title: Sniper Elite III

text: Stealth mechanics have been reworked. An eye icon squints or opens to denote the player's level of detection by the enemy. Enemy soldiers will also have a circle meter over their heads to indicate alert status. Players are also forced to relocate periodically to prevent detection with a white ghost image to mark their last known position if spotted; enemy soldiers will search the surrounding area either individually or in groups. As in the previous game, loud sounds may be used to mask sniper shots, however, the player now has the option to sabotage generators as a means of creating noise.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: A points system is instituted for actions such as stealth close-combat or using traps to kill enemies, with the points accumulating towards promotion to higher ranks. Players can go around the map to collect special reward items such as collectors' cards and unlock "sniper nests" built into the environment. Journal pages also provide further backstory into the events of the game.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: "V2"s X-Ray kill cam system is retained as well. Where the previous game only allowed the player to see the body's internal structure at point of impact, the new game expands to visualize the rest of the cardiovascular, skeletal, and muscular systems. The player can still target vehicles, but now has a chance to shoot the engines and disable the vehicle, making it easier to destroy.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: Multiplayer in "Sniper Elite III" consists of five modes of competitive gameplay: Team Deathmatch, Deathmatch, Distance King, No Cross, and Capture the Flag. Similar to the main campaign, there are a large selection of maps to play on with large open environments.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: In June 1942, during the Battle of Gazala, American sniper Karl Fairburne (Tom Clarke-Hill) takes part in an effort by British troops to stop Erwin Rommel and the Afrika Korps from seizing the vital port city of Tobruk. Fairburne eliminates several German artillery positions, but the enemy takes the city and he is forced to abandon his fellow soldiers. Nevertheless, his performance in the battle brings him to the attention of British Naval Intelligence, who recruit him to hunt down General Franz Vahlen, a favorite of Hitler's who is rumored to be working on a top-secret weapon.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: Fairburne heads to the Gaberoun oasis in Libya, assassinating several German and Italian officers at a supply and logistics outpost while searching for intel on Vahlen. He only finds a document revealing the name of Vahlen's project: "Project "Seuche"" (German for "plague"). Naval Intelligence then asks Fairburne to rescue one of their agents, who was captured while gathering information on Vahlen's work. The informant is being held at Fort Rifugio, a POW camp formerly occupied by the British during Operation Compass. The Long Range Desert Group agrees to transport Fairburne in exchange for his help in capturing the German-held Halfaya Pass; Fairburne infiltrates the enemy camp and destroys several Flak 88s.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: Fairburne successfully infiltrates Fort Rifugio and frees the informant, Brauer. He gives Fairburne the location of Vahlen's command, a desert village at the Siwa Oasis in Western Egypt. Fairburne, now referred to as the "Wüstengeist" (Desert Ghost) by the Germans for his exploits, sneaks into the town and finds out that Vahlen's discontented officers plan to betray him, having stolen his personal notebook which reveals his plan to get rid of Rommel. Fairburne kills the officer tasked to take the notebook to Berlin and escapes with Brauer's help. He discovers that Vahlen, hungry for glory and fame, intends to use his new weapon to destroy the Allies in North Africa and then go on to conquer all of Europe.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: Fairburne and Brauer locate Vahlen's secret field HQ near the Kasserine Pass and open the general's personal safe, which contains a film reel that reveals "Project "Seuche"" is a supertank codenamed "Ratte". Brauer is subsequently killed by a round from a Tiger I before Fairburne is able to destroy it. He buries Brauer, taking a bullet from his gun. As the Africa Korps begin to lose ground to the Allies, Fairburne joins the LRDG in assaulting the German-controlled Pont du Fahs Airfield, cutting off Vahlen's last supply line and finding a map leading to the "Ratte" production facility, which is nestled inside the Midès canyon. Fairburne enters the factory, sabotages its electrical supply and plants explosive charges to destroy the "Ratte" prototype, before detonating a massive pile of ammunition to level the complex. Vahlen is trapped by debris while fleeing the crumbling factory; Fairburne takes his Luger, loads it with Brauer's bullet, and shoots him in the head before escaping.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: A voiceover by Fairburne during the end credits reveals that the intelligence he acquired on the "Ratte" prompted the USAAF and the RAF to launch Operation Chastise and the Battle of the Ruhr, resulting in extensive damage to German heavy industry and forcing the German high command to cancel efforts to build more "Ratte" tanks.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: On 21 July 2014, Rebellion Developments announced a new downloadable content (DLC) pack for "Sniper Elite III". The DLC pack adds three new missions, one of which the player needs to save Winston Churchill from a German assassination attempt. In the first mission, "In Shadows", Fairburne must uncover the identity of Churchill's would-be assassins. He does this by sneaking back into the Siwa Oasis in Western Egypt which by this point has been won and lost by the Allies since his last visit. In the process, he learns the identity of the assassins and their leader. In the second mission, "Belly of the Beast", Fairburne must infiltrate the assassins' base in the Rif mountains in Morocco. Along the way, he uncovers evidence of a dangerous prototype weapon, the plans that describe how the assassination will be carried out, and where it will take place. During the final mission, "Confrontation", Fairburne must save Churchill from his would-be killers as the Prime Minister heads to the Casablanca Conference. Fairburne must eliminate any and all threats to Churchill including mortars, mines, rocket launchers, tanks, elite German soldiers and a mysterious masked marksman known only as Raubvogel. Other DLCs include new weapon packs. Most of the DLCs were included in the Sniper Elite III Ultimate Edition released in March 2015. (Hunt the Grey Wolf, character and some weapons packs DLC not included.)


title: Sniper Elite III

text: "Hardcore Gamer" Matt Whittaker gave the game a 3/5, writing: "Though its stealth-based sniping gameplay can provide some exciting moments, Sniper Elite III is a decidedly mixed bag. Its abysmal narrative, outdated mission design, boring protagonist and weak non-campaign modes overshadow everything that it does well."


title: Sniper Elite III

text: Tyler Wilde of "PC Gamer" criticised graphics ("the character faces are plastic-like") and enemy AI, but praised the player's freedom ("It's a lot of fun to come up with a plan and execute it, and Sniper Elite 3 gives me the freedom and tools to do that"). As far as stealth is concerned, Tyler enjoyed the fact that you can shoot during another sound, thus hiding your position. On the other hand he wrote "there are no surround sound settings, and the audio system is a terrible judge of distance". Finally, he wrote: ”Some of "Sniper Elite 3"s failures are funny [...] and some of them are frustrating, but its ideas are good and I hope they don't end here. [...] Realistically, I expect we'll have to wait for "Sniper Elite 4" for significant improvement" and scored the game a 70/100.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: Mikel Reparaz from "IGN" scored the game an 8.2/10 and wrote: "More than just a showcase for slow-motion gore, "Sniper Elite III" shines for its open-ended approach to stealth." Reparaz disliked the story, which, according to him, is "awash in clichés and occasionally laughable dialogue", as well as "shaky" artificial intelligence, but spoke positively of the interesting setting, large levels, "immensely satisfying" gore, and multiplayer modes. He also likes the freedom the player has ("how you reach and tackle those objectives is up to you").


title: Sniper Elite III

text: Josh Harmon of "EGM" criticised the plot even more ("You go places and shoot bad people, and that’s all you really need to know"), calling the approach to plot ("pornographer’s approach to game design"). He writes about kill-cam: "The level of variety and detail verges on psychopathic", but "If you get a thrill out of wreaking that sort of anatomical havoc, then "Sniper Elite III" will offer plenty of excitement".


title: Sniper Elite III

text: The "EGM" reviewer, however, likes sniping. He finds weapons other than rifle badly designed ("The secondary weapons feel weightless, impotent, and inaccurate", "[...] trip mines and dynamite, are aggressively situational to the point of being practically worthless in the wide-open levels"), however he finds stealth using melee attacks and pistol enjoyable.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: He sums up: "What we’re left with, then, is a game that revels in split-seconds but struggles to fill the minutes in between." The "EGM's" review does not concern multiplayer, though.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: David Roberts from "GamesRadar" gave the game a 3 out of 5. He too praised the large environments for allowing strategic play, but felt that the Kill-cam, though a cool feature, "loses appeal fast". Roberts particularly enjoyed the feeling of nailing a perfect shot from a mile away, saying it "never gets old". Roberts' main problems with the game were concerning an "overall lack of polish", and the "flat narrative" and "generic objectives". ""Sniper Elite 3" certainly has its share of thrilling moments," Roberts said, "whether you’re hunting blissfully unaware soldiers or being tracked by countersnipers in ghillie suits, but there are too many technical and narrative issues to simply ignore."


title: Sniper Elite III

text: "Eurogamer" Dan Whitehead wrote in his review: "The package as a whole is still very much a rough diamond, but it's a definite improvement over its predecessor. The gruesome kill-cam remains a deliciously wrong thrill and the unifying force that holds the game together, but it's doubtful that it would be enough to paper over the cracks in a fourth game without a major overhaul of the AI and physics code. Even with its flaws, though, "Sniper Elite 3" is a solidly enjoyable mid-tier action game. It may not hit the bullseye, but it's getting closer with every shot." Whitehead gave the game a 7/10.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: "Game Informer" Tim Turi wrote: "I openly admit that I love gory kills and living the hero sniper fantasy, but "Sniper Elite III" only partially delivers on the latter. If you can't get enough of dramatic, transparent shots of enemies getting shredded by sniper fire, "Sniper Elite III" has you covered in spades. If you're interested in more motivation beyond the glory of the kill, look elsewhere." Turi scored the game a 6.5/10 and had mixed feeling about the visuals, sound, Kill-cam, and controls. The "GameRevolution" reviewer Gil Almogi wrote that kill-cam "was a visual novelty", however "The effect loses its luster after a few times". The reviewer wrote of "satisfying sniping and stealth gameplay", but complained about narrative: "Sniper Elite III, lacking an interesting or commanding narrative to guide Karl Fairburne’s actions, devolves into just a series of missions and objectives". The "GameRevolution" reviewer praised visuals: "The texture work is excellent, and various environmental effects like windswept sand and sunlight filtering through bushes keep the visuals feeling natural", but complained the player shoots "the same face over and over "ad nauseam", regardless of whether he speaks German or Italian", even though the reviewer admitted this is not unique to this game only. The reviewer seemed to enjoy gadgets in the game, especially trip mines.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: "GameSpot" Josiah Renaudin gave the game a 6/10. Renaudin disliked the balance between sniping (which he admired) and stealth, opining that the stealth is dull and overstays its welcome. Renaudin called the slow-motion kill-camera "devilishly satisfying", and praised the colourful environments for being an improvement over the previous games' instalments. Lastly, even though Renaudin thought the story was "uninspired" and disliked online matchmaking for being "broken", he too praised the level design for encouraging creativity.


