Anthropology of the Body

Psychoanalysis has produced an ensemble of institutions, expertise, procedures, and practices for rendering the psychoanalytic subject legible and, through this, psychic life as an actionable site of intervention, dislocation, and struggle. This article examines how diverse psychoanalytic communities in Buenos Aires have produced unique grammars that influence how individuals articulate ideas about health and well‐being. Descriptive, culturally specific, historically informed, and always provisional, this grammar is empirically grounded in lived experience. Through presenting several case studies, I flesh out how this grammar, as a deictic expression of/for the unconscious is deployed, reworked, and embodied in everyday interactions. I demonstrate how psychic life is enmeshed within social and political experience. In doing so, I consider how interpersonal, existential, environmental, social, and political contingencies shape divergent notions of well‐being and structure desires of ...

El éxito de Cuba en el campo de la salud pública a menudo se asocia a altos índices estadísticos alcanzados por la población en muchas áreas. Ésto ha llevado a muchos estudiosos a hacer de la isla un "anti-modelo" de desarrollo. Sin embargo, los investigadores en esta línea de pensamiento caen en lo que yo llamo fetichismo estadístico. Esta forma de fetichismo tiene un objetivo específico. Los indicadores básicos de salud en Cuba proporcionan un modelo de la realidad, pero no permiten el examen crítico de lo que las cifras reflejan o cómo se obtienen. Este artículo propone el amplio examen de los procesos sociales, que moldean e influyen en el sistema primario de salud pública en Cuba. Concretamente, el trabajo examina cómo el colapso del bloque soviético y el fortalecimiento del embargo por parte de los Estados Unidos están cambiando la experiencia y la aceptación que la población tiene del sistema de salud. Además, el trabajo analiza cómo los cambios en la dinámica de las relaciones entre la población y la burocracia médica han transformado también los modos en que el Estado ejerce y representa su poder de un modo más sutil a través de la imposición de una disciplina física a nivel individual. palabras claves: Cuba, antropología médica, subjetividad, prácticas cotidianas, Poder Estatal.

La révolution cubaine se trouve confrontée depuis plus d’une décennie à de profonds changements sociaux, économiques et politiques liés à l’insertion toujours plus grande de l’île à l’économie de marché global à la suite de la chute du bloc socialiste. Alors que plusieurs études avancent que Cuba s’engage à son tour dans une période de « transition », une analyse anthropologique de ce contexte révèle un scénario plus complexe. À l’aide de l’examen des nouvelles formes de gouvernance étatique en matière de santé et de recherche universitaire sur l’environnement, ainsi que des pratiques informelles des sujets, cet article analyse comment, à travers l’insertion de nouvelles formes de capital, ces politiques visent à maintenir et à reproduire l’idéologie socialiste dans les institutions locales et les pratiques individuelles quotidiennes en forgeant chez les individus un sentiment identitaire (lerevolucionario) en accord avec la rationalité de la gouvernance socialiste. Cependant, ces p...

ABSTRACTThrough an engagement with historical, epistemological, and ethnographic modes of analyses, I trace how individual bodily practices—that is, practices relating to the body and its health—in contemporary Cuba provide a fertile terrain for examining the multiple pathways through which political subjectivities are created and transformed. Specifically, I highlight the ways in which these practices serve as de facto access to basic health services and supplies and actively contribute to the daily functioning of Cuba's socialist health care system. I argue that scholars must move beyond contrasting rote descriptions of socialism vis‐à‐vis capitalism and, rather, look to new fields of inquiry that address the coproduction and coexistence of different forms of capital and new configurations of statecraft and subjectivity in 21st‐century Cuba. [Cuba, state, capital, bodily practices, subjectivity, socialism]

God unites body and soul for human flourishing. The body does not compete with the soul; it unites with the soul to produce embodied, soulful experience. Embodied experience feeds the soul, while the soul informs embodied experience. Meaning arises from this union: embodiment allows loving relationship, materiality allows intense sensation, and decisions within time produce moral consequence. Soul and body are as inseparable for vitality as light and heat are for fire.

 The independence from Great Britain occurred in 1966. Since then, the country is named Guyana.  During the indenture system, laborers from India departed from Calcutta (Kolkata) in the north and Madras (Chennai) in the South. More than 85% came from the north of the subcontinent, while around 10% were from Madras (now Tamil Nadu) and Andhra Pradesh. Overall, more than 83% of the immigrants were Hindus, while 16% were Muslims. Christians represented <1% of the immigrants.

