Cultural Universe Research Articles

Walking histories: narratives of young urban dancers in the city of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

ABSTRACT The aim of the study is to investigate the construction of street dances in the city of Rio de Janeiro, describing urban dancers and their daily ‘art of doing’, listening to their voices and observing their physical and virtual interactions. In this paper, a specific methodological approach is applied towards a tactical plan in order to understand the urban dance phenomenon within the universe of hip-hop culture. This particular approach includes the analysis of eleven narratives of young dancers and their everyday experiences, their personal life stories, interlinked with categories such as masculinity and business. The results reveal the complexity of hip-hop and street-dance culture in general, and specifically among young Brazilians. The narratives of these young men have provided an effective means for representing hip-hop dancers’ concerns and bodily articulations in order to comprehend their dance practice and the construction of spaces, but also indicate aesthetic and commercial dimensions.

Studying Religiosity Beyond (Western) Christianity: an Empirical-Psychological Perspective and its Implications

Abstract Over recent decades, empirical research on religion has increasingly criticized its primary focus on Western Christianity. This paper has two aims: Firstly, it addresses challenges in applying ‘Western’ empirical research on religion to non-Western contexts (samples, measurement, results and discussion). Secondly, it highlights the convergent approach, bridging the gap between the perceived dichotomy of cultural universalism and cultural relativism. This approach acknowledges both religiosity’s universal commonalities across contexts and particularities in a certain cultural-religious context. Studying religiosity beyond Christianity enables to explore a nearly limitless field of basic research but also provides a robust empirical, social-scientific foundation for various practical applications that are gaining increasing social relevance, such as therapy, migration, and counseling for religious institutions. Such are vital for the future of our field, ensuring its continued relevance in times of accelerated secularization.

On the Question of the Social Origins of Early Cossack Communities: Results, Methodology and Prospects of Research

Introduction. Addressing the complex and controversial problem of domestic Cossack studies – the determination of the stage affiliation of early Slavic Cossack communities – the author sets himself the task of summing up many years of discussions, identifying the most promising directions for further research, and identifying the associated methodological guidelines. Methods and materials. Many studies of the problem of the stage affiliation of early Cossack communities, carried out by pre-revolutionary, Soviet, and modern Russian Cossack researchers, as well as works on male unions and communities of the Slavic, Caucasian, and Turkic worlds, served as materials for the article. The analysis of sources and scientific publications was carried out using comparative historical and structural-functional methods, as well as methods of classification and typologization. Analysis. The available scientific papers on the problem were classified based on the social and political prototypes of early Cossack communities determined by scientists. Three groups of versions about the social nature of early Cossack communities have been identified, which correlate them: 1) with state structures; 2) with paramilitary communities that existed in the South Russian steppes and adjacent territories at the same time as the Cossacks; 3) with archaic structures (the so-called military democracy and male unions). Results. Defining the third direction as the most promising, the author of the article suggests expanding research on the cultural and historical comparison of Cossack organizations with archaic male unions and their later forms known in the Turkic, Caucasian, and Slavic worlds. We should start this case by adhering to a set of crucial methodological principles. These principles indicate that male unions were cultural universals, and their correlation with Cossack organizations may indicate not so much (and not only) genetic connections as typological ones. In contrast to the Caucasian and Central Asian unions, Cossack communities arose outside the metropolis, which, on the one hand, led to the need for them to build their own potestar structures and, on the other hand, determined the strong external impact on them from the Russian state. The development of Cossack communities did not follow the path of evolution but was first carried out in the form of a rollback to the archaic and then was associated with a series of sociocultural transformations.

