Piotr Goldstein | German Center for Integration and Migration Research (original) (raw)
Videos by Piotr Goldstein
Spółdzielnia / Cooperative is a visual ethnography portraying the everyday work of a socially eng... more Spółdzielnia / Cooperative is a visual ethnography portraying the everyday work of a socially engaged cooperative in Manchester, which is run mainly by Polish migrants. It is, after 'Active (citizen)', the second film of the Visualising the Invisible Project, looking at the activism of migrants and ethnic minorities outside of their community organisations. The film approaches three key academic questions. Firstly, it explores the field of everyday activism (Goldstein 2017) – the type of activism which happens not in NGOs or protest movements, but rather in everyday engagements including in social businesses in which the balance between activism and moneymaking is continuously confronted and negotiated. Secondly, it looks at migrant activism for causes completely detached from migrant-group advocacy or interests. Finally, it portrays a Polish community that is different from, but exists in parallel to, the formal ‘Polish Community’ epitomised by the Polish church, Saturday school, etc.
Publications by Piotr Goldstein
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 2024
Drawing on an evaluation of statistics on language provisions and self-declared language practice... more Drawing on an evaluation of statistics on language provisions and self-declared language practice, and on longitudinal ethnographic observations, we examine the role of the Polish language in shaping single transactions and durable social bonds and in demarcating interaction spaces among Polish immigrants in a UK metropolitan area. Language choice can be essential, in that it cannot be replaced by a substitute. Therefore, it is either constitutive of an action routine in the sense that it lends a particular performative character to a practice; or casual, in that it accompanies a routine but is of little symbolic function and contributes little to performing belonging. We identify a spread of features of language across different practices, prompting reflection on the role of language as a co-defining indicator of diaspora communities.
In this four-screen installation using footage originally used in 'Active (citizen)' film, as wel... more In this four-screen installation using footage originally used in 'Active (citizen)' film, as well as material which was not used in its single-screen 30-minute version, we offer viewers the opportunity to explore and focus on different aspects of Driton’s life: his everyday work, his relations with other people and institutions in Novi Sad, his memories of war and life in Kosovo, and his ‘everyday activism’. This multi-screen installation has originally premiered on 6 September 2022 at the Centre for East European and International Studies (ZOiS) in Berlin - set up as four large screens, one of them (depicting Livelihood) larger than others, spread, not symetrically, over the for walls of a room. Each of the screens is accompanied by a short description attached to the wall next to the screen. There is also one larger plaque with description of the installaton and author bios. Screenes are placed in a way which does not suggest any particular order of viewing. All videos play in a loop and are subtitled. There are also two sets of headsets attached to each screens’ media player. The installation can be set up in different spaces and is available free of charge for educational and community purposes.
entanglements, 2021
Migrant activism is usually assumed to happen within migrant organisations. This récit tells the ... more Migrant activism is usually assumed to happen within migrant organisations. This récit tells the story of how I came to rethink this concept in the course of producing an ethnographic documentary about someone who cannot afford to engage in the work of organisations. It relates how I started to think of activism as ‘going out of one’s way for the benefit of other people’.
ZOiS Spotlight, 2020
While Polish activism may be hard to quantify, it takes on various creative forms, particularly d... more While Polish activism may be hard to quantify, it takes on various creative forms, particularly during the COVID19 pandemic.
Europe-Asia Studies, Nov 2017
Activism is typically associated with work within charities/NGOs or participation in social movem... more Activism is typically associated with work within charities/NGOs or participation in social movements. This essay highlights activism different from these forms in that it happens without funding or mass mobilisation. Instead, it is powered by the longer-term perspective and day-to-day efforts of ‘activist citizens’. Based on interviews and participant observation in bookshop-cafés and other donor-independent initiatives in Novi Sad, Serbia, the essay argues that such ‘everyday activism’ is significant not only because it supports the development of other, more visible, forms of activism, but also in its own right, as a counter-space contributing to social change.
