Minority Of Scholars Research Articles

Touching the Franks Casket: Global History and the Trojan Past on an Early Medieval English Object

Abstract The contribution examines the Franks Casket, a whale-bone casket probably produced in the northern British kingdom of Northumbria in the eighth century that displays a number of carved images referencing events from different cultural and temporal contexts as well as inscriptions in Roman script and runes, Latin and Old English. We focus on the casket’s lid, which shows a siege scene, with an archer prominently displayed towards the middle, the word ægili carved above him. Traditionally understood as a reference to an unknown story about Weland’s brother Egil, the image has also been read as a depiction of the siege of Troy by a minority of scholars. While we offer evidence that the latter reading is at least somewhat better founded than the former, we argue that the lid’s design does not necessarily invite a straightforward identification with a single cultural context but rather works as a hinge that ties together the various cultural and temporal references on the casket. In allowing the viewer to construct various contexts in which the image might be viewed, the Franks Casket suggests their fundamental compatibility, as if the supposedly distinct historical and legendary materials had always overlapped and permeated each other. Taking into account the object’s material and aesthetic form thus makes it possible to break away from all-too-simple narratives of historical succession and helps us understand the complex temporalities that early medieval English art was capable of generating.

Did Muslim Exegetes Ever Accept Jesus’ Crucifixion? Debunking a Recent Myth

In recent years, there has been a growing tendency among a minority of scholars, including a few Muslims, to argue that the Qur’an does not reject the historicity of the crucifixion of Jesus. This misinterpretation of the Qur’an has to claim support

The Chronology of John the Baptist and the Crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth

The consensus of present-day historians that Jesus was crucified around the year 30 ce has been challenged by a minority of scholars who argue that the execution of John the Baptist could not take place earlier than 35 ce, and for that reason Jesus must have been crucified at the Passover of 36 ce. This paper argues that both parties have strong and convincing arguments, and for that reason we must conclude that John was probably executed after Jesus’ death. The collective memory of the early Christians did not succeed in retaining the chronological order of these events, and this circumstance allowed the synoptics to turn the Baptist into a forerunner of Christ.

Storici digitali in italia: riflessioni ed esperienze

This study concerns the experiences of Italian digital historians and their implications for historical scholarship. The present and future of the profession of historian, in academia and outside it, are inextricably linked to the digital revolution that is pervading society. This research brings to light some of the issues this connection between history and the digital has created in the Italian higher education environment and also the opportunities for resolving them, from the point of view of the minority of scholars who have worked and are working to develop this connection. Through grounded theory methodology and a set of in depth semi-structured interviews, the digital historians’ considerations, evaluations and strategies emerge and are organised and analysed in a conceptual framework that highlights focal points and critical junctures in the fields of research, education and professional development. The interviewees paint the picture of a passionate commitment to experimentation and innovation, set against a much bleaker background of complex institutional and professional relations that are not often conducive to productive, sustainable and well integrated digital historical scholarship.

The Just War Tradition and International Law against War: The Myth of Discordant Doctrines

The international law regulating resort to armed force, still known by the Latin phrase, the jus ad bellum , forms a principal substantive subfield of international law, along with human rights law, international environmental law, and international economic law. Among theologians, philosophers, and political scientists, just war theory is a major topic of study. Nevertheless, only a minority of scholars and practitioners know both jus ad bellum and just war theory well. Lack of knowledge has led to the erroneous view that the two areas are in conflict. This article responds to this misapprehension, explaining the deep compatibility of international law and just war theory. Today’s jus ad bellum , especially the peremptory norm against aggression, is not only the law; it also forms the minimum threshold of a just war under just war theory. In other words, for a war to be morally just, it must at least be lawful. To go to war in violation of the jus ad bellum is both a legal and a moral wrong. Compliance not only fulfills the general moral good of obedience to law; it forms the first step toward fulfilling moral obligations in the grave area of war. This characterization of the relationship between law and morality is seen in the history of the legal prohibition on force and in the actual set of rules that make up the contemporary regime. Comprehensive and persuasive accounts of the jus ad bellum and just war theory consistently reflect this thesis.