Let us begin with a few radical questions: If posthumanism indicates the 'end of the human' and an overhauling of humanistic modes of knowledge, does it also refer to the vanishing of the body?; or how do we define something as nebulous as a body, which is an embodied and extracted product of its surroundings?; or is it possible to arrive at a non-epistemic body or a body outside humanism's claims and codes? Posthumanism interprets bodies as symbiotic, interrelational, transversal, contextually grounded, porous, and entangled assemblages of geo-biological, mythological-shapeshifting forces and various inorganic components. As a discourse, it practices the overcoming of traditional bodies and their cultural differences and instead imagines bodies that are non-anthropocentric, non-dualist, multiversal, cyborg, animalistic, deformed, extraterrestrial, sedimental, fossilized, archaeological, surgical, hybrid, digital, transitive, or all kinds of 'post-humanist' bodies that attack the heteronormative, straitjacketed, Vitruvian corporal frame of reference. Bodies, therefore, are not static objects open to anthropological or biological interrogation but represent dynamic, multi-layered forces that transcend all binaristic scaffoldings and form networks of interaction with non-human others in the ecosystem. In the course of history, the human body has moved through the routes of dualism (mind/body), differentiation (animal/human), anatomization (rise of medicine and remapping of entrails), prohibition (church/religion), perfection (Renaissance), industrialization (Industrial and French revolutions), transformation (World War and Avant-garde, Psychoanalysis), exploration (performance arts), regimentation (surveillance and biowarfare), and mutation (AI, biotechnology, and pandemics). Debates around the transmutation of bodies also raise concerns about the reproduction of cyberized figures, creation of artificial consciousness, transgenesis, uploading of memories onto a microchip (transubstantiation), or even cryopreservation. Where must we then urgently locate retaliatory, 'obscene' bodies in the age of the Anthropocene?

Sistemas integrados de gestão (ERP -enterprise resource planning) exercem profundos impactos nos processos de negócio e no conhecimento que os funcionários necessitam possuir para desempenhar suas funções. Este ensaio discute o fenômeno dos sistemas ERP usando a metáfora dos ciborgues e conceitos sobre memória protética, com base em e Landsberg (1995). Estes trabalhos são utilizados para explorar aspectos dos ERP que parecem estar obscuros, camuflados e que necessitam ser revelados. O ciborgue pode contribuir para a compreensão dos diferentes modos como a ciência e a tecnologia afetam nossas vidas, a subjetividade e conceitos. Questões sobre complexidade, mudanças na força de trabalho, mudanças nas estratégias de controle, identidade e potenciais influências no conhecimento e ação organizacional relacionadas com sistemas ERP são interpretadas. Ao final, apresentam-se perguntas e recomendações sobre como lidar com ERP com base nas reflexões do presente ensaio.

ERP systems have profound impacts on businesses processes and on the knowledge that employees need to carry out their activities. This essay discusses the ERP phenomenon using the metaphor of the cyborg and concepts about prosthetic memory based on the works of Haraway (2000) and Landsberg (1995). These works are used to explore aspects of ERP that seem to be otherwise obscure or camouflaged, so in need to be revealed. The cyborg can contribute to the understanding of different ways in which science and technology affect our lives, subjectivity and concepts. Issues such as complexity, changes in the workforce, changes in control strategies, identity and potential influences on knowledge and organizational actions related with ERP systems are interpreted in this essay. Finally, some questions and recommendations are presented on how to work with ERP systems.

The elements (mahābhūtas), the building blocks of the material world according to most Indian doctrinal systems, are used in various ways in tantric rituals. The most common use is in the ritual of purification of the elements (bhūtaśuddhi), which is a preparatory act before commencing tantric worship. Another technique is the mastery of the elements (bhūtajaya), in which the practitioner gains control over a given element by holding the breath or mind (or both) at specific places in the body. Successful performance of this practice (usually called fixation, dhāraṇā) brings great effects, particularly various bodily perfections. This chapter briefly introduces the bhūtaśuddhi ritual and then discusses the technique of mastering the elements in the sources of various tantric traditions (Śaivasiddhānta, Non-Saiddhāntika Śaivas, Pāñcarātra, and Buddhism).

Zusammenfassung Am 7. September 2001 findet zwischen New York und Straßburg die erste transatlantische Fernoperation am Menschen statt. Hochpräzise Bildgebungs- und Fernsteuerungsverfahren sowie leistungsfähige Datenverbindungen ermöglichen die Verbreitung des Körpers weit über seine physische Grenze hinaus und bringen einen offenen Körper ins Spiel, der weitaus geöffneter scheint, als es der Einschnitt in seine Haut offenbart. Der medizinische Körper wird zu einem medialen Thema. Wie nehmen unterschiedliche künstlerische und medizinische Praktiken, als zwei diametrale Reflexionsformen von Körperlichkeit, Bezug auf jenen prekär gewordenen Überschneidungsbereich von Körper und Maschine? Mit Donna Haraway plädiere ich dafür, unterschiedliche Disparitäten in ein Verhältnis des Mit Werdens zu setzen. Als Rahmen dieser Begegnung beziehe ich mich auf das Begriffsfeld des technischen Ensembles, wie es der Technikphilosoph Gilbert Simondon entwickelt. Das Körperschema, mit all seinen psycho...