Active citizenship in the post-war Western Balkans has traditionally been studied in the context ... more Active citizenship in the post-war Western Balkans has traditionally been studied in the context of either Western-style (and usually foreign-funded) Non- Governmental Organisations (NGOs) or, more recently, protest movements. This chapter highlights a wider range of better- and lesser-known forms of civil society in the contemporary post-Yugoslav space. It shows how interest associations, student unions, religious groups and online communities can all contribute to vibrant civil society, even if their work seems distant from the post-war area’s current problems. This civil society, the chapter argues, creates an environment in which the people of the western Balkans can enact their citizenship and, little by little, ‘build bridges’, across ethnic lines and beyond.
Governing through Diversity: Migration Societies in Post-Multiculturalist Times, 2015
In: 'Governing through Diversity: Migration Societies in Post-Multiculturalist Times,' ed. by Tat... more In: 'Governing through Diversity: Migration Societies in Post-Multiculturalist Times,' ed. by Tatiana Matejskova & Marco Antonsich (Palgrave Macmillan, 2015)
![Research paper thumbnail of Wizerunek kobiety w filozofii Platona [Image of Women in the Philosophy of Plato]](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/44142584/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](Plato is one of the world’s most important philosophers and his thought is one of the main pillar... more Plato is one of the world’s most important philosophers and his thought is one of the main pillars of Western tradition. Plato is also notable for asserting, in the 4th century BCE, that there is no reason why women should be treated differently than men by law, that they should have the same access to education as men and, finally, that they should have the same opportunity to govern. This may encourage the belief that Plato was ‘the first feminist’. However, in his texts one can also find elements which sound much less feminist or at times outright sexist: the story of the transmigration of souls in Timaeus, for instance, portrays the female body as a punishment for cowardly and unrighteous men.
This book looks at these seemingly contradictory elements of Plato’s philosophy and argues that not only can Plato’s thought be considered ‘proto-feminist’ but also that it is coherent in respect to the ‘image of women’ presented in his work. This conclusion is developed throughout the book’s two parts. The first part outlines three main traditions which, would have been likely to have shaped the image of women in Plato’s works. These were: the high social status of women in pre-Homeric times, associated particularly with the worship of female fertility and, related to this, the worship of female laughter; the very low status of women in Athens in the times of Plato, manifested in the denial to women of what we would consider basic rights, such as the right of property or the right to unimpeded social intercourse; and, in contrast to Athens, the relatively high status of women in Sparta – a polis known to inspire Plato.
The book’s second part is a systematised polemic – for, and against – Plato’s feminism, based on an analysis of The Republic, Laws, Timaeus, and Symposium. Passages where Plato discusses issues concerning women — their nature, rights and roles — are analysed and compared, alongside those where women are unexpectedly absent or which could be seen as misogynist because of their language. This analysis is juxtaposed with the socio-historical background of Plato’s philosophy to confirm the book’s main thesis: that in respect to the image of women, Plato’s philosophy is both coherent and, overall, pro-feminist.
The book concludes with a list of examples of the postulates of Plato that have been implemented in various places in the twentieth century. These include ones we see as positive, such as women’s participation in politics, and those which most people condemn, such as eugenics. Whatever our judgement, these appropriations show that Plato’s project was not a mere utopia and that its echoes are present in today’s reality.
Jewish Studies and Holocaust Education in Poland, 2014
Newspaper articles by Piotr Goldstein
Napisano szereg książek i artykułów, w których, czerpiąc ze statystyk, porównywano ilość stowarzy... more Napisano szereg książek i artykułów, w których, czerpiąc ze statystyk, porównywano ilość stowarzyszeń w Europe Zachodniej oraz Środkowej i Wschodniej. Okazało się, że jest ich u nas dużo mniej i zapewne dlatego demokracja nie działa, tak jak powinna. Żeby sprawdzić, czy taka zależność rzeczywiście istnieje, pojechałem na pół roku do Nowego Sadu.