The Prohibition of Ribā and the Use of Ḥiyāl by Islamic Banks to Overcome the Prohibition

This article discusses the meaning of ribā according to the opinions upheld by both the majority as well as minority of Islamic scholars. Although Islamic scholars are in agreement about the prohibition of ribā, they do differ with regard to its meaning. This divergence of opinions translates into such questions as whether the interest charged and paid by today’s conventional banks is ribā. While the majority of Islamic scholars are of the opinion that current bank interest is ribā, a small but convincing minority of scholars do not consider bank interest to be ribā. The need for Islamic banks arises from the majority’s interpretation of ribā. This article also evaluates the most popular products provided by Islamic banks and the validity of ḥiyal (pl. of ḥīlah) involved in adopting them.

Courageous Learning About Race, Self, Community, and Social Action

Exploring Racism in the Classroom Three of the most emotionally charged terms in this era are race, racism, and White privilege. Definitions for these terms vary by individual experiences, beliefs, opinions, and perceptions. K-20 students are rarely exposed to a detailed coverage and critical analysis of the part of U.S. history that includes displacement of Native Americans; differing immigration policies and quotas by ethnicity; and involuntary enslavement of and brutality toward Africans. It is not enough for curriculum content to address one or more of these issues. The cultural heritage not consistent with the majority cultural lens is essential in the understanding of the multidimensional aspects of cultural groups. It is an even less frequent occurrence that these, and other oppressed groups, are presented as viable and valuable and their strategies of survival and unwillingness to be subjugated are addressed. Among these historical facts are the following: * Native Americans who refused to relocate, eluded efforts to be involuntarily enslaved, and preserved their cultural heritage against all odds; * immigrant contributions to the economic development of this country; * the skills and professions of Africans extricated from their homeland; the first Africans in the Americas were not enslaved nor indentured servants; and * the population of individuals of African ancestry who were college educated and professionals, prior to the Emancipation Proclamation. Adult Education and Racism in the 21st Century As we project the future of our andragogical practices in adult education, we continue our focus from the past on emancipatory acquisition of new knowledge and practical application for social action and change. Our adult learners are less representative of the Eurocentric male model that continues to pervade the adult education profession and research. The faithful minority of scholars has continued to research and publish on the necessity of dismantling the hegemonic systems and policies of structural racism and White privilege in the academic, business, and community arenas of adult education. Many of these scholars are authors of chapters in The Handbook of Race and Adult Education, edited by Sheared et al. (2010). Metelsky and Easley (2012) reviewed the book and identified the wealth of tools for the formal and nonformal adult educator in facilitating knowledge awareness, critical reflection/ analysis, guiding curricula redesign, recommending supplemental resources, developing research topics, and so forth. The dialogical model of the textbook is a sharp contrast from theoretically focused textbooks. It invites the reader into a pseudo-relationship with the author(s). The handbook provides the blending of strategies from Freire's dialogical model of engagement and Critical Race Theory's principles of racism as normalized and the quantification of racism via the lived experiences of the marginalized cultural groups. An emerging trend is the utilization of intragroup dialogues, in addition to intergroup dialogues on issues of race, power, and racism. Two undergraduate courses by an Intergroup Relations Program were evaluated for the impact of the intragroup and intergroup dialogues (Ford & Malaney, 2012). The findings included positive perceptions from students of the creation of safe places for intragroup dialogue and development of alliances for social action and change from intergroup dialogue. Racial Landscape We want to believe racial discrimination is behind us, and we are now a postracial society. Yet asking what appears as an innocuous question--Does racism still exist in your community?--elicits a wide spectrum of emotions and responses. Adult educators encourage classroom discourse that includes current events such as * the arrest of Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. at his home; * stand your ground laws and the murder of Trayvon Martin; * the handcuffing of Jackson, Mississippi public school students to poles and railings for hours for the perceived noncriminal violations of school rules (i. …

