The leading question in this research is how sir Granville St John Orde Browne imagined the ideal colonial labourer in correspondence and reports written in the course of his career, 1885-1945. It...Show moreThe leading question in this research is how sir Granville St John Orde Browne imagined the ideal colonial labourer in correspondence and reports written in the course of his career, 1885-1945. It asks specifically how men and women were represented or omitted within this imagining and why. It is argued that in the context of colonial labour, Orde Browne imagined the ideal colonial labourer as male and hereby excluded women from the realm of wage labour opportunities, instead discursively assigning them to the sphere of domesticity and recommending policies that limited female wage labour opportunities and reified a colonial idealization of wife-hood and motherhood. This exclusion was based on assumptions of women as especially traditional and conservative, a sexualization and associated demoralization of the independent presence of women in the compounds, and women being deemed inferior labourers. Men, on the other hand, were represented as objects of exploitation, whose bodies and minds were to be controlled through colonial policies with the aim of making labour migration as efficient and profitable as possible. Women within this structure were visualized as dependents who could either hinder said effective exploitation through the spread of disease and immorality, or could enable even more efficient and stable exploitation and ensure the reproduction of a future generation of workers.Show less
The present environmental crisis has put the public war between current right-wing authoritarian governs and whoever in the world is concerned about the environment in the international spotlight....Show moreThe present environmental crisis has put the public war between current right-wing authoritarian governs and whoever in the world is concerned about the environment in the international spotlight. Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord, on June 1, 2017 and the recent refusal of Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro to stop the exploitation of Amazon illustrate the emergence of a situation in which the notions of territory and nation-state no longer sustain the reality of our shared planet. The more climate change, global warming and the environmental degradation haunt the Earth’s inhabitants, the more it seems that we break apart the world as if boundaries of exclusion could prevent what is inside from perishing. In this thesis, I argue that, in the core of this issue, dwell precisely our ‘notions’ and ‘concepts’—enclosed in the huge monolith of Western modern thinking. To confront the planetary crisis, one needs a new strategy to access these problems—that would not consist in simply applying a dialectical method of discussion, but instead deploying a multidimensional approach, capable of penetrating that Western bloc from all sides. By taking on the notion of networks—whether informatic, political and biological—I critically analyse this concept and introduce the framework of the ‘swarm’ that I used in my own artistic practice as a way to allow a multiplicity of viewpoints. The art project Game of Swarms, which explores mainly the fact that the individuals of swarms work together without a locus of control, provokes the audience to rethink our current political structures and use the narrative of the game to imagine new forms of making politics and a new way to think our relation to the world. The biological self-organised model of swarms comes as a tool to create new narratives to face today’s planetary crisis and foster a more sustainable way of thinking.Show less
This thesis gives a comparative account of the history of organising among LGBTI disabled people in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Taking an intersectional...Show moreThis thesis gives a comparative account of the history of organising among LGBTI disabled people in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Taking an intersectional approach, this thesis sheds light on the experiences of those who were multiply-identified, and on the isolating impact that groups organised around one singular identity could have. Moreover, beyond addressing homophobia in disabled spaces and ableism in the lesbian and gay subculture, this thesis focuses on how disabled LGBTI people organised themselves as a response to these exclusions. Thus, based on archival and oral sources, this thesis shows how disabled LGBTI people navigated both LGBTI and disabled spheres, and how and why they created or used disabled LGBTI spheres and content. Additionally, this thesis analyses processes of positive identity formation and the use of emancipatory rhetoric in disabled lesbian and gay groups. These developments are discussed in relation to the national contexts these groups existed in, specifically with regards to the broader lesbian and gay movements, and the disability movements. Finally, this thesis takes into account implicit or explicit processes of inclusion and exclusion, with regards to transgender people, people of colour, and people with intellectual disabilities. The creation of implicit or explicit boundaries to group membership worked to create a normative identity within disabled lesbian and gay groups as well. This illustrates the importance of the intersectional approach taken in this thesis, which allows space for those identifying along other axes beyond disability and lesbian and gay subjectivities.Show less
