The French Senate is nowadays often presented by its critics as an institution that is conflicting with the principles of democracy. This raises questions about how this area of tension between...Show moreThe French Senate is nowadays often presented by its critics as an institution that is conflicting with the principles of democracy. This raises questions about how this area of tension between democracy and the second chamber has emerged and evolved throughout the history of the French political system. Bicameralism seems contradictory to the French political culture because the republican doctrine strongly believed in a single assembly. This research focuses on the first half of the French Third Republic (1870-1914) and investigates to what extend the Senate was considered to be compatible with democracy. How was it possible that a Senate -an institution that seemed to have lost its place in the French political landscape and was associated with aristocracy and conservative liberalism- obtained a place in the institutional framework of this republic which was so democratic for its time? In general, historians have shown little interest in upper houses. However, this thesis argues that in order to get a complete picture of the reasons behind the evolution of democratic institutions it is not enough to merely study political theory or constitutional law; one should also look at the reality of political practice. In order to understand how important historical events and national context in France were in shaping the debate about the relation between the Senate and democracy, the French case is put in an international comparative perspective with the discussions that took place around the same period in Belgium and The Netherlands. This research demonstrates that the French Senate of the Third Republic was not constructed against democracy, or simply as the representation of conservative forces. It rather was a very inventive chamber that served the interest of the Republican Party, promoted democracy and played an important role in the political education of the French countryside and its integration into the French nation. Secondly, it is argued that discussions about the legitimacy of the French upper house were to a very large extend determined by historical circumstances -such as the Boulanger crisis and the Dreyfus affair-, political opportunism, pragmatism, and specificities in the national political culture.Show less
In this study the research question: ‘What kind of implications has the new political openness in Oman towards the individual freedom of its citizens with regard to the choice of a marriage partner...Show moreIn this study the research question: ‘What kind of implications has the new political openness in Oman towards the individual freedom of its citizens with regard to the choice of a marriage partner? Are answers through interviews with Omani citizens and a literary study? The effect of tribal structures and the idea of a ‘good tribe’ and a ‘good tribe’s name’ in Oman with regard to the choice of a marriage partner is the topic of this endeavor. This research focuses is the ‘modern, free’ marriage choice and what that means for young urban Omani. Especially the impact of thoughts about the tribal structure in Oman regarding the choice of a marriage partner leads the argument of this research. Semi-structured field interviews in Oman were conducted in order to provide insights into the minds of young, urban, educated and (mostly) economically well off individuals and couples. In Oman the choice of getting married is manifested by law. In theory, young couples can get married to whomever they want. However, in reality the marriage market is still divided in parts of society and people from different tribes don’t mix easily, due to the wishes to get married or to get their children married to someone that is part of a ‘good’ tribe. During the semi-structured field interviews the researcher got a glimpse of what people think about marriage in contemporary Oman. The results of the literary study and the fieldwork show how individuals and couples say on the one hand that everything has changed and on the other hand how important a good tribal name is. The results of the semi-structured field interviews show that the interviewees are clearly influenced by their families in their marriage choice, but some would exchange the good name for good fortune and choose someone who is affluent, instead of good tribe’s name. The ambivalence of modernity was noticeable during the interviews. On the one hand the interviewees indicated that they have the desire to marry whomever they want and on the other hand these interviewees indicated that they notice that the strong social matrix of tribal structures, which commend ‘a good tribal name’ exists and can be a leading force in marriage choice. The most important finding of this research is the awareness among Omanis that the free choice is present ‘on paper’ and people know, they could marry freely, but the reality is different and the idea of a tribe and the belonging to one, is more important in an era of social transition than the researcher anticipated beforehand. The citizens try to be ‘good Omanis’ in a modern nation with a strong cultural heritage, which they cherish. The social order is something that