The intersection of biopolitics and microbiology takes on an even more radical form when considering the concept of pathogenic biolinguistics. Xenobacillus glossophagii, theorized to encode linguistic structures within host organisms, disrupts the binary separation between biological and semiotic systems. By interfering with linguistic cognition rather than physiological substrates, this bacterium subverts Foucauldian frameworks of biopower, necessitating an extension of biopolitical analysis to account for nonhuman semiotic agency. Foucault’s conceptualization of power as a regulatory force over populations finds an unexpected challenge in Xenobacillus glossophagii, a microbial entity that not only evades biopolitical control but actively corrupts the mechanisms of meaning itself. If governance relies on the legibility of subjects, then a pathogen capable of destabilizing cognitive structures represents an epistemological crisis. This shift compels a reconsideration of how power operates—not merely as a hierarchical force exerted upon passive biological subjects but as a contested domain of microbial agency and linguistic parasitism. Xenobacillus glossophagii exemplifies the entanglement of biological and discursive governance, illustrating the evolving dynamics of contemporary biopolitics. As microbial life continues to shape human health, cognition, and governance, the Foucauldian notion of biopower must adapt to accommodate these emerging bio-semiotic complexities. This case urges a reconceptualization of biopolitics, moving beyond its traditional focus on human populations to include the unpredictable and resistant forces of microbial existence.

The DEMETER (Detection of Electromagnetic Emissions Transmitted from Earthquake Regions) satellite data have been analysed for a period of three and half months from 01 September to 16 December 2010 in search of whistlers and VLF emissions and their ground observations at low latitudes. The quick look data show intense sporadic bursts mostly in the Instrument Champ Electrique (ICE) channel of the satellite. These bursts are analysed using MATLAB software for the nighttime passes of upgoing orbits in the latitude range 20°-50°. The analysis shows records of large number of first component of magnetospherically reflected (MR) whistlers, mostly when the satellite is in low latitude ionosphere. These whistlers, together with normal whistlers observed in the satellite, are not observed on the ground as revealed by simultaneous ground observations at low latitude station Agra. This confirms them to be non-ducted whistlers which are reflected and observed in the ionosphere and magnetospher...

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When from this wreathed tomb shall I awake! When move in a sweet body fit for life, And love, and pleasure, and the ruddy strife Of hearts and lips! (John Keats, Lamia) Per secoli il pensiero occidentale ha fatto a meno del corpo: il soggetto epistemico moderno nasce come soggetto disincarnato, universale proprio perché deprivato dell'estrema contingenza e prossimità rappresentata dal corpo. Il corpo c'è ma viene confinato nel rimosso, in ciò che può e deve essere trasceso o sublimato così da non minare i meccanismi teoretici di conoscenza e di produzione del sapere. Il Discorso sul metodo di René Descartes, testo che segna la nascita del soggetto moderno e ne delinea le caratteristiche, afferma con chiarezza: "La nostra [anima] è di una natura interamente indipendente dal corpo, e, di conseguenza, […] non è affatto soggetta a morire con esso". 1 Corpo e anima (âme è il termine utilizzato da Descartes) sono indipendenti -e il corpo è immediatamente declassato come irrilevante ai fini della complessa architettura della ragione e del "metodo" che Descartes da essa fa derivare. E così via fino a Hegel: la rilettura che la filosofa statunitense Judith Butler dà della dialettica "servo-padrone" in La vita psichica del potere illustra il percorso attraverso cui il soggetto postulato da Hegel riesce a superare il proprio essere-corpo per raggiungere una sua compiuta realizzazione; emblema di questa alienazione necessaria quanto traumatica è l'espropriazione del corpo che il soggetto subisce, e il suo essere ridotto a puro strumento. La dialettica servo-padrone diventa, nella rilettura di Judith Butler, la riduzione del corpo a mera strumentalità oggettivata, feticcio secondario al servizio della pura spiritualità disincarnata rappresentata dall'io soggettivo; la coscienza infelice è, conseguentemente, la constatazione dello stato di subalternità della dimensione corporea e la percezione di questo processo di distacco alienante. La sublimazione del corpo è il primo, fondamentale momento per * Fiorenzo Iuliano è dottorando di ricerca in Letterature, culture e storie dei paesi anglofoni presso l'

The paper explores how the uniform of a group of female cleaners appears to be more than an abstract object framed by the practical exegetics of work. The uniform is seen as acting as a material exercise of discretionary and disciplinary power of inscription, and as the paper shows, emerges as a mode by which the cleaners are homogenously objectified and plastically turned into 'subjects' . The paper shows too that while the single layered cleaners' uniform can be seen as disciplining the body and stripping down the complex multi-layers of their personality and attempting to naturalise their status as cleaners, the women's narratives reveal their attempts to destabilise this conscription, if only outside the spatial and organisational domain of the work space.

This article deals with several phenomena, quite different in their character and association with various academic disciplines (ethnology, folkloristics, history of religions and archaeology). They are discussed together due to a common component that permeates them – the human nose, and even more specifically – the insect (fly or bee) that stands on it. In this case, they are explored through a comparative, interdisciplinary and diachronic analysis in order to arrive at the essential meaning of each of them, which had remained incompletely resolved within the framework of the native academic disciplines that have previously studied them. First discussed are the folkloric (non-canonical) traditions about St. Tryphon belonging to the fields of ethnology, folkloristics and folk literature, where it is told that he had cut off his nose while pruning the vineyards. The study begins with a narratological analysis of the material, while undertaking its typologization and determination of the main characters. Noted subsequently are the key actions related to them, which mainly consist in the cutting of Tryphon’s nose that takes place while he is pruning the vineyard. Thereby, the suggested motivation is his implicit incest regarding the Virgin Mary (presented as his sister in these folktales), manifested through certain sexual insinuations addressed to her. Based on that, the author suggests to treat the cutting of the nose should as a symbolic castration which in traditional societies was as a common punishment for such or similar transgressions.