The principal idea of this thesis is to study a particular aspect of language practice, namely involvement. Charlotte Brontё’s private language use in her letters by focusing on linguistic...Show moreThe principal idea of this thesis is to study a particular aspect of language practice, namely involvement. Charlotte Brontё’s private language use in her letters by focusing on linguistic involvement is analysed in the present work. In order to examine the degree of Charlotte Brontё’s involvement exhibited in her personal letters, the following topics have been addressed: the language of correspondence of Charlotte Brontё with regard to the actual usage of the English language of the Late Modern English period based on the information of the language during that time provided in the Cambridge History of the English Language, Volume IV: 1776–1997 (ed. Romaine 1999), the nature of the relationships of Charlotte Brontё with her private interlocutors and the notion of involvement with respect to letter-writing activity. The main hypothesis of this thesis is strongly based on Sairio (2005: 24–25) and suggests that the level of linguistic involvement, as examined by her, differs between different addressees and can be revealed by analyzing the use of evidential adverbs, degree adverbs and first- and second-person singular pronouns.Show less
Machiavelli’s theory as described in The Prince has been a great influence on the theories of acquiring political power. Because Machiavelli’s name is connected with deceit and immorality,...Show moreMachiavelli’s theory as described in The Prince has been a great influence on the theories of acquiring political power. Because Machiavelli’s name is connected with deceit and immorality, especially in early modern England, many Elizabethan playwrights engaged with his doctrine to excite their audiences. This thesis argues that Marlowe engages with Machiavelli in two distinct manners. On the one hand there is the simplified, misinterpreted Machiavellian. These characters may appear to follow Machiavelli’s doctrine. However, because their actions go against Machiavelli’s doctrine, they are not able to achieve their goals. On the other hand there are the true Machiavellian characters, who are able to show the power of the individual by following Machiavellian doctrine. These characters can overcome their troubles and achieve actual political power. An analysis of The Jew of Malta and Tamburlaine the Great makes this distinction clear. Although Barabas is introduced as a Machiavellian by Machevill himself, his actions continuously go against his doctrine. The secondary, Christian character Ferneze does use his tactical planning skills to turn unpredictable situations to his advantage. Tamburlaine uses these same Machiavellian tactics on an epic skill. Although Tamburlaine’s cruelty is extreme, Machiavelli would approve as they are essential to his reputation and conquest. In Doctor Faustus, although often overlooked in this discussion, Marlowe depicts the importance of focus and knowledge in the acquirement of political power. Lucifer and Mephistopheles use Machiavelli’s doctrine to victory. In Doctor Faustus, Machiavellianism truly is the devil’s doctrine.Show less
Language has the capacity to make politics, create narratives and impact policy making (Hajer, 2006). In the study of foreign policy, discourses define the issues at stake, create a sense of shared...Show moreLanguage has the capacity to make politics, create narratives and impact policy making (Hajer, 2006). In the study of foreign policy, discourses define the issues at stake, create a sense of shared ‘common knowledge’ and legitimize foreign policies as necessary and plausible (Hansen, 2013, 2016). When the Ukrainian crisis breaks out in 2014, Europe is confronted with one of the most complex situations for decades. The sense of urgency increases for one member state in particular when flight MH17 is shot down above Ukraine. Losing almost 200 citizens in the crash, the Netherlands suddenly becomes a central actor in this conflict. The literature, however, pays little attention to the domestic political debates regarding Ukraine. Moreover, the role of parliaments and oppositional political parties in foreign policy is under-accounted for. Therefore, this thesis analyses whether and how discourses are reflected in the Dutch foreign policy debate since the Ukrainian crisis and what role the parliament and political parties play in Dutch foreign policy. A discourse analysis is conducted to see what discourses are