplomová práce Jitka Kotrlová Stínová kinematografie: mytologie australského gotického filmu 70. let Shadow Cinematography: Mythology of the Australian Gothic Film of the 1970's Praha 2015 Vedoucí práce: PhDr. Petra Hanáková, Ph.D Abstract: The thesis focuses on the mythological aspects of films of the so-called Australia gothic in 1970's. In a detailed form of thematic analysis it discovers three fundamental myths within the gothic cycle which then examines the semiotic method of Roland Barthes. The first part is dedicated to the specific situation of the film industry and describes the principles of film funding. The second part is focused on the concept of national cinematography in relation to Australia. The third part is dedicated to the gothic imagination and definition of Australian gothic within the contemporary discourse. The fourth part focuses on the term "mythology". The main part of the thesis presents the three myths emerging from the cycle of Australian gothic films. The first one is the myth of the feeling of isolation that focuses on the meaning of an isolated man in the inland and on the alternation of this myth in the form of a person isolated in the society. On the examples of the films Walkabout (Nicholas Roeg,...

Explore pictures of supernatural beings and other creatures which could be found in current visualizations of Fantasy genres, computer games, illustrations and films. Study and categorize visual and written materials, follow these fantastic creatures, how they look like and how the appearance of them changes through time. Track the source of the appearance by comparing modern sources and older pictures and also by studying old myths and legends. Research what inspiration how impacted the process of creating new concepts. Study and define terms such as imagination and fantasy. Through scientific research, try to map how the children imagine fantastic creatures and from what pictures and text their images come from. What do children find scary? What ways and techniques stimulate their imagination? Plan and realize an art project following up your findings. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

In modern day American Protestant churches, both conservative and liberal ministers, pastors, theologians and lay leadership struggle over how to arrange and conduct worship services (liturgy) and how to integrate contemporary or traditional hymns. Many characterize this struggle as ?Worship Wars?. This dissertation concerns the poetic imagination of the Trinity Hymnal (1990), the hymnal of conservative Presbyterian churches that was originally published as a reaction to the liberal stream of Presbyterianism. Thus, the dissertation presents the Anglo-American debate in poetic theology, focusing on the poetic imagination of Presbyterian spirituality and its development to the Czech environment. The first section concerns the concept of Poetic theology focusing on the Protestant poetic theology as defined by W. A. Dyrness. The Presbyterian spirituality is then characterized by McGrath typology. His Theological foundations for spiritualiy are first determined by the teaching of Presbyterianism (especially Calvinism and the Westminster Confession of Faith), and then examined in the poetic imagination of hymns found in the Trinity Hymnal. The poetic imagination of the hymns, which is based primarily on the poetic imagination of Scripture and the Anglican Book of Common Prayer, demonstrates the intermingling of the Christian traditions of the songs and suggests the theological value of poetic language. This dissertation presents and analyzes the issue of Presbyterian search for adequate expression of hymns in worship. The method applied here offers a new basis for further exploration of current trends in the American worship tradition of Presbyterianism. In this respect it concerns a unique exploration of the interconnection of the poetic language of Presbyterian hymns with the Anglican liturgy. It also presents the research of poetic imagination of spiritual hymns and linking of the traditions as a topic to enrich ecumenical discussion.

The thesis deals with life and particularly works of William Blake, one of the most prominent representatives of English poetry and art. His work stems from his dissatisfaction and resistance to religious and secular doctrines. He is known as an original poet, an engraver and a painter, a graphic artist and an illustrator, as well as a mystic and a visionary. In the midst of the birth of the modern world, during the War of Independence, the French Revolution and the Industrial Revolution, he considered his talent for design and his predispositions of the Old Testament prophets a direct inspiration for him and his prophetic mission. He identified with all types of oppression and enslavement of humanity and tried to gibbet them in his works. He mainly criticised repressed sexuality, which according to him leads to wars, industrialism and perverted science. The apocalyptic character of many of his works is closely related to the time in which he lived and worked. These are mainly so-called prophetic books, which he also printed, and in which he used synthesis of artistic means. Most of his life he spent in poverty and solitude, misunderstood and despised. This reassured him of his real prophetic destiny. Blake?s work became an inspiration for following generations of artists; but only the 20th century fully discovered him and understood the importance of his prophetic vision. Blake sees a redemptive power of the real art, which helps cleanse people?s inner eyes, and gives them the opportunity to be freed from enslaving forces.

1 Summary: F. Borecký, The Role of Imagination in Aesthetic Experience in Mikel Dufrenne's Thought The aim of this dissertation thesis is to present Dufrenne's original conception of imagination and to highlight its significance for philosophical aesthetics. We focus on a critical interpretation of two alternative approaches which Dufrenne considers in his work. The first approach is based on a noetic perspective, the other on an ontological one. In both cases, Dufrenne claims that imagination is a productive, effecting activity which in a formative manner participates in knowledge of a priori truths regarding human being in the world. Such knowledge is most fully accomplished in the aesthetic experience. Only there a man opens oneself to the external world while maintaining with it a relation of primordial corporeity, which they both - i.e., both humans and the world - share. Imagination and its correlate, the imaginary, in an aesthetic experience stimulate each other and enable a reverberation of the most fundamental possibilities of human being in the world. It is imagination and the imaginary which enable a man to penetrate the superficial empirical level and reach the deep level of the a priori. On the level of the a priori, a man can experience the original corporeal unity which is of the same kind...

This work focuses on the themes of old age, ageing and dementia. It seeks to explore how people who are caring for a loved one with dementia construct their ideas about the illness and how their experience of caring translates into their ideas about old age and ageing. These themes are discussed against the background of the third age, active ageing and the social imagination of the fourth age as conceived by Gilleard and Higgs. The thesis shows how the respondents form their ideas about their own old age in the context of third age culture, what aspects of old age they consider most important, and conversely what constitutes for them an image of a bad old age. At the same time, this thesis captures the respondents' experience of caring for their parent and how they construct ideas about this illness on the basis of this experience. The specific aspects of the disease of dementia are discussed in the context of key elements of the social imaginary of the fourth age and its most debated concepts, including the concept of personhood. The problematic aspects of the disease are reflected in the experience of caring for a loved one with dementia, and reflected in the fear of the disease in terms of their impact on the relationship with the parent, the nature and need for care.