Liminality
View article: Transnational house-keeping: cleaning and security services for the wealthy in London and Southeast England
Transnational house-keeping: cleaning and security services for the wealthy in London and Southeast England Open
This thesis explores the relationships between wealthy households and the workers they pay to ‘keep’ their homes through cleaning and security practices. Since the London region has become a magnet for both rich families and domestic worke…
View article: Liminal Parenthood: A Qualitative Inquiry into The Work-Family Experiences and Evolving Self-Concepts of Lone Parents and Blended Families
Liminal Parenthood: A Qualitative Inquiry into The Work-Family Experiences and Evolving Self-Concepts of Lone Parents and Blended Families Open
This thesis explores the interplay of non-work and work identities in times of transition and seeks to explain why the outcomes of such identity transitions can be so diverse. I do so by focusing on non-traditional transitions to and withi…
View article: Deifying the Conqueror: Sargon's Imperial Model and its Apotheosis in the Victory Stele of Naram-Sin
Deifying the Conqueror: Sargon's Imperial Model and its Apotheosis in the Victory Stele of Naram-Sin Open
This paper investigates the ideological trajectory of the Akkadian Empire, from its foundation by Sargon of Akkad to its zenith under his grandson, Naram-Sin. It argues that Sargon's creation of a centralized, territorial state necessitate…
View article: Stairway to the State: Consolidating Royal Authority from the Serekh of Menes to the Step Pyramid of Djoser
Stairway to the State: Consolidating Royal Authority from the Serekh of Menes to the Step Pyramid of Djoser Open
This paper examines the consolidation of royal authority in Early Dynastic Egypt (c. 3100–2686 BCE) through an analysis of two key cultural productions: the royal serekh and monumental funerary architecture. We argue that the evolution fro…
View article: Deifying the Conqueror: Sargon's Imperial Model and its Apotheosis in the Victory Stele of Naram-Sin
Deifying the Conqueror: Sargon's Imperial Model and its Apotheosis in the Victory Stele of Naram-Sin Open
This paper investigates the ideological trajectory of the Akkadian Empire, from its foundation by Sargon of Akkad to its zenith under his grandson, Naram-Sin. It argues that Sargon's creation of a centralized, territorial state necessitate…
View article: The double life of a Palestinian translator: A bridge between wounds and words
The double life of a Palestinian translator: A bridge between wounds and words Open
This essay examines the act of translation from Gaza as a form of bearing witness to a disappearing world, where language itself becomes both a vessel of survival and a site of struggle. In the face of ongoing erasure, the Palestinian tran…
View article: The Geopolitical Genesis of English Sovereignty: Henry VIII's Rupture, Elizabeth I's Consolidation, and the Crown's New Order.
The Geopolitical Genesis of English Sovereignty: Henry VIII's Rupture, Elizabeth I's Consolidation, and the Crown's New Order. Open
This paper examines the transformative period in English history marked by the reigns of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, analyzing how their actions profoundly reshaped the concept and practice of English sovereignty. Henry VIII's decisive rup…
View article: The Geopolitical Genesis of English Sovereignty: Henry VIII's Rupture, Elizabeth I's Consolidation, and the Crown's New Order.