reflected in the parliamentary debates. This studies shows that identity-policy constructions – articulated through discourses – are crucial for defining and legitimizing Dutch foreign policies. Furthermore, it finds that the Government’s official foreign policy discourse is influenced and constrained by oppositional discourses that stress the normative and geopolitical aspects of Dutch foreign policy. Hence, this study provides new insight into the role of discourse in the wider political debate in the Netherlands. Though this thesis establishes that the parliament and political parties matter in this specific case, more research is needed on the role of parliaments and political parties to make generalizable conclusions for foreign policy more broadly.Show less
The Open Deure, published in 1651 in Leiden, is well-known for its detailed account of the society and religious practices of the Brahmins in Pulicat, near modern Chennai. An important element has...Show moreThe Open Deure, published in 1651 in Leiden, is well-known for its detailed account of the society and religious practices of the Brahmins in Pulicat, near modern Chennai. An important element has however been ignored by scholarship: the extensive annotations written by an unknown antiquarian scholar, identified only as A.W. in the preface to the main text. In the annotations A.W. contextualises and ‘translates’ Rogerius’s account into something relevant for a European scholarly audience; this gave the contemporary reader a framework with which to judge Rogerius's descriptions, lacking from the latter's dry and factual observations. The annotations argue for a monistic Neoplatonic understanding of the Brahmins' religious practices which A.W. readily states to bear the same basic truths that can be found in Christianity. On the other hand, his comparative model elevates the Brahmins' religion to a modern understanding of the term. A.W.’s footnotes showcase the larger discourses in Europe and the seventeenth century’s transformation of the concept of ‘religion’ - as well as the birth of comparative religion which accompanied it. The annotations of the Open Deure thus turn out to be integral to the contemporary understanding of Rogerius’s text and should be considered next to the main narrative.Show less
This research examines how entrepreneurship can influence Mauritian women entrepreneurs’ sense of empowerment. It seeks to shed light on the empowerment of women entrepreneurs in a fast-developing,...Show moreThis research examines how entrepreneurship can influence Mauritian women entrepreneurs’ sense of empowerment. It seeks to shed light on the empowerment of women entrepreneurs in a fast-developing, ethnically diverse country. A critical approach was adopted, in which an analysis was made on the different areas in life (dimensions) in which women feel (more) empowered by their business or not. Furthermore, it recognized women as a heterogeneous group and researches how personal and entrepreneurial background influence sense of empowerment. During a fieldwork period of six months in Mauritius, data was collected. A mixed-methods approach was adopted and two datasets were created in order to both demonstrate (quantitative data) and explain (qualitative data) differences in empowerment. A main conclusion that can be drawn is that women generally do feel empowered by their business. However, entrepreneurship affects women’s areas of life in different ways, which can partly be explained by the woman’s background. Also, it was found that a sense of community and collective groups of women entrepreneur contributed enormously to women’s sense of empowerment in multiple ways. This research thus contributes to discussions about women’s empowerment through entrepreneurship by emphasizing that empowerment is an inherent individual process and that women have different backgrounds and entrepreneurial experiences, which in turn influences the way they feel empowered by their own business.Show less
Diphthongization of the vowel /e:/ into the diphthong [ei] is a common phenomenon in Dutch and can be transferred to an L2; we found in our bachelor thesis that, although the French vowel /e/...Show moreDiphthongization of the vowel /e:/ into the diphthong [ei] is a common phenomenon in Dutch and can be transferred to an L2; we found in our bachelor thesis that, although the French vowel /e/ should not be diphthongized, Dutch learners of French tend to do this. Interestingly, they do this more when the vowel /e/ occurs in the first syllable of a word. That is why we investigated in the current study if coarticulation with neighboring sounds plays a role in the diphthongization of the French vowel /e/ in Dutch learners of French. Furthermore, we didn't only focus on production, but we also investigated whether Dutch learners of French can perceive the difference between the French monophthong /e/ and the Dutch diphthong [ei] and whether neighboring sounds influence this perception in an AXB task. Finally, we examined whether the perception of the participants was correlated