What are the implications of new global communication networks in sports journalism, and what is their impact on identity within the modern world?
William Roberts-19019345
I aim to discuss the idea of globalisation and new global trends influencing the way we live our lives, with a specific focus on how it influences how we identify ourselves. Using the example of sports and sports journalism, I query whether new global trends will have an impact on the ways in which we identify ourselves
What is journalism when seen in a global context?
I suggest we should see journalism as a social contract exchange. Within a global context I would argue that we become dependent on global networks which influence the social contract mechanism of sports journalism itself.
The link to identity and authentic identity
In this section I dissect identity from the view of Anthony Giddens and Alistair Macintyre, and even further, asking what constitutes an authentic identity.
The Communitarian vs Liberal debate
Elaborating on Giddens and Macintyre, and through the lens of sports journalism, I outline two primary positions in which one can identify themselves. Using Jean Luc Nancy and his ideas that the community is immensely important to the formation of the individual, I compare him to John Rawls and argue individual agency might be important towards forming an individual identity.
Citizenship
I finish the discussion by dissecting new global technologies and identity, suggesting that they impact the way we live as a political subject (We should be seen as more global)
Category: Abstracts
The project aims to illustrate the normalised academic expectations and pressure placed upon students in the South Korean contemporary society. It is evident that there are historical implications that alluded to the emphasis on academic achievements, as well as obeying parental decisions. To produce an analysis of the effects of academic pressure, the project mainly refers to the Korean Drama ‘Sky Castle.’ The philosophy of Judith Butler and Georges Bataille helps us to obtain a philosophical perspective of the consequences.
Sky Castle provides us with an understanding of the concept of ‘tiger parenting’, whereby a high percentage of South Korean parents are motivated to fulfil their ambition of sending their children to superior universities, making sure they have a successful future in high-ranking jobs, thus having extreme expectations in their education. There is a sense of competition amongst friends and family, further displaying the importance of education and ‘bragging rights.’ The aim of the project is to show the extent to which this academic pressure results in a myriad of negative consequences, involving mental illness and becoming distant from the family.
Furthermore, the project uses the ethical teachings of Confucianism and the tradition of respecting one’s elders as part of the virtues. It leads to the collectivist thinking of the community expecting disciplined youths, who obey their parents. As a result, children have no other option but to listen to their parents, even if it means obeying certain rules that have detrimental effects on their mental health. In this section, we can, further, see how people’s actions are affected by Butler’s notion of radical dependency on the other, which are the collective norms and traditions, as well as the community. Young students have lost their freedom to choose as they are affected by their parents, and the parents are affected by the community. This suggests how these individuals have lost their own subjecthood because of the other. Moving on, Bataille’s concepts intends to display how these collectivist norms, that place an emphasis on the students working to go on producing for the economy, further affecting their individual choice and desires. As the rules limit the behaviour, the students transgress and rebel.
The Hegelian concept of the ‘master and slave’ display this loss of individuality and control, making the children the slaves that the parents rely on, fulfil their own ambitions and be recognised as successful parents with successful children. One’s conformity to such pressure will lead to a life that is non-satisfactory, thus the young students will struggle to obtain happiness for the sake of academic achievement placed in their heads. It can, consequently, lead to the students trying to escape through rebellion or suicide if the priority of academia is more emphasised than the needs of the student.
The project shows the significance of others in our lives and how much they have an effect on our behaviour and mindset. In a sense, our individual subjecthood may be lost but we still try to regain it by making our own decisions, even if it is the result of other people. We try to regain our freedom and that is important, otherwise, there will be various mental health problems as the feelings of having no control have detrimental effects.
This paper intends to question the extent to which brutalist architecture produces negative environments through their adverse psychological impact on those who inhabit them. Equally, it will explore how such environments can be overcome. The object these aims will centre around is J.G. Ballard’s novel High-Rise, a dystopian narrative that critiques the modernist tower block, by providing a hyperbolic account of the potential ramifications it can have on the human mind. This paper intends to question the extent to which brutalist architecture produces negative environments through their adverse psychological impact on those who inhabit them. Equally, it will explore how such environments can be overcome. The object these aims will centre around is J.G. Ballard’s novel High-Rise, a dystopian narrative that critiques the modernist tower block, by providing a hyperbolic account of the potential ramifications it can have on the human mind.The consideration of how negative environments can be overcome will draw on the positive elements of Deleuze’s Nietzsche – his concept of the eternal return and the Overman – and Debord’s psychogeography. These concepts are examined to explore the extent which they can be used as remedial to the negative implications of an environment.