The Geopolitical Genesis of English Sovereignty: Henry VIII's Rupture, Elizabeth I's Consolidation, and the Crown's New Order. Open
This paper examines the transformative period in English history marked by the reigns of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, analyzing how their actions profoundly reshaped the concept and practice of English sovereignty. Henry VIII's decisive rup…
View article: Dialectics, Liminality, and the Sublime in the Age of AI: A Constructive Comparative Synthesis with a Proposal for Pantheon-Based Filtering (Draft 8/30/2025)
Dialectics, Liminality, and the Sublime in the Age of AI: A Constructive Comparative Synthesis with a Proposal for Pantheon-Based Filtering (Draft 8/30/2025) Open
This essay explores the relationship between dialectics, liminality, and the sublime across traditions and in contemporary contexts. Beginning with Zhu Xi’s Neo-Confucian metaphysics of li (principle) and qi (vital force), it interprets th…
View article: Dialectics, Liminality, and the Sublime in the Age of AI: A Constructive Comparative Synthesis with a Proposal for Pantheon-Based Filtering (Draft 8/30/2025)
Dialectics, Liminality, and the Sublime in the Age of AI: A Constructive Comparative Synthesis with a Proposal for Pantheon-Based Filtering (Draft 8/30/2025) Open
This essay explores the relationship between dialectics, liminality, and the sublime across traditions and in contemporary contexts. Beginning with Zhu Xi’s Neo-Confucian metaphysics of li (principle) and qi (vital force), it interprets th…
View article: Stairway to the State: Consolidating Royal Authority from the Serekh of Menes to the Step Pyramid of Djoser
Stairway to the State: Consolidating Royal Authority from the Serekh of Menes to the Step Pyramid of Djoser Open
This paper examines the consolidation of royal authority in Early Dynastic Egypt (c. 3100–2686 BCE) through an analysis of two key cultural productions: the royal serekh and monumental funerary architecture. We argue that the evolution fro…
View article: The Azure Threshold: Decoding Divine Legitimacy in Nebuchadnezzar II's Ishtar Gate
The Azure Threshold: Decoding Divine Legitimacy in Nebuchadnezzar II's Ishtar Gate Open
The Ishtar Gate of ancient Babylon, a monumental entry point into the city's inner sanctum, stands as one of the most iconic surviving examples of Neo-Babylonian art and architecture. Constructed during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II (c. 6…
View article: The Precarious Cradle: Rewriting Human Origins from the 'Weak Garden of Eden'.
The Precarious Cradle: Rewriting Human Origins from the 'Weak Garden of Eden'. Open
The conventional narrative of human origins often posits a 'Garden of Eden' scenario, depicting early hominin evolution as occurring within a relatively stable, resource-rich environment. This paper challenges that view by proposing a 'Wea…
View article: The Azure Threshold: Decoding Divine Legitimacy in Nebuchadnezzar II's Ishtar Gate
The Azure Threshold: Decoding Divine Legitimacy in Nebuchadnezzar II's Ishtar Gate Open
The Ishtar Gate of ancient Babylon, a monumental entry point into the city's inner sanctum, stands as one of the most iconic surviving examples of Neo-Babylonian art and architecture. Constructed during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II (c. 6…
View article: SYMBOLIC-SEEING — WHITE PAPER Version 1.2 (Expanded Edition)
SYMBOLIC-SEEING — WHITE PAPER Version 1.2 (Expanded Edition) Open
This expanded edition proposes that consciousness is not a cognitive process but a singularity: a liminal threshold where unconscious patterns become conscious form. Evidence from dream phenomenology, synchronicity, archetypal psychology, …
View article: Zāl and Simorgh as Trickster Figures: A Mythological Reinterpretation of the Shahnameh Narratives
Zāl and Simorgh as Trickster Figures: A Mythological Reinterpretation of the Shahnameh Narratives Open
This study examines the trickster archetype within the narrative of Zāl and Simorgh in Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh. The trickster, a mythological figure characterized by ambivalence, shape-shifting, resourcefulness, and divine intervention, occup…
View article: SYMBOLIC-SEEING — WHITE PAPER Version 1.2 (Expanded Edition)
SYMBOLIC-SEEING — WHITE PAPER Version 1.2 (Expanded Edition) Open
This expanded edition proposes that consciousness is not a cognitive process but a singularity: a liminal threshold where unconscious patterns become conscious form. Evidence from dream phenomenology, synchronicity, archetypal psychology, …
View article: The Precarious Cradle: Rewriting Human Origins from the 'Weak Garden of Eden'.