with their production. We found that the neighboring sounds indeed seem to influence both the production and the perception of the diphthongization of the French vowel /e/; when the /e/ was followed by the dental sound /t/, it was significantly more diphthongized than when it was followed by the labial sound /p/. Interestingly, although the /t/ gives rise to more diphthongization in production, the participants perceived the least diphthongs in a /t/ context in the perception task, which could be explained as a compensation effect for coarticulation. It was less clear whether the participants were able to distinguish between the monophthong /e/ and the diphthong [ei] in the perception task. Finally, we didn't find a correlation between the production and perception of the diphthongization of the French vowel /e/ in Dutch learners of French.Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
closed access
Although there have been many studies looking into the integration process, likelihood and types of loans, the position of loans in the recipient language is less clear. They seem to be part of a...Show moreAlthough there have been many studies looking into the integration process, likelihood and types of loans, the position of loans in the recipient language is less clear. They seem to be part of a grey area, between the lexicon and incidental language use, bordering on code-switching. Through the analysis of a Dictionary Project, a Survey Project and Language Expert Interviews, this study attempts to map the factors that influence the perceived Dutchness of English loans in Dutch and attempts to narrow the grey area that loans are part of. The results show that the Linguistic Aspects, Age and Semantics of loans most strongly influence the perceived Dutchness. Moreover, the loans should not be a niche concept or be rarely used. Subsequently, the results make it possible to create a tentative blueprint for the characteristics a loan should have to be perceived as part of Dutch, in effect slightly narrowing the grey area loans are part of.Show less
Deze scriptie gaat over het leven van Europese soldaten in de zeventiende en achttiende eeuw. Er werd in deze scriptie voornamelijk gekeken naar de mentaliteit van soldaten en welke invloed...Show moreDeze scriptie gaat over het leven van Europese soldaten in de zeventiende en achttiende eeuw. Er werd in deze scriptie voornamelijk gekeken naar de mentaliteit van soldaten en welke invloed maatschappelijke ontwikkelen hierop hadden.Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
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“Eating meat is wrong”. Discussions about the consumption of animal products appear to be dominated by such all-or-nothing statements. As soon as someone says the words ‘meat’ or ‘vegetarian’, each...Show more“Eating meat is wrong”. Discussions about the consumption of animal products appear to be dominated by such all-or-nothing statements. As soon as someone says the words ‘meat’ or ‘vegetarian’, each side is sharpened, ready to defend its position against personal attacks by the opponent. While some argue that eating less meat will improve public health and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, others consider the consumption of animal products a matter of personal choice. Whichever way you look at it, the issue of meat consumption gives rise to a great deal of disagreement and ongoing debate. The ‘eat less meat’ debate can be defined as a public debate. Public debates are confrontations of different opinions, accessible to a broad group of people, on issues related to a problem that affects many people. The problem somehow requires action and is characterised by a sequence of practical consequences (Walton 2007:217). Such debates shape public attitudes and social norms based on different values (RMO 2011:13). A public debate is thus an exchange of different opinions and a reflection of what is happening in society. The above highlights that public debate covers a broad range of activities. By analysing the term ‘public debate’, this broad range can be clarified somewhat: it is a debate and it is public. That it is a debate means that it is about advancing arguments, but what does it mean that it is public? On the one hand, it indicates that the discussion is held in public: it must be possible for everyone to have access to the arguments put forward and the arguments must therefore be easily disseminated to the citizens. On the other hand, it points out that the debate is a discussion of the public: in the case of democracies, this means that all citizens, who are the public of their elected representatives, must be able to participate in the debate. In a public debate, therefore, not only must the arguments put forward be accessible to everyone, but the debate must also be accessible to everyone in terms of participation. The above points out that public debates take place in the ‘public sphere’: an imaginary community that exists not necessarily in an ‘identifiable space’ but should rather be understood as a place in