title: Sniper Elite III

text: On 7 March 2016, it was confirmed that a sequel, "Sniper Elite 4", would be released in 2016 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. In a blog post dated 10 June 2016, Rebellion co-founders Chris and Jason Kingsley revised the release date to 14 February 2017.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: La Dispute is an American post-hardcore band from Grand Rapids, Michigan, formed in 2004. The current lineup is vocalist Jordan Dreyer, drummer Brad Vander Lugt, guitarist Chad Morgan-Sterenberg, guitarist Corey Stroffolino and bass guitarist Adam Vass.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: The band released their debut album, "Vancouver", in 2006 on Friction Records and then temporarily signed to Forest Life records where they released "Here, Hear." and "Untitled 7"" in May 2008. Their second studio album "Somewhere at the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair" was released in conjunction with "Here, Hear II." on No Sleep Records in November 2008. "Here, Hear III." (2009), "The Worth of the World" (2010) and "Never Come Undone" (2011) then followed before releasing their third studio album, "Wildlife" (2011). Their fourth studio album, "Rooms of the House", was released on March 18, 2014. "Panorama", their fifth studio album, was released on March 22, 2019, almost exactly five years later.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: La Dispute was formed in Grand Rapids, Michigan in late 2004 by cousins Jordan Dreyer and Brad Vander Lugt, Kevin Whittemore, Derek Sterenberg and Adam Kool; Dreyer was never a singer and did not write any music prior to forming the band but was a writer, primarily writing poetry and short fiction. During this time the band mainly played house shows or at the Division Avenue Arts Collective (a volunteer-run DIY music venue, community center, and art gallery) in Downtown Grand Rapids. Chad Sterenberg replaced his older brother Derek in 2006 the day after the release of their debut EP, "Vancouver" (released April 14, 2006), which was the only release the band produced while on the Friction Records roster. Indiana based friend of the band Adam Vass later joined in 2007. It wasn't until the loss of Derek Sterenberg and Adam Kool that they took the project seriously.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: La Dispute signed to Southern California-based record label No Sleep Records in early 2008. Jordan Dreyer describes this move to the label as sharing a similar perspective on music, stating: "The primary attraction with No Sleep for us was that it was obvious through talking to Chris [Hansen] that his intentions with the label were in line with ours as a band." To fill in the gap between their debut release "Vancouver" and their upcoming album the band released an exclusive vinyl record, "Untitled 7"", consisting of two tracks which were extra songs from the writing sessions of their debut album. Also in May, the EP "Here, Hear." was released, which would soon follow sequels, with Dreyer stating: ""Here Hear" we did as a challenge to ourselves creatively as a way to expand our horizons and also broaden the context for anyone else who is interested in checking who we are as a band".<ref name="UTGR-7/Interview"></ref> On November 11, 2008, La Dispute released their debut album "Somewhere at the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair" through No Sleep Records. La Dispute recorded the album at StudiOtte in Grand Rapids with Joel and Troy Otte. The album's lyrical themes base around an Asian folk tale regarding the plight of a prince and a princess who are separated after marriage by a river they are not allowed to cross. The album doesn't use this concept strictly and uses it as more of a "jumping off point for similar struggles that people face." It was well received by critics, with positive reviews from AbsolutePunk, Alternative Press, Punknews.org, and Sputnikmusic. They played three release shows to support the album in their home state of Michigan: on November 8 at Skelletones, November 14 at the UAW Retirees Hall in Traverse City, and November 22 at the Howell Opera House in Howell. Their debut album was released simultaneously with the second extended play in their "Here, Hear experiment": "Here, Hear II." The EP also accompanied the first 300 sales of the album.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: On December 25, 2009, La Dispute Released "Here, Hear III." The EP was self-released via digital download off their Bandcamp page. Released as well on Bandcamp were "Hear, Hear.", "Hear, Hear II.", "Untitled 7"" and a two track Christmas EP titled "Winter Tour Holiday CD-R", which featured two Christmas songs: a cover of "'Twas The Night Before Christmas" and an original song, "First Snow in Silent Grand Rapids". Although they became free to download, it was possible to donate money; all donations went to benefit the Well House Community Living of Grand Rapids, a non-profit outreach program in Grand Rapids that provides emergency shelter and permanent housing for homeless families. The period of donation ended on January 17, 2010, and $1715 was raised for Well House. All subsequent donations after the period have gone towards covering recording expenses for the band.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: Throughout April and May 2010, La Dispute supported Alexisonfire across the United States alongside Trash Talk and Therefore I Am. La Dispute and Touché Amoré released a 7" extended play titled Searching for a Pulse/The Worth of the World on September 14, 2010, which was co written by all members of both bands and features vocal cross-overs from the vocalists. Progress on the recording of La Dispute's second studio album began as early as November 2010. The album was recorded in pieces to wrap around their intense tour schedule, starting with the recording of instrumentation for six tracks in Drasik Studios in Chicago. In April, they revealed that the album would be 14 tracks long, and revealed that they had been progressively modifying the music over the length of the tour. La Dispute accompanied Alexisonfire again on a Canadian leg of a tour in November and December 2010. On this tour, they played alongside Norma Jean and Four Year Strong.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: The band went into StadiumRed studio in New York City in March 2011 to record the remainder of the album. Andrew Everding, the keyboardist of Thursday and producer Joe Pedulla served as recording engineers at both studios. On May 3, 2011, La Dispute released a split EP with American acoustic singer-songwriter Andrew Koji Shiraki (Koji), titled Never Come Undone. The split featured La Dispute performing an acoustic rendition of "Last Blues For Bloody Knuckles," a song from their debut album. Their second contribution was an original song titled "Sunday Morning, at a Funeral." On July 5, La Dispute started a Canadian tour with Make Do and Mend and No Sleep Records associates Balance and Composure. The focus of this tour was to promote the release of Never Come Undone.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: La Dispute, Touché Amoré and Norwegian hardcore punk band Death Is Not Glamorous completed a European tour, which started July 27, 2011 and finished August 12, to coincide with both La Dispute's and Touché Amoré's appearances at Hevy Festival in the United Kingdom, Fluff Fest in Czech Republic and Ieperfest in Belgium in 2011. On August 23, La Dispute announced the title of their second album, and revealed the track listing and album art. The album, titled Wildlife, was released on October 4, 2011. Lyrically, Jordan Dreyer has described the album as being "... set-up as a collection of sort of stories/poems annotated by the author and split into thematic sections by four monologues." Vocalist Jordan Dreyer considers the album a lyrical experiment with elements they intended to use in the first album. The announcement of the new album was accompanied by a complete re-design of their website, themed around the album's "Wildlife" design. Two singles were released digitally prior to its release, "The Most Beautiful Bitter Fruit" and "Harder Harmonies". On September 30, La Dispute joined Thrice, Moving Mountains, and O'Brother on a tour around the United States, which finished November 11.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: Throughout 2012, La Dispute embarked on a series of headlining tours, which acted as promotion for "Wildlife", with tour legs in Europe, Australia and North America respectively. La Dispute's European tour took place in January and early February, with support from Former Thieves. Their Australian tour started four days after their European tour ended, and instead of having a permanent support band they had a different lineup every night that was composed of local bands. The North American leg of the tour started in late March and lasted until the beginning of May. This tour had support from Balance And Composure, Sainthood Reps, and All Get Out. They made several festival appearances in the summer of 2012 including Download Festival Greenfield Festival, Hurricane Festival and Southside Festival.<ref name="altpress-HWM/LD touring"></ref> After their "Wildlife" tour the band spent 2012 on a vacation of sorts. On April 13 and 14 respectively the band recorded two different live studio sessions, with "Audio Tree" and "Violitionist Sessions," making their last tour appearances in September and October on a European tour with Title Fight and Make Do And Mend.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: In 2013, the band made their first tour appearance in supporting Hot Water Music across the United States in January and February. La Dispute's performance on the tour was met with positive reception, with comparison to the other bands on the lineup, they were considered "more on the hardcore side of the spectrum." Before the tour started on January 12, the band performed at The Crofoot to headline a two-stage show with bands Into it. Over it., Koji, The Swellers, Cheap Girls, Mixtapes, Pity Sex, Tiger! Tiger!, and Pentimento In June 2013 the band toured Australia for the fourth time being supported by Pianos Become the Teeth. The idea of Pianos Become the Teeth supporting La Dispute came about as the members of both bands are close friends and had wished to tour together, however their touring schedules have always clashed. On the band's website a countdown timer was added that hinted at a new album announcement on December 16, 2013. On December 16, along with a completely revamped website, La Dispute announced that their new album "Rooms of the House" will be released on March 18, 2014, and will be co-produced by Will Yip. They also announced that they left No Sleep Records and started their own label, Better Living. The album was released via Big Scary Monsters in the UK and Europe.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: In April 2014, founding member and guitarist Kevin Whittemore departed from the band. He played his final show with the band on April 14, 2014, in Cleveland, Ohio.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: Throughout 2014 the band played over 70 shows in 16 countries around the world. ROTH was noted in several end of year lists including: Paste's "50 Best Albums of 2014", Consequence of Sound's "Top 50 Songs of 2014" and Alternative Press' "10 Essential Albums of 2014". The band was also listed as one of Paste magazines "top 25 live acts".


