Disturbed by these acrimonious arguments, the authors - former colleagues and university-press board members - embarked on an ambitious project to reexamine a number of major literary and philosophical works dealing with the liberal arts and education. With their discussions ranging from Plato to Rousseau, from Cicero to Vico, from Erasmus to Matthew Arnold, Sousa and Weinsheimer offer not a history of education philosophy but an examination of the present.

Quillard tem sido um artista frequentemente esquecido pela nossa historiografia, apesar de Portugal ter exercido uma importância considerável no desenvolvimento da sua carreira. Depois de um período de estreita aproximação ao estilo de Watteau, será aqui que o artista parisiense dará início a um novo estilo, mais maduro, e a novas temáticas na sua obra, tanto na Pintura como na Gravura, mormente no desenvolvimento da arte do Retrato, na temática religiosa, histórica e alegórica, mais de acordo com o gosto e (...) o mercado nacional. As referências da época dão-nos testemunho do grande apreço e estima que gozou entre colegas e clientes, e o rol das colecções onde a sua obra se encontrava figurada, é por si bastante representativa do agrado e da popularidade que ela tinha adquirido, sobretudo entre a alta aristocracia, apesar da estética oficial joanina considerar como inferior aquele género temático. Um dos aspectos mais significativos da sua obra foi precisamente o seu trabalho como gravador, e ilustrador de obras, actividade que desenvolveu em larga medida, apesar da concorrência dos gravadores da Real Academia de História, fundada por D. João V em 1720. (shrink)

By Portuguese myths we mean several kinds of narratives, all of which actualize fundamental aspects of the Portuguese national imagination. Some are foundation narratives (Sâo Mamede, Ourique); others are historical facts that were sung so often over the years by Portuguese and foreign poets that they came to signify basic schemes of the human imagination (Inês de Castro's pure love, whose realization was frustrated by a fight between two men, father and son); other so-called Portuguese myths, (...) on the contrary, are built around concepts that give metaphysical shape to supposed characteristics that define the national soul (saudosismo, the doctrine of nostalgia, which attempts to define the Portuguese national soul as the search for a mythical initial unity that would create a wholeness in which contraries would be abolished; the Fifth Empire as its realization on Earth); other Portuguese myths express the supposed divine predestination of the people and of the Portuguese Man, based upon divine intervention in the founding of the nation in Ourique (the Fifth Empire that would be the Age of Spirit announced by Joachim de Fiore); still others are based on historically negative facts (King Sebastian and the defeat at Alcazarquibir) but transformed through archetypal elements to show the capacity for renewal out of the defeat, a renewal that goes beyond real historical renewal to include spiritual renewal of the Portuguese Man and his fatherland, which should produce the Fifth Empire conceived either in earthly or spiritual terms. To these myths I will add a legend preceding the formation of the nation, King Roderick's Legend, because it attempts to justify the loss of Visigothic Spain to the Arabs. (shrink)

This paper focuses on the contributions to natural history, particularly in methods of plant classification of the Portuguese botanist, man of letters, diplomat, and Freemason Abbé José Correia da Serra (1751-1823), placing them in their national and international political and social contexts. Correia da Serra adopted the natural method of classification championed by the Frenchman Antoine-Laurent de Jussieu, and introduced refinements of his own that owe much to parallel developments in zoology. He endorsed the view that the classification of (...) plants should be based on the establishment of affinities rather than of differences. The emphasis on affinities went hand in hand with the development of the concept of symmetry. This idea was introduced by Correia da Serra in systematics and was adopted and further developed by his friend, Augustin-Pyramus de Candolle. Correia da Serra also argued that Cryptogamia reproduce sexually, advocated extension of methods of comparative anatomy from zoology to botany, and applied them to the study of fruits. Correia da Serra was one among many of the estrangeirados, Portuguese "Europeanized" intellectuals who traveled extensively abroad in most cases to escape political or religious persecution at home. The estrangeirados were important contributors to 18th and 19th century European thinking. Most of the estrangeirados were pivotal in the introduction, dissemination and propagation of the new sciences in Portugal, but unlike most of his fellow estrangeirados, Correia da Serra was also an innovative man of science in his own right. (shrink)

