I outlined two varieties of Italian-American Englishes used in the eastern part of the US. One is the Super Mario English, which belongs to speakers who have just arrived in the US. The second one...Show moreI outlined two varieties of Italian-American Englishes used in the eastern part of the US. One is the Super Mario English, which belongs to speakers who have just arrived in the US. The second one is the Wiseguy English, which belongs to speakers who have lived in the US for a longer period of time and belong to the Italian-American culture. Three films were selected from a plethora of other films concerning the Italian-American culture. The purpose of this study was to determine whether these varieties of English exists from a linguistically stereotypical basis or whether these varieties are true-to-life representations of the features of the Italian-American English speaking culture. One monologue of every main character in the 3 films has been phonetically analysed. The phonetic analyses were then compared to the theoretical framework analysis of the aforementioned varieties of Italian-American Englishes. The hypothesis is that these three films perpetuate linguistic features in Italian-American Englishes that border among the stereotypical imagery of the Italian-American culture. The results outline the most salient features of Italian-American linguistic stereotypes.Show less
Research master thesis | Literary Studies (research) (MA)
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This thesis researches a Sanskrit law code called the Manusmrti or Manava Dharmasastra, translated in English as "The Laws of Manu". Through a critical analysis of the translations and...Show moreThis thesis researches a Sanskrit law code called the Manusmrti or Manava Dharmasastra, translated in English as "The Laws of Manu". Through a critical analysis of the translations and interpretations of Indologists Wendy Doniger and Patrick Olivelle, it will be argued that the current interpretations of the Manusmrti are starkly Western and prove a continuation of a discourse initiated in British colonial India. This discourse entails a framework of Western law and law code. The Manusmrti, however, is concerned with the Sanskrit concept of "dharma". With the help of the translation theories of Walter Benjamin and Jacques Derrida it will be argued that "dharma" is a concept very distinct from the Western "law" and proves untranslatable. Furthermore, this thesis proposes a reading for the Manusmrti different from the current Western framework of law. The proposed new interpretation is based upon the concept of "aphorism" as described by Friedrich Nietzsche. To elucidate the differences in philosophy between the current interpretations and the interpretation proposed in this thesis, the theories of Gilles Deleuze and Benedictus Spinoza will be deployed. Their ideas will help to show that the proposed interpretation will ultimately entail another, more productive world-view for the Manusmrti and the conceptualisation of its key term "dharma".Show less
This thesis focuses on the period at the end of the nineteenth century when knowledge of the colonized cultures and their histories became an integral part of European imperial policies. In the...Show moreThis thesis focuses on the period at the end of the nineteenth century when knowledge of the colonized cultures and their histories became an integral part of European imperial policies. In the search for tools legitimizing their overseas venture, architecture turned out to be one of the most visual and lasting tools for boosting such efforts. It is precisely by exploring this aspect of empire-building through architecture that my thesis attempts to redress the lacunae of historical research on colonial architecture as a measure for studying colonial history. Conventional historiography has largely neglected this aspect of empire-building, leaving much of it for architects, urbanists and art historians to deal with. Most of the scholarly contributions to colonial architecture have not yet been able to sufficiently expose the underlying imperial designs or the socio-cultural processes behind such building projects. In this thesis, I have made attempts to trace these processes and examine them from a comparative perspective using Foucault’s power/knowledge dimension. By pitching the three former Asian colonies of British-India, Dutch-Indies and French-Indochina next to each other and analysing the hybrid architecture found in their main public buildings, the ways in which the colonial government tried to impress the people through their building styles can be revealed. They resorted to the incorporation of often randomly mixed local architectural elements into buildings which looked European otherwise. This resulted in buildings depicting hybrid architectural styles. Such designs reflected a self-proclaimed European mastery in managing knowledge of the colonized cultures. In trying to claim their legitimacy as new rulers, colonial governments went to great lengths, using the visual qualities of architecture to shield a relatively weak system. The erection of confident and mighty stone facades, however, did little to bury the lingering orientalist prejudices and the inherent unequal status of the colonizers and the colonized. In fact, the knowledge on local histories generated by the colonizers helped create local identities that gave a boost to the upcoming nationalistic movements. But there were interesting differences among the colonies though, that this comparative exercise laid bare. The nuances manifested in the different colonies in terms of the willingness to spend financial resources, the often conflicting objectives between colonial institutions, the effects of shifting colonial policies and the paradoxical underlying principles that defined those policies, and other contextual factors, led to differences in imperial policies and their consequent architectural plans. By probing into these differences as well as by highlighting the similarities cutting across all the three colonies, my thesis contributes to understanding the varying shades of colonialism through the seemingly silent yet starkly telling structures.Show less
