Abstract Starting with Rolf Tarot’s article on the edition of early modern texts in the volume Texte und Varianten ( Texts and Variants , 1971) and the subsequent process of reaching an understanding ...about the practical handling of texts from the period between 1500 and 1750, an overview of the evolution of this discussion from the 1970s to the present is given. On the one hand, the medial development from the conventional transcription to the reprint and the availability of digitized texts is retraced. On the other hand, the influence of the availability of scans on the research process is discussed, as well as the challenges this poses for current editorial projects of early modern texts. These lie less in the area of textual constitution, but rather in the commentary-based analysis and reconstruction of historical textual networks.
At the end of October this year, philologist, historian of religion and translator Marju Lepajõe (28 October 1962 – 4 July 2019) would have turned 60. Thinking of Marju with gratitude, we publish her ...presentation "The birth of evening philology" on this occasion.
Podcasting is an increasingly popular audio-only, on-demand narrative form that draws millions of listeners, both within the U.S. and worldwide. While podcast scholars are excited about podcasts’ ...potential to create content that finds no place in the mainstream media, they have not yet investigated how contemporary fictional podcasts can create societal critiques. This paper investigates the political potential of critical news platform The Intercept’s special feature audio play Evening at the Talk House (2018) by analyzing its content, form, and funding model. I will argue that Evening at the Talk House effectively uses the affordances of both the podcast and the dystopian narrative mode to expose the U.S. empire for American citizens by collapsing the distinction between the ‘good’ and safe homeland and the evil ‘other’ abroad. Evening at the Talk House, thus, raises questions about the complicity of regular citizens in enabling ‘murder programs’ (e.g. drone strikes, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan) as citizens actively take part in and become the victims of imperial violence. However, consistent with The Intercept’s daily reporting, Talk House fails to address a major motivation of the U.S. empire: establishing and maintaining global capitalism. This neglect can be explained by considering how the platform was established, as tech billionaire Pierre Omidyar provided its funding.
This article explores the American television series Zoo (CBS, 2015–2017). The show’s convoluted narrative revolves around mutations that are put into motion by genetic engineering. These mutations ...first affect animals and later humans The article argues that the biotechnological control of life, which takes center stage narratively, is mirrored in the television show’s use of digital visual effects to create animals. More importantly, Zoo suggests that this control of life is nothing but an illusion, as the mutation quickly gets out of hand and leads to unexpected consequences. Thus, the television series reflects the Anthropocene condition, which is characterized by the emergence of humankind as a planetary force; however, the planetary effects of anthropogenic activities have been largely unwanted. While Zoo seems to expose these processes of our age, the article also stresses that as a television show, Zoo must reach a broad audience. Thus, the critique of human fantasies of planetary control are, somewhat paradoxically, accompanied by an anthropocentrism which arguably undermines the show’s ecological subtexts.
This paper looks at British home décor to analyse its distinct features from the perspective of a specific national identity. It also examines the impact of the upper class’ taste dictating the norms ...for the rest of society despite having a different cultural capital. The BBC programme, The Great Interior Design Challenge, is examined as a good example of the British tendency to seek advice from authorities in a field who are the arbiters of taste. The specific competitive scheme and aim of this TV programme present a telling body of information to examine which features are favoured among the winners and which are condemned in failed projects. As a result, the programme captures and reflects the preferred national British taste. The concepts and prescriptions of cultural capital as well as media and authorities as the source of taste are visible in this society. The members of the lower social classes, being instructed by the professionals, strive to follow the upper-class’ taste. However, their choices are determined by the education they received and people by whom they are surrounded. The upper classes are more accustomed to art due to their families’ art collections and art education, so their taste is more sophisticated and informed. Moreover, the study of the programme pays attention to the presence of certain distinctive national features of British society visible in its home décor.
