This dissertation examines from a Vattimian perspective the challenge that euthanasia and assisted suicide posed to the sanctity of life ethos in Canada from 1972–2005. Gianni Vattimo’s central themes—metaphysics (absolute values), “event of being” (lived experiences that call absolute values into question), and passive-reactive nihilism (the use of “masks” or “disguises” to prevent the dissolution of metaphysics)—are pivotal to understanding the way religious and secular beliefs are interwoven within ethical, medical, legal and political discourses in Canada. Vattimo’s philosophico-ethical approach was specifically chosen because as a theoretical tool, it helps to illuminate the presence, weakening, and resilience of metaphysics in discourses surrounding an intentionally hastened death. To demonstrate how Vattimo’s major themes apply empirically to the research, a social constructionist approach was adopted in the form of a discourse analysis. Particular emphasis was placed on an examination of the three most important cases of death and dying in Canada, namely, Nancy B., Sue Rodriguez and Robert Latimer. The bulk of the evidence suggests that when these “events of being” challenged the sanctity doctrine as the ultimate foundation for life-terminating decisions, ethical, medical, legal and political discourses converged to promote three normative positions or authorizing discourses used in the tradition of Christian ethics: (1) stewardship—the view that since life is a “loan from God,” sacred, and of infinite worth, death cannot be intentionally hastened (“nature must take its course”); (2) value in prolonged suffering—the view that since suffering possesses transcendent meaning or purpose, its prolongation is justified in individual circumstances; and (3) the “slippery slope”—the view that any weakening of the sanctity of life ethos inevitably harms or threatens the community. Generally speaking, religious and secular advocates of the sanctity of life ethos reacted similarly in cases involving an intentionally hastened death. In other words, both the religious and the secular embraced metaphysics (absolute values), condoned and rationalized the prolongation of suffering, and relied on the “slippery slope” as a “mask” to maintain the sanctity of human life as first principle. The research strongly suggests that Canada is still significantly indebted to Christian notions when it comes to discussions surrounding the decriminalization of euthanasia and assisted suicide.

This dissertation examines from a Vattimian perspective the challenge that euthanasia and assisted suicide posed to the sanctity of life ethos in Canada from 1972–2005. Gianni Vattimo’s central themes—metaphysics (absolute values), “event of being” (lived experiences that call absolute values into question), and passive-reactive nihilism (the use of “masks” or “disguises” to prevent the dissolution of metaphysics)—are pivotal to understanding the way religious and secular beliefs are interwoven within ethical, medical, legal and political discourses in Canada. Vattimo’s philosophico-ethical approach was specifically chosen because as a theoretical tool, it helps to illuminate the presence, weakening, and resilience of metaphysics in discourses surrounding an intentionally hastened death. To demonstrate how Vattimo’s major themes apply empirically to the research, a social constructionist approach was adopted in the form of a discourse analysis. Particular emphasis was placed on an examination of the three most important cases of death and dying in Canada, namely, Nancy B., Sue Rodriguez and Robert Latimer. The bulk of the evidence suggests that when these “events of being” challenged the sanctity doctrine as the ultimate foundation for life-terminating decisions, ethical, medical, legal and political discourses converged to promote three normative positions or authorizing discourses used in the tradition of Christian ethics: (1) stewardship—the view that since life is a “loan from God,” sacred, and of infinite worth, death cannot be intentionally hastened (“nature must take its course”); (2) value in prolonged suffering—the view that since suffering possesses transcendent meaning or purpose, its prolongation is justified in individual circumstances; and (3) the “slippery slope”—the view that any weakening of the sanctity of life ethos inevitably harms or threatens the community. Generally speaking, religious and secular advocates of the sanctity of life ethos reacted similarly in cases involving an intentionally hastened death. In other words, both the religious and the secular embraced metaphysics (absolute values), condoned and rationalized the prolongation of suffering, and relied on the “slippery slope” as a “mask” to maintain the sanctity of human life as first principle. The research strongly suggests that Canada is still significantly indebted to Christian notions when it comes to discussions surrounding the decriminalization of euthanasia and assisted suicide.

