The scientific work on collecting and studying life stories started in Latvia in late 1980s, and mainly was devoted to creation of a multi-voiced counteraction to Soviet-era history. In this article, a life story and ...The scientific work on collecting and studying life stories started in Latvia in late 1980s, and mainly was devoted to creation of a multi-voiced counteraction to Soviet-era history. In this article, a life story and associated discourse units illustrate not only a point about the speaker, but also about the facts and notions that are common to the post-war Latvia. Post-Soviet society still use to give different accounts of the same facts and of the reasons why they happened. Studying multiform social memories that are forming Latvian collective memory is a way to perceive the processes by which these common-sense notions are constructed. The article demonstrates how to use the life story as a source for local history research and at the same time for people self-awareness research. This article is devoted to the analysis of eye-witnesses＇ （materials gathered from 12 neighboring farmer families） narratives about the post-war reality, comparing the main presumptions of Soviet ideology, existing in Latvia and all other Baltic states, to real life. Provided those presumptions being myths--the term being understood in political science as deceit as a falsifying construct, the author analyses true life stories to show the real danger of intention to exist in some irrational, mythical sphere.展开更多
Rather than addressing the myths or cosmologies supposedly expressed in rock art, this paper explores some of the myths that have been and are still being created about rock art. We know from the study of the last roc...Rather than addressing the myths or cosmologies supposedly expressed in rock art, this paper explores some of the myths that have been and are still being created about rock art. We know from the study of the last rock art-producing peoples in the world that outsiders of their cultures cannot interpret their rock art correctly, or even understand their cosmologies adequately. This is not surprising, in view of the neuroscientific understanding of the underlying differences. In a sound hermeneutical system, the normative nature of interpretation must be recognized and accounted for. The record shows that little hermeneutical restraint has been exercised in rock art research, and that the discipline＇s credibility demands the expulsion of the extensive myths that have been created by it. Some of the most prominent of these falsities are presented to illustrate the point.展开更多
Pragmatic rationality and scientific and technological developments in modem society have jointly put an end to classical myth and consigned it to the historical museum of the spiritual culture. However, mythical thin...Pragmatic rationality and scientific and technological developments in modem society have jointly put an end to classical myth and consigned it to the historical museum of the spiritual culture. However, mythical thinking and consciousness are synchronically hidden in our psychological structures and still exert an important influence on civilizations and cultures. In the modem and postmodem historical and cultural context, myth hides in our spiritual and cultural activities in various altered forms. Having evolved into a mythic form in the contemporary sense, it continues to play a powerful psychological role and to act as a midwife of conscious activities and forms. Contemporary myth typically comprises science myth, consumption myth and hero myth. It has inherited the symbols and structures of traditional myth, but with some developments and variations; in particular, by means of science and technology, it has acquired broader and richer social ingredients and swift and intensive modes of transmission, producing a widespread and far-reaching influence on various aspects of society.展开更多
There exists great room for ＂rational imaginary＂ in the discourse of news narration, the myth formed and enhanced therein becoming widely accepted as commonsense. The discourse in economic news through systematic an...There exists great room for ＂rational imaginary＂ in the discourse of news narration, the myth formed and enhanced therein becoming widely accepted as commonsense. The discourse in economic news through systematic and disciplinebound ＂objective＂ description disguises the power of the capital as the natural result of scientific laws. FoUowing the same logic, the news on real estate implicates the myth of development and investment. A critical reflection on such myth is of great necessity for us to better understand the discourse system in news production.展开更多
文摘The scientific work on collecting and studying life stories started in Latvia in late 1980s, and mainly was devoted to creation of a multi-voiced counteraction to Soviet-era history. In this article, a life story and associated discourse units illustrate not only a point about the speaker, but also about the facts and notions that are common to the post-war Latvia. Post-Soviet society still use to give different accounts of the same facts and of the reasons why they happened. Studying multiform social memories that are forming Latvian collective memory is a way to perceive the processes by which these common-sense notions are constructed. The article demonstrates how to use the life story as a source for local history research and at the same time for people self-awareness research. This article is devoted to the analysis of eye-witnesses＇ （materials gathered from 12 neighboring farmer families） narratives about the post-war reality, comparing the main presumptions of Soviet ideology, existing in Latvia and all other Baltic states, to real life. Provided those presumptions being myths--the term being understood in political science as deceit as a falsifying construct, the author analyses true life stories to show the real danger of intention to exist in some irrational, mythical sphere.
文摘Rather than addressing the myths or cosmologies supposedly expressed in rock art, this paper explores some of the myths that have been and are still being created about rock art. We know from the study of the last rock art-producing peoples in the world that outsiders of their cultures cannot interpret their rock art correctly, or even understand their cosmologies adequately. This is not surprising, in view of the neuroscientific understanding of the underlying differences. In a sound hermeneutical system, the normative nature of interpretation must be recognized and accounted for. The record shows that little hermeneutical restraint has been exercised in rock art research, and that the discipline＇s credibility demands the expulsion of the extensive myths that have been created by it. Some of the most prominent of these falsities are presented to illustrate the point.
文摘Pragmatic rationality and scientific and technological developments in modem society have jointly put an end to classical myth and consigned it to the historical museum of the spiritual culture. However, mythical thinking and consciousness are synchronically hidden in our psychological structures and still exert an important influence on civilizations and cultures. In the modem and postmodem historical and cultural context, myth hides in our spiritual and cultural activities in various altered forms. Having evolved into a mythic form in the contemporary sense, it continues to play a powerful psychological role and to act as a midwife of conscious activities and forms. Contemporary myth typically comprises science myth, consumption myth and hero myth. It has inherited the symbols and structures of traditional myth, but with some developments and variations; in particular, by means of science and technology, it has acquired broader and richer social ingredients and swift and intensive modes of transmission, producing a widespread and far-reaching influence on various aspects of society.
文摘There exists great room for ＂rational imaginary＂ in the discourse of news narration, the myth formed and enhanced therein becoming widely accepted as commonsense. The discourse in economic news through systematic and disciplinebound ＂objective＂ description disguises the power of the capital as the natural result of scientific laws. FoUowing the same logic, the news on real estate implicates the myth of development and investment. A critical reflection on such myth is of great necessity for us to better understand the discourse system in news production.
