The Error of Wanting to Overturn the Hourglass: How the Heidegger-Severino Relationship Arose

The international conference All'alba dell'eternità : I primi 60 anni de "La struttura originaria"  (60SO) [At the dawn of eternity: The first 60 years of "The primal structure"] had just concluded. The event had achieved the desired effect, and the feedback in the media and on the web was extremely positive. Severino did not need to attract attention or create situations that would focus on him, but the opposite was true, i.e. it was those who deeply knew "his discourse" and had studied his texts who needed to discuss what they had understood. Nobody knew that Severino would leave us a year-and-a-half later, but among these same scholars, the desire to not waste any more time was intense

The COVID-19 Pandemic Between Bio-Ethics, Bio-Law and Bio-Politics: A Case Study on The Italian Experience of The DuPre Commission

The aim of this qualitative study was to consider the question of whether the Italian political management of the pandemic respected the European bio-ethical and bio-juridical approaches in light of the principles of autonomy, dignity, integrity and vulnerability. As no specific consolidated literature exists on the subject, the Italian situation was taken into consideration, specifically the work of a spontaneous commission (DuPre) that collected the reflections of academics and researchers interested in discussing political decisions for the management of the emergency, which was the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The analysis took into account the contributions of scholars during two conferences (without proceedings), which were transcribed and examined. From the texts processed with a thematic analysis, three main themes emerged: ‘pandemic as a state of exception, sovereignty and crisis of democracy’, ‘the value of doubt and refutation’ and ‘elimination of informed consent between persuasion and blackmail’. In this paper, the final bio-political considerations on the European approach and the management of the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy are presented

Online reverse discourses? Claiming a space for trans voices

In recent years, online media have offered to trans people helpful resources to create new political, cultural and personal representations of their biographies. However, the role of these media in the construction of their social and personal identities has seldom been addressed. Drawing on the theoretical standpoint of positioning theory and diatextual discourse analysis, this paper discusses the results of a research project about weblogs created by Italian trans women. In particular, the aim of this study was to describe the ways online resources are used to express different definitions and interpretation of transgenderism, transsexuality and gender transitioning. We identified four main positioning strategies: \u201cTransgender\u201d, \u201cTranssexual before being a woman\u201d, \u201cA woman who was born male\u201d and \u201cJust a normal woman\u201d. We conclude with the political implications of the pluralization of narratives about gender non-conformity. Specifically, we will highlight how aspects of neoliberal discourses have been appropriated and rearticulated in the construction of gendered subjectivities

Pet Loss and Representations of Death, Attachment, Depression, and Euthanasia

T Studies that have examined pet loss hypothesize that attachment, representations of death, and the belief in an afterlife for animals may influence owners\u2019 bereavement and depressive outcomes. The following instruments were administered to 159 Italian participants recruited through snowball sampling: the Lexington Attachment to Pets Scale (LAPS), the Pet Bereavement Questionnaire (PBQ), the Testoni Death Representation Scale (TDRS), and Beck\u2019s Depression Inventory II (BDI-II). Questions concerning pet euthanasia-related issues and the relationship between owners and veterinarians were also submitted to the participants. A path model was conducted, showing that the representation of death and the attachment to a pet had a direct effect on pet grief, which in turn had a direct effect on depression. The results show a positive correlation between the LAPS and PBQ factors, particularly with the PBQ factor Grief. The LAPS factors positively correlated with the TDRS representation of Death as a Passage and negatively correlated with the TDRS representation of Death as Annihilation. The LAPS People Substituting factor positively correlated with the total score and the CognitiveAffective factor of the BDI-II. The PBQ factors positively correlated with the BDI-II, whereas only the TDRS Death as Annihilation factor positively correlated with the BDI-II. Belief in a transcendent dimension was associated with higher scores on the PBQ Guilt factor and the TDRS factors of Death as a Passage and Death as Change, whereas these beliefs were associated with lower scores on the TDRS factor Death as Annihilation. The results indicated that the sensitivity of the veterinarian and a veterinarian who helps owners make conscious and informed decisions for their pet and choose the right time to perform euthanasia are important variables in the management of pet loss. However, these factors are not sufficient and psychological support should be improved to help owners better cope with grief

