Aesthetics of disaster as decolonial aesthetics: making sense of the effects of Hurricane María through Puerto Rican contemporary art

ABSTRACT

On 20 September 2017, Hurricane María made landfall on Puerto Rico causing unprecedented disaster. From that day onwards, the Puerto Rican multi-layered colonial, social and political context was further complicated by the traumatic acceleration of a human disaster via this natural disaster. This crystalized the urgency of using art as vehicle for (social) catharsis, a practice that continues to be used by individual artists, collectives, community organizations, art projects, and other art institutions on the island and abroad, through mural art, community paintings, art exhibitions, literature, music, and many other aesthetic expressions. This article examines, from a decolonial and critical cultural studies perspective, post-Hurricane María artistic expressions in contemporary art as decolonial aesthetics through the cathartic use of the frame of an aesthetics of disaster. It is argued that, an aesthetics of disaster aims to re-assert an artistic form that is able to accelerate the discursive nullification of a deeply rooted colonial, social and cultural problem by way of art as catharsis inspired by the way that Hurricane María unveiled these problems. The piece briefly contextualizes Puerto Rico, and it examines the idea of Puerto Rican contemporary art as catharsis. Then, it describes how Puerto Rican contemporary art exhibitions and associated aesthetic production are processing urgent post-hurricane issues through three illustrative pieces in exhibitions in PR and abroad in the United States (US). Lastly, decolonial aesthetics is reexamined and re-understood, informed by Édouard Glissant's view expressed in Poetics of Relation which aids to the conclusion that Puerto Rican contemporary art using the frame of an aesthetics of disaster functions as a powerful form of decolonial aesthetics.     

挣脱生态牢笼的路径探幽——《共产党宣言》中马克思生态思想解读

《共产党宣言》蕴含着深刻的生态思想,其体系以人、社会、自然整体为背景,其核心观点认为生态问题是由资本主义生产方式引起的.马克思在唯物史观视野下,科学论证了资产阶级的所有制必然灭亡、共产主义必然实现的历史发展逻辑,廓清了人与人、人与自然之间双重和解的演化路径.其中关于科技提升、市场拓展、交通和通信发展等引起世界市场“生态扩张”的思想,对全球化程度日益加深境况下“生态文明”和“人类命运共同体”的构建具有重大的理论和实践指导价值.     

社会性别视角下少数民族妇女在边疆生态治理中的作用分析——基于对怒江傈僳族的调查

本文在对国内外以社会性别视角进行的生态研究进行梳理的基础上，深入分析了历史上中缅边境北段怒江峡谷中以傈僳族为主体的少数民族妇女在地方民族社会发展进程中为当地生态平衡所做的重要贡献。同时，对在社会转型和边疆农业女性化的现实背景下傈僳族妇女在与生态环境互动的诸多细节进行了深入的调研分析，进而认为妇女与环境的关系必须要放在具体的经济和社会发展的语境中阐释，环境治理中应为少数民族妇女提供发挥能动性的平台，并强调社会性别分析对边疆生态环境治理的积极意义，以及少数民族妇女在边疆地区生态安全的建设过程中所发挥的独特而重要的作用。     

Filling the ‘empty space’: Site-specific dance in a techno club

While organisational space has received broad scholarly attention, movement in organisational spaces remains under-researched. This paper introduces the notion of site-specific dance from dance theory to consider the dynamic relationship between space and people, emphasising that movements are a response to a space, its materiality and context. Berghain, in Berlin and one of the world’s most famous techno clubs, is discussed as a case. An interdisciplinary analysis shows how a site-specific performance is created through the interplay of the architecture, the sound and the music organised by the DJ, and the dancing crowd. Methodologically, the dance and performance studies approach develops suggestions for how to analyse movement interaction in organisational space. Reference to dance theory broadens our understanding of how organisational spaces and human interaction enable, produce and negotiate experiences that are transitory, embodied and difficult to pin down.     