Conference presentations by Piotr Goldstein
presentation at the Everyday Revolutions in Southern and Eastern Europe conference, The Universit... more presentation at the Everyday Revolutions in Southern and Eastern Europe conference, The University of Manchester, 19-20 May 2017
presentation at the Swedish Anthropological Association annual congress, Stockholm University, 6-... more presentation at the Swedish Anthropological Association annual congress, Stockholm University, 6-8 April 2017
presentation at the closing event of the Fringe Politics in South-Eastern Europe network, Queen M... more presentation at the closing event of the Fringe Politics in South-Eastern Europe network, Queen Mary University of London, 30-31 March 2017
presentation at 'Political Imagination Laboratory' workshop at the University of Perugia, 14-16 O... more presentation at 'Political Imagination Laboratory' workshop at the University of Perugia, 14-16 October 2016
presentation at 'Visualizing the Nation' workshop at the University of Manchester, 4 November 2016
Spółdzielnia / Cooperative is a visual ethnography portraying the everyday work of a socially eng... more Spółdzielnia / Cooperative is a visual ethnography portraying the everyday work of a socially engaged cooperative in Manchester, which is run mainly by Polish migrants. It is, after 'Active (citizen)', the second film of the Visualising the Invisible Project, looking at the activism of migrants and ethnic minorities outside of their community organisations. The film approaches three key academic questions. Firstly, it explores the field of everyday activism (Goldstein 2017) – the type of activism which happens not in NGOs or protest movements, but rather in everyday engagements including in social businesses in which the balance between activism and moneymaking is continuously confronted and negotiated. Secondly, it looks at migrant activism for causes completely detached from migrant-group advocacy or interests. Finally, it portrays a Polish community that is different from, but exists in parallel to, the formal ‘Polish Community’ epitomised by the Polish church, Saturday school, etc.
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 2024
Drawing on an evaluation of statistics on language provisions and self-declared language practice... more Drawing on an evaluation of statistics on language provisions and self-declared language practice, and on longitudinal ethnographic observations, we examine the role of the Polish language in shaping single transactions and durable social bonds and in demarcating interaction spaces among Polish immigrants in a UK metropolitan area. Language choice can be essential, in that it cannot be replaced by a substitute. Therefore, it is either constitutive of an action routine in the sense that it lends a particular performative character to a practice; or casual, in that it accompanies a routine but is of little symbolic function and contributes little to performing belonging. We identify a spread of features of language across different practices, prompting reflection on the role of language as a co-defining indicator of diaspora communities.
In this four-screen installation using footage originally used in 'Active (citizen)' film, as wel... more In this four-screen installation using footage originally used in 'Active (citizen)' film, as well as material which was not used in its single-screen 30-minute version, we offer viewers the opportunity to explore and focus on different aspects of Driton’s life: his everyday work, his relations with other people and institutions in Novi Sad, his memories of war and life in Kosovo, and his ‘everyday activism’. This multi-screen installation has originally premiered on 6 September 2022 at the Centre for East European and International Studies (ZOiS) in Berlin - set up as four large screens, one of them (depicting Livelihood) larger than others, spread, not symetrically, over the for walls of a room. Each of the screens is accompanied by a short description attached to the wall next to the screen. There is also one larger plaque with description of the installaton and author bios. Screenes are placed in a way which does not suggest any particular order of viewing. All videos play in a loop and are subtitled. There are also two sets of headsets attached to each screens’ media player. The installation can be set up in different spaces and is available free of charge for educational and community purposes.
entanglements, 2021
Migrant activism is usually assumed to happen within migrant organisations. This récit tells the ... more Migrant activism is usually assumed to happen within migrant organisations. This récit tells the story of how I came to rethink this concept in the course of producing an ethnographic documentary about someone who cannot afford to engage in the work of organisations. It relates how I started to think of activism as ‘going out of one’s way for the benefit of other people’.
ZOiS Spotlight, 2020
While Polish activism may be hard to quantify, it takes on various creative forms, particularly d... more While Polish activism may be hard to quantify, it takes on various creative forms, particularly during the COVID19 pandemic.