수정 델파이 기법을 활용한 문화복지 활성화를 위한 공립미술관 설립 및 운영 방안 연구

The purpose of this study is to establish a strategy for establishing and operating a public art museum to revitalize cultural welfare, and to provide basic data for establishing a basic plan necessary for establishing and operating a public art museum. A panel of 14 experts in the field of cultural welfare was selected, and a modified Delphi survey was conducted three times from July 1 to September 27, 2023. The collected data were analyzed for content validity ratio (CVR), mean, standard deviation, interquartile range, convergence, agreement, and coefficient of variation for each sub-element item. The factors and discussion points derived from the analysis results are as follows. First, in establishing the role and vision of public art museums, Local government must seek to strengthen local culture, promote citizen participation and foster creators, create cultural value, and seek to establish the art museum brand and identity. Second, when establishing a public art museum, the location should be selected to reflect citizen participation and needs, promote integrated artistic expression with the artistic value of the space and works, and be harmonious with the surrounding landscape and appropriately located in a place with historical significance. Third, in operating public art museums, efforts should be made to develop museum-specific content and research through continuous development of content that reflects local cultural characteristics, ensure efficient budget and operation, and provide citizens with opportunities to participate in cultural life for all generations and classes. Opportunities for participation must be strengthened, professional operation and independence must be guaranteed, and environmentally friendly and sustainable operations must be achieved. Fourth, in order to enjoy cultural rights and bridge cultural gaps, provide opportunities for the unique works of local artists to be exhibited, establish a support program for local artists to contribute to revitalizing the local art ecosystem, and promote the growth of the local community by realizing education through culture. In addition, through the integration of culture and education, we must build an art museum as a space open to all citizens and all cultures and take the lead in inclusive operation to realize the universality of culture by removing social barriers. Through this study, the policy implication was made to keep in mind that discussions between each group are the beginning of the establishment of a public art museum from the beginning of establishing a basic plan for the establishment of a public art museum, and the establishment and operation of a public art museum to revitalize cultural welfare through the 15 items derived from this study. It provides implications of the study, which provides basic data for the plan.

Perspectives on early childhood development in China: key dimensions and contextual contributions.

The recognition of culture and context as pivotal influences on the developmental trajectory of young children has been underscored by numerous developmental theories. Localized knowledge is essential for comprehending cultural universality with specificity for early childhood development (ECD). Thirteen focus group discussions were conducted with professionals, caregivers, and teachers from four regions in China. Thematic content analysis was employed to identify patterns and themes, followed by coding to identify more conceptual units of meaning. The findings reveal distinct culture-based skills across four domains of ECD in China. These highlight a local culture that embraces a comprehensive, dynamic, and staged perspective on the development of young children. This study elucidates the multidimensional impact of the environment on young children's development, with a focus on children's behavioral characteristics and temperament traits, ECEC practices, and ECEC beliefs that transcend identity, culture, and the economy. This study contributes to the assessment of ECD for future cultural comparisons and enhances the scientific understanding of the interplay between developmental skills in young children and diverse cultural expectations and backgrounds.

Rethinking Sporting Mystification in the Present Tense: Disneylimpics, Affective Neoliberalism, and the Greatest Transformation

While questioning the universalization, naturalization, neutralization, and idealization of sport and physical culture, this paper examines the ultimate mystification process of sport and physical culture by expanding upon two conceptual frameworks: Jules Boykoff’s celebration capitalism and Lawrence Grossberg’s affective landscape. It first analyzes the evolution of the Olympics into a corporatized, commercialized, spectacularized, and celebritized “Disneylimpics” that can consistently evoke an affective reverberation. It then introduces the idea of “affective neoliberalism” to highlight neoliberalism’s affective and ideological aspects. With Grossberg’s concept of affective landscape, this paper explores the internalization and intensification of anxiety and affective isolation within society. Additionally, the paper utilizes Karl Polanyi’s analysis in his influential book, The Great Transformation, to investigate the historical expansion of affective neoliberalism. By highlighting the 11 September 2001, attacks in the United States, it points out provocative militarization and (re)organization of the soul into a fictitious commodity, in addition to labor, land, and money, which triggers the greatest transformation. Lastly, summarizing central arguments, this paper concludes with modest suggestions, mainly focusing on two questions: (1) where are we now? and (2) how can we more effectively respond to the present context?

Education of Internally Displaced Children in the Context of the Health Crisis Linked to the COVID 19 Pandemic in the Zamai Cultural Universe

Objective: The aim of this article is to analyse compliance with barrier measures in the fight against the Covid 19 pandemic in a context where internally displaced school-age children under the weight of forced displacement as a result of conflict crises (Boko Haram) and natural disasters are also forced to comply with barrier measures linked to the fight against the Covid 19 or Zamai Coronavirus pandemic. Method: Qualitative data was collected using standard anthropological data collection techniques, including in-depth individual interviews and focus group discussions (FGDs). An interview guide and a discussion guide corresponding to each of the targets were used to collect qualitative data. Direct observation was used to collect data on the environment of the informants, their behaviour and attitudes, their level of knowledge about the education of displaced school-age children and Covid 19. Discussion: Impoverishment refers to the loss of natural capital, man-made material capital, human capital and social capital. Nine risks or processes are at the root of the impoverishment of displaced persons: not having land, not having a job, not having a house, marginalisation, food insecurity, increased morbidity and mortality, loss of access to public goods and services, fraying of the social fabric and loss of educational opportunities. Conclusion: In various towns in the Far North Region, in this case Zamai, concentration camps have been set up to house IDPs. Initially intended as short-stay camps, most of them are confined there, sometimes for long periods, in generally difficult living conditions.