The Precarious Cradle: Rewriting Human Origins from the 'Weak Garden of Eden'. Open
The conventional narrative of human origins often posits a 'Garden of Eden' scenario, depicting early hominin evolution as occurring within a relatively stable, resource-rich environment. This paper challenges that view by proposing a 'Wea…
View article: Threshold of Dominion: The Ishtar Gate and the Architectural Mediation of Divine Power in Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon
Threshold of Dominion: The Ishtar Gate and the Architectural Mediation of Divine Power in Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon Open
This paper examines the Ishtar Gate of Babylon, constructed under the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II (c. 605-562 BCE), as a primary instrument for the architectural mediation of divine and royal power. Moving beyond a purely descriptive or art…
View article: The Geopolitics of Humiliation: Unequal Treaties as the Crucible of Meiji Statecraft
The Geopolitics of Humiliation: Unequal Treaties as the Crucible of Meiji Statecraft Open
This paper explores the profound influence of unequal treaties on the formation and direction of Meiji statecraft in Japan, positing these agreements as a crucible of national humiliation that forged a distinctive geopolitical strategy. Fr…
View article: Nok's Dual Legacy: Iron, Terracotta, and West Africa's Earliest Complexities
Nok's Dual Legacy: Iron, Terracotta, and West Africa's Earliest Complexities Open
The Nok culture, flourishing in central Nigeria from approximately 1500 BCE to 500 CE, represents a pivotal moment in West African prehistory. This paper explores the dual legacy of the Nok people: their simultaneous mastery of advanced ir…
View article: The Geopolitics of Humiliation: Unequal Treaties as the Crucible of Meiji Statecraft
The Geopolitics of Humiliation: Unequal Treaties as the Crucible of Meiji Statecraft Open
This paper explores the profound influence of unequal treaties on the formation and direction of Meiji statecraft in Japan, positing these agreements as a crucible of national humiliation that forged a distinctive geopolitical strategy. Fr…
View article: Nok's Dual Legacy: Iron, Terracotta, and West Africa's Earliest Complexities
Nok's Dual Legacy: Iron, Terracotta, and West Africa's Earliest Complexities Open
The Nok culture, flourishing in central Nigeria from approximately 1500 BCE to 500 CE, represents a pivotal moment in West African prehistory. This paper explores the dual legacy of the Nok people: their simultaneous mastery of advanced ir…
View article: Threshold of Dominion: The Ishtar Gate and the Architectural Mediation of Divine Power in Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon
Threshold of Dominion: The Ishtar Gate and the Architectural Mediation of Divine Power in Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon Open
This paper examines the Ishtar Gate of Babylon, constructed under the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II (c. 605-562 BCE), as a primary instrument for the architectural mediation of divine and royal power. Moving beyond a purely descriptive or art…
View article: Enacting Eternity: The Ritual Poetics of Ancient Egyptian Afterlife Texts
Enacting Eternity: The Ritual Poetics of Ancient Egyptian Afterlife Texts Open
Ancient Egyptian afterlife texts, encompassing the Pyramid Texts, Coffin Texts, and the Book of the Dead, represent a monumental corpus of literature designed to ensure the deceased's successful transition to and existence in the eternal r…
View article: The Architecture of Annihilation: How Civil War Forged Rome's Imperial State
The Architecture of Annihilation: How Civil War Forged Rome's Imperial State Open
The transition from the Roman Republic to the Roman Empire stands as a pivotal moment in ancient history, marked by profound political, social, and military transformations. This paper argues that internal civil wars were not merely sympto…
View article: The Aurignacian Crucible: Materializing the Otherworld in the Hohlenstein-Stadel Lion-Man
The Aurignacian Crucible: Materializing the Otherworld in the Hohlenstein-Stadel Lion-Man Open
The Hohlenstein-Stadel Lion-Man, a monumental ivory sculpture from the German Aurignacian, represents a pivotal artifact in understanding the cognitive and symbolic capacities of early Upper Paleolithic humans. This paper explores the Lion…
View article: Beyond the Linguistic Turn: New Materialisms and the Re-Enchantment of Being
Beyond the Linguistic Turn: New Materialisms and the Re-Enchantment of Being Open
The twentieth century in philosophy and the humanities was largely defined by the "linguistic turn," a pervasive paradigm that positioned language as the primary mediator of reality, knowledge, and subjectivity. While this shift yielded pr…
View article: Enacting Eternity: The Ritual Poetics of Ancient Egyptian Afterlife Texts
Enacting Eternity: The Ritual Poetics of Ancient Egyptian Afterlife Texts Open
Ancient Egyptian afterlife texts, encompassing the Pyramid Texts, Coffin Texts, and the Book of the Dead, represent a monumental corpus of literature designed to ensure the deceased's successful transition to and existence in the eternal r…
View article: From Napata to Meroë: Pyramids, Power, and the Formation of Kushite Imperial Identity
From Napata to Meroë: Pyramids, Power, and the Formation of Kushite Imperial Identity Open
This paper explores the evolution of the Kushite imperial identity, tracing its development from the Napatan period to the Meroitic era, with a particular focus on the symbolic role of pyramids and the manifestation of royal power. The Kus…