THE ACADEMIC—POLICY INTERFACE IN POST-APARTHEID URBAN RESEARCH: PERSONAL REFLECTIONS

ABSTRACT Ironically, in the North where only a minority of scholars are engaged in applied or policy research, they are navel gazing about what ‘the policy turn’ implies for geography. Here in South Africa, where consulting, policy or applied research is a ubiquitous feature of geography departments, we have been tardy, or perhaps reluctant, to open the conversation about the implications of the way many of us now work. Nowhere is this more evident than in the broad arena of urban research where the restructuring of local government, massive urbanisation and the uneven growth of the economy has created an insatiable demand for applied work on cities and towns. In this paper I use three general issues raised by our Northern counterparts to open up debate among South African geographers about the drivers of knowledge and the way this might impact on our urban future. The first issue relates to the role of public intellectuals in a society in transition and includes an assessment of the formative versus the evaluative role of intellectuals, as well as discussion on the politics of positionality and who does the policy research. The second issue takes off from here and probes who defines the intellectual and policy agendas. Crucial questions about how knowledge circulates and the role of consultants are highlighted. The third area shifts the debate into the academy and asks about the relevance of geography for urban policy. Drawing from these three pointers the final two sections of the paper make a case for recasting urban geographical scholarship in South Africa to, for example, take issues of scale and the local state more seriously, to move beyond the segregationist frame of the historical geographers and to fill the empirical and conceptual gaps within which the practice of urban government and governmentality actually take place. In conclusion I suggest that to do this it is imperative that we re-bridge the academic policy divide in new and more productive ways than the current covert linkages that exist at present. This means among other things, rethinking the academic value and integrity of policy work, as well addressing the material concerns that reinforce the status quo. This means confronting the place of consultant income for academics, acknowledging that there can be no evidence based policy without government and private sector investment in urban research and overcoming the skills gap in the urban sector.

Private Military Companies Against Development

The post-cold war emergence of Private Military Companies (PMCs) is part of a larger phenomenon, the privatization of violence in general and warfare in particular. While a minority of scholars argue that once legalized and regulated, PMCs could turn into facilitators of development through the restoration of peace in war-torn countries, this paper argues that such a position misunderstands certain basic aspects of PMCs and highlights the issues of accountability and transparency that prevent corporate mercenaries from being actors for peace and development.

Intelligence and the Cold War

J Bond symbolizes the popular appeal of any story related to the intelligence services. Yet, until recently, this interest had not been matched by academic publications. As Professor Richard J. Aldrich rightly asserts in his book, The Hidden Hand: Britain, America and the Cold War Secret Intelligence, “only a minority of scholars has yet attempted to integrate secret service with international history.”1 By addressing this issue in the context of Anglo-American relations from June 1941 to the end of 1963, this brilliant book fills two major gaps of international relations historiography. Indeed, being one of the first serious and well-documented scholarly assessments of the impact of secret services on the Cold War, this study is also a major contribution to the history of the so-called “Special Relationship.” By shedding light on “the ‘Missing Dimension’2 of history,” Aldrich also focuses on an understudied theme of Anglo-American relations—the intelligence field. It therefore is no accident that Professor Aldrich’s book received the Donner Prize and was short listed for the Westminster Medal. The Anglo-American “Special Relationship” was characterized as an informal alliance establishing a privileged link between the two Anglo-Saxon powers. It did not rest on any specific treaty but more on an aggregation of agreements. Since World War II, three pillars symbolized this relationship: collaboration between the military forces, cooperation in the fields of nuclear weapons (except between 1946 and 1958), and collaboration in intelligence. However, so far, “there remains an alarming disparity in our understanding of [these] areas. The importance of intelligence is often commented on, but rarely subjected to sustained analysis.”3 In The Hidden Hand, Aldrich demonstrates that this underdeveloped theme is indeed a very important gap, which has distorted our understanding of the “Special Relationship.” In his introduction, Aldrich explains that he chose to emphasize conflict between the two allies rather than to depict an illusory collaborative image.4 He persuasively demonstrates that “many still held true the familiar dictum that ‘There are no friendly secret services, only secret services of friendly states’” and that “secret service in this turbulent period often seemed an anarchic struggle of ‘all against all.’”5 This was especially true in the context of