Considerations on the Emergence and Development of the Concept "Linguistic Picture of the World"

The present paper explores the evolution of the concept of the “linguistic picture of the world” and focuses on the debate concerning its role in expressing national values. The idea that each language offers a unique perspective on the world, reflected in specific semantic structures, was first promoted by the linguist W. von Humboldt and further developed in the framework of the “linguistic relativity hypothesis” formulated by E. Sapir and B. L. Whorf. This hypothesis emphasises the importance of language in shaping an individual’s perspective on reality, based on the claim that people, through the prism of their mother tongue, perceive the world differently. The basic principle of the “linguistic picture of the world” theory resides in the invariability of cognitive categories and the variability of language categories. This implies that each language provides a unique perspective on the world and there are as many ways of perceiving and expressing reality as there are languages existing around the world. Therefore, knowing and learning more than one language can lead to an enrichment and broadening of our cultural universe.

Aespa's Virtual Member Existence in the SMCU Episode 1 "Black Mamba" Short Movie

This qualitative study analyses the phenomenon of virtual characters in "Black Mamba" a short film from SM Entertainment's SMCU (SM Culture Universe) series featuring the girl group Aespa on YouTube, in order to examine the dynamics of communication in new media. The analysis uses Charles Sanders Peirce's semiotic framework to explore how signs, objects, and interpretations interact in the film. The findings emphasise SM Entertainment's skilled integration of virtual and physical realms with the SMCU concept. Virtual personas appear to transcend digital boundaries, creating a captivating aura of mystery. Humans form strong emotional connections with these virtual characters, most likely in the real world, giving rise to a feeling of wanting to live together with the virtual characters. In addition, the research highlights the importance of virtual character's interaction in the real-world environment, prompting reflection on technology-mediated human engagement. Incorporating philosophical quotations, particularly those of Jean-Paul Sartre, adds to the philosophical consideration of the narrative. In conclusion, this study offers a profound insight into the role of new media, such as YouTube, in the creation of a distinct narrative experience. It encourages a scholarly discussion of the intersections of semiotics, identity, and technology in today's popular culture.

Doing style for Saraswati Puja: Girlhood, Class, and Community Identity among Muslim girls in Assam

Saraswati Puja, a celebration of the Hindu goddess of learning, is organised by youth clubs and educational institutions in eastern India. We draw on debates on girlhood, codes of respectable femininity in a neoliberal world, and how these play out for Muslim girls in the school context. These ideas frame our analysis of the dressing up practice among Muslim girls in a government school. We argue that the middle-class and ethnicised ideals of girlhood are amplified and reconfigured by the popular discourses on Saraswati Puja and add to the tensions over the appropriate code of dressing within the context of Puja at school. While the reality of girls’ lives is being shaped in novel ways, the Muslim girls engagement with the ideals of ‘respectable femininity’ through varied modes of ‘doing style’ put them under contrary pressures in public places like school. In such a scenario, their accounts of dressing up and participating in this event serve as a vantage point to understand how girlhood is being construed and experienced from varied positions of class, caste, age, and community. These accounts highlight Muslim girls’ engagement with the codes of femininity in the majoritarian cultural universe of a school.

"THE DENIAL OF THE DENIAL" OF THE IDEAL IN THE SENSUAL ACTIVITY OF MAN-SOCIETY

The research objective. We consider the problematic aspect in the formulation of the question of the ideal to be an attempt to imagine it as a totality, as an arbitrary transfer of subjective experience to the multidimensionality of the world. Its essence is understood through the prism of personal professional activity. We want to draw attention to the construct of the ideal, as a subjective reproduction of the objectively formed in the historical contexts of culture social pattern, which manifests itself in sensual and theoretical forms, remains integral and general. Existing forms of cultural universals in the substitution of the ideal are inseparably linked with the everyday norms of human existence. The task of the article is to address the progressive and regressive forms of manifestation of the social ideal. We consider it necessary to formulate the task of reactualization of the constituting foundations of the ideal. This is possible in the way of understanding the artistic periods in terms of revealing the tendency to overcome the alienation from the individual of the sensual forms of the social ideal. The statement of basic materials. The historically determined, objectively existing ideal does not depend on the existence, views of a particular individual. It is also not a totality of samples of professional (partial) practice. The ideal is universal, indirectly reasonable awareness of the monistic nature of existence. The sensual form of the ideal is considered by us from the point of view of the universal. The social ideal enables us to see the progressive and regressive tendencies in the development of practice. The criterion of progressiveness is the maximum liberation of the creative forces of the individual.