The Other Side of Italian Thought:Emanuele Severino

Contemporary Italian philosophy has become recognized internationally as a distinct tradition, often associated with a post-Foucauldian notion of biopolitics and essayistic forms enabling a quick reaction to the affairs of the day yet without compromising the systematic ambitions of philosophical thought. But Emanuele Severino (1929–2020) shows a radically different side of Italian philosophy: unabashedly metaphysical, uncompromisingly Parmenidean, and increasingly recognized as one of the most remarkable and challenging thinkers of the twentieth century — in the words of Italian philosopher Massimo Cacciari, the only alternative to Martin Heidegger. Over the course of six decades, from La struttura originaria (1958) to Testimoniando il destino (2019), Severino developed a most original and untimely philosophical project, which attempts to think the relationship between nihilism and the tradition of the West, the incontrovertibility of the truth of being, the contradiction of becoming, the eternity of all beings. Severino came to refer to his work as to ‘the language that testifies to destiny’, namely a testimony to the eternal and necessary structure of the appearing and disappearing of the eternal beings — the ‘destiny of necessity’ (Destino della necessità, 1980). The symposium The Other Side of Italian Thought: Emanuele Severino aims to introduce the principal axes along which Severino’s thought can be unfolded to an international audience. The symposium thus joins an increasing number of international projects of the last few years: the first edited translation into English of one of Severino’s most important works, The Essence of Nihilism (2016, A. Carrera and I. Testoni, eds), the foundation of an international journal dedicated to Severino’s thought, Eternity &amp; Contradiction: Journal of Fundamental Ontology (G. Goggi, ed.), as well as the forthcoming English translations of Severino’s Law and Chance (Legge e caso, 1979) and Beyond Language (Oltre il linguaggio, 1992) (trans. D. Sacco).The Other Side of Italian Thought: Emanuele Severino, symposium, ICI Berlin, 20 January 2022 <https://doi.org/10.25620/e220120

La gestión del aborto voluntario en los servicios de orientación familiar. Estudio cualitativo sobre el papel de los trabajadores sociales en Italia

Introduction. Elective abortion has always been considered taboo. The event can sometimes be experienced as traumatic, as the woman finds herself struggling against a range of emotions: fear, shame, ambivalence, and a sense of guilt. Multidisciplinary support is therefore fundamental to guide women during this complex phase, and social workers usually play a key role in the process. The present study aimed therefore to explore the experiences and perspectives of social workers who worked with women who decided to have abortions, focusing on the strongest and weakest aspects of their support process. Methodology. The study involved 10 social workers working in family counselling services in Italy. All of them were female, with a mean age of 47 years, and a mean of 16.7 years of experience in the field. The study followed a qualitative approach, based on semi-structured interviews that were studied following the principles of thematic analysis. Results. Three fundamental themes emerged from the data analysis: «Limits of the family counselling procedures and organization»; «The emotional dimension of elective abortion»; and «The issue of conscientious objectors». Discussion. The study highlighted how family counselling services are facing a crisis due to the lack of resources, personnel, and projects allowing for women’s proper sexual education and support. It also showed how the social worker’s role, which is fundamental, has instead been reduced, especially regarding elective abortions. Moreover, there was a lack of social and sanitary contexts integration and professional training that would provide the operators with specific skills and make them feel prepared to address such delicate situations. Conclusions. The need has emerged for a new, multidisciplinary perspective on the issue of voluntary interruption of pregnancy and social workers play a major role. However, the support system still presents many shortcomings for the women in need of assistance. The present study offers innovative and practical suggestions to properly fill these gaps.Introducción. El aborto voluntario siempre ha sido considerado tabú, y es una experiencia que a veces puede resultar traumática para la mujer, que se enfrenta a emociones cargadas de muchos matices: miedo, vergüenza, ambivalencia y un sentido de culpa. Por este motivo, es fundamental que, en este momento complejo, exista un apoyo multidisciplinar para guiar a la mujer, y los trabajadores sociales suelen desempeñar un papel fundamental en él. Por ello, el presente estudio tiene por objeto explorar las experiencias y perspectivas de los trabajadores sociales que trabajaron con mujeres que decidieron someterse a abortos voluntarios, centrándose en los aspectos más fuertes y débiles del proceso de apoyo que ofrecieron a estas mujeres. Metodología. En el estudio participaron 10 trabajadoras sociales que trabajaban en servicios de orientación familiar en Italia. Todos ellos eran mujeres, con una edad media de 47 años y una media de 16,7 años de experiencia en el campo. El estudio se basó en un enfoque cualitativo, a través de entrevistas semiestructuradas que se han analizado siguiendo los principios del análisis temático. Resultados. A partir del análisis de los datos, han identificado tres áreas temáticas fundamentales: «límites de los procedimientos y de la organización del asesoramiento familiar», «dimensión emocional del aborto electivo» y «la cuestión de los objetores de conciencia». Discusión. El estudio destacó el hecho de que los servicios de orientación familiar se enfrentan a una crisis debido a la falta de recursos, personal y proyectos destinados a asegurar una buena educación sexual y a apoyar adecuadamente a las mujeres; que el papel del trabajador social, que es fundamental, se ha vuelto más débil, especialmente con respecto a este procedimiento; y que son insuficientes la integración entre los contextos sociales y sanitarios así como una formación profesional capaz de ofrecer a los operadores unas habilidades específicas, que les ayuden a sentirse preparados en una situación tan delicada y difícil. Conclusiones. Ha surgido la necesidad de una nueva perspectiva multidisciplinaria sobre la cuestión de la interrupción voluntaria del embarazo, y la importancia del papel de los trabajadores sociales. Sin embargo, todavía existen muchas deficiencias en el sistema de apoyo para las mujeres que lo necesitan. La presente investigación ofrece algunas sugerencias prácticas e innovadoras para llenar adecuadamente esas lagunas