Thesis (MA (English))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010. / Thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts at the University of Stellenbosch / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Since 1995, three female authors have published novels narrating the events of Vladimir Nabokov’s novel Lolita from Lolita’s point of view. What is it about the character Lolita that prompts writers to rework Nabokov’s text? In an attempt to answer this question this thesis explores reader-responses to Lolita. The grand narrative of girlhood is illuminated, and it emerges that, influenced by the discourse of Romanticism, girls’ subjectivity in the Western world is governed by an ‘innocent-or-corrupt’ dichotomy. As a result, Lolita, who seduces her stepfather, Humbert Humbert, has been vilified by readers through the decades, so that very little further critical attention has been given to her representation in the text. However, in recent years rising concern over the representation of girls has seen renewed interest in Lolita from feminist quarters, with Lolita’s non-representation being critics’ main concern. These derivative novels work towards compiling a body of feminist criticism on Lolita. A secondary function of the derivatives is the restructuring of the grand narrative of girlhood: in other words, the erasure of the ‘innocent-or-corrupt’ dichotomy in favour of a wide range of conceivable subjectivities. This is necessary because the sexualised images of girls in the media are in danger of representing girl-children as one-dimensional sexual objects. Both feminist critics and critical theorists are calling for a new form of resistance to these hegemonic media forms, so that a collaboration between the two fields seems useful. This thesis argues that the existence of the derivative novels point to the emergence of a new form of feminist resistance to the oppressive representations of advancing technological society. Consequently, the thesis performs a reading of Lolita and three derivative novels to ascertain how the girl-child is represented. Issues of interest include the Romantic discourse of childhood, the representational practices of advancing technological society, and girls’ agency. Finally, conclusions are drawn about the effectiveness of each derivative novel in terms of their contributions to both the Lolita-discourse and the feminist endeavour to restructure the grand narrative of girlhood. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Drie vroueskrywers het sedert 1995 romans gepubliseer wat die gebeure van Vladimir Nabokov se roman Lolita uit Lolita se oogpunt oorvertel. Wat is dit omtrent die karakter Lolita wat skrywers aanspoor om Nabokov se teks te hersien? In ‘n poging om hierdie vraag te beantwoord verken hierdie tesis leser-reaksies op Lolita. Die meesternarratief oor jongmeisieskap word blootgelê en dit kom na vore dat meisies se subjektiwiteit in die Westerse wêreld, onder die invloed van die Romantiese diskoers, regeer word deur die digotomie van ‘onskuldig-of-korrup’. Gevolglik is Lolita, wat haar stiefpa, Humbert Humbert, verlei, oor die dekades heen deur lesers sleggemaak, sodat baie min kritiese aandag verder aan haar gewy is. Toenemende kommer onder feministe rondom die uitbeelding van meisies het egter in die afgelope klompie jare tot hernieude belangstelling in Lolita gelei, met die gebrek aan aandag aan Lolita se uitbeelding as hoofbekommernis. Die Lolita-verwerkings dra by tot die saamstel van ‘n versameling van feministiese kritiek oor Nabokov se teks. Die sekondêre funksie van die verwerkings is die herstrukturering van die meesternarratief aangaande jongmeisieskap: met ander woorde, die uitwissing van die onskuldig-ofkorrup digotomie ten gunste van ‘n wye reeks denkbare subjektiwiteite. Dít is nodig omdat die geseksualiseerde beelde van meisies wat in die media voorkom, die gevaar loop om meisies as een-dimensionele seksobjekte uit te beeld. Beide feministe en kritiese teoretici beywer hul vir ‘n nuwe vorm van teenstand teen hierdie verdrukkende uitbeeldings, so samewerking tussen die twee is nuttig. Hierdie tesis doen dit aan die hand dat die bestaan van Lolita-verkwerkings bewys is van die ontluiking van ‘n nuwe vorm van feministiese teenstand teen die verdrukkende uitbeeldings van die vooruitgaande tegnologiese samelewing. Gevolglik analiseer hierdie tesis Lolita en drie verwerkings om vas te stel hoe die meisiekind uitgebeeld word. Sake van belang sluit die Romantiese diskoers van kindwees, die uitbeeldingspraktyke van die toenemend tegnologiese samelewing, en meisies as agente in. Uiteindlik word gevolgtrekkings gemaak oor die effektiwiteit van elke roman ten opsigte van hul bydraes tot beide die Lolita-diskoers en die feministiese poging om die meesternarratief aangaande jongmeisieskap te herstruktureer.