By Portuguese myths we mean several kinds of narratives, all of which actualize fundamental aspects of the Portuguese national imagination. Some are foundation narratives (Sâo Mamede, Ourique); others are historical facts that were sung so often over the years by Portuguese and foreign poets that they came to signify basic schemes of the human imagination (Inês de Castro's pure love, whose realization was frustrated by a fight between two men, father and son); other so-called Portuguese myths, (...) on the contrary, are built around concepts that give metaphysical shape to supposed characteristics that define the national soul (saudosismo, the doctrine of nostalgia, which attempts to define the Portuguese national soul as the search for a mythical initial unity that would create a wholeness in which contraries would be abolished; the Fifth Empire as its realization on Earth); other Portuguese myths express the supposed divine predestination of the people and of the Portuguese Man, based upon divine intervention in the founding of the nation in Ourique (the Fifth Empire that would be the Age of Spirit announced by Joachim de Fiore); still others are based on historically negative facts (King Sebastian and the defeat at Alcazarquibir) but transformed through archetypal elements to show the capacity for renewal out of the defeat, a renewal that goes beyond real historical renewal to include spiritual renewal of the Portuguese Man and his fatherland, which should produce the Fifth Empire conceived either in earthly or spiritual terms. To these myths I will add a legend preceding the formation of the nation, King Roderick's Legend, because it attempts to justify the loss of Visigothic Spain to the Arabs. (shrink)

This volume is a collection of essays of a philosophical nature on the subject of technology, introducing authors from the Portuguese-speaking community, namely from Portugal itself, Africa and Brazil. Their contributions detail a unique perspective on technology, placing this important topic within the historical, ideological and social contexts of their countries, all of which share a common language. The shared history of these countries and the cultural and economic specificities of each one have stimulated singular insights into these thinkers’ (...) reflections. The essays are thematically diverse. Among the topics covered are technogenic knowledge, visions of technology, risks and uncertainties, mediatization, digitalization, and datafication, engineering practice and ethics, alternative technoscientific strategies, ontotechnologies of the body, virtual and archive. The contributions also explore other themes that are more closely related to the semi-peripheral world, such as technological dependence and the incorporation of Western technology into the social structure of ancestral communities. This book appeals to students and researchers and provides a voice to authors whose work are not usually available in English-language publications. It serves as an ideal guide for all those who seek rigorous and geographically widespread knowledge regarding thinking on technology in several Portuguese-speaking countries. (shrink)

Portugal ranks fourth among countries with the highest rate of overweight population, considering that 67.6% of the Portuguese population over the age of 15 is overweight or obese. To our knowledge, limited studies have investigated students’ attitudes toward physical education in Portugal. Such research is necessary because it can provide valuable insights for policy and application in the curriculum development for physical education, which may eventually increase participation in physical and sports activities. This study analyzed students’ attitudes toward physical (...) education (PE) according to sociodemographic variables, including grade level, socioeconomic status, and gender, and their participation in extracurricular sports activities and respective PE grades. The sample comprised 476 high school students (from the 7th, 8th, and 9th-grade levels) from five public schools located in Portugal. The Students’ Attitudes toward Physical Education Questionnaire was adapted and validated for use with Portuguese students as a two-factor model. Findings show that students generally have a moderately positive attitude toward PE. However, students’ positive attitudes tend to decrease throughout high school, which is particularly significant in the 9th grade. Furthermore, students’ attitudes are influenced by gender, extracurricular sports practice, and grades. These findings may help stakeholders reflect on how to frame PE in a more meaningful way to create a solid foundation for maintaining an active lifestyle throughout life. Implications for further research and practice are discussed. (shrink)