Keywords: Saint Tryphon, nose, phallus, incest, castration, fly, bee, grapes, pruning of the vineyard, wine, Attis/Agdistis and Cybele, Lycurgus, funeral mask, Trebenishte

n recent years, critical perspectives in the social sciences have highlighted serious issues with current research practices and made appeals for methodological reform. It has been noted, for instance, that psychological studies overwhelmingly rely on the use of an extremely limited sample pool (North American college undergraduates) to make generalizations about human nature. As it turns out, however, that sample pool is particularly atypical so much that both cross-culturally and historically it consists of outliers, as can be seen in numerous behavioral and cognitive tasks 2 . Another recently identified issue is what has come to be known as the replication crisis 3 , that is, the finding that the results of many classical social scientific experiments fail to replicate. This has dire implications, as it undermines the foundations of social scientific theories that had previously been thought to be solid. As a result of these realizations, there are now coordinated efforts to address these problems through expanding subject pools and systematic replication projects. However, I worry that these efforts are often misguided, because they do not address the underlying problem. At its core, the problem is one of ecological validity. It pertains to the relationship between the local and the global, between specifics

L'uomo folle. Avete sentito di quel folle uomo che accese una lanterna alla chiara luce del mattino, corse al mercato e si mise a gridare incessantemente: "Cerco Dio! Cerco Dio!". E poiché proprio là si trovavano raccolti molti di quelli che non credevano in Dio, suscitò grandi risa. "È forse perduto?" disse uno. "Si è perduto come un bambino?" fece un altro. "Oppure sta ben nascosto? Ha paura di noi? Si è imbarcato? È emigrato?" -gridavano e ridevano in una gran confusione. Il folle uomo balzò in mezzo a loro e li trapassò con i suoi sguardi: "Dove se n'è andato Dio? -gridò -ve lo voglio dire! Siamo stati noi ad ucciderlo: voi e io! Siamo noi tutti i suoi assassini! Ma come abbiamo fatto questo? Come potemmo vuotare il mare bevendolo fino all'ultima goccia? Chi ci dètte la spugna per strusciar via l'intero orizzonte? Che mai facemmo, a sciogliere questa terra dalla catena del suo sole? Dov'è che si muove ora? Dov'è che ci moviamo noi? Via da tutti i soli? Non è il nostro un eterno precipitare? E all'indietro, di fianco, in avanti, da tutti i lati? Esiste ancora un alto e un basso? Non stiamo forse vagando come attraverso un infinito nulla? Non alita su di noi lo spazio vuoto? Non si è fatto più freddo? Non seguita a venire notte, sempre più notte? Non dobbiamo accendere lanterne la mattina? Dello strepito che fanno i becchini mentre seppelliscono Dio, non udiamo dunque nulla? Non fiutiamo ancora il lezzo della divina putrefazione? Anche gli dèi si decompongono! Dio è morto! Dio resta morto! E noi l'abbiamo ucciso! Come ci consoleremo noi, gli assassini di tutti gli assassini? Quanto di più sacro e di più possente il mondo possedeva oggi, si è dissanguato sotto i nostri coltelli; chi detergerà da noi questo sangue? Con quale acqua potremo noi lavarci? Quali riti espiatori, quali giuochi sacri dovremo noi inventare? Non è troppo grande, per noi, la grandezza di

Religious mystics have always insisted on the unity of humankind and the cosmos within God. As a result of this unity, we can never be satisfied with either a Godless world or a worldless God; we need our souls to be filled with both. Certainly, we can wonder why the universe is so astoundingly huge and why we are as nothing within its endless expanse. Yet, if we erase the false boundary between ourselves and the universe, if we let the inside out and the outside in, then we become expansive indeed.

