In 2019, the occurrence of forest fires in the Amazon rainforest gained worldwide attention. Actors at different political levels thereby exhibited conflicting understandings of the issue,...Show moreIn 2019, the occurrence of forest fires in the Amazon rainforest gained worldwide attention. Actors at different political levels thereby exhibited conflicting understandings of the issue, appropriate responses to it and responsibility to be taken. As linkages were drawn between the perception of the rainforest fires as a global environmental problem, and ramifications for the pursuance of economic interests, the case of the political discussion around the 2019 Amazon rainforest fires is illustrative of valuations of the environment within a Global Political Economy (GPE) context. In order to further understanding of these valuations, this thesis looks into the use of particular conceptions of nature-society relations and spatial scales, which both come forward in political ecology literature. Through a textual analysis of statements by civil society actors, Amazonian countries and foreign governments, it finds that ecological change is made political, and political legitimacy is created or limited for different involved actors, through references to the value of the Amazon rainforest and the scale of this value. This leads to the conclusion that conceptions of nature-society relations and spatial scales reflect and have implications for the ways in which we define environmental problems, politicize the environment and allocate forms of environmental responsibility to different actors.Show less
The mythical half-snake, half-woman creature named Shahmeran from the Middle East has made an appearance in a controversial artwork highlighting LGBTQ+ oppression and faithbased misogyny during the...Show moreThe mythical half-snake, half-woman creature named Shahmeran from the Middle East has made an appearance in a controversial artwork highlighting LGBTQ+ oppression and faithbased misogyny during the Boğaziçi University student protests in early 2021. Shahmeran is an old and known symbol in the region, especially in the diverse areas of south-eastern Turkey, northern Iraq and Iran. She is most probably a remainder of ancient mother goddesses, and was changed overtime to be adopted by the Islamic community with her own story with the help of early Indo-Iranian literary culture, thus making her a pre-Islamic phenomenon. Traditionally, Shahmeran is used primarily for oral storytelling, literature, and art, but also serves as an important talisman for protection against the evil eye and adversity, as well as for happiness and prosperity. The use of Shahmeran in a student protest at a famous university to highlight social issues is a significant change compared to her traditional roles in the region’s folk beliefs. In response to these events, I based my research on the use of Shahmeran as a political symbol for minority groups such as the LGBTQ+ community and the Kurds. This research was conducted by analysing existing Turkish literature, various artworks and news articles. Shahmeran is an inherently non-binary creature, with both female and male sexual characteristics, making her an important symbol for the LGBTQ+ community and gender expression in general. For Kurds, Shahmeran is used as a symbol of resistance against the Turkish state. Both minority groups in Turkey use art with her in it to express their political realities.Show less
This research explores the relationship between the female gaze and feminist documentaries in the case of Palestine through three feature-length documentaries: The Judge by Erika Cohn, What Walaa...Show moreThis research explores the relationship between the female gaze and feminist documentaries in the case of Palestine through three feature-length documentaries: The Judge by Erika Cohn, What Walaa Wants by Christy Garland, and Naila and the Uprising by Julia Bacha. This thesis argues that the films demonstrate a few common features of the agency of Palestinian women and emphasize the importance of various issues related to their lives under patriarchy. This thesis argues that through their female subjectivity, experiences, and use of feminist aesthetics, this thesis argues that the female filmmakers innovatively and creatively expose these issues and put their subjects’ struggles at the forefront, as feminist documentary practices are set to do. As such, through their female gaze, the findings demonstrate that the sample of female filmmakers’ works leads to the critical re-thinking of the representation of Palestinian women and the questioning of patriarchy in Palestine.Show less
Repatriating cultural artifacts that have been illegally traded in the past is more difficult than we may anticipate. The Chinese government has been attempting to repatriate its 'lost cultural...Show moreRepatriating cultural artifacts that have been illegally traded in the past is more difficult than we may anticipate. The Chinese government has been attempting to repatriate its 'lost cultural relics' since the 1990s. The term 'lost cultural relics' is used to describe “cultural objects that were looted, stolen, excavated or trafficked immorally or illegally from China” (Liu 2015). In the past, a discreet number of studies have focused on the issue of repatriating lost cultural relics to China, but there has been little research on Chinese collectors buying Chinese antiquities from other countries. This study attempts to understand how the state-run media Global Times portrays Chinese collectors purchasing lost cultural relics and how it frames their intentions in obtaining the objects at expensive prices.Show less