Risk factors for child maltreatment in South Korea: An investigation of a nationally representative sample

This study investigated the risk factors associated with the occurrence of child physical and psychological abuse in South Korea based on the ecological theory of child maltreatment. A subsample of 3‐ to 18‐year‐old children from “A Study on the Current State of Child Abuse and Neglect,” a nationally representative study on child abuse and neglect, was utilized for secondary data analysis. The sample was divided into two age groups (third graders in elementary school and below and fourth graders and above). We utilized hierarchical logistic regression for each age group separately to analyze the data. The variables at each level of the system (i.e., ontogenic development, microsystem, and exosystem) were entered into the model in sequential order. The results showed the common risk factors for both age groups are the caregiver's experience of abuse in childhood, the child's problem behavior, exposure to domestic violence, community size, and informal social control. The child's age was also significant in both groups but in the opposite direction. Social support was a significant predictor for the younger age group only, while the caregiver's level of education was significant for the older age group only. Implications for future research and practice are discussed based on the study results.     

竖屏短视频中的身体呈现与身体消费

随着应用平台的不断完善和用户习惯的逐渐养成，竖屏短视频俨然成为身体视觉形象荷载和身体审美的绝佳场域，用户也在表演与欣赏的过程中实现自身表达，获得价值认同。不仅如此，竖屏短视频还利用单手竖持、影像竖制及大数据反馈实现身体在场和人机交互的升级，进一步收割用户注意力并成为新一轮互联网商业模式演进新入口。值得注意的是，当前在改变用户消费观念和方式的同时，竖屏短视频也被消费主义裹挟，一度陷入媒介伦理失范、传播生态失衡的发展阵痛之中。     

Nature and social work pedagogy: How U.S. social work educators are integrating issues of the natural environment into their teaching

ABSTRACT

The article presents a study of how U.S. social work educators are including discussion, exercises, readings, and other pedagogical approaches to the natural environment into their classrooms. The findings are part of a larger, naturalistic study that gathered data using a semi-structured interview format. The three major themes that emerged were human behavior theory, ecological and environmental justice, and environmental sustainability. The participants are introducing issues of the natural environment using varied pedagogical techniques including readings, in-class discussions and exercises, service learning, assignments, including written and practical work, research, self-awareness exercises, and class facilitation. Questions for further investigation of social work and the natural environment are included.     

Examination of the relationships between dietary restraint,alcohol, and adverse problems among women

Objective: Women who report greater chronic dieting consume more alcohol, drink more frequently, and experience greater problems than women who report less chronic dieting. Alcohol may also temporarily disrupt a woman's dietary rules, leading to increased caloric intake and subsequent restriction. This study examined whether alcohol use mediated the relationship between dietary restraint and alcohol problems in a woman's daily life. Participants: Women (N = 59) completed the study by the fall of 2013. Methods: Participants completed up to six assessments for 10 days, including intended dietary restraint, alcohol use, and problems. Results: Drinking quantity partially mediated the relationship between dietary restraint and alcohol problems. For each drink consumed, there was a 1.4 times greater likelihood of eating after drinking, which was associated with greater intention to subsequently restrict calories. Conclusions: The types of drinks consumed and reasons for restricting one's caloric intake may inform the relationship between these behaviors.     

乡土社会语境下梅山武术的生态发展

中国乡土武术文化的生存形态可分为原生形态、次生形态以及艺术形态。在现代中国,社会变迁主要体现在社会再生产土壤、社会再生产方式、社会再生产功能等方面的变迁,致使中国乡土武术文化的生态传承内容、动力、方式及评判标准发生变化。因此,中国乡土武术文化发展出路在于自身的文化内涵的拓深和增值,以适应民众正在或已经改变的文化需求。     

新乡土世界的美学建构——新世纪河南女作家乡土小说分析

新世纪以来,一批河南籍女性作家开始崭露头角,并取得了引人注目的成绩。面对急剧转型的时代,传统乡土叙事经验已经无法涵盖已经发生巨变的乡土社会,河南籍女作家以一种更加开放的姿态面对新的乡土世界,她们的创作把日常生活经验转化成一种叙事伦理,从而以独特的乡土感知,细致的文字表述拓宽了传统乡土小说的表现领域,更新补充了乡土小说的叙事内涵,为河南乡土文学注入了新质。