En 2020, un événement marquant a marqué le début de notre travail sur la condition des femmes « noires » au Maroc dans le cadre d'une formation post-doctorale. Il s'agit d'une photo publicitaire publiée sur le site d'un organisateur d'événements portant sur le caftan marocain. Celle-ci a provoqué un énorme tollé médiatique après avoir été dénoncée par certains internautes comme véhiculant des idées discriminatoires, car elle montrait, d'une part, une femme « blanche » assise sur le canapé dans une attitude dominante et, d'autre part, une femme « noire » debout à sa droite dans une posture soumise. Cette image controversée est presque une copie conforme de nombreuses toiles peintes par des artistes orientalistes sur le thème des harems en Orient. On cite particulièrement ici le célèbre tableau de l'artiste français Alfred Dehondencq intitulé Mariée juive au Maroc, réalisé en 1867. Les esclaves « noires » apparaissaient dans de nombreuses toiles orientalistes au 19 e siècle et leur valeur n'était rien de plus que la valeur d'un objet décoratif égale à la valeur d'autres objets décoratifs tels que les mosaïques et les meubles. La présence de la femme « noire » était une Présence ornementale. Après cet événement, la question de l'impact du passé esclavagiste marocain sur la marginalisation historique des femmes « noires » a été posée. Quels stéréotypes stigmatisantes perdurent-ils dans le temps et constituent-ils encore une menace identitaire pour beaucoup de femmes « noires » au Maroc ? Le stigmate « femme noire » constitue-t-il un obstacle à l'épanouissement socio-psychologique des femmes noires ? Quelles sont les stratégies individuelles ou collectives adoptées par les femmes noires pour résister aux formes de discrimination et de stigmatisation sociale ? YASSNI Yassine : Docteur en sociologie-enseignant-chercheur en sociologie, Université Ibn Tofail, Maroc.

The Philosophical Contribution of Kostas Axelos : The Issue of the Open System and Technological Civilization

Kostas Axelos (1924–2010) remains one of the most intriguing and underexplored figures in contemporary philosophy. His work, situated at the crossroads of Marxism, Heideggerian phenomenology, and the philosophy of technology, raises critical questions about the nature of modern civilization and the fate of thought in an increasingly technological world. One of the central academic issues in Axelos’ thought is his concept of the "open system," which presents a radical alternative to both dialectical materialism and structuralism. This issue is especially relevant in our age of digital globalization and algorithmic governance, as it poses fundamental questions about the limits of human autonomy and the possibilities of thought in a technologically determined world.
       
The Open System: A Critique of Closed Philosophical Paradigms
Axelos’ notion of the "open system" challenges traditional metaphysical and epistemological assumptions that rely on closure, determinacy, and finality. Unlike Hegelian dialectics, which seeks resolution through synthesis, Axelos proposes a dynamic, ever-unfolding process that resists totalization. His critique extends to Marxist orthodoxy, which he argues falsely assumes a teleological closure in history. By advocating an open-ended view of reality, Axelos aligns himself with thinkers like Nietzsche and Heidegger, emphasizing a world in flux rather than one governed by fixed structures or ultimate goals.

This issue raises critical academic debates: How can philosophical thought remain relevant in an era dominated by technological systems that impose rigid structures on human existence? Is the "open system" a viable framework for understanding contemporary globalized societies, or does it risk devolving into an abstract and impractical relativism?
For Axelos, closed systems—whether philosophical, political, or scientific—seek to impose rigid frameworks that ultimately stifle thought and creativity. He sees Western metaphysical traditions as largely obsessed with categorization and finality, which leads to an artificial separation between subject and object, mind and world, theory and practice. In contrast, his "open system" embraces indeterminacy and fluidity, recognizing that reality is in perpetual motion and that any attempt to fix meaning within rigid boundaries leads to intellectual stagnation.
Axelos’ concept also engages with existentialist and phenomenological traditions, particularly in how it resists essentialist definitions of being. He challenges not only the dogmas of classical metaphysics but also structuralist tendencies that seek to analyze reality in terms of fixed codes and relationships. Instead, Axelos suggests that the world should be understood as a game (le jeu du monde), a process of continuous becoming where human existence is not predefined but rather shaped by the interactions of open-ended forces. This issue raises critical academic debates: How can philosophical thought remain relevant in an era dominated by technological systems that impose rigid structures on human existence? Is the "open system" a viable framework for understanding contemporary globalized societies, or does it risk devolving into an abstract and impractical relativism? Furthermore, how does Axelos' open system relate to contemporary discussions of complexity theory, cybernetics, and ecological thinking, all of which emphasize the interconnectedness and dynamism of systems?

A related issue in Axelos' work is his analysis of technological civilization. In Le Jeu du Monde (The Play of the World), he argues that technological advancement has not only transformed human existence but has also reshaped the very way we think and conceptualize reality. Technology, in Axelos’ view, is not merely a tool but a fundamental mode of being that structures our world and thought processes.

This raises significant academic concerns about autonomy, alienation, and the role of philosophy. If technology governs human thought as Axelos suggests, can there be genuine freedom in intellectual and political life? How does one resist technological determinism without retreating into romanticized notions of pre-technological existence? Axelos does not advocate for a rejection of technology but rather calls for a new form of thinking that embraces its presence while resisting its totalizing tendencies.

Axelos highlights the paradox of technological civilization: while it offers immense possibilities for connectivity, knowledge production, and efficiency, it also risks subordinating human creativity and autonomy to systemic logic. He critiques the way in which technology, rather than serving human purposes, increasingly dictates them—turning individuals into passive participants in a mechanized world. The dominance of algorithmic governance, artificial intelligence, and automation exemplifies the culmination of this technological destiny, raising profound concerns about the future of human agency.