Legal Culture as a Functional System

The whole process of the origin and development of human civilization and well-known historical facts give reason to believe that social processes in ancient society were accompanied not only by the accumulation of knowledge about the world around them, but also, more importantly, the emergence of a wider class of phenomena — the phenomenon of culture, which, with historical and modern expansive interpretation, covers both the spiritual and material spheres It represents the result of physical and spiritual creative activity of people. The phenomenon of culture has become the subject of research in the totality of not only social sciences and attracts the attention of researchers in various scientific fields. The existing multitude of theories and various definitions that reveal individual aspects, moments and sides of culture reflect the complexity and versatility of the phenomenon itself. This factor explains the lack of a generally accepted theory of culture and mutually agreed definitions in science. This situation in science is also caused by subjective moments, which boil down to the fact that the concept of culture denotes a variety of phenomena and objects. The ontological aspects of culture as a systemic phenomenon lead to important conclusions. Firstly, like any social phenomenon, culture appears as an unbalanced, open system in continuous information exchange with the external environment. Secondly, culture has an inherent feature of development due to the interaction between the components of the system and the external environment. Thirdly, culture is an organic system, where the components that make up it acquire additional new qualities so that the system as a whole has broader functional capabilities compared to a mechanistic system. Culture can be considered as a historically conditioned self-organizing system. Its components, being homogeneous, are combined into a whole around the core of culture. This core is represented by a set of certain basic phenomena — cultural universals. They are the ultimate foundations of culture as existing in a given historical epoch.

Основания творческой личности как открытой целостности

The multidimensionality and variability of the concept of "creativity" necessitate an interdisciplinary methodology for analyzing the phenomenon of open integrity. This phenomenon is considered an archetypal invariant, encompassing the creator and the cultural texts created by them from a transdisciplinary philosophical standpoint. The philosophical-historical-cultural approach implies universal principles of the phenomenon, encompassing the personality, the process, and the result of creativity without rigid differentiation. We posit that its realization is possible within the context of psychoanalytic discourse on creativity, wherein the main discourse centers around the idea of the archetype as a cultural universe and the foundation for conceptions of the individual and creativity as an open integrity. In this article, we analyze the ambivalence of the archetype as a cultural universe and its role as the foundation for notions of a person’s creative activity.

Культурные универсалии как парадигма сохранения исторического опыта

A comprehensive image of the external world emerges in society, simultaneously fixing the historical experience of mankind. The interaction of nations in diverse periods of their development reinforces interest in a civilizational perception of the social environment singularity. Cultural universals, meaningfully describing the phenomena of human existence, allow us to preserve a person's attitude towards surrounding reality in generations. The content of universals is interrelated with the type of culture that generates the vision about it. One of the issues of social institutions management is the search for benchmark according to which the effectiveness of a particular system of intercultural relations is determined. Thus, the relevance of research related to the development of a mechanism for assessing the impact of the cultural environment on society is increasing. The paper analyzes the experience of determining the meaning and essence of cultural universals. It shows that cultural universals reproduce milestones for social development, according to which socioeconomic relations are built. The author substantiates the necessity of fastening the anthropological approach into the field of study of cultural universals and presents the specifics of displaying the content of cultural universals. The study also clearly outlines properties and criteria that allow for a clear understanding of the context of phenomena inherent in the human community. The research examines terminology related to the use of cultural universals and enabling to systematize the phenomena of the social world order on a scientific basis.

Judas Iscariote no discurso comprometido de José Saramago

Saramago’s writing, repeatedly analytical and self-referential, dialogues seductively with the cultural universe of the Western reader, with biblical and apocryphal narratives. The figure of Judas, whether in poetry or in The Gospel According to Jesus Christ, allows José Saramago to desacralize the ambitious and tyrannical gods and to deify man, in a committed discourse, simultaneously marked by the ethics of love and compassion for the Other.