title: La Dispute (band)

text: In June 2016, the band toured around the United States and Canada with Thrice and Gates. Then, later that month Thrice announced a tour of the US and Canada with La Dispute and Nothing, Nowhere from September to October 2016.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: When asked by Substream Magazine in 2016 whether their documentary "Tiny Dots" was the end of a chapter or novel, La Dispute responded, "We did record the album, the film is a celebration of that, but at the same time there is no obvious next step for the band. We don't know if this is the end of the novel, but we figure then that this documentary is a fitting way to close it."


title: La Dispute (band)

text: On August 7, 2018, the band announced they would be releasing a re-worked version of "Somewhere at the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair" for the album's 10th anniversary. The re-issue featured newly processed versions of the original guitar and bass recordings, as well as a new mix and master. Alongside this announcement, the band also released a new version of "The Castle Builders" taken from the album, and revealed they would be touring the United States with Circa Survive beginning in October 2018.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: On September 17, it was announced that the band had signed to Epitaph Records for their fourth studio album, "Panorama".


title: La Dispute (band)

text: The first two songs from the album, Rose Quartz and Fulton Street I, premiered on December 4 via NPR's All Songs Considered and featured an animated music video by Sarah Schmidt.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: On January 9, the 8th track "Footsteps at the Pond" was debuted with another animated music video by Daisy Fernandez.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: In June 2022, La Dispute announced a belated 10-year-anniversary tour for "Wildlife". The North American leg took place in September and October 2022 and was joined by Sweet Pill and Pictoria Vark. The band confirmed via Twitter that they would take the tour to the UK, the EU and Australia "at some point in the near future".


title: La Dispute (band)

text: The band has always used a band logo similar to what they do now. La Dispute started to use a redrawn, computer generated version of their logo as of October 2010. The band's name is from the Pierre de Marivaux work from 1774 of the same name, it was a play Dreyer watched while in high school and felt parallels between the work and the music he was writing at the time.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: Jordan Dreyer, the band's singer, has commented on the use of tags to describe the band's style, saying: "In general, I think boxing art into categories only serves as a way to exclude people from exploring different variations of the same thing. I think the only real definition between artists exists in their intentions for creating art ..." But despite this La Dispute is described as playing jazz, blues and spoken word influenced post-hardcore which incorporates elements which range through screamo, progressive rock, post-rock and hardcore punk. Well recognized elements of La Dispute's music are incorporating spoken word style passages into intense songs, the use of highly complex lyrics and Jordan Dreyer's versatile control of his voice; able to swap between singing and screaming to correspond and compliment to the emotion of the music and the lyrics. The band's instrumentation is seen as "near-shoegaze guitar drones that complemented the distorted bass" and this couples with their music being like "confessional diary entries; spoken and shouted-word lyrics accompanied by minor-chord harmonies".


title: La Dispute (band)

text: The music on their first album "Somewhere at the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair" is seen as blending elements of punk, progressive rock, emo and metalcore.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: The band's second album, "Wildlife" showed a lighter approach to music, compared to both their debut album and mini album, combining elements from both the split albums they wrote with Touché Amoré and Koji respectively. Wildlife was written differently in comparison to the band's previous work, as the lyrics and concept were written before the music. Wildlife's lyrics follow a loosely thematic collection of "short stories" examining the life struggles that shape and define us as individuals. The band drew inspiration from real issues and true stories that they themselves had confronted or heard of in their home town of Grand Rapids. A primary example of this is the track "King Park" which focuses on the story of an inner city drive-by shooting. The band was noted for combining the energetic dynamics of hardcore punk with the introspective elements of emo and focusing on simpler chord changes.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: The band is said to be influenced by a broad range of music and as individuals they possess different influences. Post-hardcore bands like Thursday, Refused, At the Drive-In and Glassjaw are just some examples of commonalities amongst the band. Writing a tribute to mewithoutYou upon that band’s retirement, Deyer wrote that La Dispute “might never have been a band without mewithoutYou” and that he especially was influenced by singer Aaron Weiss’ stage presence. Drummer Brad Vander Lugt has said that the band with each record takes influences from other artists and musicians who are "pushing the envelope and challenging themselves." Vander Lugt personally cites his influences from blues and jazz musicians. Dreyer has stated his lyrical influences are derived from fiction writers rather than from poetry, as he likes to approach writing through stories and different characters. Particularly citing Kurt Vonnegut, Vladimir Nabokov as literary influences, and cites books from Nabokov like Pale Fire and Lolita as some of his favorites. The band credits now defunct Michigan based rock bands Ivan and Coal Black Horse as having a significant influence on La Dispute. Jacob Fricke of The Badger Herald commented on how Black Flag's third album combination of spoken word on its A-side and their typical "hard-and-fast punk" on the B-side acted as an influence on La Dispute's style.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: La Dispute has been said to be a part of a self-proclaimed group of post-hardcore bands called "The New Wave of Post-hardcore", shortened to "The Wave", with fellow post-hardcore artists Defeater, Make Do and Mend, Pianos Become the Teeth and Touché Amoré. The term "The Wave" was initially coined as an inside joke between the bands. However, Vander Lugt has commented on how the term has been interpreted with more serious attitude from people, saying: "people just ran with it and some kids took it really seriously, like we were trying to create some kind of collective, which it wasn't at all. But we are really good friends with all of those bands. They're like brothers to us and I think, in that way, it is a collective." A "self-defined movement" which The Guardian described in their article "The A-Z of pop in 2012" as having heavy lyrical emphasis and are reminiscent of the "90s emo scene." "The Wave" is believed to have a 'sphere of influence' that stretches beyond the initial artists and they believe other bands are included, including: All Teeth, Balance and Composure, Comadre, Former Thieves, Into It. Over It., Living With Lions, Seahaven, Tigers Jaw and Title Fight. La Dispute have been noted as being a part of screamo revival. The immediate legacy of "Wildlife" has been noted as there has been a "huge influx" of 'melodic post hardcore' bands, particularly in the United States.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: La Dispute have an ongoing series of EPs called "Here, Hear" which they refer to as "the Here, Hear. experiment". The music on the EPs has been described as primarily spoken word and experimental. When asked about the series Jordan Dreyer said: "For as long as we make music we'll make Here, Hear stuff". The first two Here, Hear EPs both added instrumentation to pre-existing material from poets and novelists such as Tom Robbins' Still Life with Woodpecker and Edgar Allan Poe's poem Annabel Lee and Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame. This work was written by different band members, excluding singer and lyricist Jordan Dreyer. The style of each song has been described as the band was writing whatever they felt the moment they heard the lyrics. However, for the third installment in the series the band took Jordan Dreyer's own poetry and added instrumentation which fit the stories. The first installment foreshadowed many of the themes found on their debut album, "Somewhere at the Bottom of the River". The band stated that Here, Hear III. would reflect influences on the following album, "Wildlife". "Here, Hear IV" has been put on hold by the band for them to concentrate on their third studio album.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: "Thirteen", the band's latest installment of the series was a single that was put out as a flexible 13-inch record in May 2016 to subscribers of La Dispute's monthly merchandise subscription series, and it was later released online for streaming.


title: La Dispute (band)

text: The band often works with charitable organisations internationally. This includes Wellhouse and 826 National in Michigan, Teenage Cancer Trust in the UK and Headspace in Australia. Every year on Christmas Day the band makes their entire catalogue of music available for free and asks for donations to a charity of their choosing.


title: Samu Castillejo

text: Samuel "Samu" Castillejo Azuaga (born 18 January 1995) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a winger for La Liga club Valencia.


title: Samu Castillejo

text: Castillejo was born in Barcelona, Catalonia where his father, a Guardia Civil officer, was stationed at the time; the family resettled in Málaga, Andalusia within a few months. He graduated from Málaga CF's youth system, made his senior debut with the reserves in 2011 aged only 16, and went on to play three full seasons in Tercera División. He was given the nickname "El Fideo" ("the noodle" in Spanish), due to his "wiry frame and ability to squirm away in tight spaces".


title: Samu Castillejo

text: In June 2014, Castillejo was called up by first-team manager Javi Gracia for the pre-season. He was named player of the match in a 3–1 friendly win against Newcastle United where he scored twice. He was promoted to the main squad the following month.


title: Samu Castillejo

text: Castillejo made his debut with the first team on 29 August 2014, coming on as a substitute for fellow youth graduate Juanmi in the 57th minute of a 3–0 La Liga away loss to Valencia CF. He scored his first professional goal on 2 February, the winner in a home victory over the same opposition.


title: Samu Castillejo

text: Castillejo joined Villarreal CF on 18 June 2015 alongside his Málaga teammate Samu García, signing a five-year deal. He scored six times in his third season, helping his team to qualification for the UEFA Europa League after a fifth-place finish.


title: Samu Castillejo

text: Castillejo signed with AC Milan on 17 August 2018, with Carlos Bacca moving in the opposite direction. He made his Serie A debut on 31 August, starting in the 2–1 win against A.S. Roma at San Siro. He scored his first goal for the club on 30 September, in a 4–1 away defeat of U.S. Sassuolo.


title: Samu Castillejo

text: During the summer 2021 transfer window, following a lacklustre season, Castillejo was a priority sale; despite a number of offers, he and his agent failed to agree on a particular one. He was omitted from a 25-player squad list for the UEFA Champions League.


title: Samu Castillejo

text: Castillejo plays mainly as a winger on either side of the pitch, although he relies mostly on his stronger left foot. He also plays occasionally as a supporting striker or a false 9.