Europe-Asia Studies, Nov 2017
Activism is typically associated with work within charities/NGOs or participation in social movem... more Activism is typically associated with work within charities/NGOs or participation in social movements. This essay highlights activism different from these forms in that it happens without funding or mass mobilisation. Instead, it is powered by the longer-term perspective and day-to-day efforts of ‘activist citizens’. Based on interviews and participant observation in bookshop-cafés and other donor-independent initiatives in Novi Sad, Serbia, the essay argues that such ‘everyday activism’ is significant not only because it supports the development of other, more visible, forms of activism, but also in its own right, as a counter-space contributing to social change.
Active citizenship in the post-war Western Balkans has traditionally been studied in the context ... more Active citizenship in the post-war Western Balkans has traditionally been studied in the context of either Western-style (and usually foreign-funded) Non- Governmental Organisations (NGOs) or, more recently, protest movements. This chapter highlights a wider range of better- and lesser-known forms of civil society in the contemporary post-Yugoslav space. It shows how interest associations, student unions, religious groups and online communities can all contribute to vibrant civil society, even if their work seems distant from the post-war area’s current problems. This civil society, the chapter argues, creates an environment in which the people of the western Balkans can enact their citizenship and, little by little, ‘build bridges’, across ethnic lines and beyond.
Governing through Diversity: Migration Societies in Post-Multiculturalist Times, 2015
In: 'Governing through Diversity: Migration Societies in Post-Multiculturalist Times,' ed. by Tat... more In: 'Governing through Diversity: Migration Societies in Post-Multiculturalist Times,' ed. by Tatiana Matejskova & Marco Antonsich (Palgrave Macmillan, 2015)
Plato is one of the world’s most important philosophers and his thought is one of the main pillar... more Plato is one of the world’s most important philosophers and his thought is one of the main pillars of Western tradition. Plato is also notable for asserting, in the 4th century BCE, that there is no reason why women should be treated differently than men by law, that they should have the same access to education as men and, finally, that they should have the same opportunity to govern. This may encourage the belief that Plato was ‘the first feminist’. However, in his texts one can also find elements which sound much less feminist or at times outright sexist: the story of the transmigration of souls in Timaeus, for instance, portrays the female body as a punishment for cowardly and unrighteous men.
This book looks at these seemingly contradictory elements of Plato’s philosophy and argues that not only can Plato’s thought be considered ‘proto-feminist’ but also that it is coherent in respect to the ‘image of women’ presented in his work. This conclusion is developed throughout the book’s two parts. The first part outlines three main traditions which, would have been likely to have shaped the image of women in Plato’s works. These were: the high social status of women in pre-Homeric times, associated particularly with the worship of female fertility and, related to this, the worship of female laughter; the very low status of women in Athens in the times of Plato, manifested in the denial to women of what we would consider basic rights, such as the right of property or the right to unimpeded social intercourse; and, in contrast to Athens, the relatively high status of women in Sparta – a polis known to inspire Plato.
The book’s second part is a systematised polemic – for, and against – Plato’s feminism, based on an analysis of The Republic, Laws, Timaeus, and Symposium. Passages where Plato discusses issues concerning women — their nature, rights and roles — are analysed and compared, alongside those where women are unexpectedly absent or which could be seen as misogynist because of their language. This analysis is juxtaposed with the socio-historical background of Plato’s philosophy to confirm the book’s main thesis: that in respect to the image of women, Plato’s philosophy is both coherent and, overall, pro-feminist.
The book concludes with a list of examples of the postulates of Plato that have been implemented in various places in the twentieth century. These include ones we see as positive, such as women’s participation in politics, and those which most people condemn, such as eugenics. Whatever our judgement, these appropriations show that Plato’s project was not a mere utopia and that its echoes are present in today’s reality.
