Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
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This thesis investigates implicit accuracy, which is considered the ability to use structures and rules that have become internalized and can thus be uttered easily, and explicit accuracy, defined...Show moreThis thesis investigates implicit accuracy, which is considered the ability to use structures and rules that have become internalized and can thus be uttered easily, and explicit accuracy, defined as the presence of linguistic items learnt by the L2 speaker that have not yet been transferred in implicit accuracy. To investigate in what respect L1, beginning L2 and advanced L2 speakers of Dutch differ in terms of implicit accuracy, spontaneous speech was elicited by two speech tasks. Speech performances were transcribed and coded for accuracy. Types of errors were marked and by use of five measures, implicit accuracy was investigated. Two MANOVAs were run to examine how L1 and L2 accuracy differs and how lower and higher proficient L2 accuracy differs. Significant differences with respect to error density and error type density were found. Correction of error was not found to differ significantly across groups of speakers. The qualitative analysis delved into explicit accuracy, which was examined by stimulated recall sessions: participants were asked to listen carefully to their own speech and to comment on errors, hesitations and the overall process of speaking. These comments were categorized by the researcher. Chi square analyses revealed that as proficiency increases, participants report less on lexical problems but more on affined aspects as task-related issues. L1 speakers specifically report mainly on issues of focus and temporal planning. This study confirms that both implicit and explicit accuracy differs across L1 and L2 speakers and across lower and higher proficient L2 speakers.Show less
Research master thesis | Arts and Culture (research) (MA)
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The purpose of this thesis is to examine the image of Western art in Taiwan with a focus on the Chimei Museum (*1990). Motivated by the recent trend for acquiring and displaying Western works of...Show moreThe purpose of this thesis is to examine the image of Western art in Taiwan with a focus on the Chimei Museum (*1990). Motivated by the recent trend for acquiring and displaying Western works of art in East Asia, I concentrate on the Taiwanese response in an attempt to bridge academic gaps in interpreting how East Asia reacts to Western culture. On the one hand, Taiwanese art collecting and exhibiting has definitely mirrored the cultural environment in East Asia as it was one of the earliest international art markets in post-war East Asia (*1945). On the other hand, having been colonized by the Japanese who introduced their westernization strategies (1895-1945) and then with a fresh injection of Chinese culture as the seat of the Republic of China (*1945, post-war period), the Taiwanese public’s impression of Western art provides a copybook example of how the Western aesthetics were constructed under Japanese, Chinese and local Taiwanese rules. The Chimei Museum is an exemplification of the introduction of Western art in modern Taiwan. As a private museum, the educational background of its founder, Xu Wen Long (許文龍, *1928), who was brought up under Japanese rule, marks the initial point of entry of Western aesthetics into the colonized society. During her directorship of the Chimei Museum in the late 1990s, Xu’s successor, Kuo Ling Ling (郭玲玲, *1956), has shown a new attitude toward appreciating Western art in post-war Taiwan. Taking the perspectives of collecting and museum culture as the starting point, my analysis of the Chimei Museum hopes to provide a pioneering discussion about the general Taiwanese reception of Western art.Show less
Research master thesis | African Studies (research) (MA)
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War ravaged northern Uganda for over two decades after its start in 1986. During this time, over 80% of the Acholi population living there was internally displaced. This occurrence has disrupted...Show moreWar ravaged northern Uganda for over two decades after its start in 1986. During this time, over 80% of the Acholi population living there was internally displaced. This occurrence has disrupted social life in more ways than often acknowledged in policy-making and discourse surrounding displacement. This thesis draws focus to personal experiences of people who moved to Pabo – the former site of one of the displacement camps – during the war, and who have not left this place since. Using data from life histories collected in Pabo during seven months of fieldwork, it explores motivations for non-return and shows that displacement is more than a forced move from one geographical location to another; it involves economic, social, and cosmological considerations and touches upon identity and belonging. This thesis also explores the long-term effects of displacement on life by zooming in on social relations within the household. Using the concept of anomie, it is argued that, in this particular post-conflict context, there is lessened social guidance on desirable goals and accepted behavior as well as a discrepancy between goals that are still valued and the means available to achieve them. Building upon the life histories, the argument is constructed that the situation of anomie has contributed to intergenerational friction and to families breaking up. The goal of this thesis is to lay bare the interface between structure and agency, and to counter the trend of turning internally displaced people as well as refugees into abbreviations and subjects without a voice.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