ArgumentThis paper analyses a process of co-construction of knowledge and its multiple forms of communication in a country of the European periphery in the early twentieth century. It focuses on Lieutenant Manuel Soares de Melo e Simas, a politically engaged Portuguese astronomer, who moved from amateur to professional during the political transition from the monarchy to the republic. Melo e Simas paralleled his professional career in continuous activity of communicating science to the public in the context of republicanism in (...) a double way, by responding to the agenda of republicanism and by playing an active role in shaping it. He aimed at educating lay audiences in the various ways of astronomy, and he reached out to as many people as possible by exploring a multitude of communication channels, from lectures to articles in newspapers and journals. Voiced often within newly created republican institutions, the praxis and the ideas of Melo e Simas helped to mold the new republican scientific ethos. By going beyond mere emphasis on scientism and positivism, usually taken to be the defining characteristics of the new republican ethos, this paper argues that science and the specificities of its multiple forms of communication were central to the way Melo e Simas shaped the republican ideology. Furthermore, popularization of science was used to legitimize the status of professional scientists at the same time that it helped reinforce their institutional setting, still to be negotiated in the forthcoming decades through a complex process which deserves further historical analysis. (shrink)

This study analyzes Portuguese seniors’ Internet activity and determine their reasons, benefits, and motivations for web use as well as the obstacles faced by non-users. Results were derived from a questionnaire completed by 189 seniors enrolled in universities for seniors. 68.1% defined themselves as Internet users. The seniors asked principally go online to check e-mail and gather information. They state that the Internet is useful, helps them to stay up-to-date, and to preserve relationships. Non-user status is not attributed to (...) old age or health reasons. According to the technology acceptance model, ease of use and perception of utility were related to both Internet use and its intensity of use. Family influence also played a key role. Gender differences were not found in Internet use, intensity of use, or in use motivations. (shrink)

To the contemporary critic, the question of whether Raphael Hythloday really existed is no doubt preposterous. We all know that he never existed and that his name indicates the tension Thomas More wanted to create between a messenger of God, and thus the conveyer of truth, and a nonsensical storyteller. However, the Portuguese historian Luís de Matos published widely, in the 1960s and the 1970s, on the topic. And his monumental work L’Expansion Portugaise dans la Littérature Latine de La (...) Renaissance testifies to a life of academic research partly devoted to trying to prove... (shrink)

Este artigo apresenta e comenta três dezenas de casos de utilização das armas portuguesas nas portadas de livros quatrocentistas e quinhentistas. Esta utilização enquadra-se no âmbito da heráldica tipográfica, com força expressiva equivalente à dos símbolos pessoais ou familiares, quase sempre porque editores, impressores ou livreiros entendiam que o escudo nacional dignificava sobremaneira o seu trabalho.

Este texto situa-se no domínio da História das Ideias e aborda como temática principal o pensamento de Oliveira Martins sobre o Homem negro e a escravatura. As fontes primárias privilegiadas foram os documentos escritos do pensador, escolhidos pela sua representatividade quanto ao ideário em causa, a par de historiografia sobre a temática visada, que é muito vasta em termos biográficos e parcelares. Para o estudo das ideias do autor utilizámos metodologias e técnicas de análise interdisciplinares. A contextualização histórica, como ponto (...) prévio à abordagem do tema central do trabalho, é delineada a partir de uma breve caracterização das diversas conjunturas económicas, políticas e sociais da época, uma vez que as ideias não têm validade absoluta, fora do tempo e do espaço em que são geradas. Procurou-se expor e analisar a coerência entre as ideias de Oliveira Martins acerca da História, da Sociedade, da Nação e do Estado e as suas concepções antropológicas e rácicas; por fim, os seus conceitos sobre a impossibilidade de “civilizar” o Homem negro e sobre a escravatura. (shrink)