This project is founded upon recent published data which portrays an increased trend in the rate of divorce over the last century. The central thesis of the dissertation involves the question: why has the rate of divorce increased over time and should this be at all a concern or reflection of modern-day society?
Contemporary attitudes omit an attitude of divorce being a less scandalous, daunting concept in comparison to earlier decades, however, this project examines whether the marital benefits may indeed be experienced outside of the marital realm.
The dissertation considers contextual societal components with feminist viewpoints to analyse the sexual, reproductive elements of marriage in regard to monogamy and child bearing to then analyse the material, economic elements of marriage within a Marxist perspective.
I include the philosophical theories of Hegel and Kant to examine the ethical elements of marriage as well as the work of John Finnis to consider a more contemporary standpoint.
‘Transphobia and Feminist Existentialism’ is an Exploration of Feminist Transphobic rhetoric’s use of Existentialist language and ideas, using Judith Butler’s ‘Gender Trouble.’
In Gender Trouble, Butler theorised that Gender is constructed, rather than natural and therefore performed. Biological sex is also analysed to be a construct, emerging from ideas of gender. Feminist Transphobic rhetoric, or ‘Gender Critical’ or ‘TERF’ ideology puts forward that gender is oppressive to the female sex, and should be abandoned, leaving only biological sex. Butler’s ‘Gender Trouble’ is used to demonstrate why this is impossible.
The examination of these ideas will unfold in the following way: first examing the emergence of these Feminist Transphobic ideas, then an analysis of the Feminist Transphobic rhetoric. Next will follow an explanation of Butler’s ‘Gender Trouble’. This basic examination will allow an exploration of Butler’s perfomativity theory, applied to a critique of ‘Gender Critical’ ideas, including updating ‘Gender Trouble’ with current understandings of Gender variance, and providing an analysis and criticism of Feminist Transphobia with this updated understanding of ‘Gender Trouble.’ This updated understanding of ‘Gender Trouble’ will reveal how gender in the modern era can progress and expand in a way that allows emancipation from harmful stereotypes surrounding gender.
Project objectives and aims:
• To critically analyse the debate between rationalists and empiricists in accordance with the origin of knowledge, morality and evil, with reference to innate ideas and knowledge acquired through experience.
• Establish which arguments presented by the scholars prove most convincing as to whether a person is inherently evil or if this is learnt from experience of a person’s upbringing.
• Generate a deeper understanding into the concepts and notions that surround mankind’s nature.
What I hope to receive from the dissertation:
• I hope to develop my research and analysis skills by using a variety of sources from scholars that range from early Greek philosophy, to the enlightenment era and contemporary twenty- first century thinkers.
The first part of my project was to prove that accepting a scientific and medical approach to mental illness was wrong. I used Jean-Paul Sartre’s account of bad faith, in which the human being freely gives up their freedom. I then applied this behaviour to the person who accepts the scientific explanation for the dark thoughts and emotions we experience when suffering from illnesses such as depression and anxiety.
In the second part, I introduced Heidegger’s lecture on the origin of the work of art, and how poetry uncovers truths about the world through its use of
language. Music is also a form of poetry so in contemporary times I believe that accepting the truths presented to us about mental illness by musicians is acting in good faith. I supported this argument with the examples of Kurt Cobain, Amy Winehouse, and Kendrick Lamar. Additionally I analysed a select few examples of medical accounts of mental illness in order to prove that they were an insufficient approach to mental health.
‘If we knew nothing about where we’d end up what sort of society would it feel safe to enter?’
Aims:
How does secularisation affect the religion?
Why Britain become more secular?
How does the rise of terror by Islamic extremists affect the Islamic community?
What is the purpose of the EDL and why is it so against the Muslim community?
How has the role of the woman changed throughout modernity?
Why do measures still exist that prevent women from achieving equality?
Methods:
I intend to explore Rawls’ view of tolerance by using various approaches; these include: a Historical Approach and an Axiological Approach. The Historical Approach has been chosen as a means of depicting to the reader the changes and transformations in both the role of the woman in society, as well as the role religion plays in a seemingly secular society. As a result, I will trace the historical, social and political changes affecting both issues at hand. Furthermore, an Axiological Approach will be used to assess whether there are challenges that both religion and women have faced is just throughout contemporary society.