Furthermore, Axelos’ thought resonates with contemporary debates about digital culture, surveillance capitalism, and the commodification of knowledge. As digital technologies reshape the nature of labor, communication, and governance, the question arises: To what extent can individuals maintain authentic engagement with the world when technological mediation defines nearly every aspect of existence? In this sense, Axelos anticipates concerns found in posthumanist and critical media theories, particularly regarding the erosion of subjectivity in the face of ever-expanding cybernetic systems.

Another crucial aspect of Axelos’ critique is the way in which technological civilization imposes a fragmented, instrumentalized view of knowledge. He challenges the reduction of thought to mere data-processing and the dominance of specialized, compartmentalized disciplines that fail to grasp the holistic nature of existence. By contrast, his open system philosophy encourages a mode of thinking that resists fragmentation and embraces a planetary perspective, one that acknowledges the interrelation of philosophy, science, politics, and art in an ever-evolving world.

Impurity conveyed by fluids is a symbol and a tool for gender and caste discrimination in India. These fluids occupy asymmetric functions in the creation of kinship and gender relationships. Their circulation between bodies therefore requires a strict control; not prohibiting contact between castes, but ensuring a one-way transmission linked to a relation of power and subordination which is also related to the reproduction of the clans. Taking our ethnographic data from a Himalayan valley as a point of departure, we will situate this “mechanic of fluids” with regard to some classical theories of impurity, offering our own renewed and current interpretation.

The tension between universality and specificity in concepts of the human body—both living and dead—and the cosmos raises fundamental questions for historical and comparative research: How extensive and deep-rooted is cross-cultural variability in the conceptual domains of humans and nature? At what levels can we identify universals or shared commonalities? The wide range of factors invoked to explain cultural variations and similarities—biochemical, neurophysiological, cultural, ideological, and socio-political—poses complex challenges for historical analysis seeking to interpret and explain cross-cultural data. These challenges underscore the need for transdisciplinary approaches.

This volume addresses these questions through 14 case studies spanning diverse periods and disciplines, including (but not limited to) Egyptian, Near Eastern, Graeco-Latin, Byzantine, Arabic, Jewish, and Mesoamerican studies. It investigates cross-cultural universals, similarities, and variations in the ways premodern societies conceptualized the human body, the dead body, and the cosmos from comparative, historical, and diachronic perspectives.

O presente livro tem por base um conjunto de textos apresentados na
conferência interdisciplinar «Limitless? Imaginários, consumos e desafios
no enhancement cognitivo» realizada no Instituto de Ciências Sociais da
Universidade de Lisboa (ICS-UL), no dia 15 de Março de 2019. Esta
conferência teve como objectivo estimular o diálogo entre áreas de confluência:
a antropologia, a sociologia, a psicologia, a filosofia, a biologia,
a ciência cognitiva e a inteligência artificial. A necessidade deste debate
decorre da aceleração dos progressos técnicos e (bio)tecnológicos que se
tem vindo a assistir nos últimos 50 anos e que, a par de uma maior democratização
de produtos e intervenções com o potencial de alterar a biologia
humana com fins não terapêuticos, poderão vir a transformar radicalmente
a forma como os humanos se pensam e projectam o futuro da humanidade.
As possibilidades de manipulação da vida humana e do desempenho
social são hoje quase ilimitadas, embora, muitas vezes, eticamente questionáveis.
Este livro explora, portanto, imaginários em torno do enhancement
cognitivo emergentes em sociedades performativas e altamente
competitivas que estimulam novos mercados de «neuro-esperanças» que
geram expectativas de funcionamentos cerebrais de «super-humanos».
Analisa, também, consumos de desempenho cognitivo enquadrados num
leque diversificado de meios (i)legítimos já disponíveis e novos desafios
societais que nos levam a questionar os limites da intervenção humana no
cérebro.

Esta coletânea apresenta 12 trabalhos inéditos que discutem o papel das
biotecnologias nos processos de produção ou transformação corporal e
subjetiva, por meio de investigações sediadas no Brasil, em Portugal e na
Argentina. É resultado da articulação promovida pela Rede de Investi
gações Biotecnologias, Saúde Pública e Ciências na Vida que integra
pesquisadoras e pesquisadores dedicadas/os a investigar a produção e
repercussões do conhecimento e práticas biotecnológicas em diversos
cenários. O eixo central das discussões gira em torno de como novas
possibilidades tecnocientíficas direcionadas ao corpo e estruturadas nas
chamadas Ciências da Vida traduzem uma série de tensões características
das sociedades contemporâneas. Os capítulos constituem investimentos
etnográficos e analíticos originais em cenários nos quais as tensões acerca
de saúde e aprimoramento são reveladoras também do privilégio dado ao
investimento individual em contraste com a ênfase na dimensão social ou
coletiva, evidenciando, igualmente, os condicionantes econômicos e
políticos em cena e a (re)produção de assimetrias sociais.