Longinus,on Sublimity

Until the beginning of the nineteenth century the treatiseOn sublimitywas universally attributed to the third-century critic, rhetorician and philosopher Cassius Longinus. Weiske's edition, first issued in 1809, marked a turning-point in the trend of scholarly opinion, and Longinus' claim to authorship is now generally rejected, often summarily. A variety of alternative attributions have been canvassed; most commonly the work is assigned to an anonymous author of the first century A.D. But a minority of scholars have resisted the consensus and defended Longinus' claim to authorship. This paper will argue that they were right to do so.To avoid ambiguity, I shall follow Russell in using the symbol ‘L’ as a non-committal way of designating the author ofOn sublimity; by ‘Longinus’ I shall always mean Cassius Longinus. So the question before us is whether L is Longinus. I begin by explaining why manuscript evidence (§2) and stylistic comparison with the fragments of Longinus (§3) fail to resolve the question. I then try to find a place for the composition of the treatise within Longinus' career (§4). This leads to a consideration of the final chapter, widely regarded as inconsistent with a third-century date; I shall argue that there is no inconsistency (§5). If so, the way lies open to a reassessment of the case in favour of Longinus' claim.

The Future of Early Modern Women's Studies: The Case of Same-Sex Friendship and Desire in Zayas and Carvajal

The Future of Early Modern Women's Studies: The Case of Same-Sex Friendship and Desire in Zayas and Carvajal Lisa Vollendorf is Assistant Professor ofSpankh at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. Author of Reclaiming the Body: Maria De Zayas's Early Modern Feminism (forthcomingfrom UNC Press) and editor of Recovering Spain's Feminist Tradition (forthcomingfrom MLA Press), she is currently preparing a manuscript on Women's Self-Representation in Early Modern Spain. In the prefaces to their novella collections, MarÃ-a de Zayas (1590-?) and Mariana de Carvajal (c.l610-?) leave ample clues about the difficulties faced by women writers in seventeenth-century Spain. Zayas adopts a self-denigrating pose when she introduces her stylistically complex and thematically varied volume of ten novellas as "mis borrones" {Noveks 21). She then defends women's intellectual capacities and et iticizes men for denying women the education diey deserve. In recognition of the challenge she faces, Zayas retreats at the end of the preface, claiming that since she was born a woman, she has no obligation to write well.1 Less prolix and less direct, Carvajal uses different techniques to place gender at the center of her own brief preface. Carvajal refers to her willingness to field criticism about her novellas. She also uses a jolting turn of phrase to discuss creativity when she calls her book "[un] aborto inútil de mi corto ingenio" (5). Invoked again in the second paragraph, motherhood does more than provide the basis for metaphor; Carvajal uses it to oblige the destinateur to read with a kind eye. She pleads for a sympathetic reading ofthe tales involving a widow and an orphan, informing readers that "obligación precisa es de un pecho noble el suavjzar tan penoso desconsuelo" (5). The similarities between Zayas and Carvajal can be traced to their use of femininity in the dual tropes of humility and nobksse oblige. That is, both authors call attention to femaleness as a way to adopt a humble attitude before their literary production, and both remind nobles of their obligation to treat women well. Conveying the authors' self-conArizona Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studies Volume 4, 2000 266 Arizona Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studies sciousness about dieir gender, these prefaces belie a need to justify women's place in the book market, to convince consumers that they should read women's writing. This claim about the obligation to read women's literature resonates with many of us in eafly modern Spanish studies. For over two decades, Hispanists have been studying women, so one might assume that we do not need to be reminded of our commitment to teach, study, and edit women's writing from the early modern period. While we should recognize that excellent work has been done, we also need to take stock of certain realities and trends that might affect the future ofthe field adversely. One of the most disturbing reports relates to the literary canon in U.S. universities: in spite of our efforts, only Santa Teresa appears on a significant number of graduate reading lists.2 Outside ofthe classroom, the situation is more promising, yet the focus of scholarship also causes some concern. As conference papers, dissertations, and recent publications suggest, research in this field remains somewhat limited to a small number of women and texts. While a minority of scholars is studying lesset known secular and religious women, the majority of scholarship continues to focus on a few highprofile women, namely Santa Teresa, Sor Juana, Zayas, and, of late, Ana Caro and Catalina de Erauso. This is not to deny the importance of research on a variety of other women—including Sor Marcela, Ana and Isabel de Jesús, Luisa de Carvajal, Mariana de Carvajal, and Leonor de Meneses—nor the impoftance of the modern editions that have helped us incotpotate women authots into out classes.3 By calling attention to an imbalance, I mean to encourage us to continue our recuperative efforts and consciously expand our lines of inquiry so as to avoid die same limited canonization that occurred during the process of canon formation in the nineteenth century.4 In order to build on the solid foundation of...