In deze masterscriptie is onderzoek gedaan naar het gebruik van 'kunnen' en 'zullen' in de tweede persoon enkelvoud voor de periode 1900 tot 2010. Het onderzoeksmateriaal voor dit onderzoek bestond...Show moreIn deze masterscriptie is onderzoek gedaan naar het gebruik van 'kunnen' en 'zullen' in de tweede persoon enkelvoud voor de periode 1900 tot 2010. Het onderzoeksmateriaal voor dit onderzoek bestond uit diverse Nederlandse en Vlaamse kranten vanaf 1900 tot heden. In detail is er gekeken naar ten eerste het voorkomen van de varianten 'je kan' en 'je zal' in kranten, en daarbij ook naar de ontwikkeling in het gebruik van 'je kan' ten opzichte van 'je kunt', en 'je zal' ten opzichte van 'je zult' door de tijd heen. Ook is er gekeken of het voorkomen van deze varianten verschilde per regio in Nederland, en of er ook verschillen waren in het voorkomen van deze varianten in Nederland en België. Ten slotte is er ook een mogelijk semantisch verschil onderzocht, namelijk het specifiek of generiek gebruik van je in de varianten 'je kan' en 'je zal'.Show less
In deze scriptie zullen op filosofisch niveau opvattingen over de relatie tussen kunst en (im)moraliteit, of de morele dimensie in kunst, onderzocht worden. Aan de hand daarvan zal bekeken worden...Show moreIn deze scriptie zullen op filosofisch niveau opvattingen over de relatie tussen kunst en (im)moraliteit, of de morele dimensie in kunst, onderzocht worden. Aan de hand daarvan zal bekeken worden hoe verschillende kunstfilosofieën reflecteren op hedendaagse installatiekunst (of fotografie hiervan) waarin mensen of dieren onderdeel zijn van het werk. Een analyse van twee case studies, Helena van de Chileense kunstenaar Marco Evaristti uit 2000 en Guillermo Vargas Jimenez’s Exposición N° 1 (2007), zal verschillende problemen aan het licht brengen in de discussie over wat de grenzen van hedendaagse kunst zijn en waarom en hoe zij bepaalde morele vragen oproepen met hun installaties. Daarbij zal het controversiële werk van de Nederlandse kunstenaar Jonas Staal worden gebruikt ter illustratie van de problematiek van kunst in een moreel debat.Show less
Het doel van deze scriptie is het onderzoeken van de Zweedse concessiepolitiek tijdens de Tweede Wereldoorlog ten opzichte van Nazi-Duitsland. Door het ontbreken van objectief onderzoek hiervan...Show moreHet doel van deze scriptie is het onderzoeken van de Zweedse concessiepolitiek tijdens de Tweede Wereldoorlog ten opzichte van Nazi-Duitsland. Door het ontbreken van objectief onderzoek hiervan wordt er getracht aan de hand van het onderzoeken van twee dagboeken hoe deze twee dagboekschrijvers die leefden tijdens de oorlog dachten over deze concessiepolitiek.Show less
In this report, the possibilities of identifying a specific t neutrino signature using KM3NeT, a neutrino telescope with an instrumented volume of multiple cubic kilometers, are investigated. When...Show moreIn this report, the possibilities of identifying a specific t neutrino signature using KM3NeT, a neutrino telescope with an instrumented volume of multiple cubic kilometers, are investigated. When uniquely identified, these neutrinos can offer a unique view on the universe with little to no background. We study the ‘Double Bang’ signature of the t neutrino interaction and reconstruct these events with a reconstruction algorithm designed for single showers. Using this algorithm, the two particle showers in this event are reconstructed as a single shower. By looking at the differences in reconstruction performance between these events and single shower events, a first indication of the relevant parameters for the identification of t neutrinos is given.Show less
Women played a vital role during the anti-slavery campaigns in the United States and Great Britain in the nineteenth century. Their involvement pushed the boundaries of the prescribed gender roles...Show moreWomen played a vital role during the anti-slavery campaigns in the United States and Great Britain in the nineteenth century. Their involvement pushed the boundaries of the prescribed gender roles of the time, as women were supposed to remain within the household sphere and abstain from any political involvement. Abolitionist women were also active in the Netherlands, such as the 129 women from Rotterdam who sent a petition to King Willem II in 1842. This thesis outlines how Dutch and American women abolitionists challenged the prescribed gender roles by publicly interfering with abolitionism.Show less
One of the common misconceptions when it comes to teaching a second language to gifted students is that teachers expect gifted students to be better at learning a second language than non-gifted...Show moreOne of the common misconceptions when it comes to teaching a second language to gifted students is that teachers expect gifted students to be better at learning a second language than non-gifted students. Expectations are usually high, and when a student does not live up to these expectations, it causes frustration; not just for the student, but also for the teacher and the parents. This misconception stems from the fact that most gifted students show an extensive knowledge of their L1 (first language) at an early age. In theory, a gifted child should therefore be faster at picking up an L2 (second language) than non-gifted students: Hayes et al (1998, p. 179) states: “there is a strong connection between language ability and learning ability.” So hypothetically, with their advanced thinking skills, their more extensive verbal skills, and with their aptitude for learning, these gifted students should have little trouble with learning a second language. In practice, however, this does not always seem to be the case; gifted students do not automatically apply their abilities in learning second languages. For example, classroom practice shows that gifted students generally have greater difficulties with learning and memorizing vocabulary than non-gifted students. The study described in this thesis has multiple aims. First and foremost it aims to examine if there is a difference in the ways gifted and non-gifted students acquire English as a second language. Secondly it explores how language pedagogy as well as taking learning styles into account could benefit gifted students. This is in turn compared to the current classroom practice at the Rijswijks Lyceum. It should finally lead to the causes of these differences or similarities along with the consequences for gifted students.Show less