영남지역 청동기시대 조·전기 주거형태의 변화와 특징

A research on Bronze age in S.Korea has made remarkable progress, but most of the
 achievements are confined on recording chronologically by pottery. It is so difficult to
 understand transition in housing type more than pottery because it is so conservative to
 change compared with pottery. Also it is changing by climate, environment, economic
 structure, development of technology, human preference and so on. The research method is
 order by fundamental concept of housing type of early Bronze age in S.Korea, case
 review, transition and feature in housing type and implication of archaeology.
 First of all, to set up typical housing feature of four types, and making a division for
 Misari, Garakdong, Kwansanri and Heunamri type. In sequence, to observe transition and
 feature of all housing type in Youngnam region especially the middle and upper streams
 of the Nakdonggang River, inland area, the southwestern area and south-east coast. The
 housing type of Misari demonstrate for transition of floor plan, number of fire pit and
 structure. The housing type of Garakdong demonstrate for becoming longer and
 disappearing of foundation stone. The housing type of Kwansanri also demonstrate for
 disappearing stone fire pit and standardizing of wooden column. On the other hand,
 housing type of Heunamri demonstrate for reduced fire pit and becoming re-smaller floor
 plan. And it turns to type of Gumdanri that is the latter part of Bronze age in the
 southeastern region. In conclusion, I analyzed for transition and feature in housing type as
 characteristics of early Bronze age in the Korean Peninsula also as universality of
 hunting-gathering society. In other words, the appearance of early Misari type is
 characteristics for deportation and settlement especially Korean Peninsula while type of
 Kwansanri is understood for universality by being expanded floor plan, division of fire
 range, structure transition, standardization of intercolumniation, that is also understood
 longhouse culture where living high latitude area. Popularly, in such society is understood
 as a complex incipient agriculture and hunting-gathering society. This research regard that
 society as universality of prehistoric culture of Korean Peninsula.
 And a pull-factor of transition in housing type occurs by complex causes such as population
 growth, development of technology, natural environment change, livelihood strategy and so on.

Слово и немота в русской (пост)культуре. Кысь Татьяны Толстой

This article analyzes the use of intertextuality as one of the ways to explicate the concept of a “book” in the novel The Slynx by Tatyana Tolstaya. Introducing the texts of the previous culture is considered a genre characteristic of the dystopian discourse. Using the example of Pushkin’s text presented in the novel in various forms, some techniques and functions of contextual transformation of the “book word” are analyzed. Modal and semantic reaccentuation of important elements of the language reality, on the one hand, destroys the logocentric paradigm of Russian culture and reveals the consequences of the cultural rupture and further obliteration. On the other hand, it provides the unity of a national linguistic and cultural universe. Searching to discover the constants of the national mentality, the novel shows the indissoluble connection between spiritual search and violence. The usurpation of the words of the past culture turns into cultural and spiritual dumbness.

Ontological modeling of the psychological field of a play

Ontological modeling of the psychological field of a play

Representation of cultural meanings when using national cultural codes in fiction

The article is devoted to the consideration of the representation of cultural meanings when using national cultural codes in fiction. Research objectives: to substantiate the use of the category of cultural code in the analysis of a literary work; to characterize the features of the functioning of the national cultural code in relation to cultural universals; to show the specifics of national images associated with spatial and temporal cultural codes. Methods (historical and literary, structural, semantic) and methodological basis of the work are the works of Russian, Belarusian and foreign scientists in the field of philology (Yu. Lotman, R. Jacobson, M. Epstein, N. Tolstoy, S. Tolstaya, etc.), cultural studies and sociology (K. Rapay, J. Murdoch). The result of the work is that the main approaches to the definition of the cultural code are identified, cultural meanings, translated using national cultural codes, associated with images of the Motherland, small homeland, and Fatherland are identified on the example of works of Russian and Belarusian literature. The scientific novelty of the work lies in the fact that the features of the representation of cultural meanings when using national cultural images in Russian and Belarusian literature are analyzed. The practical scope of the results of the work is seen in the possibility of using this material for deep understanding and studying such academic disciplines as "History of Russian Literature", "History of Belarusian Literature", university historical and literary courses, during independent research work of students, when writing term papers and theses.

The Cultural Universe of the Nuaulu Tribe: A Testament to Commitment to Unity, Tradition, and Mutual Trust

Engaging in research within the interdisciplinary realms of ethics and cultural studies is immensely important. This study delves into the social institutions of the Nuaulu people, an indigenous community inhabiting the Seram Island of Indonesia. The analysis focuses on Mataruma, Traditional Rulers, and Traditional Houses, shedding light on their roles, significance, and implications for the community. The research draws on a combination of interviews and references to prior studies to construct a comprehensive narrative about these social institutions. The Mataruma system, characterized by gender equity and shared responsibilities, stands as a testament to the Nuaulu’s commitment to unity, tradition, and mutual trust. Traditional Rulers, the intermediaries between the human world and the realm of ancestors, play a pivotal role in preserving religious practices, reinforcing collective faith, and maintaining cultural integrity. The traditional houses, constructed from natural materials, serve as sacred spaces for rituals, symbolizing the connection between the living and the spiritual world. This in-depth analysis thoroughly explores the Nuaulu social institutions and their enduring influence on the preservation and enrichment of their culture. This study enriches our comprehension of the Nuaulu tribe’s distinctive cultural heritage and also underscores the significance of cultural preservation in the face of evolving religious identities, contributing substantially to the broader discourse in the fields of ethics and cultural studies.