This essay explores the use of music as a distinctive philosophical tool through epochs and cultural areas to ascertain whether music is more than a melodic form of entertainment and whether there...Show moreThis essay explores the use of music as a distinctive philosophical tool through epochs and cultural areas to ascertain whether music is more than a melodic form of entertainment and whether there is a consensus as far as music as a philosophical medium is concerned. It compares the attitudes of Plato, Xunzi and the Wesley brothers, (the founders of Methodism). The research focused on two apparently diverse philosophies and compared them with that of Plato. The writings of the philosophers were studied to identify attitudes towards the use of music. The research discovered similar attitudes towards music in all three philosophies studied: that music is influential and affects people’s behaviours. It would appear that music as an educational and controlling tool is a recognised phenomenon acknowledged in all three philosophies researched. This essay has revealed an interesting and unexpected convergence of ideas and opinions across the diverse philosophies researched. It exposed lesser-studied philosophers to scrutiny when compared to a foundational philosopher such as Plato to expose similar attitudes towards the use of music. This research has demonstrated the link between philosophy and religious and ceremonial music and identified other musical genres that could be explored for similar links. It has also identified similar ideas about music in all three authors studied; Plato, Xunzi and the Wesley brothers were all convinced of the value of music and approved of the use of music to impact the behaviour of the listener. However, there are conflicting views from philosophers such as Kant who believed that music was merely agreeable. Also, the censorship of music approved by Plato and Xunzi, that occurs in some countries such as the Russian censoring of Pussy Riot, is generally condemned by the lovers of music. This warrants further investigation as the suppression of music is contrary to the beliefs of many artists and the recipients of their art. The conclusion drawn from this research is that music has been recognised as an educational and controlling tool that has been used as such throughout history and in diverse cultures.Show less
The debate around the issue of abortion rights is not new in American politics. However, in recent years American politics has been polarized along partisan lines. This is also the case in the...Show moreThe debate around the issue of abortion rights is not new in American politics. However, in recent years American politics has been polarized along partisan lines. This is also the case in the abortion rights debate. The abortion rights debate has an effect on policy making in U.S. politics. Abortion rights also play a role in foreign policy making. Under the Trump Presidency, the Mexico City Policy was reinstalled and even further strengthened, entailing that no government funds were allowed to be given to actors that provide or promote abortions. Republicans, after years of supporting the initiative, now also threaten to defund PEPFAR, the successful initiative that has saved millions of lives in the fight against HIV/AIDS. They threaten to do this since they claim that the program funds abortion services. This thesis investigates and reveals the impact that this partisan polarization on the abortion rights issue has on American foreign policy and therefore on the United States’ image and influence in Africa. Furthermore, this research investigates China’s efforts to benefit from America’s impacted foreign policy by the abortion rights discussion. This thesis indeed reveals that the United States’ image and influence in Africa is negatively impacted by the partisan polarized abortion debate in American politics and that China is actively using its propaganda apparatus to portray the United States as hypocritical and unreliable and China as the better alternative.Show less
This thesis investigated how Chinese language and culture education as supported by the Confucius Institutes is perceived by secondairy education students in the Netherlands and assesses whether...Show moreThis thesis investigated how Chinese language and culture education as supported by the Confucius Institutes is perceived by secondairy education students in the Netherlands and assesses whether these students experience Chinese influence on their education by conducting interviews. The analysis from the interviews concludes that students have a generally positive experience with learning Chinese, that there is a lot of attention paid to culture education, and that students do not appear to experience any Chinese influence on their education.Show less
The thesis analyses the process of 'hybridization' in Hollywood movies and how this has been perceived by the PRC audiences. The case studies taken into analysis are "Mulan" and "Kung Fu Panda".
