Earthy Matters is a lively collection of theoretically informed chapters that introduce the reader to the notion that matter is a creative agent, and that it plays a key role in the formation of our material and social worlds. The focus of the book is sediments, soils, clay and earth - materials that surround us and have shaped people's interactions with the environment since even before the first farmers settled in the Near East tilling the earth, building houses from mud and plaster, and making vessels and figurines from clay. This collection questions orthodox understandings that these substances are inert and an infinite resource for humanity, rather to foreground earthy substances in their relationships with humans, and to show how these materials have co-created our social and material worlds. It is a novel and timely reminder for the reader that our lives have always been embedded within the matter of the E(e)arth.
Spectral Spain examines the Gothic haunting motif in post-Franco Spanish literature. With a theoretical framework in memory and trauma studies, and a particular emphasis on the inclusion of women's voices, this book is the first to provide an in-depth study of spectrality and haunting in the Gothic literature of contemporary Spain. Through close readings of eleven main texts, the author examines haunting as the perfect motif for Spanish authors to portray the tension between modernity and the imposition of a monocultural, nationalised tradition throughout the twentieth century - noting not just the trauma of the civil war and resulting dictatorship of Franco, but also the continuing and widespread disenchantment during and after the Transition. Through its references to the contemporary debate surrounding historical memory, Spectral Spain demonstrates the relevance of the Gothic in Spanish literature, and the continued ghostly returns of the past in the socio-political anxieties of the present.
In 1880, Griffith Evans, an army veterinary surgeon in India, made the seminal discovery that blood parasites - then universally considered benign - were pathogenic. Spurned by peers and colleagues, his conclusions from experiments with diseased horses were acknowledged by Koch and Pasteur, but it took many years before his achievement received general recognition. The son of a farmer near Tywyn, Meirionnydd, Evans was commissioned as a veterinary officer in the Royal Artillery. He was first posted to Canada where, in his spare time, he qualified in medicine. An irrepressible adventurer, he visited North America during the Civil War, meeting Abraham Lincoln and touring the Union front line. Evans's talent for engagement with people and cultures characterised his life in Canada and in India. During a long and productive retirement in north Wales, he immersed himself in local and national affairs. At his centenary in 1935, Evans received the accolades of his profession, community and family, dying peacefully in his hundredth year. Since that time, his name has faded into obscurity.
A journey through the natural landscapes of Wales. In Tir--the Welsh word for "land"--writer and ecologist Carwyn Graves takes us on a tour of seven key characteristics of the Welsh landscape. He explores such elements as the ffridd, or mountain pasture, and the rhos, or wild moorland, and examines the many ways humans interact with and understand the natural landscape around them. Further, he considers how this understanding can be used to combat climate change and improve wildlife populations and biodiversity. By diving deep into the history and ecology of each of these landscapes, we discover that Wales, in all its beautiful variety, is just as much a human cultural creation as a natural phenomenon: its raw materials evolved alongside the humans that have lived here since the ice receded.
At times explosive, at times restrained, the question of independence has been a fundamental force shaping contemporary Spain. However, the discipline of Spanish (Peninsular) studies has been slow to consider the reality of internal anticolonial and self-determination movements in Spain as part of their purview. To redress this, the present study engages postcolonial theory to shed light on the question of Spain's ongoing internal national conflict, arguing that modern manifestations of such conflict are linked to internal demands for national sovereignty, independence and self-determination forged against the backdrop of Spain's post-imperial crisis after 1898. The collection ranges across topics such as late nineteenth-century penitentiary discourses, the biopolitics of Francoist agrarian reform, dispossession and mass tourism in Mallorca, the judiciary aftermath of the Catalan referendum on independence of 2017, and post-ETA memory politics. Collectively, they illuminate the conflict zones of contemporary Spanish culture, where questions related to (contested) internal colonialities and independence are enmeshed with the processes of political emancipation and state repression.
Wales is often considered to be one of the most anti-Conservative parts of Britain, with the party unable to connect with voters. The Conservative Party in Wales, 1945-1997 offers a more nuanced perspective as the first book-length study of Wales's second political party in the decades after the Second World War. From the places where Conservatism was often successful, the book questions why it failed to find any purchase in other parts of Wales, discussing how the party communicated its policies, who its candidates were, and how the party deliberately crafted specific policies 'for the nation' - from introducing the first Minister for Welsh Affairs to making Welsh a compulsory subject in schools. Adopting an holistic approach to the party, the book scrutinises activists and prominent Tories at the grassroots, asking what they reveal about understudied aspects of Welsh history, particularly the lives of the Anglicised and socially conservative middle class.