This article discusses the bamboo angklung as a viable instrument to teach Indonesian music and culture in the music education classroom. It is based on research conducted in West Java and on observations made during a twelve-week period of teaching angklung to K-3 students in the United States. In particular, this article presents pedagogical models used in Indonesian schools and cultural centers and examines how the angklung can be used to teach not only music and Indonesian culture but also Indonesian social values and history. Suggestions for hands-on activities and transcriptions of folk songs are provided to help teachers introduce Indonesian culture and angklung in a way that also strengthens skills in audiation, matching pitch, and recognizing scale degrees.

Dentro de este librito hay mundos. Hay inmensidades a la vez que hay historias pequeñas y aparentemente insignificantes. Es un intento por mirar alrededor y no hacia adelante. Invoca la anchura y atenta contra la línea recta: es ahí donde procura un gesto que desactiva el progreso.
Los mundos vaca acá presentes son cuerpo, son exceso, son animalidad. Existen para ellos varios recorridos posibles. Vaca es/se hace junto con el territorio que ha posibilitado pensar lo que acá se dice. Vaca también significa gorda.  En la relación entre esos mundos se inscriben estos textos. No buscando re-conocerse vaca, sino con la intención de conocer-con.
Sequía, rumia o inmensidad acompañan esta escritura y se vuelven mundos que abren preguntas: ¿como pensar-con y no sobre?

Ce document est protégé par la loi sur le droit d'auteur. L'utilisation des services d'Érudit (y compris la reproduction) est assujettie à sa politique d'utilisation que vous pouvez consulter en ligne. Cet article est diffusé et préservé par Érudit. Érudit est un consortium interuniversitaire sans but lucratif composé de

El artículo reconstruye el proceso de repatriación de los cuerpos de marinos indonesios fallecidos en el extremo sur del Atlántico. Con ello, busca identificar parte de la comunidad política que hace posible su derecho a volver a casa.

Lifeless bodies crossing borders. Work, death and transnational political community between Indonesian workers in the South Atlantic

The article reconstructs the process of repatriating the bodies of Indonesian sailors who died in the Atlantic. In doing so, it seeks to identify part of the political community that enables their right to return home.

Resumo: O presente artigo analisa a tese Considerações ácerca da idade critica da mulher, elaborada por Jose Luiz Cardozo, estudante da Faculdade de Medicina do Rio de Janeiro, e defendida em 1849. O estudo , conhecida como menopausa, de forma a analisar as implicações médicas e sociais desta fase da vida da mulher. O médico descreve as mudanças físicas e emocionais enfrentadas durante a puberdade e o climatério, bem como oferece prescrições médicas e comportamentais para as mulheres lidarem com o fim de seus anos reprodutivos. Este trabalho busca destacar como a medicina do século XIX patologizou a experiência feminina e restringiu, em diversos níveis, a autonomia das mulheres, contribuindo para a construção de estereótipos de gênero. Objetivase ser capaz de identificar certos fatores que prescreviam posturas e expectativas em relação às mulheres mais velhas, acabando por estabelecer um controle sobre seus comportamentos e o delineamento da moral a ser seguida assim que suas funções procriativas cessassem.

Preliminary thoughts on a phenomenological approach to the human boday, starting from the idea that the human body is central to all spheres of human society and activity, as all social interaction is body-based, going beyond the representational character of bodies in archaeological and anthropological studies.

Sex and organs pertaining to sex and sexual activities have been a taboo topic in the Philippines resulting in Filipinos assigning various words to pertain to the topic. Instead of simply saying "titi," words such as "batuta," "talong," and "junior" are used to refer to the male sex or "ari." This phenomenon also resulted in Filipinos using different body parts to estimate penile length-a taboo topic but casually being talked about in circles. As such, this correlational study discovered whether there is a significant correlation between penile length and somatometric measures such as height, foot size, and hand size. Using quantitative methods, including the researcher acting as the sole gatherer and recorder of body measurements, it is found that penile length and height, foot size, and hand size are positively correlated among 20 Filipino male individuals, ages 20-40, recruited using snowball sampling. Each variable exhibited significant correlation with penile length, both in flaccid and erect states; however, the correlation was with weak coefficient values. The variables with relatively strongest correlation among the data set is shown between erect penile length and height at r = 0.3029, while the weakest correlation is between flaccid penile length and hand size at r = 0.1099. Therefore, while the data set is not generalizable because of the small sample size, there can be a basis in estimating the penile length using the height of an individual.

“Transforming Spirit Bodies” is an edited volume that focuses on the bodies and embodiments of spirits, their (im-)materialities, and their bodily transformations. The anthropological, sociological and archaeological contributions draw attention to the embodied experiences of asymmetrical dependencies among humans and spirits and how experiences of (inter-)dependence are negotiated in their interactions. Suggesting that more-than-human entities significantly contribute to agency in social interactions and power negotiations, the volume further highlights the ambivalent yet undeniable relationship between spirits and materiality. During the processes of materialization and dematerialization, in which spirit bodies transform and are transformed, more-than-human entities may share substances and agency with humans. Not only having material but also social dimensions, these dynamics are influenced by relations of power and dependency. Following posthumanist approaches, this volume therefore challenges the anthropocentric views that continue to dominate scholarly analysis of power relations, dependency, and coercion.

