The Maniac as the Apocryphal Intervento: How Form Determines Substance in Fo’s Accidental Death of an Anarchist

The Accidental Death of an Anarchist (1970) is one of famed Italian play-wright Dario Fo, written as a response the neo-fascist tension that reached a boiling point in during the ‘Hot Autumn.’ A period of immense turmoil in late 20th -cemtury Italy. The play draws from the conventions of the Brechtian form and commedia dell’arte, aptly transforming them into mechanisms that can help both the play and spectators subvert the high cultures of Gramscian cultural hegemony, absorbed into ADA’s comic microcosm. This essay explores how political and theatrical realms are immortalised and then pit against each other through the course of the play, with the character of the Maniac acting as a rhetorical device acting as the connection between the two. In essence, this paper believes that Style is considered over substance in many of the styles of theatre Accidental Death operates within; the stylistic elements that quantitatively constitute the Brechtian form, commedia dell’arte, and farce allow them to subvert the ‘high cultures’ that are held culpable in Gramscian cultural hegemony, all of which ADA absorbs into its comic microcosm. This leads to a sustained paradox between the political and theatrical dimensions of the play, where the theatrical lends credence to the political though the use of fictional formal elements.

FORMS OF OPPOSITIONS IN THE NARRATIVE STRUCTURE OF “ANNE OF GREEN GABLES” BY L.M. MONTGOMERY

The paper aims to explore different forms of oppositions in the narrative structure of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s critically acclaimed novel “Anne of Green Gables”, which was first published in 1908. Because L. M. Montgomery’s works have not been sufficiently explored in the realm of narratology, the following paper seeks to begin covering this gap by analysing key oppositions in “Anne of Green Gables” while also taking into consideration their significance in terms of a broader cultural and historical context, as well as accounting for the changes introduced by L.M. Montgomery to the genre of the novel (specifically, Bildungsroman). Having analysed the original text of the novel, we have determined that the key oppositions in “Anne of Green Gables” (commonplace/romantic worldview, religion/godlessness, love/friendship, woman/man (girl/boy), childhood/adulthood, orphancy/family, loneliness/belonging, mercy/indifference, etc) play an important role in defining the conflict dynamic between characters. By opposing stylistic elements, thematic and plot formulae, the author is able to provide an in-depth perspective of her heroine’s experiences, as well as exploring various viewpoints (Anne Shirley, Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert, Rachel Lynde, etc) when it comes to the same events. L.M. Montgomery has also updated the genre of Bildungsroman by reimagining the conventional topics of “female” literature (raising girls to be future wives and mothers, their love afflictions and desire to get married) and replacing them with new and relevant issues (the influence of literature and culture on one’s personality, the role of friendship in a young person’s life, using creativity as a means to reinterpret one’s surroundings and overcome inner conflict, etc).

A Different Country?

The chapter focuses on Lil Nas X and his record-breaking hit “Old Town Road” (2018), which combines stylistic elements from country and trap music. The song received immense attention in early 2019 after Billboard discreetly removed it from its Hot Country Songs chart, a decision that was interpreted by some as racially motivated. The chapter investigates how Lil Nas X’s musical eclecticism and queer cowboy iconography raises questions pertaining to the boundaries of inclusion and exclusion in the country and hip hop genres. First, it critiques the popular narrative that his widespread success following the Billboard incident is indicative of the declining authority of the music industry in the face of the democratizing effects of digital technologies. Then, it turns its attention to the official movie, Old Town Road, in which Lil Nas X is joined by guest artist Billy Ray Cyrus. Particular focus is devoted to the intersectional aspects of masculinity, which are elucidated through a discussion of how certain sounds and vocal characteristics become constructed and experienced as racially coded. Finally, drawing on perspectives from queer of color critique, the chapter explores the idea that Lil Nas X’s queer tactics both stand as a corrective to accounts of the past that bypass the contributions of black musicians in the development of country music (and black cowboys’ participation in the Old West) and introduces new ways of moving past dominant social constraints.