Queer theory, queer literary criticism and queer cultural criticism often focus on western, white, cis men. This book provides the first in-depth analysis of contemporary queer and Gothic texts that focus on the subjectivity, characterisation and representation of queer girls and women. The New Queer Gothic applies interdisciplinary theory to offer a new mode and method of reading literary and film fiction. From monstrous femininity in tales of girlhood, to paranoid negativity and transformation in young womanhood, through to postcolonial doubles, hybrid assimilation, corporeal possession, and final girls at the end of everything - this book takes as its canon works from the past fifteen years concerning queer and questioning girls and women in Gothic settings and narratives, to elucidate upon questions of queer feminist ethics, biopower and global identity politics.
This book offers a fresh reading of Latin American modernism through the lenses of gender and space. By analysing the contributions of eight contemporaneous women - four writers and four plastic artists - it reveals how they constructed and conceived of their identities as cultural practitioners through distinctly spatial tactics. Organised around four spatial themes (domestic architecture, the natural world, travel and the public sphere), this multidisciplinary, comparative monograph sheds new light on the works of well-known figures such as Mexican painter Frida Kahlo and Chilean poet Gabriela Mistral, while recuperating artists that remain virtually unknown, such as Bolivian sculptor Marina Núñez del Prado. Through discussion of their work within a transnational context, this study positions these Latin American women practitioners within a broader narrative of modernism from which they have often remained absent.
An exploration of Wales's deep connections to music through one specific style: the hymn. Even as many in the modern world draw away from organized religion, the great hymns of our time persist: we turn to them at weddings and funerals, at rugby matches, and in pubs. Bringing together twelve of Wales's best-loved hymns from the eighteenth to the twentieth century, Poems from the Soul reveals the heart and soul of a people's poetry. These are the poems of ordinary folk--blacksmiths, farmers, and preachers--and they played a vital role in the creation of the Welsh people. Ranging from the visionary intensity of Ann Griffiths to the striking biblical imagery of Wales's unofficial national anthem "Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer," in every hymn a single, singular voice sings out, loud and strong with fear, hope, ecstasy, or anxiety. With original illustrations by Ruth Jên Evans throughout, this collection offers insights into the making of a modern nation and demonstrates the transformative power of voices raised in song.
Paradise in Hell studies the role played by alcohol, morphine, cocaine, cannabis and amphetamines in the Spanish Civil War. The book analyses the moral discourses that were produced around these substances, the policies implemented by civil and military authorities, the consumption by combatants and civilians, and the role they played in the war effort. From these four perspectives, Paradises in Hell explores the everyday experiences of soldiers and civilians, the physical, psychological and emotional effects of war, the rituals of camaraderie, and the impact that the absence of these substances had on the morale of soldiers and civilians. The book also gives special attention to the role these substances played in the development of respectable, tough and cocky masculinities, in the construction of a sense of national community and everyday nationalism, and in the dehumanisation of the enemy in a way that legitimised violence.
Contains the only full published English translation of the medieval Welsh bardic grammars and offers insight into the development of Welsh bardic and scholarly practices over two centuries. The medieval Welsh bardic grammars were composed and transmitted during a period of intense social and political change in Wales. These documents began their life as essentially vernacular artes poetriae. However, from the early fourteenth century to the end of the sixteenth, they were recopied and revised over and over by bards, bureaucrats, antiquarians, humanists, and the readers and reciters of poetry. Grammar and Poetry in Late Medieval and Early Modern Wales: The Transmission and Reception of the Welsh Bardic Grammars weaves a close textual analysis of these revisions into a broader consideration of the historical contexts that gave rise to each subsequent version. It grants English-speaking scholars who wish to work comparatively with Welsh material access to these texts for the first time. Based on extensive archival research, this book contains transcriptions and translations of a great deal of material that has not previously appeared in any publication.