Representing and Interpreting Literature by Computer

It is clear that the advent of computers has so far had almost no impact on the mainstream activities of producing, reading, or studying literary texts. This may be about to change. The prophecy that computing will transform the nature of literary studies is certainly one that we have heard before, but the widespread use of powerful personal computers in the last few years and the increasing role played by the electronic 'freeway', as it has been called (networks between institutions and between countries), now makes such a forecast seem to carry more weight.' Advocates of these technologies have recently begun to put a new and powerful argument: computer technology for modelling, representing, or creating texts is emerging that will allow us to bring these processes a major step nearer to the activities of actual readers; this in turn will revolutionize understanding of the nature of textuality itself. If this is true, the forthcoming shift in the domain of the literary will be on a tectonic scale, analogous to that brought about in the visual arts by the invention of photography and film. Two significant developments that underlie this scenario are first, access by computer to large corpora of literary texts together with techniques for examining them (generally called text analysis); and second, the building of hypertext and hypermedia systems. First of all I will describe some of the advantages of these two technologies and assess some arguments that have been made recently for their theoretical importance. Important though these developments are, I will suggest that in the immediate future they are likely to remain of interest to only a minority of scholars and readers. This is not only because, as everyone knows, literary scholars have been slow to pick up and use computers for anything other than word processing. A more important reason is that scholars, with few exceptions, have traditionally been uninterested in how actual readers come to understand literary texts (the reader response debate of the last fifteen years has been conducted almost entirely around putative readers, not real ones). Thus, since we lack firm information about the reading process itself, we cannot expect to build computer-based systems that will genuinely

The Original Meaning of the Ninth Amendment

[T]he preliminary debate over the meaning of the ninth amendment is essentially over.' Ten years ago John Hart Ely suggested that the ninth amendment2 remained ajoke in sophisticated legal circles and that only a minority of scholars saw it as providing a textual foundation for modern fundamental rights that have questionable roots in more specific constitutional provisions.3 If that was true then, it certainly is not true today. Despite the trickle of scholarship that became a steady stream after the debate on the ninth amendment in Griswold v. Connecticut,4 only during the last few years has the ninth amendment fully emerged as a central text in the larger debate over the sources of constitutional rights. The ninth amendment attracts those in this debate who advocate an expansive judicial role in the articulation of fundamental rights because it appears to provide the definitive response to the originalist critique of fundamental rights adjudication. As Sanford Levinson has observed, the ninth amendment enables critics of originalism to contend that originalists, such as former Attorney General Meese and Judge Bork, ignore the implications of the ninth amendment and thus depart from their own stated commitment to constitutional text and original intent.5 If the ninth amendment was intended to point toward enforceable fundamental rights that exist apart from the text, then originalists who deny that these rights exist are compelled to resort to a nonoriginalist grounding for their constitutional theory. In doing so, originalists are forced to abandon one of the enduring sources of appeal for their position, the idea that the founders