title: Ahmia

text: Developed during the 2014 Google Summer of Code with support from the Tor Project, the open source search engine was initially built in Django and PostgreSQL. It collects the peculiar anonymous identifier called .onion URLs from the Tor network and feeds these to its index except those containing a robots.txt file. The search engine filters out child pornography and keeps a blacklist of abusive services.


title: Ahmia

text: The service partners with GlobaLeaks's submissions and Tor2web statistics for hidden service discovery and as of July 2015 has indexed about 5000 sites. Ahmia is also affiliated with Hermes Center for Transparency and Digital Rights, an organization that promotes transparency and freedom-enabling technologies.


title: Ahmia

text: In July 2015 the site published a list of hundreds of fraudulent fake versions of web pages (including such sites as DuckDuckGo, as well a dark web page). According to Nurmi, "someone runs a fake site on a similar address to the original one and tries to fool people with that" with the intent of scamming people (e.g. gathering bitcoin money by spoofing bitcoin addresses). The background photo of this site is "Hakaniemi in Helsinki".


title: Grandmama (The Addams Family)

text: Grandmama is a fictional character in the "Addams Family" television and film series. First appearing in the works of cartoonist Charles Addams, she is a supporting character in the film, television, and stage adaptations.


title: Grandmama (The Addams Family)

text: Grandmama Addams is an aged witch who concocts potions and spells, and dabbles in fortune telling and knife throwing. She is the grandmother of the Addams children, Pugsley and Wednesday, although her relationship to the other family members is less consistent. Grandmama first appeared along with the then-unnamed Addams family in Charles Addams' original cartoons published in "The New Yorker", in which she was regularly illustrated with shoulder-length frizzy hair and a fringed shawl. Addams described Grandmama in a 1963 character synopsis as "a disrespectful old hag" and "foolishly good-natured ... a weak character [who] is easily led."


title: Grandmama (The Addams Family)

text: In Charles Addams' original "The New Yorker" cartoon strips, the character was referred to as Grandma Frump, therefore making her Morticia's mother.


title: Grandmama (The Addams Family)

text: For the original television series — as well as "The New Addams Family", in which she is named Eudora Addams — her relationship to the family is retconned and she becomes Gomez's mother with a different Granny Frump remaining as Morticia's mother.


title: Grandmama (The Addams Family)

text: However, both the feature films and animated television series conform to Charles Addams' original concept of Grandmama as Wednesday's and Pugsley's maternal grandmother. In the first film, Morticia and Fester discuss how "Mother and Father Addams" were killed by an angry mob, removing any possibility that Grandmama could be Gomez and Fester's mother. In the third film, in which she is named Esmeralda, she is again implied to come from Morticia's family. The character is simply referred to as Granny in the two animated series. In the 1992 series, Grandmama is of Morticia's family, when she introduces herself with the line "the name's Granny Frump".


title: Grandmama (The Addams Family)

text: In the Broadway musical "The Addams Family", Morticia refers to Grandmama as Gomez and Uncle Fester's mother, to which Gomez reacts with surprise and says that he thought she was Morticia's mother. Morticia later says that Grandmama "may not even be part of this family".


title: Grandmama (The Addams Family)

text: In the animated film and its sequel, she is Gomez and Fester's mother while Granny Frump is long dead.


title: Kalamkari

text: Kalamkari is a type of hand-painted cotton textile produced in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Only natural dyes are used in "Kalamkari", which involves twenty-three steps.


title: Kalamkari

text: There are two distinctive styles of Kalamkari art in India – Srikalahasti style and the Machilipatnam style. The Srikalahasti style of" Kalamkari", where the ""kalam"" or pen is used for freehand drawing of the subject and filling in the colors, is entirely hand worked. This style flourished in temples centered on creating unique religious identities, appearing on scrolls, temple hangings, chariot banners as well as depictions of deities and scenes taken from the Hindu epics (e.g. Ramayana, Mahabharata and Purana). The style owes its present status to Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay who popularized the art as the first chairperson of the All India Handicrafts Board.


title: Kalamkari

text: Historically, Kalamkari used to be termed as "Pattachitra", an art form still found in neighboring Odisha and other parts of India and Nepal. The term ""Pattachitra"" (Sanskrit: पट्टचित्र) translates to "patta", meaning "cloth", with "chitra" meaning "picture". Paintings made on fabric and fabric scrolls are mentioned in ancient Hindu, Buddhist and Jain literature.


title: Kalamkari

text: Under medieval Islamic rule, the term Kalamkari was derived from the words "kalam", which means "pen" in Persian, and "kari", which means craftmanship in Persian. This term became popular under the patronage of the Golconda sultanate.


title: Kalamkari

text: Musicians and painters, known as "chitrakars", moved from village to tell the village dwellers the stories of Hindu mythology. They illustrated their accounts using large bolts of canvas painted on the spot with simple means and dyes extracted from plants. Similarly, the ones found in Hindu temples are large panels of Kalamkari depicting the episodes of Hindu mythology and iconography, similar to Buddhist Thangka paintings.


title: Kalamkari

text: As an art form, it was found in the wealthy peak of Golconda sultanate, Hyderabad, in the Middle Ages. The Mughals who patronized this craft in the Coromandel and Golconda province called the practitioners of this craft "Qualamkars", from which the term "Kalamkari" evolved. The Pedana Kalamkari craft made in Pedana nearby Machilipatnam in Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh, evolved under the patronage of the Mughals and the Golconda sultanate. Owing to the said patronage, this school was influenced by Persian art under Islamic rule.


title: Kalamkari

text: Kalamkari art has been practiced by many families in Andhra Pradesh, some villages in Tamil Nadu (Sikkalnayakanpettai) by migrants from Telugu speaking families over the generations have constituted their livelihood. Kalamkari had a period of decline, then was revived in India and abroad for its craftsmanship. Since the 18th century, the British have enjoyed the decorative element for clothing.


title: Kalamkari

text: In the Middle Ages, the term was also used to refer to the making of any cotton fabric patterned through the medium of vegetable dyes by free-hand and block-printing, produced in many regions of India. In places where the fabric is block printed, the "kalam" (pen) is used to draw finer details and for application of some colors.


title: Kalamkari

text: In modern times, traditional techniques have been replaced by digital techniques. In this era, new techniques are introduced and the digital files of Kalamkari have been introduced widely over the regions of India.


title: Kalamkari

text: Nowadays, in India, silk, mulmul, cotton, and synthetic sarees are also sold with Kalamkari print. Printing is a much easier task than traditional Kalamkari work. Kalamkari dupattas and blouse pieces are popular among Indian women.


title: Kalamkari

text: The first step in creating Kalamkari is steeping it in astringents and buffalo milk and then drying it under the sun. Afterwards, the red, black, brown, and violet portions of the designs are outlined with a mordant and cloth are then placed in a bath of alizarin. The next step is to cover the cloth, except for the parts to be dyed blue, in wax, and immerse the cloth in indigo dye. The wax is then scraped off and the remaining areas are painted by hand, similar to Indonesian "batik".


title: Kalamkari

text: To create design contours, artists use a bamboo or date palm stick pointed at one end with a bundle of fine hair attached to this pointed end to serve as the brush or pen. This pen is soaked in a mixture of jaggery and water; one by one these are applied, then the vegetable dyes are added.


title: Kalamkari

text: Dyes for the cloth are obtained by extracting colors from various roots, leaves, and mineral salts of iron, tin, copper, and alum. Various effects are obtained by using cow dung, seeds, plants and crushed flowers to obtain natural dye. Along with buffalo milk, myrobalan is used in "kalamkari". Myrobalan is also used to remove the odd smell of buffalo milk. The fixing agents available in the myrobalan can easily fix the dye or color of the textile while treating the fabric. Alum is used in making natural dyes and also while treating the fabric. Alum ensures the stability of the color in Kalamkari fabric.


title: Kalamkari

text: Kalamkari specifically depicts epics such as the Ramayana or Mahabharata. However, there are recent applications of the Kalamkari technique to depict Buddha and Buddhist art forms. In recent times, many aesthetically good figures such as musical instruments, small animals, flowers, Buddha and few Hindu symbols, like swastika are also introduced to Kalamkari"."


