Author: Splijtstof
-
The Expiration Date of Human Rights: Rights of the Living and the Dead
Introduction Mexico has been dealing with a forensic crisis for years. The crisis, which allegedly began in 2006 at the beginning of the war against drug trafficking, continues to worsen every year. More than 111,000 persons were registered missing in October 2023 in the interior ministry’s database, not including the many persons who went missing…
-
The Earth as Human Condition: Against Negative Worldbuilding in the Anthropocene
In this essay, we will use two thinkers that are not normally associated with debates surrounding the Anthropocene: Hannah Arendt and Achille Mbembe. Even though both of them are predominantly political thinkers, we think their ideas are a good avenue to explore when thinking about the Anthropocene. We aim to do three things within this…
-
Dress to Impress: Communicating Knowledge and Power Through Fashion
If he had not worn that borrowed blazer from Princeton University, Dickie Greenleaf would not be dead. In the movie The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Thomas Ripley fakes having attended Princeton to be accepted into the high society of New York. As part of his ruse, he flies out to Italy to visit Dickie Greenleaf,…
-
The (Un)freedom of Dutch Housing
In the Netherlands, there is a housing crisis. This fact has been so unanimously agreed upon that it even became one of the main spearpoints in the 2023 Dutch elections under the moniker of ‘bestaanszekerheid’, or security of living (NOS 2023). The main problems that make up this crisis are the scarcity of available housing…
-
Into the Mirror World
Naomi Klein’s new book, Doppelganger: A Trip Into the Mirror World (2023), begins with Klein sharing an incident on social media where she was mistaken for Naomi Wolf, a feminist thinker who shifted her views to becoming a conspiracy theorist and engaging with very right-wing thinkers and public figures. This all took place around when…
-
An Interview with Herman Westerink on Hopes, Freud and Dreams
Herman Westerink is Associate and Endowed Professor of Metaphysics and Philosophical Anthropology at Radboud University. A significant portion of his research is dedicated to Freudian psychoanalysis, alongside his studies in the philosophy of religion. Following his participation in a public lecture at Radboud Reflects, titled ‘What Are Dreams Made Of’, we decided to interview Herman…
-
Animal Citizenship in Gene Drive Ethics
An Evaluative Application of Donaldson and Kymlicka’s Citizenship Framework to Human Intervention and Management of Non-Humans in Gene Drive Engineering Introduction Increasing interest in methods of conserving non-human animals has emerged in light of the ever-growing Red List of Endangered Species. The Red List appraises each species on a series of standards in its scientific…
-
Whispers of Vanity: Unmasking the Hopes and Dreams in Wilde’s Classic
Book Review: The Picture of Dorian Gray “He grew more and more enamoured of his own beauty, more and more interested in the corruption of his own soul.” The Picture of Dorian Gray is an aesthetic book that is a treat for anyone who enjoys philosophy, literature, and the arts. The book goes into all…
-
Longing for a Fantastical ‘Home’
Self-Reflections on the Problematics for a Queer Tourist and Future Expat in Budapest “And when I’m back in Chicago, I feel it Another version of me, I was in it Oh, I wave goodbye to the end of beginning” (Djo 2022 “End of Beginning”) In early 2024, the song “End of Beginning” by the artist…