Jewish Studies and Holocaust Education in Poland, 2014
Napisano szereg książek i artykułów, w których, czerpiąc ze statystyk, porównywano ilość stowarzy... more Napisano szereg książek i artykułów, w których, czerpiąc ze statystyk, porównywano ilość stowarzyszeń w Europe Zachodniej oraz Środkowej i Wschodniej. Okazało się, że jest ich u nas dużo mniej i zapewne dlatego demokracja nie działa, tak jak powinna. Żeby sprawdzić, czy taka zależność rzeczywiście istnieje, pojechałem na pół roku do Nowego Sadu.
presentation at the Everyday Revolutions in Southern and Eastern Europe conference, The Universit... more presentation at the Everyday Revolutions in Southern and Eastern Europe conference, The University of Manchester, 19-20 May 2017
presentation at the Swedish Anthropological Association annual congress, Stockholm University, 6-... more presentation at the Swedish Anthropological Association annual congress, Stockholm University, 6-8 April 2017
presentation at the closing event of the Fringe Politics in South-Eastern Europe network, Queen M... more presentation at the closing event of the Fringe Politics in South-Eastern Europe network, Queen Mary University of London, 30-31 March 2017
presentation at 'Political Imagination Laboratory' workshop at the University of Perugia, 14-16 O... more presentation at 'Political Imagination Laboratory' workshop at the University of Perugia, 14-16 October 2016
presentation at 'Visualizing the Nation' workshop at the University of Manchester, 4 November 2016
presentation at Polish Sociological Association congress, University of Gdansk, Poland, 14-17 Sep... more presentation at Polish Sociological Association congress, University of Gdansk, Poland, 14-17 September 2016
Social activism has been traditionally studied either by scholars of civil society, concerned typ... more Social activism has been traditionally studied either by scholars of civil society, concerned typically with NGOs and associations, or those focusing on protest movements. This paper looks at non-radical, everyday, activism performed by individuals, often outside any formal, or informal structures.
Lecture at the Interdisciplinary Gender Seminar, University of Lodz, Poland on 24 October 2016
lecture at the Twentieth Century Polish History Seminar, Polish University Abroad, London, 10 Dec... more lecture at the Twentieth Century Polish History Seminar, Polish University Abroad, London, 10 December 2014
Cfp, 2021
Co-organised by ZOiS and the EASA Anthropology of Social Movements Network Berlin, 30 September... more Co-organised by ZOiS and the EASA Anthropology of Social Movements Network
Berlin, 30 September - 1 October 2021
At a time of Black Lives Matter and the proliferation of migrant, refugee and minority protests across the world (Polish women's, Belarusian, Palestinian, Roma and Sinti, to name just a few), as well as local and regional initiatives by minorities, migrants and refugees, we would like to bring together scholars who combine a focus on migrants or minorities with that on protest, resistance, activism, social engagement, and other related themes. We are interested both in the most visible struggles and everyday forms of activism, emerging activism, prefigurative politics, and other efforts of migrants and minorities, which often escape public and academic recognition.
Chopin, fado and songs of the Jewish underworld: music of migrants, vagabonds, prostitutes and cr... more Chopin, fado and songs of the Jewish underworld: music of migrants, vagabonds, prostitutes and criminals will shape this evening summer concert on 13 July 2017 at the International Anthony Burgess Foundation in Manchester.
We will start with Chopin, a Polish migrant, and his well-known piano repertoire of the French salons in the interpretation of Portuguese pianist Artur Pereira, followed by less-known Chopin’s songs sung by spinto-soprano Izabella Goldstein.
In the second part of the concert we will move from this aristocratic climate to the music of taverns, cafés, streets and backyard alleys. The artists will bring back sounds of their countries’ past. Portuguese fado and songs of the Jewish underworld from Poland of the beginning of the 20th century: tunes from countries miles apart but all expressing people’s longing for better life. Stories of love, crime, revenge and misery from deprived multi-ethnic neighbourhoods of Lisbon, Porto and Warsaw which will reveal how these large but marginalised worlds were portrayed in song.
Inspired by the centenary of the 1917 Revolution, the event promises to explore the contemporary ... more Inspired by the centenary of the 1917 Revolution, the event promises to explore the contemporary pertinence of the idea of revolution in Southern and Eastern Europe. Moving beyond questions of radical transformation and irreversible political change, the concept of ‘everyday revolutions’ problematizes the overlooked revolutionary potential of small-scale resistance, grassroots mobilisation, counter-culture, liberation movements, and alternative provisioning, among others.
