Úvod do dejín stredovekej židovskej filozofie

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Milan Olejník

The history of ancient Greece and Rome represents the culmination of achievements made by ancient civilizations in political, economic, and social spheres, as well as in understanding humanity and the world, and in art. The Greeks were the first in human history to establish a system where a certain part of society—full-fledged citizens—had the opportunity to freely participate in political decisions. They could vote, be elected to offices within the political system, and discuss issues affecting community life.

A high level of education and the pursuit of rational explanations for natural phenomena enabled the Greeks to reach a level of knowledge that European nations only achieved in the modern era. Greek accomplishments in sculpture, architecture, and literature remain an inspiration to this day.

Despite a gap of more than two millennia, their thinking and actions are relatable; their victories and defeats resonate with us, offering lessons even today.

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Alexander Onufrák - Ján Ruman - Jana Šutajová - Peter Getlík

The presented textbook aims to introduce students to the issue of political extremism from various perspectives—namely, normative, historical, and discursive-empirical.

It addresses the significance and role of active citizenship, which, as one of several potential solutions, has the capacity to a certain extent to eliminate the rise of manifestations of political extremism in society by deepening democratic principles in practice.

The presented textbook is a direct output of the KEGA grant project "Innovative Model of Education Leading to Active Citizenship as a Prevention of the Rise of Political Extremism among Students" (014UPJŠ-4/2020). The principal investigator of the project is Assoc. Prof. Mgr. Gabriel Eštok, PhD. The project was carried out in the years 2020–2022.

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Jaroslav Marcin - Viktória Marcinová a kol.

This little book started out in a way that probably many other scholarly publications do: When the five of us met as doctoral students and instructors in the Department of British and American Studies, we soon realized that our research overlapped on a number of points. Most prominent among those was our interest in political or politicallymotivated discourse and the study of myths and manipulation that it employed. 

In the end, we decided to pool the results of our research together in order to create a more complex picture, providing a variety of perspectives and voices. In our endeavor, we were greatly aided by the financial support we received from a grant offered by the Šafárik University. The outcome of these efforts is the five chapters of this brief, but hopefully informative and insightful monograph.

In Chapter 1, Viktória Marcinová deals with the impact of totalitarian ideology on the translation of so-called “capitalist” drama during the first stage of normalization in Slovakia (1948-1968). In Chapter 2, the focus shifts to political discourse and manipulation in a democracy, as Jaroslav Marcin takes a closer look at the wartime rhetoric of American presidents. USA remains the focus also in Chapter 3, but this time the question, addressed by Martina Martausová, will be one of the myth of the American Dream and its presentation in post-9/11 United States. A similar idea, though in a different geographical-cultural context, is dealt with in Chapter 4, where Božena Velebná identifies myths of Scottish identity as portrayed in historic films. Finally, in Chapter 5, Eduard Soták will take a look at the role of the mass media within the topic of politically-motivated discourse and spread of political ideology.

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Gabriel Eštok

The university textbook Citizenship of the European Union is structured into four parts. The first chapter focuses on the characteristics of citizenship in a historical context (concepts of citizenship in the ancient, medieval and modern periods).

The second chapter deals with a theoretical introduction to citizenship. It comes up with the characteristics of citizenship, introduces the ways of acquiring and losing citizenship and the transformations of citizenship in the context of globalization and multiculturalism.

The third chapter focuses on European Union citizenship itself, its historical development and the process of introducing and strengthening citizenship in the European Union.

The fourth chapter presents the specific rights of citizens deriving from European Union citizenship - the right to free movement, the right to vote and stand as a candidate in municipal and European Parliament elections, the right to diplomatic and consular protection in the territory of a third country, the right to petition the institutions of the European Union, the right of access to documents of the institutions and bodies of the Union, and the right of initiative of the citizens of the European Union.

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Miroslava Köverová - Margita Mesárošová (eds.)

The publication „Helping professions and self-care from the perspective of psychology and social work“ includes research studies focused on self-care, and the positive and negative effects of helping among specific groups of helping professionals – psychologists and social workers.

A number of Slovak as well as foreign authors contributed to the book of proceedings. The contributions are theoretical studies, research studies and case studies. The theoretical and research studies are focused on important issues of professional helping: self-care, compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue, burnout, perceived stress, secondary traumatic stress, mindfulness, empathy, job satisfaction and turnover among psychologists and social workers.

Research interest in the phenomena is especially important in the context of the mental health of helping professionals and in reducing the negative consequences of helping. 

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Vladimír Lichner

The scientific monograph focuses on the analysis of radical and extremist groups, movements, sects and cults and their activities in the Slovak Republic.

It provides a theoretical insight into the issues of specific organizations and movements that have been characterized in the past, or are currently characterized by belonging to ideologies that we might call anti-social.