Michel Foucault, Madness and Civilization- the concept of madness and how it has developed over time. Foucault argues there was a specific moment in history when madness was labelled as a mental illness.
Friedrich Nietzsche, The Birth of Tragedy- life is subject to extreme bouts of suffering. Artistic production can contribute towards overcoming the pain we encounter in life. What implications does this have on the link between madness and creativity?
Are creative spirits more likely to be mentally ill? Ultimately the aim of this project is to reflect upon the complex relationship between insanity and creativity, to decide whether there is a correlation between individuals who suffer from psychological disorders, such as schizophrenia, and those who are highly artistic. It is arguable that there is a link, as mental illness and creativity often co-occur. However, this project will also reflect upon the idea that a correlation is simply a romanticised outlook with dangerous implications, and that mental illness does not need to be present for creativity to exist.
The subject matter will be considered via the philosophical thoughts of Foucault, Nietzsche and Schopenhauer, but also with reference to the psychoanalysis work of Freud drawing upon examples such as Daniel Paul Schreber, a famous German judge who was a diagnosed schizophrenic, whom Freud interpreted. The evident Freudian influence expressed by Andre Breton within his novel Nadja will also be addressed. Breton believed insane people were simply victims of their imagination.
‘Madness need not be all breakdown. It may also be break through. It is potential liberation and renewal’
Given the rapid rise of drag performance in pop culture, it is now one of the most popular and varied forms of entertainment. But isn’t seeing drag performance and culture as nothing more than a source of amusement, to obfuscate swathes of its political, emotional and metaphysical potential? How might we do drag justice? How might we unlock this potential? The answer lies in the work of Friedrich Nietzsche, an engagement with whom, will help us see the potential drag offers.Early Nietzsche: The Birth of Tragedy helps us understand drag’s potential in revealing a harsh reality, and in making it possible to bear by transfiguring suffering into beauty. Middle-period Nietzsche: Nietzsche sews the seeds for the ideas which develop in his mature work. Mature Nietzsche: Nietzsche’s critique of the Kantian subject helps us understand how drag pulls us towards a less anxious, less restricted and more emancipated subjectivity. Thus Nietzsche helps us appreciate drag as more than a piece of entertainment, as offering us a more tolerable and healthier way of being in the world.
Object/Territory: How should we understand the concept of ‘psychopathy’ in relation to political theory and how we should we ought to treat other individuals?
Sources: Thomas Hobbes, Adam Smith, Sigmund Freud and Georg Hegel provide powerful theories that can be applied to the idea of psychopathic individuals.
Project outline: The distinction of ‘criminal psychopath’ and ‘white-collar psychopath’ is crucial for my investigation because the contrast between the two opens up a kaleidoscope of questions about psychopathy. The violent explicit nature of criminal psychopaths and the charming and charismatic character of white-collar psychopaths highlight the disparity of individuals that can be considered psychopaths. Hobbes’ egotistical humanity and Smith’s doctrine of altruism provide interesting material to apply to the elusive behaviour of psychopaths.
The Alternative light in this context, is specifically that of, ‘Anti-Social Justice’ YouTube channels.
In my project I set out to understand three main things:
How these anonymous, internet based, political movements come about. About other real-world movements such as Occupy wall street
Is there any Philosophical foundation, or key figures, in founding this movement? (I define it as a movement due to its large growth both in viewership, and online political presence). And how does this compare to the foundations of other more extreme movements.
In the case where there is no foundation of these kinds, how does the world view remain so homogenous, and are there any issues in the foundation of everyone’s belief system?
Along the way I employed primarily the Philosophy of Nick Land, as he is most heavily associated with the movement, and helped in highlighting the significance of analyzing the alt-light specifically. I mapped the progression of these channels from their atheistic, anti-creationist origins, and using the philosophy’s, including that of Land and Nietzsche, showed the significance of this genesis, in the progression of the movement.
Territory- ecofeminism is a branch of political philosophy which suggests that the oppression of women and animals is intrinsically linked, to the extent that women shall never be free until animals are also freed of oppression. This study focuses on a text by ecofeminist philosopher Andrée Collard called Rape of the Wild in order to conduct an axiological critique of the views widely held today in regard to the topics of feminism and speciesism. The territory of ecofeminism is hugely significant to modern day Earth as many issues surrounding both the treatment of women and animals are evident within the 21st century.