These phenomena direct attention to the challenges faced by the ‘edges of Europe’. From deindustrialization to corruption, and from to authoritarianism to welfare retraction, the Southern and Eastern peripheries of the European project are currently troubled by profound social, economic, and political challenges. The diverse manners by which actors signify, cope with, and react against these everyday struggles are revealing. People’s struggles for wellbeing, equality, and dignity materialise in ideological critique, intimate investment, and tenacious action.
Engaging a wide range of social causes, the multivalent concept of ‘everyday revolution’ materializes in sight, sound, and movement. It manifests in struggles against homelessness and deprivation, and combats nationalism and xenophobia. It finds expression in music, literature, and film. It resonates in civic engagement, youth culture, and pastime. Finally, it realizes in remembrance, imagination, and desire.
This event will feature conventional academic papers, discussions, films and interactive workshops for adults and children.
The event will be enriched by keynote lecture by Professor Davina Cooper, author of recently published ‘Everyday Utopias’, who will speak on 'What good is playing at being a state?' on Friday 19 May at 4pm at the Whitworth Art Gallery.
This event has been generously co-supported by the Whitworth Art Gallery, The Sociological Review Foundation, British Association for Slavic an East European Studies, Artsmethods@Manchester and Manchester Jean Monet Centre for Excellence.
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To mark the centenary of the 1917 Revolution we are holding an interdisciplinary conference on th... more To mark the centenary of the 1917 Revolution we are holding an interdisciplinary conference on the theme of Everyday Revolutions in Southern and Eastern Europe. Rather than treating revolution as a one off or irreversible political change, the event will investigate the revolutionary potential of often-overlooked mobilisations, movements, acts, actions, and practices. Moving beyond ideas of popular protest and social movement activism, it will focus on phenomena which could be dubbed 'everyday revolutions', including but not limited to: 'slow protest', small-scale resistance, counter-culture, liberation movements, individual acts and actions. The regional focus on Southern and Eastern Europe will highlight areas on the periphery of the European project which face many of the same challenges. The conference will shed new light on the responses to these challenges. This perspective on social, economic, political, and cultural problems will allow better understanding of everyday ways of coping with, and reacting against, new political-economic situations on the 'edges of Europe', both inside and outside the EU. It will help reflect not just on the areas in question, but more broadly on contemporary meanings of Europe and its borders. We welcome contributions from across disciplines relating to any area of 'everyday revolutions'. Examples might include responses to austerity, civil society and NGOs, informal organisations and collectives, parallel organisations (including currencies), trans-border activist co-operations, artivism, digital and sexual revolutions, and post-capitalism. Proposals are encouraged for conventional papers/panels but also interactive workshops (musical, visual and other), workshops open to the public, workshops for children, films, slide-shows and other visual installations. As the event will be held at the Whitworth Art Gallery, proposals are especially welcomed for talks or workshops which engage with particular pieces – fine art, sculptures, textiles, wallpapers, etc. – from the Whitworth's collection (which can be consulted here: http://gallerysearch.ds.man.ac.uk). The deadline for applications is 20.12.2016. Please send to everydayrevolutions@manchester.ac.uk proposals including: Name & affiliation (if any), title of contribution, type of contribution (paper, film, workshop, workshop for children, etc.), abstract (max. 350 words) including explanation of your contribution's relevance for the topic. Proposals for panels of 3-4 papers or jointly led workshops are also welcome.
Call for papers, deadline: 16 December 2016 To mark the centenary of the 1917 Revolution we are ... more Call for papers, deadline: 16 December 2016
To mark the centenary of the 1917 Revolution we are holding an interdisciplinary conference on the theme of Everyday Revolutions in Southern and Eastern Europe. Rather than treating revolution as a one off or irreversible political change, the event will investigate the revolutionary potential of often-overlooked mobilisations, movements, acts, actions, and practices. Moving beyond ideas of popular protest and social movement activism, it will focus on phenomena which could be dubbed 'everyday revolutions', including but not limited to:
• 'slow protest'
• small-scale resistance
• counter-culture
• liberation movements
• individual acts and actions.
