William Pencak Livres

Derek Jarman's films delve into the complexities of same-sex love and self-expression across different historical periods, from ancient Egypt to modern times. His cinematic exploration reveals a millennium marked by sexual repression and the struggle for liberation. Through his work, Jarman highlights the significant influence of homoerotic passions on Western civilization, impacting various domains such as religion, art, politics, philosophy, and warfare.

Focusing on the intersection of visual imagery and legal interpretation, this volume explores how images shape our understanding and application of the law, revealing insights that written texts alone cannot provide. It presents diverse perspectives on legal theory and practice, highlighting the often-overlooked impact of visual representations in the legal field.

From Absurdity to Zen is the first published introduction to the thought of Roberta Kevelson (1931-1998), late Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at The Pennsylvania State University and a leading semiotician and scholar of Charles S. Peirce. It also includes a selection of the sparkling aphorisms with which she punctuated her many books and articles, «From Absurdity to Zen», as well as an interview with Professor Kevelson from November 1996. Chance, paradox, and human freedom lay at the core of her wide-ranging scholarship on law, aesthetics, pragmatism, and creativity.

Does the law act for or against "the people"? Who are "the people"? This collection of essays by philosophers, historians, legal scholars, and others examines these questions in historical perspective; in law and literature; in contemporary, advanced, and developing societies; and with respect to gender and economics. What "the law" does and ought to represent is viewed semiotically as a problem admitting of no definitive answer.

This collection, an exploration of new approaches to semiotics and the human sciences, includes essays by John Brigham, Denis Brion, Marcel Danesi, John Deely, Rolando Gaete, Robert Ginsberg, Bernard S. Jackson, Roberta Kevelson, Robin Paul Malloy, William Pencak, Paul Ryan, W. T. Scott and H. O'Donnell, Thomas A. Sebeok, and Willem Witteveen. Essays concentrate on law and justice in contemporary America (alternatives to courts, judicial practice, Simpson trial, pornography), historical perspectives ( Lex talionis , the image of justice, play, song, and revolution), and semiotic theory (selfhood, grammar, and perception).

We are not born into a world. We create one from an infinity of possible worlds. The critic of institutions makes us aware of this. The seventeen essays in this volume comprise investigations into religious, philosophical, racial, gendered, literary, legal, federalist, class-based, historical, and scientific worldmaking. They semiotically inquire into the diverse contexts and contents of worldmaking which define the collective adventure of humanity.