is reflected in the interviews. The answers of the interviewees clearly show the social and cultural hierarchy in Omani society, when they talk about future in-laws or relatives. It can be concluded that more research is needed about the impact of modern tribal structures and the thought of a ‘good name’ within these structures. Furthermore, the impact of the tribal culture on young couples who like to get married exogamic or even without the consent of their parents or other elderly advisers should be investigated. Also, further research could explore the concept op ‘romantic love in times of social media’, a topic that has emerged out of the conversations with the interviewees, that often took place after the recording of the actual interview stopped. Further quantitative and qualitative research is recommended to look into the ways a society is changing rapidly and with this, the thoughts about marriage and identity.Show less
This thesis investigates the auteur cinema of Michel Gondry and describes how its special “tone” is connected to the branding of emotion. The broad work of cross-media auteur Michel Gondry contains...Show moreThis thesis investigates the auteur cinema of Michel Gondry and describes how its special “tone” is connected to the branding of emotion. The broad work of cross-media auteur Michel Gondry contains short and feature films. In order to stress the role of short films within Gondry’s oeuvre and to highlight the connecting motifs five short films and two feature films were analyzed from the point of view of an auteur theory in transition. In the chapter one of the thesis, Gondry’s work is discussed, respectively, against the backdrop of the classic auteur theory of the 1950s (Truffaut, Sarris), the discourses on the “death of the auteur” of the 1960s and ‘70s (Bazin, Foucault), and, finally, the revival of auteur theory from the 1980s and ‘90s onwards, with Andrew and Corrigan, who claim that the auteur is not dead, but has become a marketing tool. In the second chapter, I have then fleshed out the different motifs that establish Gondry as an auteur (in different senses of the word), stipulating the continuity between his short and feature length films. In the third and final chapter, I draw on the work of MacDowell and Shaviro to elaborate on how the “tone” or “sensibility” of Gondry’s movies set him up as the new “homo oeconomicus” (Shaviro), for whom emotions are resources to invest. It becomes clear how Gondry creates himself as seemingly romantic auteur and in so doing brands “his emotions” to gain return.Show less
De structuur van een helletocht, de intertekstuele verwijzingen en de postmodernistische benadering hebben samen een functie bij het vertellen én niet vertellen van een Shoahverhaal. De...Show moreDe structuur van een helletocht, de intertekstuele verwijzingen en de postmodernistische benadering hebben samen een functie bij het vertellen én niet vertellen van een Shoahverhaal. De problematisering van de representatie van het onrepresenteerbare en het tekortschieten van taal en literatuur hierbij worden in Dis gethematiseerd: de mogelijkheden en onmogelijkheden van representatie worden verkend en de gevonden literaire tekortkomingen worden in kaart gebracht.Show less
This thesis presents a textual edition of the diary letters written by the young Dutch woman Catharina Philippina Ouwens (1925-2005). She started writing the letters in February 1945, having lost...Show moreThis thesis presents a textual edition of the diary letters written by the young Dutch woman Catharina Philippina Ouwens (1925-2005). She started writing the letters in February 1945, having lost contact with her boyfriend Hendrikus Johannes Schutten (1924-2014), who had been sent to Babelsberg (Potsdam, Germany) to work for the Germans in the summer of 1943. Catharina, who lived in Amsterdam at the time, never posted the letters, but hoped to share them with Hendrikus once he had returned. She wrote the largest part of her diary during the final stages of the German occupation of the Netherlands, describing the last months of occupation, the liberation, and the weeks after the liberation (including an eyewitness's account of the Dam Square shooting on 7 May, 1945). This textual edition contains an introduction that describes the historical context of the letters and provides insight into Catharina and Hendrikus' personal lives, a transcription of the majority of the diary letters, with footnotes to elaborate on the context of the events or people described, and an appendix containing letters from Hendrikus to Catharina as well as a poem written by Catharina.Show less
This thesis discusses the relationship between Taiwanese television (idol) dramas, advertising - in particular product placement, and the way in which young Taiwanese women, i.e. students between...Show moreThis thesis discusses the relationship between Taiwanese television (idol) dramas, advertising - in particular product placement, and the way in which young Taiwanese women, i.e. students between 18-25 years, identify with popular TV-series. The research itself is based on an on-line survey designed by the author herself.Show less