The regional focus on Southern and Eastern Europe will highlight areas on the periphery of the European project which face many of the same challenges. The conference will shed new light on the responses to these challenges. This perspective on social, economic, political, and cultural problems will allow better understanding of everyday ways of coping with, and reacting against, new political-economic situations on the 'edges of Europe', both inside and outside the EU. It will help reflect not just on the areas in question, but more broadly on contemporary meanings of Europe and its borders. We welcome contributions from across disciplines relating to any area of 'everyday revolutions'. Examples might include responses to austerity, civil society and NGOs, informal organisations and collectives, parallel organisations (including currencies), trans-border activist co-operations, artivism, digital and sexual revolutions, and post-capitalism. Proposals are encouraged for conventional papers/panels but also interactive workshops (musical, visual and other), workshops open to the public, workshops for children, films, slide-shows and other visual installations. As the event will be held at the Whitworth Art Gallery, proposals are especially welcomed for talks or workshops which engage with particular pieces – fine art, sculptures, textiles, wallpapers, etc. – from the Whitworth's collection (which can be consulted here: http://gallerysearch.ds.man.ac.uk).
The deadline for applications is 16.12.2016. Please send to everydayrevolutions@manchester.ac.uk proposals including:
Name & affiliation (if any)
Title of contribution
Type of contribution (paper, film, workshop, workshop for children, etc.)
Abstract (max. 350 words), including explanation of your contribution's relevance for the topic.
Proposals for panels of 3-4 papers or jointly led workshops are also welcome.
2nd year undergraduate course taught at the University of Manchester
![Research paper thumbnail of Political Discrimination of the Rroma [Roma] in the European Union](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/1904260/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](![Research paper thumbnail of Wizerunek kobiety w filozofii Platona [Image of Women in the Philosophy of Plato]](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/63008133/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](Plato, one of the world’s most important philosophers, is notable for asserting, in the 4th centu... more Plato, one of the world’s most important philosophers, is notable for asserting, in the 4th century BCE, that there is no reason why women should be treated differently than men by law, that they should have the same access to education as men and, finally, that they should have the same opportunity to govern. This may encourage the belief that Plato was ‘the first feminist’. However, in his texts one can also find elements which sound much less feminist or at times outright sexist: the story of the transmigration of souls in Timaeus, for instance, portrays the female body as a punishment for cowardly and unrighteous men.
This book looks at these seemingly contradictory elements of Plato’s philosophy and argues that not only can Plato’s thought be considered ‘proto-feminist’ but also that it is coherent in respect to the ‘image of women’ presented in his work. This conclusion is developed throughout the book’s two parts. The first part outlines three main traditions which, would have been likely to have shaped the image of women in Plato’s works. These were: the high social status of women in pre-Homeric times, associated particularly with the worship of female fertility and, related to this, the worship of female laughter; the very low status of women in Athens in the times of Plato, manifested in the denial to women of what we would consider basic rights, such as the right of property or the right to unimpeded social intercourse; and, in contrast to Athens, the relatively high status of women in Sparta – a polis known to inspire Plato.
The book’s second part is a systematised polemic – for, and against – Plato’s feminism, based on an analysis of The Republic, Laws, Timaeus, and Symposium. Passages where Plato discusses issues concerning women — their nature, rights and roles — are analysed and compared, alongside those where women are unexpectedly absent or which could be seen as misogynist because of their language. This analysis is juxtaposed with the socio-historical background of Plato’s philosophy to confirm the book’s main thesis: that in respect to the image of women, Plato’s philosophy is both coherent and, overall, pro-feminist.
The book concludes with a list of examples of the postulates of Plato that have been implemented in various places in the twentieth century. These include ones we see as positive, such as women’s participation in politics, and those which most people condemn, such as eugenics. Whatever our judgement, these appropriations show that Plato’s project was not a mere utopia and that its echoes are present in today’s reality.