Citizenship and the intertwined educational subject of civic education are highly contested, as the notion of citizenship is strongly dependent on the type of government with its specific political...Show moreCitizenship and the intertwined educational subject of civic education are highly contested, as the notion of citizenship is strongly dependent on the type of government with its specific political system and the cultural-historical development of a nation. The Russian Federation as the multinational successor state of the Soviet Union (SU) faced major struggles concerning notions of citizenship during the 1990s. After the collapse of the SU and leaving the notion of citizenship as ‘the builder of communism’ behind, the main focus of Russia was on democratization, but this changed after 2000, when patriotism was getting more prominent. A way to get access to Russia's conceptions of civic education is examining high school textbooks. An analysis of their content can provide a deeper understanding of how civic education is approached and practised in nowadays Russia, in shaping its next generation. This analysis applied three general conceptions of citizenship, namely liberal individualism, republicanism and communitarianism and argues that Russia fits the the communitarian approach the most.Show less
Bachelor thesis | Griekse en Latijnse taal en cultuur (BA)
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This thesis challenges the mainstream consensus on verbal aspect in Classical Greek, which is mainly based on a view of aspect propagated by Bernard Comrie (1976). As an alternative, this thesis...Show moreThis thesis challenges the mainstream consensus on verbal aspect in Classical Greek, which is mainly based on a view of aspect propagated by Bernard Comrie (1976). As an alternative, this thesis combines different strands of linguistic research traditions to paint an alternative picture of aspect: Wolfgang Klein's (1994) notion of topic time, Michael Halliday's (1985) idea of "three interpretational levels" (the referential, the textual, and the interactional), Christiaan Sicking's (1991) suggestion of verbal aspect signalling information status, and the idea of meaning as a polysemous network of uses. With this, I refine and add to important work done by Simon Aerts (2014), who first suggested modelling Greek aspect after Michael Halliday's semiotic theory (1985). After this is worked out in the second and third chapter, this view of aspect is applied to circumstantial participles in Greek.Show less
This thesis identifies the social and phonetic variables that affect the learning process of Dutch L2 learners (second language acquisition). The native and non-native speakers who were asked to...Show moreThis thesis identifies the social and phonetic variables that affect the learning process of Dutch L2 learners (second language acquisition). The native and non-native speakers who were asked to participate in this research provided authentic audio recordings, which were added to the two online surveys that were used. The survey respondents that participated in this empirical study were asked to share their thoughts, via an online survey, on the individual speakers, with its primarily focus on the phonetic and social variables. By analysing the results of this research and examining the correlation between these results and the literature discussed, it was possible to draw a conclusion on which social and phonetic variables obstruct the learning process of Dutch L2 learners. This thesis concludes that the social variables (the division between a younger and older group of participants) and the phonetic variables (sounds that were identified as unintelligible and/or intolerable) that were recognized in this empirical research are collectively responsible for disrupting the comprehension and production of sounds for second language learners. Keywords: phonetic variables, sociolinguistic choices, sound systems, IPA, L1, L2Show less
Social media platforms have become critical components of rebel groups’ communication channels. While discussions on rebels’ social media presence usually centre around issues of violence and...Show moreSocial media platforms have become critical components of rebel groups’ communication channels. While discussions on rebels’ social media presence usually centre around issues of violence and disruption, mounting evidence exists pinpointing the non-violent tactics rebel actors employ online. Interested in how social media use contributes to the ability of established rebel groups to project, cultivate, and negotiate favourable online personas internationally, this research project offers an exploratory case study analysis of the 5-day long #AskHamas Twitter campaign that Islamic resistance movement for Palestinian liberation Ḥarakat al-Muqāwamah al-ʾIslāmiyyah - commonly known as Hamas, conducted in March 2015. A mixed method approach combining social network analysis and empathic close-text reading was employed to reconstruct the international reception of the online event. Framing the Twitter campaign conceptually as an instance of public relations (PR) management, findings substantiate that the #AskHamas Twitter event allowed Hamas to establishing direct, and relevant relations with its targeted Western audience. At the same time, evidence pinpoints the ultimate dependency of online campaigns on the willingness of targeted audience to engage seriously. In case of #AskHamas, meaningful exchange with Hamas was obstructed by deliberate trolling, mocking and ridiculing on parts of participating. Evidence collected in this study implicates the urgency to overcome violence-fixation in Western understandings of rebel actors, and the necessity to contextualise identified rebel online communication practices to their socially mediated context of creation and dissemination.Show less
This thesis researches the different view of China on soft power by analysing China's media discourse in Chinese English-language media channels on Covid-19. The Chinese government has a more...Show moreThis thesis researches the different view of China on soft power by analysing China's media discourse in Chinese English-language media channels on Covid-19. The Chinese government has a more different stance in believing that soft power can be generated and created, similar to hard power being created with the use of greater military force and economic power. Soft power, in Nye’s view, is a by-product of other things, not something you can “create” in and of itself. A notable shift in narrative can be identified between the two periods and media channels selected for this thesis. Consequently, China’s attempt at creating soft power is made visible by this shift in narrative.Show less