A timely look at the state of the National Health Service in the UK, from its creation in 1948 to today. General practice in the United Kingdom has reached a crisis point. The COVID-19 pandemic has strained an already crumbling primary care service, leaving both patients and National Health Service (NHS) staff struggling. Seventy-five years after the creation of the NHS, Dr. Ellen Welch lifts the curtain on general practice. She looks back on the profession before the NHS, Aneurin Bevan's role in the creation of the service, how the job has changed in the intervening years--particularly since the pandemic--and what the future of the profession might look like. The book features personal accounts from general practitioners, including Dr. Aman Amir and Dr. Neena Jha, alongside key insights from health writer Ellie Philpotts and commentator Roy Lilley. Together, those on the frontline try to answer the question: how did we get here? And what can be done to make things better for us all in the future?
This book describes the thought and work of an Anglican parson which were an early influence, leading towards a distinct Welsh Methodism and to present-day Evangelicalism, and the renewed confidence in the Welsh language effecting its survival in speech and literature.
Between 1450 and 1720, Wales was a place of opportunity as well as a society in transition. This book is an exciting new study of how one elite family navigated political, social, and cultural change while maintaining their Welsh identity.
No in- or out-of-print book has the same goals, content, wide range, and scholarly approach as the present study. Whether intentionally or unintentionally, previously published books have neglected ancient Graeco-Roman texts that either cause horror or may be said to belong to the horror genre. This may partly be the result of the low esteem in which any text that did not fit neatly into one of the major and traditional literary genres was held by most scholars - particularly apparent with regard to texts that dealt with the supernatural or the occult, which were often relegated to specialists in ancient religions, rituals or beliefs. This book reviews the concepts of horror (literary, psychological, and biophysical), examines the current definitions for 'horror fiction', evaluates the current interest in the darker side of the classical world, and suggests new ways of thinking about horror as a genre.
Expert analysis of the history of St Davids Cathedral. This special issue of the Journal of Religious History, Literature and Culture features a series of studies by experts on architecture and church history concerning St Davids Cathedral in Pembrokeshire, Wales. Contributions range across the early and modern history of the cathedral, focusing on some events and periods that particularly shaped the building that we see today.
Synthesizes Welsh history of science during the long eighteenth century. '" World of New Ideas" 1650The Isles--centers on the contribution made in Wales particularly but also includes England, Scotland, and Ireland. By presenting a synthesis of published material and original research in three sections (Theory, Practice, and Results), its chapters examine how Welsh contributions fit into the history of science developed from the quasi-magical worlds of alchemy and early chemistry, through the advent of Cartesian and Newtonian science, to the world of technological innovation and industrial development.
This study advances three interrelated claims for international human rights standards (IHRS). First, that post-colonial African societies are bureaucratic modern states and capitalist societies to which IHRS are suitable for application, pursuant to the Modified Modernisation Theory. The sweeping vicissitudes that have taken place in post-colonial Africa since colonial eras necessitate a paradigm shift: we must change our assumptions about the structural and socio-politico-economic systems of post-colonial Africa and their impact on individual and group rights. Second, that extant pleadings for cultural relativism in post-colonial Africa are fixated on reified assumptions about the minimal role of the individual. Today, however, every state relies on its individual subjects for its institutional and socio-politico-economic development, just as every individual relies on the state for a more secure, fulfilling and dignified human existence. Finally, the book advances legal and moral justifications for the universality of human rights standards, notwithstanding global cultural heterogeneity.
In 1841, the Royal Institution of South Wales founded the first museum in Wales. Specialist authors describe its formation as a learned society, and its survival into the twenty-first century. Lavishly illustrated throughout, the book reveals the varied and comprehensive collections within Swansea museum.
Wales is a land with a vast wealth of ghost stories, including fantastical animals, flickering death omens and unseen things that go bump in the night. Whether these tales are based on true events, or are the creations of active imaginations, is known only to those who have experienced them - but what is certain is that their power to delight and scare us remains undimmed to this day.
Delve into the ancient roots of Welsh mythology, exploring sculptures, carvings, and artifacts that were made at least a thousand years before evidence of them was written down. The magical world of Welsh mythology deserves to be better known outside its homeland. With its cast of heroes and tricksters, animals that can talk and change shape, and magicians and witches who can bring disaster or triumph to the people in their paths, Enchanted Wales brings the vibrant worlds of Welsh mythology to a wider audience and explores both their physical and ethereal origins. Voyage through the key stories of Welsh literature, exploring not just their medieval texts but also their ancient roots, which can be glimpsed in sculptures, carvings, and other artifacts from at least a thousand years earlier. A skillful storyteller, Miranda Aldhouse-Green, guides readers through this weird, wonderful, and Narnia-like world of dreams. Tales of witches, magicians, heroes, and villains are more than just epic entertainment, as they challenge readers to explore the human questions of life and death, war and peace, and good and evil.