The hoard from Moravička Sela in Gorski Kotar (Croatia) is an accidental find. It consist of a smaller number of fragmented bronze tools, weapons, jewelleries and half products. Its composition proves the connections ranging from the southeast Alpine, Pannonian and Carpathian territory. In a cultural and historical perspective, it represents the application of a classic pattern of hoards from the southern Pannonian territory characterized by regional cultural expressions of the older phase of Urnfield culture (Ha A1) in the 13th and early 12th century BCE. The most interesting find within the hoard was a miniature double pick. The latter were characteristic for the territory of the Carpathian Basin, especially for the northern Hungarian and Slovakian territory. Numerous discussions have been presented in recent decades on the functions of double pics, but all the authors agreed that the miniature examples precisely because of their size were of symbolic, most probably votive character or a form of a status symbol. As a sign/ symbol, they undoubtedly had a leading role in the recognition of different cultural values of the Carpathian Basin, while their status outside of this milieu, as for example in the discussed hoard, needs additional efforts to be interpreted in context. It remains, for now, the most southern find and is understood as a specific subject of inter/transregional contacts and transmissions between individuals and societies.

Our research investigates a collection of distinctive case studies identified as 'womb-tomb sacred structures,' scattered throughout the region colloquially referred to as the Holy Land. This geographical area, nestled between the Mediterranean Sea and the East Bank of the Jordan River, holds profound historical and religious significance, intersecting with the biblical Land of Israel and the broader region of Palestine. It is revered by followers of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. This study offers a pioneering exploration of the complex interplay between human corporeal rituals at sacred sites and architectural forms, illuminating not only how these rituals impact architectural design but also how the design influences the rituals themselves. We have catalogued an extensive array of womb-tomb structures across this landscape, dating from various periods including the First and Second Temples (700 BCE) and the Byzantine era. Despite their chronological diversity, these structures share architectural characteristics-typically, they are enclosed, cave-like spaces, often dimly lit and surmounted by domes. The architectural geomorphology of the womb-tomb designs prescribes specific bodily movements, with their distinctive forms necessitating, and sometimes enforcing, actions such as bending, crawling, and bowing within these enveloping spaces. Our exploration is supported by a novel methodological framework consisting of nine stages, which harmoniously blends architectural analysis (including Spatial Analysis, Morphological Analysis, 4D Approach) with anthropological perspectives and methodologies (including observations, interviews, photographic documentation, and short films). Our results elucidate that these architectural structures and morphologies serve not merely as sanctified sites but also unveil previously unrecognized connections among human anatomy, architectural configurations of the afterlife, and the connections between ritualistic conceptualization of soil, land, and territory as expressions of ownership and power.

The boxing tradition has produced a teaching system which expands through time and space with remarkable regularity. It reproduces a series of technologies of self, and at the same time is inscribed in a gender symbolic order which gives hierarchical values and places to subjects; therefore, boxing is a technology of gender. The learning of the boxing practice integrates the fighters in a complex social structure, isolated and fortified as an exclusive preserve of masculinity in a way of working that incorporates several dimensions of body, gender and education.

RESUMEN: Como componentes fundamentales del imaginario de la masculinidad, el riesgo en el deporte y la capacidad para soportar el dolor contribuyen a configurar una cultura de género que en el boxeo tiene una impecable transparencia. Los integrantes del campo interpretan el peligro como una característica del deporte, cuyas repercusiones en la salud y la integridad corporal de los atletas pueden ser negadas o minimizadas en función del valor viril que constituyen.

Los primeros días de cuarentena estricta surgió la pregunta sobre qué era lo que más se extrañaba durante el aislamiento: ¿Qué se mostraba como una falta o como un impedimento físico? Con esta inquietud nos acercamos a 40 personas y les preguntamos: “¿qué es lo que más extrañas de no estar en cuarentena?” A partir de un recorte etario y geográfico, mantuvimos los testimonios de 25 personas. 
Nos interesa investigar el contraste que supuso el desplazamiento desde rutinas ya arraigadas al confinamiento de los cuerpos de las personas. En particular nos enfocamos en: a) los cambios que se produjeron en los ritos de interacción propios de los vínculos interpersonales; b) analizar las repercusiones que implicó en los rostros el pasaje de los intercambios cara a cara a las interacciones virtuales y; c) describir las implicancias que tuvo la herramienta de reunión virtual como único medio disponible para continuar con dichos intercambios y otras actividades. Además de los testimonios de las 25 personas, tenemos en cuenta nuestras experiencias personales desde una metodología autoetnográfica (en la que profundizamos más adelante), ciertos artículos publicados de filósofxs, escritores, periodistas, académicos y artistas que nos parecieron pertinentes.

Baratti, Nina, and Giovanni Cestino, eds. "Suono e luogo." Molimo. Nuova serie 10. Milano; Udine: Mimesis, 2024.

Includes essays by: Nina Baratti, Shan Du, Tim Ingold (trans. and commented by Giovanni Cestino), Nicola Renzi, Carlotta Sillano, Jonathan Sterne (trans. and commented by Carlo Lanfossi), and Laura Volpi.