ZOiS Spotlight, 2020
Am 22. Oktober 2020 hat der umstrittene neue Verfassungsgerichtshof Polens, dessen Mitglieder von... more Am 22. Oktober 2020 hat der umstrittene neue Verfassungsgerichtshof Polens, dessen Mitglieder von der rechtskonservativen Regierungspartei „Recht und Gerechtigkeit“ (PiS) ernannt wurden, Abtreibung in nahezu allen Fällen verboten. Auf die Entscheidung folgten sofort landesweite Proteste und Streiks. Den hunderttausenden protestierenden Frauen schloss sich eine Vielzahl von Unterstützer*innen an, darunter Mitarbeiter*innen des öffentlichen Nahverkehrs, Bergarbeiter*innen und Landwirt*innen. Am 30. Oktober wurde die Hauptstadt Warschau von den größten Demonstrationen lahmgelegt, die das Land in den letzten Jahrzehnten erlebt hat.
Während die Covid-19-Pandemie einen weltweiten Gesundheitsnotstand ausgelöst hat, entwickelt sich mit dem nahezu vollständigen Verbot von Abtreibungen in Polen eine zusätzliche öffentliche Gesundheitskrise. Obwohl die Covid-19-Fallzahlen in Polen sprunghaft ansteigen, gehen die täglichen Demonstrationen gegen die Regierung weiter. Die meisten finden draußen statt, abgesehen von einigen Protesten, die in Kirchen abgehalten werden. Drei Stichworte können dabei helfen, die Dynamik dieses politisches Aufruhrs zu erklären: Wypierdalać, Kirchenaustritt und Berlin.
ZOiS Spotlight, 2020
On 22 October, Poland’s disputed new Constitutional Tribunal, whose members were appointed by Law... more On 22 October, Poland’s disputed new Constitutional Tribunal, whose members were appointed by Law and Justice (PiS), the country’s ruling right-wing party, banned nearly all abortions. This decision instantly sparked protests and strikes across Poland. Hundreds of thousands of women were joined by various supporters, including public transport workers, miners, and farmers. On 30 October, the largest demonstrations in decades paralysed the capital city of Warsaw.
While the Covid-19 pandemic poses a global medical emergency, a near-total ban on abortions represents another healthcare crisis that is unfolding in Poland. Despite a surge in Covid-19 cases in the country, mass anti-government protests continue every day. Most take place outdoors, except those in churches. Three keywords help explain the dynamics of this political upheaval: Wypierdalać, apostasy, and Berlin.
In: 'Cartographies of Difference: Interdisciplinary perspectives on Living with Difference,&#... more In: 'Cartographies of Difference: Interdisciplinary perspectives on Living with Difference,' ed. by Ulrike Vieten & Gill Valentine (Peter Lang, March 2016)
![Research paper thumbnail of Wpływy Orientalne w Muzyce Żydów Aszkenazyjskich [The Oriental Influence in the Music of Ashkenazi Jews]](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/67914989/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](Vade Noviscum, 2010
Cite as: Goldstein, Izabella, and Piotr Goldstein. “Wpływy Orientalne w Muzyce Żydów Aszkenazyjs... more Cite as:
Goldstein, Izabella, and Piotr Goldstein. “Wpływy Orientalne w Muzyce Żydów Aszkenazyjskich.” Vade Nobiscum 4 (2010).
ZOiS Report, 2022
Young people have experienced profound changes in the way Polish national identity is expressed i... more Young people have experienced profound changes in the way Polish national identity is expressed in public since the conservative Law and Justice Party (PiS) gained far-reaching control of Polish politics in 2015. This report examines young people’s political attitudes in conjunction with their views on the arrival of over two million refugees from Ukraine in 2022, and their views on those refugees who have been trying to get into the EU through the Polish- Belarusian border since 2021. Views on both events allow us to better understand young people’s sense of Polishness. Moreover, opinions on national history are central to understandings of identity, as are young people’s perceptions of Poland’s place in Europe.
The fears and uncertainties young Poles express are analysed in an original online survey conducted in March 2022 among 2 002 respondents aged 16–34, combined with insights from focus group discussions conducted in May 2022 among a set of young participants and participants aged 65 and older in the cities of Gdańsk and Lublin. Such a combination of methodologies allows unique insights into the reasoning behind the patterns that a survey can identify.
2019, 30 min. A documentary on a refugee from Kosovo making his life in Novi Sad (Serbia).