Poetic Exploration of Obasa’s Prolegomenous Poetry

Mere mentioning of poetics often ignites the memory of Aristotle whose admiration is hinged on the elegance and clarity of his style in poetics. Tis is as a result of the historic influence of poetics or aesthetics as well as the quality of its thought. Tus, poetics is not devoid of philosophical nuances. Based on this premise, an attempt is made here to explore the poetic strands in Obasa’s trilogy, wherein Yorubá proverbs are strung together. The paper, therefore, considers aesthetic category of artistic mimesis, intertextuality and components of all diction alongside stylistic elements because the principal task of poetics is to measure its legitimate domain in language. Tus, it is averred that literature depends on linguistic structure for its existence since language is the substance of literature (in our own instance, poetry). The essay adopts an eclectic theoretical approach since Obasa’s craftsmanship and subject-matter span an avalanche of forms and structures imbued with stylistic features. Primary data are largely drawn from his anthologies which facilitate the content analysis. In its findings, the paper has brought to the fore the fact that Obasa employed adaptation and mimesis in his presentation creatively, ̣ while different stylistic elements in his trilogy are replete with deviation. An attempt is made to bring into bold relief the suggestion that metaphor forms the hub of all other tropes that give grandeur to poetics in Obasa.

Tonality or Atonality in Bartók’s Sonata for Violin and Piano no. 2? From Folk Modalities to a Twelve-tone Language

External political circumstances as well as Bartók’s personal activities in the early 1920s were decisive in contributing to the expansion of the basic principles of his musical language. Bartók’s Second Sonata for Violin and Piano (1922) may be considered a focal point in his evolution toward ultramodernism. Concomitant with this tendency, both Sonatas for Violin and Piano of this period have become paradigmatic of the controversial notion set forth by certain scholars regarding the existence of an atonal Bartók idiom. Within the ultramodernist style of the Second Sonata, the essence of Eastern-European folk music is still very much in evidence. The intention of this article is to show how Bartók’s move toward synthesis of varied folk and art-music elements in this work produces a sense of an organic connection between atonality and tonality. The close connection between these two principles was suggested by Bartók in an essay of 1920. I intend to show how both contradictory principles are conjoined within a highly complex polymodal idiom based on the tendency toward equalization of the twelve tones. Within the stanzaic structure of the Romanian “long song,” stylistic elements of recitation, improvisation, and declamation are essential in the gradual unfolding between these two contrasting concepts of pitch organization. Despite tonal ambiguity on both local and large-scale levels, the sense of polymodal tonality is ultimately established as primary.

Chilean Guitar Music: Modern Reconstructions of Genre Traditions

The relevance of the article is to deepen the analytical aspect of knowledge about Chilean guitar music of the second half of the 20th — early 21st centuries in the context of the reconstruction of genre traditions on the example of works by Juan Antonio Sanchez, Gustavo Becerra-Schmidt, Javier Contreras. Main objective of the study is to identify the leading genre traditions of Chilean guitar music and reveal their modern reconstructions in the works of famous authors. The methodology includes methods of historical, cultural, comparative, phenomenological, as well as structural and functional analysis (for a contextual consideration of the creative activities of composers, the study of genre and stylistic elements of the Chilean traditions of folk music, professional-academic and non-academic origin in their influence on European genre models). Results and conclusions. The cultural and historical environment of the formation and development of the Chilean academic guitar repertoire of the second half of the 20th — early 21st centuries is characterized, the links with the performing achievements of domestic virtuosos are determined. The work of composers Juan Antonio Sanchez, Gustavo Becerra-Schmidt, Javier Contreras is considered in the discourse of modern processes of reconstruction of traditions, approbation of innovative methods and techniques of writing of the European avant-garde, use of the resources of American non-academic art. The national genre roots of thematic phenomena have been identified in the process of studying music scores and audio recordings of works, which go back to the primary authentic layers and influence musical vocabulary, creating the foundation of its national identity: Creole cueca, tonada with Iberian origins and hemiole rhythmic archetypes, in particular, in the Sonata for guitar by H. Sanchez; elements of the Araucanian ritual chants of the indigenous Mapuche population in the Fourth Sonata by G. Becerra-Schmidt, as well as the rhythmic formula of the Afro-Brazilian batukada in the finale of the Third Sonata by G. Becerra-Schmidt. It was found that secondary genre and style layers are formed in line with European concert genres: sonatas, concerts, cycles, the compositional and dramatic profile of which changes under the influence of the organic nature of the musical material, its transcultural ethnic ties. Jazz and fusion music-making with elements of the Chilean musical is defined as an equally important genre-style resource. The interferential nature of the inheritance of the authentic cueca tradition through its modern versions created by the legendary Violeta Parra leads to targeted citations, allusions in modern guitar works. Analytically substantiated are the conclusions that thanks to the numerous mosaic carnival contrasts, the abundance of colorful ethno-genre mixtures of Iberian, Indian, African American folklore, to which it is possible to connect the poetics of fusion or experimental percussion techniques of sound production, the originality of the modern Chilean reconstruction of ancient traditions is formed. Such syntheses are due to the internal cultural and historical situation and artistic processes that take place on both sides of the Atlantic.