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Politics of Bangladesh takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister of Bangladesh is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament. The Constitution of Bangladesh was written in 1972 and has undergone seventeen amendments.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: The current parliamentary system was adopted in 1991. Between 1975 and 1990 the nation experienced military rule. A caretaker government was first introduced in 1990 after the resignation of military dictator Lieutenant General HM Ershad to observe a neutral democratic election, as per demands of the two major political parties Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Bangladesh Awami League. Following the forced resignation of HM Ershad, Chief Justice Shahabuddin Ahmed was nominated as the Chief Advisor and observed the 1991 general election. A Caretaker government is headed by a Chief Adviser who enjoys the same power as the regular prime minister of the country except defense matters. The Advisors function as Ministers. After 1991, the Caretaker government has also held the elections of 1996, 2001 and 2008. Although the first caretaker government was intended to help the transition from authoritarianism to democracy, this system was institutionalized in 1996 by the Sixth Parliament due to rising mistrust between the BNP and Awami League. In 2011 the then ruling party Awami League abolished the caretaker government system. This has been the biggest cause of dispute among many others between the BNP and the Awami League since then.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: The three major parties in Bangladesh are the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Bangladesh Awami League and Jatiya Party. BNP finds its allies among some Islamist parties like Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh while the Awami League aligns itself traditionally with leftist and secularist parties such as Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal. Another important player is the Jatiya Party, headed by late Hussain Muhammad Ershad's Brother GM Quader. The Awami League-BNP rivalry has been bitter and punctuated by protests, violence and murder. Student politics is particularly strong in Bangladesh, a legacy from the liberation movement era. Almost all parties have highly active student wings, and students have been elected to the Parliament.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Three radical Islamist parties, Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh (JMJB) and Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), Harkatul Jihad were banned in February 2004 on grounds of militancy and terrorism. Following the first series of bans, a series of bomb attacks took place in the country in August 2005. The evidence of staging these attacks by these extremist groups have been found in the investigation, and hundreds of suspected members were detained in numerous security operations in 2006, including the two chiefs of the JMB, Shaykh Abdur Rahman and Bangla Bhai, who were executed with other top leaders in March 2007, bringing the radical parties to an end.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: The 1970 Pakistani National Assembly election was held on 7 December 1970. The total number of voters were 29,479,386. The number of casting votes was 17,005,163 (57.68%), the valid casting votes was 1,64,54,278.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: The 1970 East Pakistan Provincial Council election was held on 17 December 1970. The percentage of casting votes was (57.69%), and the number of reserved women seat was 10.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Following boycotts by the main opposition party, the Bangladesh Awami League, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party won the uncontested elections. However, amidst protests, they were made to cave into Awami League's original demands, dissolve the parliament, and hold elections under a neutral caretaker government after the enactment of the 13th amendment.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Bangladesh Awami League won the June 1996 general election for the first time since 1973 by forming a coalition government, since they fell 5 seats short of a majority.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: The Awami League was declared victors in 127 of the 154 uncontested seats by default in the 5 January 2014 elections. Of the remaining uncontested seats, the Jatiya Party led by Rowshan Ershad won 20, the JSD won three, the Workers Party won two and the Jatiya Party (Manju) won one.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: As a result of violence and the opposition boycott voter turnout was 22%. Results of 139 seats out of 147 were released, with the Awami League winning 105, the Jatiya Party winning 13, the Workers Party winning four, the JSD winning two and the Tarikat Federation and BNF winning one each. The remaining 8 constituencies election were suspended due to violence and re-election to be held. The newly elected MPs were sworn in on 9 January.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: The 2018 general election held on 30 December 2018, voter turnout was 80%. Bangladesh Awami League under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina won their 4th term as the ruling party with 257 seats. The Jatiya Party became the main opposition party with only 22 seats.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Political dynasties have long been a feature of the Bangladesh political landscape since the country's independence in 1971. They are typically characterized as families that have established their political or economic dominance in a party, in national government or other positions of national political prominence. Members of such dynasties usually do not limit their involvement to strictly political activities, and have been found participating in business or culture-related activities. This idea of inherited wealth and connections discouraging future generations to work hard can also be attributed to dynastic politicians. Dynastic politicians have a significant advantage from the start of their political career. They have a statistically higher probability, due to factors like popularity and incumbency advantage, to win elections when pitted against politicians with no such political networks. Dynastic politicians also have generally lower educational attainment, because of their reliance on dynastic connections rather than bureaucratic or academic competence for their position. Dynastic candidates, being almost exclusively from the upper classes, are naturally biased towards defending their own vested economic interests, which presents conflict of interest problems. Political dynasties also prevent challengers with potentially effective policy ideas from being able to take office, which limits the capacity for bureaucratic responsiveness and administrative effectiveness and adaptation to new ideas.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: The Bangladeshi politics have been dominated by the bitter rivalry between two Families, Ziaur Rahman's widow, Khaleda Zia, led the Bangladesh Nationalist Party since 1981 for almost 37 years, against the Bangladesh Awami League, led since 1981 by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's daughter Sheikh Hasina. Popularly known as the "Battling Begums"; the two women have inherited their party identifications from their family members and have ruled Bangladesh as prime ministers since 1991.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: There has been a lot of debate regarding the effects political dynasties have on the political and economic status of Bangladeshi society. Despite the negative reaction of the populace towards political dynasties and the association between dynastic activities and corruption, there are no laws that restrict the presence of political dynasties in Bangladesh.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Bangladesh has seen political corruption for decades. According to all major ranking institutions, Bangladesh routinely finds itself among the most corrupt countries in the world.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Social issues in Bangladesh range from liberal inceptions such as women's rights, religious liberty, religious freedom, modernity, industrialization to religious issues such as blasphemy laws, sharia legal system, religious conservatism and state religion. The two main parties, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and the Awami League, both have contested against each other since the millennium over these issues.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: After the British conquest of Bengal on 23 June 1757 and the overthrowing and execution of Nawab Siraj ud-Daulah, considered as the last independent ruler of the region before regaining independence 200 years later, the Bengal Presidency was divided in British India in the year 1947, as East Bengal and West Bengal mainly on religious grounds. East Bengal allied itself with the newly formed Muslim state of Pakistan and became known as East Pakistan. However the relations between West Pakistan and East Pakistan were politically strained due to various issues of inequality, language, culture and a large distance of over 2000 kilometres between the two states separated by the foreign lands of India. The central power remained confined in West Pakistan, thus demand for total independent rule of East Pakistan begun. Following the Six point movement in 1966 led by Father of the Nation Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the East Pakistan independence movement gained momentum.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: On 5 December 1969 Sheikh Mujibur Rahman stated after independence East Pakistan will be renamed Bangladesh. The situation escalated after the 1970 elections and the 7 March 1971 speech of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. After a brutal Pakistani army crackdown on the local people of Bangladesh on 25 March 1971 carried out under orders of Pakistan President Yahya Khan, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the Chief of Awami League and the leader of the liberation movement declared independence on 26 March 1971, which was broadcast from Chittagong radio station on 27 March, first by the then Awami League Secretary of Chittagong Mr Abdul Hannan and other Awami League leaders and then by Major Ziaur Rahman on behalf of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in the evening of 27 March, thus starting the Bangladesh Liberation War. Captain Rafiq BU Commanding Officer of Chittagong East Pakistan Rifles revolted first and subsequently other commanding officers at different places: Major Shafiullah, Major Khaled Musharraf and Major Ziaur Rahman revolted with their forces. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was arrested by the Pakistan Army in early hours of 26 March, immediately after he declared independence and was taken to West Pakistan, where he remained in jail until early January 1972.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Bangladesh's first government formed on 10 April 1971 and took the oath of office in Meherpur, Kushtia on 17 April 1971. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was elected as the first President of the Provisional Government of Bangladesh, Syed Nazrul Islam was elected as the Vice President, and Tajuddin Ahmed was elected as the first Prime Minister. Other major cabinet members were Mr Kamruzzaman, Mr Monsur Ali and Khodokar Mustaq Ahmed, all senior Awami League leaders. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman by virtue of his position as the President of Bangladesh became the Supreme Commander of the Liberation Army, while Colonel M.A.G. Osmani was appointed by the provisional government as the Commander-in- Chief of the liberation army. Subsequently, the provisional government formed its secretariat and designated top bureaucrats as chiefs of the divisions of the Secretariat. The Provisional Government later divided Bangladesh into eleven Sectors for conducting war efficiently and in an organized manner. This Government became the first legal political entity on behalf of the fighting people of Bangladesh and represented the people in the international arena. Prime Minister Tajuddin Ahmed started intergovernmental dialogue with the Indian Government immediately after the formation of the Provisional Government. Bangladesh achieved victory in the liberation war on 16 December 1971.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: As this government was formed during the war of independence from Pakistan, its significance holds a distinction. Its temporary headquarters had been set up at 8 Theatre Road in Calcutta, India.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: On 8 January 1972 the leader of the Liberation War and Liberation movement Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was released from Pakistan Jail and was sent to London. On Mujib's arrival in London, he was met by the Prime Minister of UK and other world leaders. Sheikh Mujib returned to Bangladesh on 10 January 1972, by a British Royal Air Force Aircraft. Mujib congratulated the Bengali Mukti Bahini (the Bangladesh Liberation Force) for succeeding in the war of liberation against Pakistan army. Mujib was placed at the helm of government, according to the election victory under the unified Pakistan government. In 1973 after the first Bangladesh elections, he continued his term in office with immense backing from India, and public popularity, but had great difficulty transforming this popular support into the political strength needed to function as head of government. The new constitution, which came into force on 16 December 1972, created a strong executive prime minister, a largely ceremonial presidency, an independent judiciary, and a unicameral legislature on a modified Westminster model. The 1972 constitution adopted as state policy the Awami League's (AL) four basic principles of nationalism, secularism, socialism, and democracy. A key author of the constitution of Bangladesh was Dr Kamal Hossain, who has since been a major political figure of the country.