Aleksander Motturi

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Aleksander Motturi is a writer, artistic director of the annual Clandestino Festival and part of the editorial board of the Swedish cultural journal Glänta. He is author of two books, both written in Swedish:

— Filosofi vid mörkrets hjärta. Om Wittgenstein, Frazer och vildarna (Glänta Produktion 2003)

— Etnotism. En essä om mångkultur, tystnad och begäret efter mening (Glänta Produktion 2007)

The first one is his PhD thesis in Philosophy at Åbo Akademi, Finland. The second one is an essay based on teaching at the Clandestino Institute.

"One of the most important books this year."
Per Wirtén & Lars Mikael Raattamaa, Arena #5 okt 2007

"The most insightful examination of Multiculturalism in Sweden this Year is not the official one, but a brilliant essay by the philosopher and cultural worker Aleksander Motturi. […] Motturi reveals the shortcoming: the tools used to break down segregation contribute to its solidification."
Stefan Jonsson Dagens Nyheter 28 June 2007

"But Motturi is peeling his onion carefully. ”With the same two-edged sword as one trying to break the segregation of the cultural sphere the division is hewed out” he writes. There is an unavoidable paradox in society’s vision of multiculturalism which is rarely spoken of. A paradox that has consequences, since the differences also legitimatize the difference in rights between people. […] Etnotism is not about The Year of Multiculturalism or politics of integration. On the contrary it raises questions about power and ideology. It broadens the perspective when there is a tendency to limit parameters. It helps us rethink matters afresh when the tire tread is worn out. There is a need for this kind of theoretical blowtorch in order to ignite fires around the blunt, often well-meaning, social structures."
Ira Mallik Aftonbladet 4 July 2007

"It seems as if we are finally on our way into a less culturally conservative climate for debate, where the complexity of integration issues is recognised and not automatically opposed thereby creating opposition between immigrants and locals."
Lars Åberg, Göteborgs-Posten 18 July 2007

"Now it finally has got a name: Etnotism. A profound diagnosis is made in Aleksander Motturi’s excellent essay with the same name. In parallel to a survey of the history of racism and exotism he maps out the metaphysics that holds a grip on us."
Alejandro Leiva Wenger, Arena #4/2007

"Tystnaden är då inte enbart en protest, en vägran att delta i ett spel med osunda regler, utan ett led i en nyartikulering, en början på ett nytänkande. Motturis bok är fylld av belysande ­exempel, inte minst ur svenskt kulturliv, och den ger många tankeställare om vårt förhållande till kulturell identitet."
Tove Österman, SvD 22 september 2007

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  • Aleksander Motturi