The literary phenomena of segmentation in La vie mode d'emploi makes the reader purposely suffer in a way similar to Perec, in relation to his traumatic and problematic past. With the help of...Show moreThe literary phenomena of segmentation in La vie mode d'emploi makes the reader purposely suffer in a way similar to Perec, in relation to his traumatic and problematic past. With the help of psychoanalytical notions such as "defense mechanisms", "transference", "counter-transference", "trauma"; and terms from contemporary cognitive behavioural sources, I corroborate this assertion. As memories are necessary according to Freud for a bereavement process, Perec lacks them, and therefore this process would not be possible. Nevertheless, I show that contemporary ideas about "dissociation", bereavement and auto-narrative, supports my claim that La vie mode d'emploi can be seen as a literary representation of a bereavement process.Show less
This thesis explored the lobbying dynamics of under resourced interest groups. An interest group is considered fully under resourced when it lacks sufficient financial and other organisational...Show moreThis thesis explored the lobbying dynamics of under resourced interest groups. An interest group is considered fully under resourced when it lacks sufficient financial and other organisational resources and policy-relevant information, has limited access to policy makers and does not represent stakeholders of political or economic importance. To assess how being under resourced affects the choice and effectiveness of lobby strategies, a literature review was combined with a case study. Little has been written about under resourced lobbying in particular. The current literature does, however, provide insights about the effect of resource dependencies on lobbying dynamics. Resource dependency, niche and influence theory explain how resources are essential for lobbyists to stay in business and to gain influence and thus affect their behaviour. The case study of the lobbying process of the European Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) association UEAPME made it evident that being under resourced affects the behaviour and chances to get influence of interest groups. Because studying the role of under resourced interest groups provides insights about the democratic legitimacy of the political system of the EU, the author recommends doing further research on the topic.Show less
Mikheil Saakashvili came to power in Georgia in 2003 after the bloodless Rose Revolution. He provided the people with the hope that Georgia would turn into a functioning democracy under his rule....Show moreMikheil Saakashvili came to power in Georgia in 2003 after the bloodless Rose Revolution. He provided the people with the hope that Georgia would turn into a functioning democracy under his rule. It turned out that these hopes were set too high. In this thesis I analyse how Saakshvili consolidated authoritarian rule, and how he used the security threats Georgia faced to achieve this.Show less
This paper explores the photography of Araki Nobuyoshi by analysing the aspects of fact and fiction in the artist's work. Despite the diverse nature of his photography, Araki's work has primarily...Show moreThis paper explores the photography of Araki Nobuyoshi by analysing the aspects of fact and fiction in the artist's work. Despite the diverse nature of his photography, Araki's work has primarily been discussed within the context of pornography and Orientalism and has to a certain extent led to an essentialized view of Japanese society, Japanese sexuality and Japanese women. This thesis attempts to provide an alternative interpretation by exploring fact and fiction within the work of Araki. Furthermore, by specifically analysing images, layout and subject matter in the photo book 'Tokyo Lucky Hole' (1997), this essay attempts to highlight Araki's use of visual narrative.Show less
Zelfdoding onder jongeren tussen de 15 en 29 jaar in Japan is een sociaal probleem dat recentelijk meer aandacht krijgt van nationale en internationale instanties. Om effectieve...Show moreZelfdoding onder jongeren tussen de 15 en 29 jaar in Japan is een sociaal probleem dat recentelijk meer aandacht krijgt van nationale en internationale instanties. Om effectieve zelfdodingspreventiemaatregelen te kunnen creëren is het van belang dat deze aansluiten bij de risicofactoren die de persoon aanzet tot zelfdoding. In deze scriptie is de relatie tussen de risicofactoren voor zelfdoding onder jongeren in deze leeftijdsgroep en de door de overheid bedachte preventiemaatregelen onderzocht. Eerst is de stand van zaken omtrent zelfdoding onder deze groep omschreven. Daarna zijn de verschillende risicofactoren uitgelicht. Vervolgens zijn deze vergeleken met een uiteenzetting van de preventiemaatregelen. Ten slotte is er antwoord gegeven op de onderzoeksvraag en zijn aanbevelingen gedaan voor volgend onderzoek. Uit het onderzoek is gebleken dat voor deze groep meerdere risicofactoren van toepassing zijn en dat het merendeel behandeld word door de overheid. Hierbij is echter gebleken dat meerdere factoren die ontbreken, namelijk academische druk, zelfmutilatie, soa’s, drugsgebruik en informatie via kranten niet behandeld zijn in de preventiemaatregelen.Show less
