C. James

Focuses criticism upon the writings of Kenneth Burke Extensions of the Burkeian System constitutes one of the first projects to meet the requirements Burke has established for his operation benchmark. This volume its origins in the scholarly contributions of Kenneth Burke. All of the authors of the chapters in this volume adopt stances that defer to Burke's initial contributions, ultimately casting their work as extensions of ideas and claims posited by Burke. Yet, all of the authors also make significant departures from positions Burke has articulated. The range of these reactions varies tremendously. Several of the authors cast their positions as augmentations. They offer supplements to Burke's claims that constitute logical additions to Burke's initial observations, but even these authors provide adjustments to the Burkeian system that make a difference in how the system is per­ceived and understood. Other essays are cast in a more challenging mode, arguing explicitly for alternative viewpoints. Displeased with Burke's analysis at a given point for one reason or another, they posit positions different than those advanced by Burke.

From the dawn of European literature, the figure of Medea--best known as the helpmate of Jason and murderer of her own children--has inspired artists in all fields throughout all centuries. Euripides, Seneca, Corneille, Delacroix, Anouilh, Pasolini, Maria Callas, Martha Graham, Samuel Barber, and Diana Rigg are among the many who have given Medea life on stage, film, and canvas, through music and dance, from ancient Greek drama to Broadway. In seeking to understand the powerful hold Medea has had on our imaginations for nearly three millennia, a group of renowned scholars here examines the major representations of Medea in myth, art, and ancient and contemporary literature, as well as the philosophical, psychological, and cultural questions these portrayals raise. The result is a comprehensive and nuanced look at one of the most captivating mythic figures of all time. Unlike most mythic figures, whose attributes remain constant throughout mythology, Medea is continually changing in the wide variety of stories that circulated during antiquity. She appears as enchantress, helper-maiden, infanticide, fratricide, kidnapper, founder of cities, and foreigner. Not only does Medea's checkered career illuminate the opposing concepts of self and other, it also suggests the disturbing possibility of otherness within self. In addition to the editors, the contributors include Fritz Graf, Nita Krevans, Jan Bremmer, Dolores M. O'Higgins, Deborah Boedeker, Carole E. Newlands, John M. Dillon, Martha C. Nussbaum, Christiane Sourvinou-Inwood, and Marianne McDonald.

There are at least two kinds of games," states James P. Carse as he begins this extraordinary book. "One could be called finite; the other infinite." Finite games are the familiar contests of everyday life; they are played in order to be won, which is when they end. But infinite games are more mysterious. Their object is not winning, but ensuring the continuation of play. The rules may change, the boundaries may change, even the participants may change--as long as the game is never allowed to come to an end. What are infinite games? How do they affect the ways we play our finite games? What are we doing when we play--finitely or infinitely? And how can infinite games affect the ways in which we live our lives? Carse explores these questions with stunning elegance, teasing out of his distinctions a universe of observation and insight, noting where and why and how we play, finitely and infinitely. He surveys our world--from the finite games of the playing field and playing board to the infinite games found in culture and religion--leaving all we think we know illuminated and transformed. Along the way, Carse finds new ways of understanding everything, from how an actress portrays a role to how we engage in sex, from the nature of evil to the nature of science. Finite games, he shows, may offer wealth and status, power and glory, but infinite games offer something far more subtle and far grander. Carse has written a book rich in insight and aphorism. Already an international literary event, "Finite and Infinite Games "is certain to be argued about and celebrated for years to come. Reading it is the first step in learning to play the infinite game.

This analysis examines the often assumed, yet little explored, association between residential proximity, socioeconomic status, and depictions of the environment in localized controversies. Focusing on a grassroots organization, we examine the extent to which activists' usual place of Residence, as indicative of wealth, mediates the manner in which they describe current and probable future conditions. Based on quantitative and qualitative analyses, we argue that where a person lives for most of the year exerts a strong influence on perceptions of and communication about an environment at risk.

The role of communication in the cause of environmentalism cannot be overestimated and, clearly, the 1990's offer scholars a great opportunity to research and develop theoretically grounded, practical approaches to advocacy in the area of environmental discourse. However, previous attempts to study the complex dimensions of environmental advocacy have been spread across a variety of disciplines resulting in a rather fragmented understanding of how persons use communication in service of the environment. This paper presents a categorizing scheme and reviews studies concerning environmental advocacy. The framework is used to synthesize related research and theory, identify barriers to effective advocacy, and suggest practical applications in the field of environmental communication.

A welcome reissue of the pioneering work on Black resistance, with a superb new introduction by Robin D G Kelley. "No piece of literature can substitute for a crystal ball, and only religious fundamentalists believe that a book can provide comprehensive answers to all questions. But if nothing else, A History of Pan-African Revolt leaves us with two incontrovertible facts. First, as long as Black people are denied freedom, humanity, and a decent standard of living, they will continue to revolt. Second, unless these revolts involve the ordinary masses and take place on their own terms, they have no hope of succeeding." [from the introduction by Robin D G Kelley]

Many teachers do not conform to the views of teaching espoused by professors of education. Yet these teachers are often judged as outstanding by colleagues, students, parents, and administrators. This thoughtful, timely book is a qualitative inquiry that addresses this contradiction. It focuses on two outstanding high school teachers, Laura and Jim, who were observed and interviewed by Kagan over a five month period. Two education professors who teach methods courses in corresponding fields (English, social studies) were also interviewed. Kagan juxtaposes the two entirely different views of teaching that emerged from her observations and examines the functional value of each. This book then is ultimately about the politics of teaching: the power to define 'good' teaching and determine how novices will be prepared for the classroom. Laura and Jim represent a silent underground of practitioners who have lost the right to legislate their own profession. This is their story.

Some materialists argue that we can eliminate mental entities such as sensations because, like electrons, they are theoretical entities postulated as parts of scientific explanations, but, unlike electrons, they are unnecessary for such explanations. As Quine says, any explanatory role of mental entities can be played by "correlative physiological states and events instead." But sensations are not postulated theoretical entities. This is shown by proposing definitions of the related terms, 'observation term,' and 'theoretical term,' and then classifying the term 'sensation.' The result is that although 'sensation' is a theoretical term, it is also a reporting term because it is used to refer to phenomena we are aware of. Consequently sensations are not postulated and cannot be eliminated merely because they are unnecessary for explanation.

Open peer commentary on the article “Constructionism and De-Constructionism: Opposite yet Complementary Pedagogies” by Jean M. Griffin.: Reading Griffin’s clearly written article has led me to think about some questions that I would like to address particularly to members of the constructionist community. Constructionists have never sufficiently outlined a proper theory of learning; they have failed to document and report on their successes and failures in the classroom, thus making evaluation of their project difficult, and they sometimes seem unwilling to learn across disciplinary boundaries.

Open peer commentary on the article “Studying Conceptual Change in Classrooms: Using Association Rule Mining to Detect Changes in Students’ Explanations of the Effects of Urban Planning and Social Policy” by Arthur Hjorth & Uri Wilensky.: What could be more important than exploring how students construct knowledge? The authors have taken a major step in using constructionist tools to analyze how students change their concepts after interacting with a multiagent model in a course on urban design. I will address what I consider to be several missed opportunities in their presentation.