在本刊2018年第3期截稿的7月，世界上有諸多的大事發(fā)生。

戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)仍然是盤旋在世界上空的陰云。例如，曠日持久的中東戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)一波未平，一波又起，內(nèi)戰(zhàn)使敘利亞成為中東最血腥的疆場(chǎng)。戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)導(dǎo)致敘利亞四五十萬(wàn)人喪生，五百多萬(wàn)敘利亞人的大逃亡形成巨大的難民潮，沖向歐洲，從而引發(fā)了難民危機(jī)……而另一種戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)—“貿(mào)易爭(zhēng)端”亦愈演愈烈。戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)的一般定義為：“矛盾斗爭(zhēng)表現(xiàn)的最高形式與暴力手段……由于觸發(fā)戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)的往往是政治家而非軍人，因此戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)亦被視為政治和外交的極端手段。戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)是極端的行為，戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)的產(chǎn)生是由主導(dǎo)者為了自己或者集團(tuán)的利益而發(fā)起的行為，這種獲取利益的行為不惜以犧牲生命為代價(jià)?！保╤ttps://baike.baidu.com）“貿(mào)易爭(zhēng)端”雖說(shuō)不是武裝斗爭(zhēng)，但是，發(fā)起者仍然是政治家，是其為了獲取利益而采取的極端的政治與外交手段。

世界和平與人民的福祉面臨嚴(yán)峻的挑戰(zhàn)！

面臨這樣的挑戰(zhàn)，2018年俄羅斯世界杯的意義遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超越了比賽本身，“為祖國(guó)而戰(zhàn)”的豪情激蕩在每一位球員和球迷的心中，“為了世界和平”的夢(mèng)想隨著色彩繽紛的旗幟飛揚(yáng)。競(jìng)賽在全世界球迷的注視下，靠的是球隊(duì)球星們超人的力量、速度、耐力、毅力、體力、團(tuán)結(jié)、智慧和實(shí)力，而拒絕“陰”他人的犯規(guī)和不正當(dāng)?shù)氖侄?。位居亞軍的克羅地亞隊(duì)讓世界動(dòng)容—不僅是這支來(lái)自只有四百多萬(wàn)人口的國(guó)家的球隊(duì)踢出了最精湛的足球，而且是這支從戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)傷痛中走出、在廢墟上訓(xùn)練起來(lái)的球隊(duì)燃燒著勝利的渴望，并像奏響《克羅地亞狂想曲》的鋼琴家馬克西姆所說(shuō)的那樣：家鄉(xiāng)到處都是槍彈，但是我們不能因此而停滯不前—必須繼續(xù)戰(zhàn)斗下去！世界杯讓體育的精神得以淋漓盡致地彰顯！

世界杯賽事正酣，2018“舞蹈研究協(xié)會(huì)”（the Dance Studies Association,DSA）的國(guó)際會(huì)議亦在馬耳他拉開(kāi)帷幕。這次會(huì)議在一個(gè)特別的家園舉行帶著某種深意—在二戰(zhàn)中，馬耳他經(jīng)常遭到轟炸而被迫將地下墓穴改造成防空洞；而古代馬耳他騎士建造的堡壘亦用來(lái)防御入侵者。最近，一些堡壘已經(jīng)從武裝之地改為文化中心，防空洞也成為獨(dú)特的表演場(chǎng)所。正如此次會(huì)議主席、馬耳他大學(xué)舞蹈研究學(xué)院的布蘭登所說(shuō),“舞蹈與沖突”的會(huì)議主題讓舞蹈研究領(lǐng)域?qū)τ谧陨韮?nèi)部和跨學(xué)科展開(kāi)審視，并對(duì)社會(huì)問(wèn)題和身體表現(xiàn)做出反應(yīng)；通過(guò)準(zhǔn)確地指出所存在的性別歧視和種族主義的身體方式，認(rèn)識(shí)到通過(guò)策略和身體沖擊、理論探討和頭腦風(fēng)暴，以及傳播意識(shí)，獲得力量和凝聚力；舞蹈研究具有不可估量的力量，為正在進(jìn)行的、日益激烈的當(dāng)代社會(huì)斗爭(zhēng)做出貢獻(xiàn)。

因此，舞蹈研究也是一種戰(zhàn)斗，以具有消解破壞性“沖突”的力量和推動(dòng)創(chuàng)造性“沖突”的力量，應(yīng)對(duì)世界和平與人類生存發(fā)展要求的呼喚……

—本刊主編

Preface

The world was eventful in July before the deadline of the paper call for this issue.

The threat of war is still troubling the world.Wars in the Middle East have kept erupting from time to time.Civil war has made Syria the bloodiest battle field in the Middle East.The war killed four hundred and forty thousand people in Syria and forced more than five million Syrians away from their homeland, which triggered a refugee crisis in Europe.Meanwhile, another war, the trade world dispute, is getting worse.According to the general definition, a war is “the highest form of violence...Because it is often caused by politicians rather than soldiers, warfare is also seen as an extreme means of politics and diplomacy.War is an extreme act, an act initiated by political leaders for their own individual or group benefits.Their benefits, however, are obtained at the expense oflives.” Although a trade war does not involve armed struggle, the initiator is still a politician and it is still an extreme political means to gain benefits.

World peace and the wellbeing of people are challenged！

In this context, 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia is far more than football games.Every player is proud of fighting for their motherland while aspirations for world peace are flapping along with the flags of all colors.The outcome of matches depends on power,speed, endurance, perseverance, physical strength, solidarity and wisdom, but unfair play is rejected.The runner-up Croatia amazed the world, not only because it is a small nation with a population of only 4 million, but also the players are burning with the desire to overcome the trauma of war, which has fueled their desire to win.As the pianist Maksim Mrvica who played the Croatian Rhapsody said: There are guns everywhere in our hometown, but we can’t stop because of this—we must continue to fight！ The FIFA World Cup allows sportsmanship to shine and inspire the world.

While the FIFA World Cup was in full swing, the 2018 conference of the Dance Studies Association (DSA) kicked offin Malta.The venue was chosen with a special purpose.During World War II, Malta was routinely bombed and forced to adapt underground catacombs into bomb shelters, while bastions and fortresses built by the Knights of Malte served to guard against the invaders.Recently, some fortresses have been de-weaponized into cultural centers, and bomb shelters also function as unique performance venues.As Brandon Shaw, the conference chair from the Department of Dance Studies at the univer sity of Malta said, the theme “Contra: Dance and Conflict”invites the dance avtists and scholars to look inward and outward and respond to social concerns and bodily manifestations.Pinpointing the bodily representations of sexism and racism, recognizing the strength and cohesion acquired through strategizing and body-storming, as well as theoretical discussions and brainstorming, and spreading the awareness that there is no cohesion without friction,dance studies have invaluable strengths to contribute to the ongoing, intensifying contemporary social struggles.

Therefore, dance studies can be compared to a battle to dispel the destructive power of “conflicts” and to harness its creativity to realize world peace and boost human progress.

Editor-in-Chief