MYNEDIAD AGOREDDyma gyfrol atyniadol a chyfoes syâ¿n rhoi cyflwyniad hygyrch i ddisgyblaeth y Gymraeg. Maeâ¿r llyfr yn cyflwyno cyfoeth, cyffro ac ehangder y Gymraeg fel disgyblaeth academaidd, a bydd yn ysgogi diddordeb a chwilfrydedd mewn meysydd cyfarwydd a newydd â¿ megis iaith, llenyddiaeth, cymdeithaseg iaith, beirniadaeth lenyddol, diwylliant a threftadaeth ac ysgrifennu creadigol.
An in-depth study of the impact of gender in modern Welsh society. This edited collection offers a reappraisal of gender as a category of analysis in modern Welsh history. Beginning with sex work in the eighteenth century and concluding with women's late twentieth-century antinuclear activism, the contributors examine how gender has been constructed, represented, performed, and experienced by men and women at different times and places throughout Wales's modern past.
Through the lens of South Wales Police, this volume reflects upon the changing role of the police in society. Written by police officers and researchers working collaboratively, it covers key topics including neighbourhood policing; major crime investigation and violence prevention; gender and policing; police technologies; and leadership.
Directly explores the queer narratives present throughout Russell T Davies' extensive work in television and how he broke down barriers to show the truth and joy of queer identities. The television writing of Russell T Davies defies easy categorization, ranging from children's programs, Shakespeare, historical drama, and comedy, to the landmark series that have made him a household name: Queer As Folk, Doctor Who, and It's a Sin. Gay Aliens and Queer Folk takes a deep dive into the queer narratives Davies has brought to our screens, exploring how each work created new space for LGBTQ+ stories to enter our living rooms and looks at their impact on the people who saw themselves reflected on mainstream television, often for the first time. Covering Davies' career from his earliest work to his highly anticipated return to the TARDIS for Doctor Who's 60th anniversary, and highlighting key themes such as politics, sex, AIDS, and the role of Wales in his writing, Emily Garside reveals how Davies broke down barriers, showing gay characters unapologetically living their lives to the fullest and celebrating the complexity and joy of queer identities.
A genre-bending look into the tropes of Gothic literature. In print for the first time since 1796, The Foresters by Elizabeth Gunning offers an entertaining romp through the many tropes of Gothic literature. She employs these devices to create a compelling story combining the wildest elements of fiction with her own personal history and experiences within eighteenth-century society, producing both a social document and an entertaining read.
An exploration of Silvina Ocampo's revolutionary reimagining of motherhood and childhood. Silvina Ocampo's works are currently enjoying unprecedented attention from scholars, writers, journalists, translators, and film directors. This book explores the reason for the growing interest in her work and connects it to her transgressive representations of motherhood and childhood. The unique vantage point of this book, the mother and child dyad, will appeal to readers interested in Latin American literature, women writers, gender studies, and queer theory.
A new survey of Unamuno's understanding of the fountainhead of Christianity. Unamuno's perception of Christianity, which has a major presence in his work, has proved controversial. This book adopts a new approach by studying what Unamuno has made of the fountainhead of Christianity in six of his works. It examines three major essays, including "The Tragic Sense of Life," and three more purely literary works, including the long poem "The Christ of Velázquez."
An updated edition of Otfried Höffe's revolutionary study of Kant's philosophy. Published in English for the first time, Kant's Critique of Practical Reason is an abridged and updated edition of Otfried Höffe's groundbreaking work which was originally published in German. In the book, the author systematically introduces one of the most important areas of Kant's philosophy and relates its basic ideas to the debates of today. The first part introduces the four driving forces that motivated Kant's practical philosophy: enlightenment, critique, morality, and cosmopolitanism. The second part demonstrates the extent to which Kant revolutionized moral philosophy, and in the third part, the author explains the provocations that lie at the heart of Kant's practical philosophy. The remaining parts deal with political philosophy, the philosophy of history, and Kant's thinking about religion and education.
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