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In central Nicaragua pre-Hispanic archaeological remains are visible throughout the rural landscape that is presently inhabited by farmers. However, no research has been done on whether these...Show moreIn central Nicaragua pre-Hispanic archaeological remains are visible throughout the rural landscape that is presently inhabited by farmers. However, no research has been done on whether these contemporary inhabitants perceive a continuity between the producers of the pre-Hispanic archaeological remains and themselves, nor how this is influenced by top-down national narratives on heritage and identity. Nevertheless this has important consequences for the way that heritage management projects could be effectively managed. Therefore, this thesis explores the role of the pre-Hispanic past in the construction of identity of the present-day inhabitants of rural central Nicaragua, and how national narratives on heritage and identity are related to this. Through anthropological methods including participant observation and structured and unstructured interviewing with the inhabitants of rural central Nicaragua, the role of the pre-Hispanic past in their construction of identity is investigated. Through literature research, the different ways in which the national narratives ascribe the role of the pre-Hispanic past in the formation of national Nicaraguan identity is explored. As such, this thesis can provide important information for future heritage management project.Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
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Secondly, ^^Directionality in sound change, the phenomenon that a segment can change into a certain other segment but not vice versa, has generally been assumed, but has not been studied...Show moreSecondly, ^^Directionality in sound change, the phenomenon that a segment can change into a certain other segment but not vice versa, has generally been assumed, but has not been studied systematically. Previous studies are mainly concerned with a general discussion on the role of phonology in sound change, often attributing directionality in sound change to phonetic bias. On the basis of a sample of 5,769 historical sound changes, the current study shows that directionality in sound change is not a prominent phenomenon in absolute terms. In general, lenition is more frequent than fortition. There are two main findings. Firstly, laterals are likely to change into approximants, but not vice versa. Secondly, an asymmetry was found for segments changing into /h/ or /ʔ/. Adopting the framework of Element Theory, a phonological analysis was presented to account for those directionality patterns. Firstly, vowel elements do not add (L)Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
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The present study explores the relationship between multilingualism and expressiveness, with reference to the case of ideophones in Zulu. Ideophones make up a large and productive word class in...Show moreThe present study explores the relationship between multilingualism and expressiveness, with reference to the case of ideophones in Zulu. Ideophones make up a large and productive word class in Zulu, as they do in most Bantu languages (Nkabinde, 1986; Doke & Vilakazi, 1951). However, a study by Childs (1996) found that ideophone knowledge and use is in decline among young Zulu speakers in South Africa, likely because of influence from Afrikaans and English as prestige languages which do not have ideophones. This study seeks to follow up on this and expand upon it with the inclusion of gestures and an investigation of the attitudes surrounding ideophone use. The central finding is that the results here conform to Childs’s (1996) prediction that ideophone use is decreasing among Zulu speakers; however, ideophones are generally positively perceived by urban speakers, which stands in stark contrast to what Childs (1996) found. The implications of these positive attitudes are discussed in light of South Africa’s sociolinguistic history and current context. Lastly, I posit the tentative hypothesis that many of the functions of ideophones have persisted into urban Zulu in the form of onomatopoeia and even code-switching.Show less
Research master thesis | Asian Studies (research) (MA)
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With the rapid proliferation of New Confucian studies since the mid 1980s, it has become an unquestioned dogma that one particular event at the beginning of 1958 marks a watershed in the movement’s...Show moreWith the rapid proliferation of New Confucian studies since the mid 1980s, it has become an unquestioned dogma that one particular event at the beginning of 1958 marks a watershed in the movement’s development. This event is the publication of the Manifesto that Mou Zongsan 牟宗三, Tang Junyi唐君毅, Xu Fuguan 徐復觀, and Zhang Junmai 张君劢 co-signed and published almost simultaneously in the two journals Minzhu pinglun民評論 (Democratic Tribune) and Zaisheng再生(National Renaissance) with the title “为中国文化敬告世界人士宣言─我们对中国学术研究及中国文化与世界文前途之共同认识” (Wei Zhongguo wenhua jinggao shijie renshi xuanyan –women dui Zhongguo xueshu yanjiu ji Zhongguo wenhua yu shijiewen qiantu zhi gongtong renshi; translated in English as “A Manifesto on the Reappraisal of Chinese Culture – our Joint Understanding of the Sinological Study relating to World Cultural Outlook.”). Its main purpose is to benefit Western intellectuals in 'aiding them to appreciate Chinese culture'. In order to do so, the authors employ a strategic terminology, which allows them to build a consistent cross-cultural dialogue between Western and Chinese philosophy by means of an unprecedented discourse on 'Chinese Rationalism' (中国心性之学 Zhongguo xinxing zhi xue). Interestingly, the latter is described by the authors as “the essence of Chinese Culture” and, beside its comparative value, it represents the most comprehensive configuration of Confucianism in the context of 20th century. Academic interest in Chinese Studies and Chinese Philosophy should take into account the articulation of Chinese Rationalism in the Manifesto of 1958 as representing a paradigm of post-comparative dialogue that exemplifies the underlying philosophical continuity beyond consistently different traditions of thought.Show less