This thesis describes the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood’s ideological ambiguities embedded within the group’s political discourse and its ideological development since Hosni Mubarak’s presidency, on...Show moreThis thesis describes the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood’s ideological ambiguities embedded within the group’s political discourse and its ideological development since Hosni Mubarak’s presidency, on the topic of the nature of the state. Whilst originally rejecting liberal democratic values and a secular state altogether, the Brothers have since the 1980’s gradually adopted those values within their Islamist framework, and started participating in Egyptian politics. However, this approach led to significant ideological ambiguities on a number of central issues, such as the source of political authority (people or God?) and the role of shari’a (Islamic law) in society. By thorough analysis of the Brotherhood’s post-Mubarak political discourse on these issues, as well as taking into account government-Brotherhood relations, the Brotherhood’s internal dealings, and nationwide events, the writer contends that the Brotherhood’s ideological ambiguities remained firmly in place into the post-Mubarak era, hampering its ability to be a successful political actor in a post-Mubarak Egypt.Show less
During the mid-1990s, several Latin American countries became acquainted with conditional cash transfer programs (CCT’s). These government-financed programs provide cash grants to impoverished...Show moreDuring the mid-1990s, several Latin American countries became acquainted with conditional cash transfer programs (CCT’s). These government-financed programs provide cash grants to impoverished families, on the condition that they fulfil health- and education-related conditionalities (Lomelí, 2008: 476). The Brazilian government has been operating its Bolsa Família Program (BFP) since 2003. It is the CCT program with the highest amount of grantees worldwide (De Brauw et al,. 2013: 488). Cash grants are handed out to female grantees of the BFP (De Brauw et al., 2013: 487). The research of this thesis will focus on the question in how far the BFP has an impact on female empowerment. The first chapter will be centred on an academic debate of the concepts of empowerment and specifically female empowerment. Moreover, CCT programmes in general will be defined, as well as their pros, cons and their link to female empowerment. The second chapter will place the BFP within the wider, historical perspective of social assistance and earlier CCT programs in Brazil. Firstly, a concise history of the first social assistance initiatives and the first federal initiative will be provided. Then, the focus will lie on how the federal constitution of 1988 has broken with the old views on social assistance, and how it made social protection a right to the most vulnerable citizens of the state, such as the elderly and the disabled. Third, the social assistance schemes initiated by the Cardoso administration will be discussed. Finally, a brief summary of the social assistance schemes under the Lula government, including the BFP, will be provided. The third chapter will consist of a case study about the effect of the implementation of the BFP on female empowerment. The case study will discuss whether the BFP has contributed to an increased level of self-esteem of female beneficiaries, a positive effect on the social life of female beneficiaries, a positive effect on intra-household relations, an increased level of citizenship of female beneficiaries, a change of the traditional gender roles, and a positive effect on the decrease of the gender gap.Show less
In this thesis I will research how young Indonesians express their identities or how they create new identities in the period from the 1990s until today and I will examine this through forms of...Show moreIn this thesis I will research how young Indonesians express their identities or how they create new identities in the period from the 1990s until today and I will examine this through forms of Indonesian popular music. Popular music is an important site of cultural struggle and can reveal much about class, gender and other social divisions. That is why I want to zoom in on these social divisions by dividing them in class, religion and gender, to see how each of them relates to popular music and identity formation. I choose to focus on class, religion and gender because these have undergone drastic and interesting transformations during the period I want to examine, allowing people to reconsider their place or someone else’s in the social ladder, as a religious person or as a woman or man in society. Popular music and the way people consume it can reveal a lot about people’s thoughts and conceptions on class, religion and gender in contemporary Indonesia. The period from the 1990s until the present knew for example a remarkable growth of the Indonesian middle class who adopted a consumerist lifestyle and wanted to set themselves apart from the lower class, using popular music among other things. Concerning religion, I will focus on the developments of Islam in Indonesia, the religion of roughly 90% of the country's population. The fall of Suharto has been a significant turning-point for religious expression, because for much of the New Order, Islam was marginalized especially in the political sphere and Islamic organizations were restricted. After 1998, Indonesian Muslims could