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: The first parliamentary elections held under the 1972 constitution were in March 1973, with the Awami League winning a massive majority, winning a historic 293 out of a total of 300 seats. No other political party in Bangladesh's early years was able to duplicate or challenge the League's broad-based appeal, membership, or organizational strength. Mujib and his cabinet having no experience in governance nor administration, relied heavily on experienced civil servants and political factions of the Awami League, the new Bangladesh Government focused on relief, rehabilitation, and reconstruction of the economy and society. Mujib nationalised the entire economy, banking and industrial sector. Economic conditions took a serious downturn. On top of that heavy corruption among his own party members, factions and senior leadership also added to the devastation and famine. The then U.S. Secretary of State had termed Bangladesh a Bottomless Basket. Amid mass corruption and famine throughout 1974, in December 1974, Mujib decided that continuing economic deterioration and mounting civil disorder required strong measures. After proclaiming a state of emergency, Mujib used his parliamentary majority to win a constitutional amendment limiting the powers of the legislative and judicial branches, establishing an executive presidency, and instituting a one-party system, the Bangladesh Krishak Sramik Awami League (BAKSAL), which all members of Parliament were obliged to join.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Despite promises, no sign of improvement in the economic situation surfaced. Implementation of promised political reforms was almost nil, and criticism of government policies became increasingly centered on Mujib. Serious disorientation in the armed services, disenchantment in society, deterioration of law and order created a huge mistrust of Mujib and his government including the Awami League itself. The then chief of army staff K M Shafiullah and chief of air staff A.K. Khandker stood stunned and idle during this situation. On 15 August 1975, Mujib, and most of his family, were assassinated by a small group of mid-level army officers. Mujib's daughters, Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Rehana, happened to be out of the country. A new government, headed by former Mujib associate Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad, was formed.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Mujib's senior cabinet minister Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad formed a new government and immediately initiated a few critical changes in Mujib's policies and rules of business in government. The notorious Jail Killings happened during this period, amidst the confusion in which Bangladesh was plunged on 3 November. On the same day, Brig General Khaled Mosharraf launched his own coup fundamentally as a move to restore the chain of command broken in the army Musharraf moved swiftly to remove Moshtaque Ahmad from office. On 7 November Khaled Musharaf was killed in a counter coup engineered by Colonel Abu Taher.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Following Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad's removal and assassination of Brigadier General Khaled Musharaf by a segment of army personnel in 1975, a very short lived revolution resulted in the emergence of arrested deputy Army Chief of Staff Major General Ziaur Rahman ("Zia"), who managed to take the lead and bring the whole nation out of a political quagmire. His first action was to communicate to the people through radio and television and bring order and calm to the nation. He pledged full support to the civilian government headed by President Chief Justice Sayem. Acting at Zia's behest, Sayem dissolved Parliament, and instituted state of emergency under martial law. Zia brought an end to the turbulence within the army. In 1976 Colonel Abu Taher was tried for treason and executed. Fresh elections were to be in 1977 under a multi party democracy with full freedom of the press.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Acting behind the scenes of the Martial Law Administration (MLA), Zia sought to invigorate government policy and administration. Lifting the ban on political parties from Mujib's one party BAKSAL rule, he sought to revitalize the demoralized bureaucracy, to begin new economic development programs, infrastructure buildup, a free press and to emphasize family planning. In November 1976, Zia became Chief Martial Law Administrator (CMLA) and assumed the presidency upon Sayem's retirement 5 months later, on 21 April 1977.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: As President, Zia announced a 19-point program of economic reform and began dismantling the MLA. Keeping his promise to hold elections, Zia won a 5-year term in the June 1978 elections, with 76% of the vote. In November 1978, his government removed the remaining restrictions on political party activities in time for parliamentary elections in February 1979. These elections, which were contested by more than 30 parties, marked the culmination of Zia's transformation of Bangladesh's Government from the MLA to a democratically elected, constitutional one. The Awami League and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), founded by Zia, emerged as the two major parties. The constitution was again amended to provide for an executive prime minister appointed by the president, and responsible to a parliamentary majority. Zia invigorated a strong foreign policy based on sovereignty and economic independence. He initiated many social programs to uplift the poor through honest hard work and education. During this period, Bangladesh's economy achieved fast economic and industrial growth. His greatest legacy on the people of Bangladesh was unity and self-dependence.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: In May 1981, Zia was assassinated in Chittagong by dissident elements of the military. There was no coup or uprising attempted, and the major conspirators were never taken into custody or killed. In accordance with the constitution, Vice President Justice Abdus Sattar was sworn in as acting president. He immediately set out to continue Zia's policies and called for fresh elections. Due to President Zia's tremendous popularity Satter won as the BNP's candidate. President Sattar sought to follow the policies of his predecessor and retained essentially the same cabinet.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Hussain Mohammed Ershad assumed power in the a full-fledged but bloodless coup on 24 March 1982. He removed the country's democratically elected president and suspended the constitution and declared martial law. He cited pervasive corruption, ineffectual government, and economic mismanagement for legitimising his action. The following year, Ershad assumed the presidency on 11 December 1983, retaining his positions as army chief and CMLA, first time in Bangladesh. During most of 1984, Ershad sought the opposition parties' participation in local elections under martial law. The opposition's refusal to participate, however, forced Ershad to abandon these plans. Ershad was capable of managing the Awami League through financial and political support. The Awami League's support gave him the strength and legitimacy to seek public support for his regime in a national referendum on his leadership in March 1985. He won overwhelmingly, although turnout was small. Two months later, Ershad held elections for local council chairmen. Pro-government candidates won a majority of the posts, setting in motion the President's ambitious decentralization program that Ziaur Rahman had initiated. Political life was finally liberalized in early 1986, and additional political rights, including the right to hold large public rallies, were restored. Additional support from Jamaati Islami at the same time gave Ershad's political vehicle for the transition from martial law some form of legitimacy and the political order of Ershad and his Jatiya Party was established.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Despite a boycott by the BNP, led Begum Khaleda Zia, parliamentary elections were held on schedule on 7 May 1986. The Jatiya Party won a modest majority of the 300 elected seats in the national assembly. The participation of the Awami League led by party chairman Sheikh Hasina Wazed—lent the elections some credibility, despite widespread charges of voting irregularities and ballot box theft.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Ershad resigned as Army Chief of Staff and retired from military service in preparation for the presidential elections, scheduled for October 1986. Protesting that martial law was still in effect, both the BNP refused to put up opposing candidates. The Awami League participated by breaking their open public promise. Ershad easily outdistanced the remaining candidates, taking 84% of the vote. Although Ershad's government claimed a turnout of more than 50%, opposition leaders of BNP, and much of the foreign press, estimated a far lower percentage and alleged voting irregularities.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Ershad continued his stated commitment to lift martial law. In November 1986, his government mustered the necessary two-thirds majority in the national assembly to amend the constitution and confirm the previous actions of the martial law regime. The President then lifted martial law, and the opposition party Awami League of Hasina Wazed took their elected seats in the national assembly.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: In July 1987, however, after the government hastily pushed through a controversial legislative bill to include military representation on local administrative councils. Passage of the bill helped spark an opposition movement by Bangladesh Nationalist Party that quickly gathered momentum. The Awami League and Jamaat Islami. understanding their political gamble, gradually united with Bangladesh Nationalist Party for the first time. The government began to arrest scores of opposition activists under the country's Special Powers Act of 1974. Despite these arrests, opposition parties continued to organize protest marches and nationwide strikes. After declaring a state of emergency, Ershad dissolved Parliament and scheduled fresh elections for March 1988.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: All major opposition parties refused government overtures to participate in these polls, maintaining that the government was illegal and incapable of holding free and fair elections. Despite the opposition boycott, the government proceeded. The ruling Jatiya Party won 251 of the 300 seats. The Parliament, while still regarded by the opposition as an illegitimate body, held its sessions as scheduled, and passed numerous bills.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: By 1989, the domestic political situation in the country seemed to have quieted. The local council elections were generally considered by international observers to have been less violent and more free and fair than previous elections. However, opposition to Ershad's rule began to regain momentum, escalating by the end of 1990 in frequent general strikes, increased student's campus protests, public rallies, and a general disintegration of law and order. This was popularly termed the 1990 Mass Uprising in Bangladesh.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: On 6 December 1990, after 2 months of widespread civil unrest, Ershad offered his resignation. On 27 February 1991, an interim government oversaw what most observers widely believed to be the nation's most free and fair elections to date.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: The center-right BNP won a plurality of seats in the 1991 Bangladesh General Election and formed a coalition government with the Islamic party Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh, with Khaleda Zia, widow of Ziaur Rahman, obtaining the post of Prime Minister. Only four parties had more than 10 members elected to the 1991 Parliament: The Bangladesh Nationalist Party, led by Prime Minister Khaleda Zia; the Awami League, led by Sheikh Hasina; the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), led by Golam Azam; and the Jatiya Party (JP), led by acting chairman Mizanur Rahman Chowdhury while its founder, former President Ershad, served out a prison sentence on corruption charges. The electorate approved still more changes to the constitution, formally re-creating a parliamentary system and returning governing power to the office of the prime minister, as in Bangladesh's original 1972 constitution. In October 1991, members of Parliament elected a new head of state, President Abdur Rahman Biswas.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: In March 1994, controversy over a parliamentary by-election, which the opposition claimed the government had rigged, led to an indefinite boycott of Parliament by the entire opposition. The opposition also began a program of repeated general strikes to press its demand that Khaleda Zia's government resign and a caretaker government supervise a general election. Efforts to mediate the dispute, under the auspices of the Commonwealth Secretariat, failed. After another attempt at a negotiated settlement failed narrowly in late December 1994, the opposition resigned en masse from Parliament. The opposition then continued a campaign of Marches, demonstrations, and strikes in an effort to force the government to resign. The year 1995 observed nearly 200 days of general strikes disrupting the countries normal activities. The opposition, including the Awami League's Sheikh Hasina, pledged to boycott national elections scheduled for 15 February 1996.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: In February, Khaleda Zia was re-elected for the second term by a landslide in voting boycotted and denounced as unfair by the three main opposition parties. In March 1996, following escalating political turmoil, the sitting Parliament enacted a constitutional amendment to allow a neutral caretaker government to assume power conduct new parliamentary elections; former Chief Justice Muhammad Habibur Rahman was named Chief Advisor (a position equivalent to prime minister) in the interim government. New parliamentary elections were held in June 1996 and were won by the Awami League; party leader Sheikh Hasina became Prime Minister.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Sheikh Hasina formed what she called a "Government of National Consensus" in June 1996, which included one minister from the Jatiya Party and another from the Jatiyo Samajtantrik Dal, a very small leftist party. The Jatiya Party never entered into a formal coalition arrangement, and party president H.M. Ershad withdrew his support from the government in September 1997. Only three parties had more than 10 members elected to the 1996 Parliament: The Awami League, BNP, and Jatiya Party. Jatiya Party president, Ershad, was released from prison on bail in January 1997.