Research
Origins of capoeira to be uncovered by research project
The influence of Angola on the celebrated Afro-Brazilian art form of
capoeira is being investigated by a major research project being led by
Dr Matthias Röhrig Assunção from the Department of History.
The project, made possible by a £367,000 grant from the Arts and
Humanities Research Council, will look into combat, dance, music, songs
and performance used in capoeira and their connections with surviving
Angolan traditions.
Dr Assunção will be leading a team including film maker Richard
Pakleppa, Angolan history specialist Dr Mariana Candido from Princeton
University and Mestre Cobra Mansa, founder and president of the
International Foundation of Capoeira Angola.
He said: 'We want this research to be collaborative. We are looking
to actively involve capoeira and Angolan traditional performers so we
can promote a dialogue between traditions that have not been in direct
contact for more than a century.
“By encouraging an exchange of ideas we hope to generate new insights
into Angolan and Afro-Brazilian practices and how they have changed and
influenced each other over time.'
The research will build on a pilot project undertaken by Dr Assunção
in 2006 with the support of the University’s Promotion Fund.
Alongside preparing articles for academic and non-academic journals,
the team will also be creating a documentary and DVD for broadcast on
Brazilian and Angolan television and developing an archive of material
for future generations of academics and capoeira practitioners.
Philosophers investigate what choices we
really have got
Real life moral and ethical dilemmas faced by doctors, lawyers and
social workers are being researched by philosophers from the University
of Essex as part of a major research project looking into the complex
ideas surrounding self-determination and personal autonomy.
The Essex Autonomy Project, financed by the UK Arts and Humanities
Research Council, was launched with a sequence of workshops in May led
by speakers from across the UK and beyond.
This will be followed-up by a major international conference from
September 4-5 at the Institute of Philosophy in London.
Over the next three years the project will tackle some of the most
vexing and emotive subjects facing modern society. Co-directors
Professor Wayne Martin and Dr Fabian Freyenhagen from the University’s
Philosophy Department will work alongside leading lawyers, clinical and
forensic psychiatrists, social welfare officers and public policy
experts.
The project will combine analysis of the different theories of self
determination with discussions of concrete practical cases.
Professor Martin said health professionals in particular were facing
huge challenges every day in deciding the right course of action for
patients or clients due to recent European and UK court cases and the
introduction of the Mental Capacity Act in 2005.
He said: 'They are hungry for resources to help them think through these
hard problems.
'A crucial element of our methodology is to bring together philosophers
working on the theory of autonomy and decision making with working
professionals in law, psychiatric medicine and social policy.'
Also in the printed June edition of Wyvern:
- Social mobility in England still lagging behind rest of the world
- Research fellowship helps build medical links