It does not focus unilaterally on one type of violent extremism, but focuses on the issue of both right-wing and left-wing religious groups. In the final part it offers a brief suggestion of prevention procedures, which could significantly influence the increase of extremist manifestations especially in young people.

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Juraj Schenk et al.

The scientific journal Sociálne a politické analýzy (Social and Political Analyses) serves as an interactive electronic platform for communication and the presentation (publication) of experts and their work in the fields of basic and applied research and analyses within sociological, psychological, political, and methodological contexts. It is a medium focused on intensively supporting research activities and analyses within an interdisciplinary framework, facilitating the exchange of experiences, fostering collaboration, and revitalizing the production of scientific work in this area.

The publication section of the journal offers space for works such as:

- Original sociological, psychological, and political studies and analyses in any areas of social life

- Methodological studies

- Research reports

- Studies from qualification theses Research and analysis projects

- Reviews

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Ľubov Vladyková (ed.)

In the present text, opinions on environmental literacy are integrated. The most important discoveries of the 21th century exist not in the realm of science, medicine, or technology, but rather in the dawning awareness of the earth's limits and how those limits will affect human evolution. Humanity has reached a crossroad where various ecological catastrophes meet what some call sustainable development. While a great deal of attention has been given to what governments, corporations, utilities, international agencies, and private citizens can do to help in the transition to sustainability, little thought has been given to what schools, colleges, and universities can do. As the health of our planet continues to deteriorate, it is vital to educate and raise ecoliterate citizens.

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Štefan Jusko

The stimulus for this monograph was my two studies on Heidegger’s interpretation of Nietzsche’s ideas of the will to power and eternal return of the same, published in Heidegger and Modern Metaphysics (supported by the Slovak Research and Development Agency, APVV-14-0706, under the leadership of V. Leška and M. Sobotka). In the submitted monograph, I present both studies in expanded (particularly “Will to Power as Art”) and refined versions (“Eternal Return of the Same”) and add a third chapter addressing the question of the meaning of interpreting philosophical texts, which themselves are interpretations of other texts.

In seeking an appropriate approach to the meaning of interpretation, I conclude that—generally—the purpose of interpretation is to uncover the productive dimension of the interpreted text, which can only be revealed if the interpreter enters the text openly and as neutrally as possible. If the interpreter does not open themselves to the text, allowing it to interpret them in turn, interpretation remains trapped. I believe that without mutual openness between interpreter and interpreted, interpretation has no meaning and typically becomes either rejection or misinterpretation—a form of violence.

In the third chapter, which I consider foundational, I attempt to “balance” the interpretive context of “Heidegger–Nietzsche” from the first two chapters through a reversible context of “Nietzsche–Heidegger,” albeit with the risk that my interpretation of Nietzsche’s thought—specifically his ideas of eternal return and will to power—may remain subjective, even if unintended as misinterpretation. Ultimately, the ambition of the third chapter is to explore intersections between the two philosophers, one of which—a rudimentary yet significant overlap—I identify as Heidegger’s concept of being-in-the-world, reinterpreted through Nietzsche’s lens. It is Nietzsche who challenges us to adopt a self-defined stance toward the world, to confront what it means to be in the world.

The challenge for me—and perhaps the reader—is to remain faithful to oneself, which is only possible by persisting in the context of mutual interpretation between interpreter and interpreted, regardless of who/what is interpreting or being interpreted. For the context of being-in-the-world is always co-created by both sides.

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Iveta Bónová - Marián Gladiš (eds.)

About the personality of university professor František Miko, DrSc., much has rightly been written, especially after 1989. Indeed, anyone involved in language and literature, at least within the geographical scope of the West Slavic region, is familiar with his work, particularly his brilliant expressive conception of style.

Our ambition in the introduction of this presented collection is not to substitute a dictionary of linguists, nor to provide a comprehensive view of his life and professional career. Rather, it is to remind ourselves of an exceptional individual—a scientist whose attitude, contributions, and results have influenced and continue to influence not only entire generations of researchers but also scientific thinking as a whole.

In the presented collection, we supplement the characterization contained in the inventively and convincingly formulated title of the obituary The Quiet Revolutionary of Our Science, František Miko, with a set of thematically diverse contributions (from the fields of style, sound, translation studies, phraseology, didactics...) dedicated to this significant figure of Slovak science on the occasion of what would have been his ninety-fifth birthday.

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Kristína Bosáková

Attempting to confront Gadamer's teachings not only with the giants of Greek philosophy but also with Hegel and Heidegger is no easy task. However, Gadamer's entire historical-philosophical work is most prominently associated with these ancient thinkers and the two geniuses of German philosophical thought. Therefore, there is no avoiding it. Without this confrontation, all my efforts would be, in a certain sense, futile. Whether and how I succeed is another question. Every reader will surely form their own judgment.