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: BNP staged a walkout from parliament in August 1997. The BNP returned to Parliament under another agreement in March 1998. In June 1999, the BNP and other opposition parties again began to abstain from attending Parliament. Opposition parties have staged an increasing number of nationwide general strikes, rising from 6 days of general strikes in 1997 to 27 days in 1999. A four-party opposition alliance formed at the beginning of 1999 announced that it would boycott parliamentary by-elections and local government elections unless the government took steps demanded by the opposition to ensure electoral fairness. The government did not take these steps, and the opposition has subsequently boycotted all elections, including municipal council elections in February 1999, several parliamentary by-elections, and the Chittagong city corporation elections in January 2000. The opposition demands that the Awami League government step down immediately to make way for a caretaker government to preside over parliamentary and local government. In March 2000, US President Bill Clinton became the first US president to visit Bangladesh. Hasina later stated that during the visit Clinton wanted to import gas from the Country, but she had to decline due to fear of scarcity of gas and for the welfare of the people as they were heavily dependent on gas.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: A Khaleda-led four-party alliance won two-thirds of total parliamentary seats with a total 193 seats, while Awami League won 62 seats. Thus Khaleda Zia won a second term as Prime Minister in 2001. Her coalition included several Islamist parties. The Awami League walked out from the Parliament in June 2003 to protest derogatory remarks about Sheikh Hasina by a State Minister and the allegedly partisan role of the Parliamentary Speaker. Throughout the year 2004 the opposition party Awami League carried out various processions pressing various demands and claiming government incompetence on various issues. In June 2004, the Awami League returned to Parliament without having any of their demands met.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: On 21 August 2004 a group of terrorists conducted vicious grenade attacks on a rally held by the opposition party Awami League including leader Sheikh Hasina. Prominent leaders including Ivy Rahman were killed in the attack, and Hasina herself sustained injuries to her ears. A total of 13 grenades were blasted and 24 people killed. The Awami League called for a nationwide hartal (general strikes) on 23 and 24 August 2004 following the incident. Begum Khaleda Zia, then Prime Minister of Bangladesh condemned the attacks, and also vowed a strong probe to catch the culprits. But they provided misleading information. Only after the current government tenure ended a neutral probe formed and revealed that Tarique Rahman son of Prime Minister Khaleda Zia along with the then Home Minister Lutfuzzaman Babar had masterminded the attack. But BNP has denied the allegations.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: In 2005 Awami League attended Parliament irregularly before announcing a boycott of the entire June 2005 budget session. The BNP government tenure expired in October 2006, and was followed by a period of widespread political crisis.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Following the end of Khaleda Zia's government in late October 2006, there were protests and strikes over uncertainty about who would head the caretaker government (which was accused of BNP bias), held by Awami League, paralyzing the country and resulting in the death of at least 40 people in the following month in November 2006.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: An election was scheduled for the beginning of 2007, however it did not take place. Given the parties' failure to agree on a candidate For Chief Advisor, according to the constitution the position devolved to the President, Iajuddin Ahmed, serving since 2002. He took it on in addition to his regular responsibilities, which under the caretaker government included the Defense Ministry. Iajuddin Ahmed formed a government, appointing ten advisors to a council to act as ministers. He appointed his press spokesman, the journalist-editor turned politician M Mukhlesur Rahman Chowdhury, as his chief Presidential Advisor, with the status of Minister of State. Chowdhury had the responsibility to negotiate with the political parties to bring them to participation in the election. In January 2007, Iajuddin Ahmed stepped down as the head of the caretaker government, under pressure from the military.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Fakhruddin Ahmed, former World Bank economist, was selected to replace him and with the commitment to rooting out corruption and preparing a better voter list. Fakhruddin Ahmed became the Chief Advisor. A State of Emergency was declared and a massive campaign to crack down on corruption was undertaken. By July 2007 some 200,000 people had been arrested under corruption charges. The government said it would hold elections before the end of 2008.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: In April 2007, Ahmed's military backed administration attempted to reform the political parties by exiling Hasina and Zia, but this was never enforced. Hasina, who had been visiting her children in the US, was allowed to return but she had to face serious charges, including involvement in the assassination of four political rivals. In July, she was arrested after two businessmen testified that she had extorted ৳80 million (US$1.16 million) from them. This provoked angry protests from her supporters; even her bitter rival Khaleda Zia, as well as six British MPs and MEPs, called for her release. Khaleda herself faced charges of tax evasion and was later arrested. Tarique Rahman was taken to custody for the 2004 grenade attacks and various corruption charges including money laundering, and was later sent on forced exile on 11 September 2008 and since then has not been able to return to the country. After holding power for almost two years, the political situation had finally calmed and Ahmed decided to return parliamentary democracy, testing the political situation with some local elections held on 4 August 2008, which were peaceful. Both Hasina and Khaleda were finally released from prison and the General elections were held on 29 December 2008. The Awami League and its Grand Alliance won the elections with two-thirds of the seats in parliament. The BNP and its four-party alliance, including Jamaat-e-Islami, comprised the major opposition.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: The Awami League came to power by winning the vast majority of parliament seats in the election held on 29 December 2008, and Sheikh Hasina became the Prime Minister of Bangladesh for the second time. Her cabinet took oath on 6 January 2009. HM Ershad was promised to be made President in exchange for support for Awami League, but despite supporting Awami League, this promise was not fulfilled and Zillur Rahman became president. The first two years under this government was peaceful, but a debatable issue took place when the Awami League government enforced an existing law to reclaim the house where Khaleda Zia had lived for nearly 40 years for a nominal cost. Khaleda Zia moved to the house of her brother Sayeed Iskandar at Gulshan. In protest BNP would abstain from parliament. This period also observed tremendous economic growth.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Controversy erupted in 2011 after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina declared the abolition of the care-taker government system, contradicting her own motives and views in the mid-1990s when she had demanded that elections should be held under neutral care-taker governments. Hasina justified this by stating that a neutral care-taker government may abuse its power (referring to the care-taker government crisis in 2006–2008) and take unlawful and autocratic control of the country. At the same time, arrests and trials of members accused of war crimes of the political party Jamaat-e-Islami had begun. This caused major disagreements among the ruling Awami League with the chief opposition party BNP and its major ally Jamaat. In a bid to return to the 1972 Constitution, the government made several reforms to the constitution of Bangladesh in 2011, and readopted Secularism. In 2012 a coup attempt against Hasina by mid-ranking army officers was stopped, with Bangladesh army being tipped off by Indian intelligence agency. Also in 2012, Bangladesh won a legal battle against Myanmar under international court regarding disputed sea territories, giving Bangladesh a tremendous advantage on the oceanic areas.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: The period 2012-2014 was marked by widespread political unrest and violence in the form of strikes, riots and acts of vandalism which led to massive property damages, economic losses and death of many ordinary citizens. Petrol bombs and cocktails were being used at their peaks for arson attacks. But the ruling party remained committed to their decision and compared the ongoing protests to acts of terrorism. Both the ruling party and the opposition received International criticism. The scheduled date of the 10th general election was 5 January 2014. The opposition party received several pleas by the ruling party to abandon their path of violence and join the election, but they repeatedly declined. Despite the crisis the controversial 5 January 2014 election was held (a few election centers were bombed by BNP-Jamaat supporters, voters faced harassment) with mass boycott from BNP and its major allies. At least 21 people were killed on the 5 January election day violence. Awami League had a landslide victory, and Sheikh Hasina was sworn in as Prime Minister for the third time on 9 January 2014, while Rowshan Ershad of the Jatiya Party became the new leader of the opposition, as Khaleda-led BNP boycotted the election. The ongoing BNP-Jamaat protests diluted after failing to stop the January 2014 election, and overthrow the ruling party, and by the end of March 2014, political stability was reached.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: In the tenth general election, Sheikh Hasina won a controversial one-sided walkover election after her main rival Khaleda Zia and all other opposition parties boycotted the polls. Awami League once again took office on 9 January 2014. Over a 100 people were killed in the 2016 Union Parishad Election in violent clashes between Awami League and BNP supporters. In April 2017 Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina made a landmark visit to neighboring India and signed 22 new deals and MoUs with India taking the Indo-BD bilateral relationships to a new height. This also included a defense cooperation, originally proposed by India. BNP harshly criticized the move with Khaleda alleging the ruling party was selling Bangladesh to India and pointing the Government's failure to make the long-awaited Teesta deal. Awami League dismissed the allegations, assuring that it was just a framework to strengthen regional ties with India. Also in 2017 Bangladesh was met with the 2017 Rohingya Refugee Crisis, in which the government received international praise for allowing over 700,000 Rohingya refugees fleeing violence in Myanmar (where around 20,000 of them were killed) into the country but also some domestic criticisms due to this being an additional burden to Bangladesh a country already overpopulated with 17 crore (170 million) people and having a small land.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Most of the post 2014 election period however saw political calm. Tensions between the BNP and Awami League reignited in 2018 after BNP once again started pressing demands for a caretaker government to observe the 11th general election. BNP also criticized Awami League's rising dependency on law enforcement agencies such as the police force and for holding back people's freedom of speech. On 8 February 2018 Khaleda Zia and Tarique Rahman as per court verdict, were jailed for 5 and 10 years respectively due to their involvement in the Zia Charitable Trust corruption case. While Tarique was on exile, Khaleda would be imprisoned on old Dhaka Central Jail located in Nazimuddin Road. BNP totally rejected the verdict, alleging that it was Awami League's conspiracy to destroy their party and to keep them out of the next general election. In protest BNP held nationwide demonstrations, which were foiled by the well prepared police force across the nation, with a large number of BNP members also being arrested during clashes with the police. After Khaleda Zia was jailed, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and prominent leader Moudud Ahmed oversaw most of the party's activities. After Khalada Zia's prison sentence was challenged at the High Court, it was increased to 10 years, potentially ending her political career. During this time the government passed the controversial "Digital Security Act 2018", under which any criticisms of the government over the internet or any other media, would be met with various degrees of prison terms.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: On 22 September 2018, in a massive rally, the newly formed coalition party: Jatiya Oikya Prokriya (JOP), a platform led by Dr. Kamal Hossain and Prof. Badruddoza Chowdhury, allied themselves with the main opposition party BNP, on condition BNP will no longer be alliance with Jamaat, and vowed joint movements to restore democracy. The BNP-JOP alliance was named the Jatiya Oikya Front. The Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader called the opposing Jatiya Oikya Front, weak and stated that the opposing alliance was not being viewed as a credible threat by the Government. On 10 October 2018, court verdict against the 2004 grenade attack was given. Top BNP leader Lutfuzzaman Babar was given the death penalty and Tariqe Rahman was given life term imprisonment. BNP rejected the verdict and carried out protests against it. During this time Kamal Hossain as the leader of the Jatiya Oikya Front became the main opposition leader.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: The 2018 Bangladeshi general election was held on 30 December 2018. On the election day at least 14 people died in violence between the Awami League supporters and the Jatiya Oikya Front supporters. The Awami League returned to power winning 259 out of 300 parliamentary seats, making up the largest government body in Bangladesh after 1973 (where Awami League had won 293 out of 300 seats). The Jatiya Oikya Front only won 7 seats and alleged the 2018 election to be rigged and opted to boycott the parliament and stated that they would demand for fresh elections. The Jatiya Party became the main opposition party with only 20 seats. This was Awami League's record 4th victory in the general elections under Sheikh Hasina.