The thesis takes the French revue Lignes (1987-present) as its object of study to provide a new account of French intellectual culture over the last twenty-five years. Whilst there are now many studies covering the role of such revues throughout the twentieth-century, the majority of such monographs extend no further than the mid-1980s: the major novelty of this thesis is extending these accounts up until the present moment. It is largely assumed that a reaction against the Marxist and structuralist theories of the 1960s and 1970s led to embrace of liberalism and an intellectual drift to the right in France from the 1980s onwards: whilst largely supporting this account, the thesis attempts to nuance this narrative of the fate of the intellectual left in the following years by showing the persistence of what can be called a politicised 'French theory' in Lignes, and a returning left-wing militancy in recent years. In doing so, it will both reveal under-studied aspects of well-known thinkers, such as Jean-Luc Nancy, Jacques Rancière and Alain Badiou, as their thought develops through their participation in a collaborative, periodical publication, and introduce lesser known thinkers who have not received an extended readership in Anglophone spheres. Lignes also argues for the continued persistence and relevance of the thought of a previous generation of thinkers, notably Georges Bataille, Maurice Blanchot and Dionys Mascolo, and the thesis concludes by examining the potential role 'French Theory' could still have in France. Furthermore, as revues provide a unique nexus of intellectual, cultural, social and political concerns, the thesis also provides a unique history of France from the fall of the Berlin Wall to the 2007 financial crisis and the Arab Spring. Much of the thesis is concerned with contextualising intellectual debates within a period characterised by the moralisation of discourses, a return of religion, the global installation of neo-liberalism and the eruption of immigration as a controversial European issue. From a relatively theoretical and politically stable position to the left of the Parti socialiste, Lignes therefore provides a privileged vantage point for the mutations in French social and cultural life throughout the period.

This dissertation examines from a Vattimian perspective the challenge that euthanasia and assisted suicide posed to the sanctity of life ethos in Canada from 1972–2005. Gianni Vattimo’s central themes—metaphysics (absolute values), “event of being” (lived experiences that call absolute values into question), and passive-reactive nihilism (the use of “masks” or “disguises” to prevent the dissolution of metaphysics)—are pivotal to understanding the way religious and secular beliefs are interwoven within ethical, medical, legal and political discourses in Canada. Vattimo’s philosophico-ethical approach was specifically chosen because as a theoretical tool, it helps to illuminate the presence, weakening, and resilience of metaphysics in discourses surrounding an intentionally hastened death. To demonstrate how Vattimo’s major themes apply empirically to the research, a social constructionist approach was adopted in the form of a discourse analysis. Particular emphasis was placed on an examination of the three most important cases of death and dying in Canada, namely, Nancy B., Sue Rodriguez and Robert Latimer. The bulk of the evidence suggests that when these “events of being” challenged the sanctity doctrine as the ultimate foundation for life-terminating decisions, ethical, medical, legal and political discourses converged to promote three normative positions or authorizing discourses used in the tradition of Christian ethics: (1) stewardship—the view that since life is a “loan from God,” sacred, and of infinite worth, death cannot be intentionally hastened (“nature must take its course”); (2) value in prolonged suffering—the view that since suffering possesses transcendent meaning or purpose, its prolongation is justified in individual circumstances; and (3) the “slippery slope”—the view that any weakening of the sanctity of life ethos inevitably harms or threatens the community. Generally speaking, religious and secular advocates of the sanctity of life ethos reacted similarly in cases involving an intentionally hastened death. In other words, both the religious and the secular embraced metaphysics (absolute values), condoned and rationalized the prolongation of suffering, and relied on the “slippery slope” as a “mask” to maintain the sanctity of human life as first principle. The research strongly suggests that Canada is still significantly indebted to Christian notions when it comes to discussions surrounding the decriminalization of euthanasia and assisted suicide.

The purpose of this study is to explore the literature for textless voice and woodwind instruments. The primary focus concerns the timbral and ensemble possibilities exploited in three twentieth-century works in which the voice is treated as an instrument i.e., without the usual preoccupation with textual meaning. An historical overview of vocal works with obbligato woodwinds and concerted works for textless voice serves as an introductory chapter. The variables of voice and instrument acoustical makeup, vocal vowel formation and instrumental voicings, volume, vibrato, resultant tones, range, and extended techniques (fluttertongue, special vibrato demands, non-vibrato, etc.) are the focus of the performance considerations for this study. Over thirty twentieth-century textless works for voice and at least one woodwind instrument were located. The three, chosen for this study represent different periods in the century, and present contrasting styles and musical merit: Aria (1931) by Jacques Ibert, Three Vocalises (1958) by Ralph Vaughan Williams, and Duos I (1976) by Nancy Chance. A style and performance analysis of these works with pertinent research on the composers is presented. Appendices include an annotated bibliography of selected works for the medium, a written interview with Nancy Chance, and performance notes provided by the composer, concerning Duos I.