express themselves more freely, leading to an amplified process of Islamization which includes the creation of new Islamic political parties, the rise of radical Islam and the expression of religious identities in public that could not be expressed before, particularly extremist ones. Moreover, in the 21st century Muslim pop culture has flourished immensely and popular music has helped in the process of articulating religious identity. Finally, issues of gender, including for example femininity, masculinity and the role of women in the family have become a more prominent subject of discussions and debates in the past two decades. Women's rights groups and opinions about feminism have more political support than before, but so has (conservative) Islam. This leads to diverse opinions about popular female artists who are regarded as a role model to some and an actor of immorality to others. Popular music is a strong medium to spur debates about gender and to introduce new images of how young men and women can, or should, dress and behave. Consequently, this makes young Indonesians rethink and possibly reshape their gender identities.Show less
When questioned about the European Union’s (EU) austerity policy in Europe’s ongoing debt crisis, German Chancellor Angela Merkel responded that the term ‘austerity’ "makes it sound like something...Show moreWhen questioned about the European Union’s (EU) austerity policy in Europe’s ongoing debt crisis, German Chancellor Angela Merkel responded that the term ‘austerity’ "makes it sound like something truly evil. […] I call it balancing the budget”. This quote highlights the paradox that is the central thematic concern of this thesis: how economic issues and policies are represented as objectively-determined technical concerns, abstracted from and unrelated to political and ideological disputes. This thesis aims to relate the critical study of political discourse in economic crisis to a critique of the dominant social perception of economics as a scientific study: ‘scientific’ in the positivist sense as being founded upon empirical analysis, exclusive of ideational or normative dimensions. Influenced by the Gramscian concept of ‘cultural hegemony’ and related critical theories of discourse, I argue that the hegemonic scientific representation of economics - in political, media and academic discourses - constitutes an important subject for critical analysis because of its correlation with the de-politicisation of economics.Show less
Dans ce mémoire, nous examinons le point de vue de Zola sur la féminité, à travers ses romans (Thérèse Raquin et La Curée). Nous répondons à la question de savoir dans quelle mesure les romans...Show moreDans ce mémoire, nous examinons le point de vue de Zola sur la féminité, à travers ses romans (Thérèse Raquin et La Curée). Nous répondons à la question de savoir dans quelle mesure les romans représentent la position de l'auteur à l'égard de la féminité et dans quelle mesure cette idée reflète les normes de la société à l'époque où il a écrit ses romans. Dans la description de la féminité zolienne, une partie importante est consacrée à son caractère fluctuant; les femmes reçoivent des traits masculins et les hommes sont décrits en termes féminins.Show less
At the time of writing almost five years have passed since Japan's triple disaster on March 11th 2011, when an earthquake triggered a tsunami which in turn triggered a nuclear crisis. With the...Show moreAt the time of writing almost five years have passed since Japan's triple disaster on March 11th 2011, when an earthquake triggered a tsunami which in turn triggered a nuclear crisis. With the initial shock having passed, how are people looking back at it? How have the tragic events that transpired settled into history, into national consciousness, into victims’ personal memories? Although on the grander national and global scales 3.11 is all but forgotten and being digested in the background, for most of the victims this disaster is still affecting daily life in numerous ways. The question this thesis focuses on is: What exactly has been disrupted through this disaster on a social level; how do communities and individuals that have been abruptly uprooted by a nuclear disaster cope; how do they reconstruct their collective and individual memories and identities; and how do they reframe nuclear energy, something that initially brought them prosperity but eventually led to them losing their homes indefinitely. This thesis analyzes the case of a specific uprooted nuclear host community, using documentary films as source material. The following discussion shows that a firmly rooted and once proud community has all but fallen apart, and their entire shared narrative, central to their collective identity, is shattered. Individual cases prove that there are many different ways in which memory is bound to either a place, people, or objects. Where the highest importance is placed is an individual issue that depends on the person and the context, and how flexible they deem their own identity. As a result some evacuees move on and some remain with the core community, hoping to return to their hometown someday, even though it seems unlikely to be possible within their lifetime. Further links between individuals and collective memory are discussed.Show less