title: Politics of Bangladesh

text: Bangladesh Awami League leader Sheikh Hasina's new cabinet took oath on 3 January 2019. Despite refusing to sell gas (LPG) at a better deal to the US back in 2000, in October 2019 Sheikh Hasina in a contradictory statement controversially stated that she will sell LPG to India despite the scarcity of LPG in Bangladesh (BD). Hasina also stated she will give India free access to extract BD's Feni water, despite her failure to secure the Teesta river sharing deal. The dispute between BD and Myanmar over the unresolved Rohingya Refugee Crisis continued during this period, with Myanmar's unwillingness to take back the refugees. In October 2020 Myanmar deployed their army troops on the Bangladesh border. Bangladesh appealed to the UN Security Council to prevent any escalation. Later Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina assured "a safe zone must be created for the Rohingyas Refugees. If that is done, Myanmar will face a huge problem in the Rakhine region. I don't think Myanmar will lock in war with Bangladesh; China will not let that happen." No further escalations have been reported, BD and Myanmar have since remained in peace militarily, but the diplomatic dispute continues to be debated at the UN.


title: Anamorphosis

text: Anamorphosis is a distorted projection requiring the viewer to occupy a specific vantage point, use special devices, or both to view a recognizable image. It is used in painting, photography, sculpture and installation, toys, and film special effects. The word is derived from the Greek prefix "ana-", meaning "back" or "again", and the word "morphe", meaning "shape" or "form". Extreme anamorphosis has been used by artists to disguise caricatures, erotic and scatological scenes, and other furtive images from a casual spectator, while revealing an undistorted image to the knowledgeable viewer.


title: Anamorphosis

text: There are two main types of anamorphosis: "perspective" (oblique) and "mirror" (catoptric). More complex anamorphoses can be devised using distorted lenses, mirrors, or other optical transformations.


title: Anamorphosis

text: An oblique anamorphism forms an affine transformation of the subject. Early examples of perspectival anamorphosis date to the Renaissance of the fifteenth century and largely relate to religious themes.


title: Anamorphosis

text: With mirror anamorphosis, a conical or cylindrical mirror is placed on the distorted drawing or painting to reveal an undistorted image. The deformed picture relies on laws regarding angles of incidence of reflection. The length of the flat drawing's curves are reduced when viewed in a curved mirror, such that the distortions resolve into a recognizable picture. Unlike perspective anamorphosis, catoptric images can be viewed from many angles. The technique was originally developed in China during the Ming Dynasty, and the first European manual on mirror anamorphosis was published around 1630 by the mathematician Vaulezard.


title: Anamorphosis

text: "Channel anamorphosis" or "tabula scalata" has a different images on each side of a corrugated carrier. A straight frontal view shows an unclear mix of the images, while each image can be viewed correctly from a certain angle.


title: Anamorphosis

text: The Stone Age cave paintings at Lascaux may make use of anamorphic technique, because the oblique angles of the cave would otherwise result in distorted figures from a viewer's perspective.


title: Anamorphosis

text: The ancient historians Pliny and Tzetzes both record a sculpture competition between Alcamenes and Phidias to create an image of Minerva. Alcamenes' sculpture was beautiful, while Phidias' had grotesque proportions. Yet once both had been mounted on pillars, the decelerated perspective made Phidias' Minerva beautiful and Alcamenes' ugly.


title: Anamorphosis

text: Artists' experimentation with optics and perspective during the Renaissance advanced anamorphic technique, at a time when science and religious thought were equally important to its growth in Europe. "Leonardo's Eye" by Leonardo da Vinci, included in the "Codex Atlanticus" (1483-1518), is the earliest known example. He later completed several large-scale anamorphic commissions for the King of France. Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola credited Tommaso Laureti as the originator of a perspectival anamorphic technique in one of the earliest written descriptions in "The Two Rules of Practical Perspective", compiled between 1530 and 1540 but not published until 1583. Many other descriptions and examples were created before 1583 without access to Vignola's work.


title: Anamorphosis

text: "The Ambassadors" (c. 1533) by Hans Holbein the Younger is known for the prominent gray diagonal slash across the bottom of the frame which, when viewed from an acute angle, resolves into the image of a human skull. It has been hypothesized that the painting, regarded as a "vanitas" – a meditation on the transience of life including the skull as a "memento mori" – was intended to be hung alongside stairs to startle viewers with the sudden appearance of a skull. Four centuries later, psychoanalyst Jaques Lacan noted in 'Of the Gaze as "Objet Petit a"' (1973) that the use of anamorphism, particularly in this painting, is one of the few methods for making viewers aware of their gaze.


title: Anamorphosis

text: By the 17th century, a revival of fantastical anamorphic imagery occurred. Magical and religious connotations were largely abandoned, and the images were understood as a scientific curiosity. Two major works on perspective were published: "Perspective" (1612) by Salomon de Caus, and "Curious Perspective" (1638) by Jean-Francois Niceron. Each contained extensive scientific and practical information on anamorphic imagery. In Niceron's work, three types of large-scale anamorphism are explained: 'optical' (looking horizontally); 'anoptric' (looking upwards); and 'catoptric' (looking down i.e. from a mezzanine). A conical perspective is also described. Towards the end of the century, Charles Ozanam's "Mathematical Recreations" widely popularized the techniques for the creation of anamorphic images.


title: Anamorphosis

text: Between 1669 and 1685, both perspective and mirror anamorphosis were introduced in China by the Jesuits to the Kangxi Emperor and monks at the Peking Mission. However, Chinese production of anamorphic images were already occurring on a large scale during the late Ming Dynasty. The images were mostly created freehand, unlike the grid system used in the west. As Chinese anamorphoses primarily focused on erotic themes, Jesuit influence is unlikely. It is considered likely that Chinese catoptric techniques, which are technically unrelated to geometric anamorphosis, influenced European mirror anamorphosis, and not the other way around.


title: Anamorphosis

text: Baroque "trompe-l'œil" murals often used anamorphism to combine actual architectural elements with illusory painted elements to create a seamless effect when viewed from a specific location. The dome and vault of the Church of St. Ignazio in Rome, painted by Andrea Pozzo, represented the pinnacle of illusion. Due to neighboring monks complaining about blocked light, Pozzo was commissioned to paint the ceiling to look like the inside of a dome, instead of building a real dome. As the ceiling is flat, there is only one spot where the illusion is perfect and a dome looks undistorted.


title: Anamorphosis

text: Anamorphosis could be used to conceal images for privacy or personal safety, and many secret portraits were created of deposed royalty. A well-known anamorphic portrait of the English King Edward VI was completed in 1546, only visible when viewed through a hole in the frame. It was later hung at Whitehall Palace, and may have influenced Shakespeare during the writing of "Richard II". Many anamorphic portraits of King Charles I were created and shared following his 1649 execution. A secret mirror anamorphosis portrait of Bonnie Prince Charlie, held at the West Highland Museum, can only be recognized when a polished cylinder is placed in the correct position. To possess such an image would have been seen as treason in the aftermath of the 1746 Battle of Culloden.


title: Anamorphosis

text: The "memento mori" theme continued into this period, such as in an "Anamorphic Painting of Adam and Eve", on display at the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford, Connecticut. This painting by an unknown Italian artist of the 17th or early 18th century portrays the Biblical couple, along with a large unidentified male face at the top, and a large human skull at the bottom. The images are distorted when viewed straight on, and can only be seen by peeking through one of two holes at each end of the surrounding frame. The painting includes a Latin religious inscription adapted from John 14:6, ending with the words "memento mori".


title: Anamorphosis

text: The eighteenth century saw anamorphism completely enter the realm of entertainment and diversion, as well as the widest dissemination of the technique.


title: Anamorphosis

text: By the 19th century, a revival of interest in anamorphism for architectural illusion occurred, as well as a fashion for classical themes. Reprints of Renaissance-era engravings became popular, as did political, obscene and popular subjects. Edgar Allan Poe's short story "Ligeia" describes a room filled with "simple monstrosities" that resolve in to "an endless succession of ... ghastly forms" as the narrator walks through the room. This mass popularization was to later have effect on the Surrealists.


title: Anamorphosis

text: By the twentieth century, some artists wanted to renew the technique of anamorphosis for aesthetic and conceptual effect. During the First World War, Arthur Mole, an American commercial photographer, used anamorphic techniques to create patriotic images from massive assembled groups of soldiers and reservists. When seen from a tower at their base, the gathered people resolved into recognizable pictures.


title: Anamorphosis

text: Marcel Duchamp was interested in anamorphosis. His last work "" (1946–66) used mild anamorphosis to force viewers into the position of peep-hole voyeurs in order to see a nude, anonymous human body.