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Ľubov Vladyková

The present monograph titled Evolutionary Ethics: Selected Issues and Challenges discusses a range of problems, theoretical concepts, and beliefs from the perspective of evolutionary ethics. The term evolution has become one of the central terms in contemporary science and philosophy.

In social sciences in general, and in socio-biology and evolutionary psychology in particular, evolution has had great impact on our understanding of the genesis of culture. Evolutionary theories play a similar role within the theory of consciousness and of the mind (evolutionary epistemology). The interrelation between our evolutionary past and our sense of good and evil is also a subject of heightened interest in ethics; it has in fact become one of its challenges. The concept of evolution challenges the way we create thought patterns through which we understand, or hope to understand, ourselves and the world around us.

This monograph represents a general summary of selected issues in evolutionary ethics, touching upon various aspects of current research into evolutionary ethics and the related domains of evolution, science, ethics, and morals. Evolutionary ethics has become a project which presupposes that in order to understand the essence and basis of morals one must turn to the process of evolution of thought, and to the theories put forth by evolutionists, specifically evolutionary biologists.

The structure of this monograph, as well as its potential usefulness for research and education clearly show that the analysis of the problems discussed here has significant implications for domains far removed from the purely theoretical parts of moral philosophy or biology. The advantage of such discourse is that it enables the implementation of evolutionary ethics in social and ethical issues of public interest (for example Sex Literacy, Sex Education), and this should be recognised and welcome.

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Lukáš Šutor

Vedecká monografia Kozmológia čarodejných príbehov (ľudová rozprávka medzi kultúrou a umením) je pôvodnou prácou syntetizujúcou výskum o kozmologických štruktúrach archaických epických žánrov v interdisciplinárnom dialógu medzi literárnou vedou a kultúrnou antropológiou. Výskumne sa sústredíme najmä na ľudovú čarodejnú rozprávku, ktorá sa vždy dotýka základnej ontologickej problematiky, vytvára modelový a poetizovaný obraz sveta; predstavuje neteistickú formu hrdinskej kozmológie, ukotvenú v gnómickom časopriestorovom rámci. Pri jej výskume kombinujeme synchrónnu systémovú interpretáciu semiotických rovín s diachrónnou analýzou vývoja kultúr. Z nášho výskumu vyplýva, že základné konflikty medzi symbolickými formami čarodejných príbehov, tak ako ich poznáme z folklórneho prostredia, vykryštalizovali v epoche šírenia sa prvých historických národov ako dôsledok konfrontácie odlišných kultúrnych komplexov.

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Marián Gladiš - Lucia Jasinská (eds.)

This peer-reviewed collection of papers is a publication output of the scientific colloquium named The Magic of Sounds, which was organized by the Department of Slovak Studies, Slavonic Philologies and Communication at the Faculty of Arts of the Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, and by the Košice Branch of the Slovak Linguistic Society at the Ľudovít Štúr Linguistic Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences in Bratislava, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of birth of Associate Professor PhDr. Jozef Liška, PhD., the founder of the Slovak logopaedics.

Participants focused their papers on the analysis of the linguistic and speech therapy work of J. Liška, his contribution to Slovak dialectology and orthoepy, presented him as an Anglicist, and they also dealt with the audio aspect of children's speech, exact methods of disturbances and low voice quality measuring, or machine speech processing.

An interpretative paper of the documentary They Will Speak Well, a socially important piece of film work, which was made in 1958 under the supervision of J. Liška, is also included in the proceedings.

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Soňa Lovašová - Katarína Šiňanská - Magdaléna Halachová  - Vladimír Lichner (eds.)

The central theme of the conference is violence in social work. Violence in social work appears in various forms, whether it involves working with clients who are victims of different types of violence or dealing with aggressive clients where the social worker themselves becomes the victim. Violence in society is rapidly increasing, and social work is a science that must necessarily adapt to society; this is its essence. Therefore, managing aggressive situations in any form is an important part of a social worker's personal skill set.

Unfortunately, protecting social workers from violence will gradually become a necessity, and in the future, we may not avoid training in self-defense and reducing aggression as part of professional preparation or lifelong education.

The aim of this collection is to present the issue of violence in social work from various perspectives to both the professional and lay public. We hope that this serious problem will receive increasing attention and that the individual contributions will help readers understand the extent of the problem of violence in social work.

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Lucia Tóthová - Dušan Šlosár

The presented monographic processing of the issues of groups, as a basic phenomenon of our social life, draws a lot of current knowledge from realized researches, their empirical results and practical work with the group, which offers a comprehensive view of the social group. Social group looks both as a natural part of human life and it is analyzed and studied, so that knowledge of the social group can be rewarded.

This has been transferred to artificially created groups to help individuals through group work. At the same time, the monograph also considers the method of social work with a group as one of the methods used in various helping professions.

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