Concepts- in order to evaluate and examine the concepts held by Collard and the ecofeminist movement this study focused on ideas from other highly esteemed philosophers such as Kant, de Beauvoir and Aristotle. Concepts such as Aristotle’s Great Chain of Being and de Beauvoir’s idea of the ‘Other’ are useful when applied to the views held by Collard in order to determine how significant the link is between women and animals and how this relationship should be approached in terms of actions and beliefs held within modern day society.
Project Aims
To argue Foster Wallace’s popular talk This is Water highlights Mindfulness as an ideology.
How?
Foster Wallace highlights how Mindfulness key aspect of its thought believes in a Kantian autonomous/individualistic/ a-historical subject transcendental subject.
Implicates argument within the social context – Mindfulness is an antidote to stressful neo-liberal conditions
Economically and ideologically productive system of thought – 3.72 trillion dollar industry
Ideologically repressive – It blames you for your mental health problems!
Could Mindfulness be self destructive?
Plagiarism is wrong. Says who? Why should we obey this? Does Plagiarism stifle creativity? Is plagiarism a force of coercion and obedience?
Territory: Russian Late-Romantic Music
Object: Rachmaninoff’s Prelude in C-Sharp Minor
Method: Interpretative and Axiological
Aim: I will be using Frolova-Walker’s musicology and Adorno’s musical philsophy to dissect Rachmaninoff’s Prelude and discuss whether it can be understood as a piece of Russian nationalist music.
Michael Foucault
– The repressive hypothesis
– Changes in sexual practices over time
– Mode of power within society
Theodore Adorno
– Enlightenment
– Culture Industry
-Standardisation of sexual categories
Do sexual categories define individuals?
Has sexuality always existed?
How does sexuality function within society?
Aims:
My project will examine whether contemporary society’s attitude towards ‘Suicide’ have changed over time?
Are we living in the past?
Are we scared to talk about mental health?
Territory/Object:
My territory is ‘Student suicide’
My object is the BBC Three documentary ‘Student Suicide: Real Stories’.
The documentary looks at how three students took their lives at University; but from the perspective of their loved ones.
Many students do not tell anyone, as they feel “ashamed”.
Philosophers:
This project will focus on the philosophical concepts; Suicide and Morality.
Durkheim’s On Suicide investigates whether social factors affect suicide rates.
Hume’s essay ‘Of Suicide’ illustrates his views against the traditional viewpoint of suicide.
Kant’s The Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals dictates his views against suicide.
In this project I investigate why the present institutions and discourse of cosmopolitics frustrate rather than facilitate peace and resolution.
Through improperly structuring reasoning and creating subjectivity, the current cosmopolitic fails to provide the required conditions for the prevention of and intervention in genocide.
Through an examination of Kant’s cosmopolitanism and current cosmopolitical theories, demonstrated with the use of 3 case studies of Rwanda, Kosovo, and Myanmar I intend to highlight the fundamental contradiction at the heart of cosmopolitanism. Systems are either too universal and empty, ignoring important cultural fabric, or too particular and local, resulting in inaction.
As a result of these failures, intervention becomes an expression of ideology, not humanitarian interest.
Object: The art criticism of works in Louise Bourgeois’ Cells series
Territory: Contemporary art criticism
Concepts: Subjectivity, intention, Freudian psychoanalysis, the artist and their relation to works of art, authority of criticism
Philosophy: Nietzsche, Foucault, Wimsatt and Beardsley, Bal.
In my project, the work of Louise Bourgeois in her Cells series is utilised as a case study to explore wider issues in art criticism and how works of art are interpreted in relation to the artist. An examination of the reception of Louise Bourgeois’ work shows largely the same approach in psychoanalysing Louise Bourgeois and relating this back to her work and perceived intended meaning. Conversely, the position in the project argues that such a reading of her work, as well as that of other artists and authors, carries problems related to the importance of artistic intention, the public sphere of a work of art compared to the private sphere of the artist, as well as to what extent such readings are not only valid, but in the case of Louise Bourgeois count as genuine criticism rather than uncritically accepting her own statements.
Philosophy from the course included use of material from modules PHI2002 and PHI2006.