For the past 20 years, the European Union has extended its political cooperation and bilateral trade agreements with Morocco, while not taking a clear stance against the occupation of Western Sahara. Bound by EU law as well as principles of human rights and international law, the institutions of the EU are obligated to respect human rights in the EU external action. This includes the right to self-determination, a customary principle of international law. In two rulings, the Court of Justice of the European Union has concluded that agreements between the EU and Morocco do not apply to Western Sahara. But since then, two new agreements have been concluded whose respective scope include the territory and the waters of Western Sahara. Yet, the people of Western Sahara are not party to any of the agreements which authorises the exploitation of its natural resources. Drawing upon this context, this thesis examines the human rights aspect of the EU’s international agreements using a set of different research methods. The research question, if and how the EU’s external action affecting Western Sahara complies with EU law, is answered through a doctrinal analysis of the human rights clause of three separate agreements between the EU and Morocco, and the relevant case law of the Court. The conclusions are discussed in a following extrajudicial assessment based on Nancy Fraser’s critical theory of social justice.  The thesis finds that the EU external action as manifested in the three agreements with Morocco, by including the territory of Western Sahara, does not comply with EU law. Further, the analysis discovers that the lack of coherence between the institutions creates a fragmented external policy, whose legal basis and objectives in regard to respect for human rights is not reflected in its implementation. The discussion discovers that the EU fails to recognise the people in Western Sahara as equal subjects of social justice by upholding an unjust political frame. This framing maintains the status quo and obstructs the people’s claims for redistribution, recognition and political representation. The thesis therefore concludes that the EU should change its policy regarding Western Sahara, and align with the guiding principles for the external action stated in the treaties (Article 21 TEU). The thesis suggests that the EU adopts a comprehensive critical democratic and inclusive approach, in order to improve its institutional framework for how international agreements are negotiated, implemented and monitored in occupied territories.

In “Documents of Revolution” I compare various non-fiction prose genres with incipient journalistic media, including scrapbooks, photographs, films and radio poems, to explore the new internationalisms that emerged during the Spanish Civil War. Many studies of the war have prioritized visiting authors and their experience of travelling Spain. By contrast, I show how local critics, writers, and poets, such as the anarchist filmmaker Mateo Santos, the memoirist María Teresa León, and the poet Miguel Hernández, were crucial intermediaries between Spanish working-class oral cultures and foreign visiting authors, such as George Orwell, Nancy Cunard, Langston Hughes and Nicolás Guillén. I describe three modes of relation between intellectual elites and the working class: occupying, broadcasting, and archiving. By reading for the living internationalism of the working-class, I unearth various internationalisms (anarchist, Black Hispanophone, and feminist-humanitarian) that have not received due attention. These overlapping networks and diasporas ensured that the revolutionary and multimedia documentary poetics of the war disseminated far beyond Spain’s borders.

This dissertation, All Things Commune: The Communal Imaginary in Twenty-First-Century French Fiction & Poetry, is animated by two fundamental questions: How can life be led differently, together? And, what is French literature’s radical political potential? Over the course of this project, I argue that twenty-first-century French literature is a site of radical political imagination, and, in certain cases, a veritable form of radical political practice. Through close readings of works by a diverse set of authors – including Jean Rouaud, Yannick Haenel, Virginie Despentes, and Jean-Marie Gleize – I reveal a countercurrent of twenty-first-century French literature bound up in a radical politics that is invested in imagining alternative forms of community that are autonomous from the French state, capitalism, governance, and traditional political structures. I read these literary works in light of theories of community developed by collectives such as Tiqqun and Le Comité invisible and critical theorists like Giorgio Agamben, Jean-Luc Nancy, and Jacques Rancière. All Things Commune demonstrates how reading these authors and theorists together reveals a shared imaginary of alternative communal life and radical Leftist politics, which I place under the rubric of destituent power. All Things Commune insists on the profound continuities between contemporary French literature, history, and politics. Overall, this project questions the narrow political frameworks through which twenty-first-century French literature continues to be read and demonstrates how radical politics appear in unexpected ways in a period of literature sometimes reduced to the reactionary or the apolitical.

Virginia Woolf (1882–1941) war eine englische Schriftstellerin, Verlegerin, Essayistin, Tagebuchverfasserin, sowie Literatur- und Kulturkritikerin, die als Wegbereiterin der literarischen Moderne gilt. In zahlreichen kritischen Essays und Romanen reflektiert sie die geteilten Lebens- und Bildungssphären der Geschlechter und kritisiert die materiellen Umstände der durch das Geschlecht determinierten sozialen Rolle. Eine genderfokussierte kritische Rezeption von Woolfs Texten, welche sich mit weiblichem Schreiben und Lesen, Frauengeschichtsschreibung und weiblicher Ästhetik befassen, findet seit Mitte der 1970er Jahre statt.