Pat Metheny: Composing to Exploit the Sound of the Guitar

<p>The study's objective is to relate the development of Pat Metheny's stylistic characteristics from his interpretation of jazz standards to their incorporation into his own compositions. Stylistic elements are established and a sample of his compositions are analysed to compare his solo style in standards with his compositional style. Metheny is a recognised innovator in technique and uses a wide range of instruments in the guitar family, both traditional and radically new. The use of such instruments frees Metheny from some restrictions and the possibility that this freedom is a major influence in his improvisation and composition is remarked on. There is scope for further work based on a wider sampling, and the methodology used in this study could probably be modified to focus on this objective.</p>

Pat Metheny: Composing to Exploit the Sound of the Guitar

<p>The study's objective is to relate the development of Pat Metheny's stylistic characteristics from his interpretation of jazz standards to their incorporation into his own compositions. Stylistic elements are established and a sample of his compositions are analysed to compare his solo style in standards with his compositional style. Metheny is a recognised innovator in technique and uses a wide range of instruments in the guitar family, both traditional and radically new. The use of such instruments frees Metheny from some restrictions and the possibility that this freedom is a major influence in his improvisation and composition is remarked on. There is scope for further work based on a wider sampling, and the methodology used in this study could probably be modified to focus on this objective.</p>

Bookplates from the archives of the National Library of Romania and the National Library of the Republic of Moldova: some profiles from the big collections

The paper is focused on the bookplates in original and in reproductions kept in the large collections of the Romanian cultural space. Data on the stylistic elements of the signs of possession from the old books and from the engraving and drawing collections are provided. Important data is offered on the ex-libris types, on the creative traditions and rules of making, on the origin of the signed books and of the artworks made in Romania, Republic of Moldova and other states in different years. Also, there are highlighted original bookplates made by Leonid Nikitin and Valeriu Herţa, the well-known artists and engravers of the Republic of Moldova. The author has described and analyzed graphic works, stressing their technical and decorative account, and evidencing common features of bookplates – general somber appearance, free and also refined grotesque drawing, sophisticated play with the text and images.

Inaugural speech as a tool of forming speech portrait of the president

The paper deals with the inaugural speeches of Vladimir Putin (2018) and Donald Trump (2017) and is aimed at analyzing the role of verbal means in forming the speech portraits of political leaders. The article is of urgent interest as it demonstrates the speech portraits of country leaders in relation to national identity, mentality and socio-political course of the country. By means of comparative content analysis we looked for grammatical, lexical and stylistic elements peculiar to a specific linguistic persona while comparing the speeches of the presidents as well as we attempted to determine the specific national backgrounds of political discourse. Thus, each president’s inauguration context model is mostly characterized by a different set of linguistic means. The paper findings may be useful for researchers who deal with interdisciplinary studies, political and cognitive linguistics, political discourse and communication analysis.