Necronym: the effects of bearing a dead little sibling’s name

This study analyses the emotional experiences of people who bear the necronym of a deceased sibling in order to describe the 5 possible psychological implications of this experience. Using the grounded theory approach in interviews with 22 Italian participants and qualitative analysis of resulting texts, we found that some of the main themes that emerged confirmed the figure of the ‘replacement child’ described by previous literature. The three 10 fundamental themes were: ‘complicated grief, removal and fear of death’; ‘identity problems related to the necronym’; and ‘sad gratitude’. The study highlights some existential difficulties that spring from this experience and, after reviewing these themes in detail, we present a brief discussion on whether to dissuade 15 bereaved parents from naming a new child with the necronym of a deceased child

\u201cSono serva del Signore\u201d o \u201cL\u2019utero \ue8 mio\u201d? Prospettive a confronto.

Il pensiero femminista, fin dalle sue origini, \ue8 sempre stato ostacolato da retoriche politiche, religiose e sociali reazionarie fermamente intenzionate a mantenere una narrazione egemone dei ruoli di genere. In contrapposizione alla creazione e al mantenimento di rigidi modelli basati su ideologie e teorizzazioni che vorrebbero la donna \u201cmoglie, madre e angelo del focolare\u201d, \ue8 emersa anche una particolare forma di pensiero femminista, di matrice fortemente essenzialista, nota come pensiero della differenza sessuale. Il pensiero della differenza sessuale, teorizzato dalla filosofa e psicoanalista Luce Irigaray (1985), e che annovera Luisa Muraro e Adriana Cavarero (1987) tra le sue massime esponenti italiane, trova elementi di conciliazione tra il pensiero femminista e il credo cristiano cattolico, generalmente separati in maniera radicale. Con questa ricerca abbiamo voluto esplorare le tematiche della corporeit\ue0, della fede e della concezione del femminismo in catechiste e femministe, per avviare un dibattito su quelli che sono gli attuali posizionamenti delle rappresentanti delle due parti in analisi

Courage and representations of death in patients who are waiting for a liver transplantation

Context: In the last decade, a wide literature has highlighted the importance of religiosity as support of severe illnesses, especially the oncological ones, and in the end of life. In the field of the liver transplant there is a lack of similar research. This article aims to bridge this gap and presents an exploratory study on the relationships between fear of death, courage and religiosity among patients who wait for liver transplant. Method: Sixty-two participants awaiting a liver transplant were interviewed with regard to their quality of life, religiosity, ontological representations and fear of death, courage and fear of intervention, donor-related thoughts. The following instruments were utilized: a specific interview; the Short Form Health Survey (SF-36); the Testoni Death Representation Scale (TDRS) and the Courage Measure. Results: Patients reporting higher levels of fear for intervention showed less courage and were more likely to avoid the surgery. They also tended to be non-believers, to have a lower quality of life, and to represent death as an absolute annihilation. Conclusions: The less death was represented as a passage, the stronger the avoidance behaviour and the fear of transplant were. Since it is possible to develop a positive thought about death, the study underlined how the spiritual support could be useful to manage fear of transplantation

Addiction and religiosity in facing suicide: A qualitative study on meaning of life and death among homeless people

This qualitative research explores the relationship between religiosity, suicide thoughts and drug abuse among 55 homeless people, interviewed with interpretative phenomenological analysis. Analyzing the thematic structure of the participants\u2019 narrations, important main themes appeared in order to avoid suicide, among which family, the certainty of finding a solution and the will to live. However, the suicide ideation inheres in about 30% of participants, almost all believers, addicted and/or alcoholics. Results suggest that religiosity and meaning of death neither prevent from substances abuse and alcoholism, nor is a protective factor against suicide ideation. Meanings of life are the most important reasons for living, and when they are definitively considered unworkable, alcohol and drug help to endure life in the street. A specific model is discussed