social life where people can come together to freely identify and discuss social problems and, through that discussion, influence political action (Habermas 1962/1991:176). Under the influence of technological developments, the contemporary public sphere often takes place online. This ‘online public sphere’ is characterised by the coexistence of many different public actors who freely express their opinions: individual citizens, political parties, trade unions, companies, (government) institutions, the mass media, and so on. With the emergence of new media in the last two decades, the way in which discussions about common interests are conducted has changed radically. The new media have given people the means to play an active role in public debates: to protest against policy or to mobilise others and to put topics on the agenda. These developments have transformed public debates such as the ‘eat less meat’ debate into large-scale, complex political and ideological discussions in which opinions are defended and criticised from many different perspectives. This thesis focuses specifically on these large-scale complex public debates that take place in the online public sphere. Because these online large-scale complex public debates have a clear argumentative function, the analysis and evaluation of the discourse can be based on argumentative theories. From a pragma-dialectical perspective on argumentation, a public debate is a clearly distinguishable argumentative activity type: a conventional argumentative practice in which the possibilities for strategic maneuvers are predetermined (Van Eemeren & Garssen 2010:505). The fact that the way in which people participate in public debates has changed and, in particular, that in the kind of debates central to this thesis many different actors become protagonists of argumentatively-relevant moves, leads to challenges when analysing these online large-scale complex public debates from a pragma-dialectical perspective. This is because in dialectical models of argumentation, such as the model used in pragma-dialectics, argumentation is typically theorised as a dyadic exchange between two parties occupying two basic positions (Lewiński & Aakhus 2013:161). The new media, and other changes in public debates, thus pose a challenge for practice and theory on pragma-dialectical argumentation analysis and the reconstruction of argumentative activity types. This calls for an elucidation of the way in which this type of debate can be characterised and analysed in terms of pragma-dialectics. This research thus aims to find out how online large-scale complex public debates can be characterised and analysed in pragma-dialectical terms.Show less
This thesis argues that conceptual blending of mental spaces (as described by Fauconnier and Turner (2002), and Brandt and Brandt (2005)) enables the understanding of metaphors and imagery. The...Show moreThis thesis argues that conceptual blending of mental spaces (as described by Fauconnier and Turner (2002), and Brandt and Brandt (2005)) enables the understanding of metaphors and imagery. The focus lies on the function of integration networks and their complex nested structures. I propose that the nested integration network designed by Per-Aage Brandt (2005) can be used to showcase the concept of a frame: a long-term mental space network of knowledge and information (Ziem 2014). Through the analysis of ten quotes from the Dutch literary comic series ‘De Avonturen van Tom Poes’ (‘The Adventures of Tom Puss’), this thesis demonstrates the use of a new model specifically designed to showcase nested structures: the Bommodel.Show less
Even though the Weinstein scandal and the #metoo movement opened the debate about feminism across societies, it seemed that the debate did not happen in Japan. After doing some research, one can...Show moreEven though the Weinstein scandal and the #metoo movement opened the debate about feminism across societies, it seemed that the debate did not happen in Japan. After doing some research, one can see that mass media in Japan do not echo any feminist ideas. Throughout the years, the mass media have neglected feminist debates and even generated negative discourse on feminism. However, if one looks into more alternative media sources, it becomes obvious that the feminist debate is actually well established in Japan. There are media sources such as feminist journals that open discussions on topics like gender roles and sexual liberation. Feminist publications have existed in Japan since the beginning of the 20th century. However, as those journals challenge Japanese societal norms, they are categorized as niche media with quite a small readership. On the other hand, manga is another type of alternative media with a large readership that highlights a feminist debate. Within manga literature, there are specific genres that target a female readership from teenagers (shoujo) to adults (josei). I argue that among manga, shoujo and josei manga genres are the most read outlets of feminist ideas within Japanese media.Show less
