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15 March 2022
The Dean of the Faculty of Law invites staff and interested individuals to attend the inaugural lecture of Prof Ulrike Kistner, Department of Public Law, titled The ‘person’ in question – legally, grammatically, philosophically.

Date: 17 March 2022
Time: 17:30
Venue: Equitas Auditorium

To attend the lecture, please RSVP to Refilwe Majola at MajolaRRM@ufs.ac.za

More about the speaker:

Prof Kistner has held teaching positions in Comparative Literature at Wits University, Modern European Languages at UNISA, and Philosophy at the University of Pretoria. She is currently working at intersections between political philosophy, social theory, jurisprudence, and psychoanalytic theory.

Abstract:

A major shift has been noted in constitutionalism and human rights frameworks – from human and civil rights to principles centred on ‘personhood’ and ‘dignity’. This shift calls for closer historical-critical investigation of the status of ‘person’. Roberto Esposito directs this inquiry to a philosophical grammar of the impersonal third person.

My contribution to this inquiry sets in with a probing of Esposito’s propositions, considering the post-apartheid elevation of ‘person’ in constitutionalism and philosophical elaborations of communitarianism. To the extent that the concept of ‘ubuntu’ is embedded in a linguistic ontology developed by Kinyarwanda, my argument will navigate between Rwanda and South Africa in the mid-1990s, and between juridical, moral-philosophical, linguistic, and Africanist notions of ‘ubuntu’ and corresponding claims on African philosophy.

The radical questioning of ethnolinguistic tenets on the part of some African philosophers brings me back to the philosophical grammar of the third person which, far from being confined to study old grammar books, opens alternatives to ethnophilosophical approaches to the ‘person’ in question. 

News Archive

Remain positive, keep an eye on the finish line
2016-11-08

Description: Academic Reboot Pack 2.0 Tags: Academic Reboot Pack 2.0

Dealing with anxiety can be daunting.
There are methods to help and assist
with your anxiety.
Photo: iStock

No one is immune to anxiety, and the current challenging academic times are no exception. With the Academic Reboot Pack 2.0, the University of the Free State (UFS) addresses these adversities.

Dealing with anxiety differently

People react to anxiety differently. For some it’s like a dark tunnel with no light at the end, while it keeps others on their toes. Regardless of how you deal with it, it is still an unpleasant emotion.

“For me, it (anxiety) makes me more determined to do well, so that I can start the next part of my life as soon as possible,” said Greg Butters, a postgraduate BCom Accounting student at the UFS.

Ways to manage and overcome

There are different ways to manage anxiety. Here are some methods that can assist you in dealing with it:

Keep the following in mind when you are feeling anxious:

  • Realise that anxiety is an amplified response to stress.
  • Face your anxiety head-on.
  • Do not add to your anxiety by thinking about what "might" happen. If you find yourself asking "What if?" tell yourself "So what!"

Where to get the right help

It is also important to know that there is help. When you feel that anxiety is affecting you negatively, pick up a phone and call one of the following departments:

 

  • Medical Practice                                +27 51 401 2603
  • Qwaqwa Campus Clinic                    +27 58 718 5210
  • Sports and Exercise Medicine Clinic  +27 51 401 2530
  • First Aid                                             +27 51 401 3325
  • Emergencies (After hours) - ER 24   0800 051 051 or 084 124

You can also contact the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) 24-hour helpline. SADAG has various helplines that can help you deal with anxiety and depression.

Get your copy of the Academic Reboot Pack 2.0 on  Blackboardunder announcements or click here to download it.

Also see the first Academic Reboot Pack.

If students have any question or queries regarding the Academic Reboot Pack, they can send an email to: advising@ufs.ac.za.

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