Paradoxes i metàfores : reflexions sobre teoria i arts escèniques

Coeditat amb el Màster Oficial Interuniversitari d'Estudis Teatral

"Sereu pobres tota la vida ... ". Una lectura de llegendes menorquines

Il testo propone una lettura di un gruppo di narrazioni minorchine, chiamate "Ieggende", il cui tratto piu caratteristico e la loro conclusione comune: "Sarete poveri tutta la vita". L'analisi delle narrazioni, connettendo elemnti diversi, permette di vedere che queste storie, che si presemano sotto la forma di una prova (sfida) che un personaggio "Ieggendario" o misterioso pone ad un antagonista popolare ingenuo, in realta hanno come nucleo profondo il tema della - "paura", vecchio tema mitico, che probabilmente potrebbe essere interpretato come una manifestazione di antichi rituali di iniziazione, sebbene nella loro struttura attuale si accostino di piu alle tradizionali "favole morali"

Una proposta d'anàlisi de l'imaginari cultural del cos i de la corporalitat tòxica

Aquest article vol dibuixar una marc general de l'estructura de l'imaginari cultural del cos en la cultura occidental i, més concretament, algunes de les categories i metàfores que determinen la percepció social de la toxicitat corporal. La majoria de les reflexions exposades, en especial les referides a la toxicitat, són producte de debats i diàlegs mantinguts en el sí del del grup de recerca sobre corporalitat i toxicitat del Departament d’Antropologia Social i Cultural de la Universitat de Barcelona, que estan sent objecte de contrastació en l'anàlisi empírica dels discursos actuals sobre la toxicitat derivada de la contaminació, en general, i de la contaminació interna, en particular. Després d'explicar el concepte d'imaginari cultural, es plantegen algunes de les principals metàfores de l'imaginari del cos i s'analitzen les creences bàsiques sobre la toxicitat, en funció del seu suposat origen, extern o intern. Finalment es planteja una reflexió sobre els significats que els consumidors associen amb la disjuntiva eco (ecològic)/trans (transgènic) com a formulacions sintètiques sovint emprades en l’etiquetatge comercial d’aliments. Abstract This article offers a general framework for the structure of the cultural imaginary of the body in Western culture and, more specifically, some of the categories and metaphors that shape the social perception of body toxicity. Most of the ideas expressed here, especially those related to toxicity, emerged from discussion and debate among the members of the University of Barcelona Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology research group on corporality and toxicity, which is carrying out an empirical study comparing current discourses on toxicity resulting from chemical contamination in general and from internal contamination in particular. The concept of cultural imaginary facilitates identification of the principal metaphors of the body and analysis of basic beliefs about toxicity in terms of its assumed origins, both external and internal. Finally, the meanings consumers associate with the abbreviations eco (ecological) and trans (transgenic), frequently used commercially in food labeling, are explored. Key words: cultural imaginary, body imaginary, toxic corporality, Western cultur

Cuerpos tóxicos: la percepción del riesgo de la contaminación interna por compuestos químicos en España

Este artículo analiza la percepción social de la exposición humana a los compuestos químicos, y los discursos y las prácticas sobre las fronteras corporales ante la contaminación interna. A partir de una investigación cualitativa e interdisciplinar en Cataluña, se exploran los significados sociales que se atribuyen a los peligros y riesgos ambientales y alimentarios de los compuestos químicos que afectan a la salud humana y el lugar que el cuerpo ocupa en la producción de estos discursos. Entre junio y noviembre de 2011 se realizaron 43 entrevistas semiestructuradas a trabajadores con alguna conciencia sobre contaminantes químicos, en las que se profundizó cómo estas personas (re)interpretan los diferentes discursos existentes sobre la contaminación interna, sus percepciones sobre la introducción de compuestos químicos en el cuerpo y los peligros que estas sustancias representan para la salud.This article analyses the social perception of human exposure to chemical compounds and discourses and practices regarding bodily boundaries when faced with internal contamination. Based on qualitative and interdisciplinary research carried out in Catalonia, the social meanings attributed to the environmental and food dangers and risks related to chemical compounds that affect human health, and the place that the body takes in the production of these discourses, were explored. In order to do so, between June and November 2011, 43 semi-structured interviews with workers with some awareness of chemical contaminants were carried out, emphasizing how these people (re)interpret the different existing discourses about internal contamination as well as their perceptions regarding the introduction of chemical compounds into the body and the dangers that these substances pose to health

Body Representations of Internal Pollution: The Risk Perception of the Circulation of Environmental Contaminants in Pregnant and Breastfeeding Women in Spain

In this article, we analyze how pregnant and breastfeeding women perceive the inside of their bodies as well as their thoughts regarding the accumulation and elimination of chemical compounds present in food, and how these are then transmitted to the fetus. We explore different social perceptions of risk regarding the circulation of chemical compounds inside the body using qualitative research based on the technique of body mapping, comprised of women's figures of their bodies in combination with comments on the figures, food diaries and narratives from in-depth interviews. We examine how these 41 women (21 pregnant and 20 breastfeeding) perceive the body's internal mechanisms during the stages of pregnancy and breastfeeding, as well as the circulation of chemical contaminants within it. The body mapping technique allowed us to analyze participants' knowledge of internal pollution, a little-understood process in society. Thanks to these pregnant and breastfeeding women, who made an effort to represent and reflect on these new risks, this study shows that scientists and obstetricians need to collaborate with women in order to better understand and publicize the risks of internal pollution