Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
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Eye-tracking reading on bilinguals has found divergent results: some have found disadvantages for bilinguals of varying proficiency as compared to monolinguals, where language proficiency scores...Show moreEye-tracking reading on bilinguals has found divergent results: some have found disadvantages for bilinguals of varying proficiency as compared to monolinguals, where language proficiency scores and individual differences in cognitive control ability accounted for these differences. Others reported a bilingual advantage in cognitive control which also affected syntactic parsing beneficially as bilinguals scored higher on comprehension whilst processing garden-path sentences. However, bilingualism itself is often poorly defined, which can lead to unfair comparisons between, potentially, extremely different types of bilinguals. Therefore, we employ a strict definition of bilingualism, as well as clearly defining what language-pairing our bilinguals have and what the potential language interaction effects of the pairing could be. In this fashion, the current study assesses whether high-proficiency Dutch-English bilinguals show an advantage on sentence comprehension of garden-path sentences and whether lingering misinterpretations related to garden-path effects in Good-Enough parsing theories remain and follow the expected patterns. We employed eye-tracking with N = 20 Dutch-English bilinguals and N = 12 native English speakers, and compared their reading times and comprehension accuracy. Our results confirm the patterns suggested in recent adaptations made to Good-Enough parsing models, in which information structure and prediction are incorporated and help guide the parsing process. Additionally, we find evidence of a specific Dutch-English language interaction which surfaces as an advantage for the bilinguals in specific eye-tracking measures and sentence parts, but no further (dis)advantage between our bilingual and native English speaker group, neither in sentence comprehension nor cognitive control, was found.Show less
Research master thesis | Asian Studies (research) (MA)
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This thesis researches whether the apparent similarity that seems to exist superficially between divergence in Chinese ancient character shapes and phonological split holds up upon closer...Show moreThis thesis researches whether the apparent similarity that seems to exist superficially between divergence in Chinese ancient character shapes and phonological split holds up upon closer examination. It concludes that it does not, since it is not possible to frame Chinese character divergence in terms of the straight-forward, systematic patterns found in phonological split. Instead, Chinese character evolution appears to be rather unsystematic and capricious.Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
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Event nominalizations in Iraqw, a Cushitic language spoken in Tanzania, have a number of interesting properties. Particularly, they do not license arguments; instead, thematically related nominals...Show moreEvent nominalizations in Iraqw, a Cushitic language spoken in Tanzania, have a number of interesting properties. Particularly, they do not license arguments; instead, thematically related nominals may occur as possessors, or as arguments of the main clause. This thesis, based partially on new data gathered during fieldwork in Tanzania, provides an overview of the morphosyntactic properties of event nominals in Iraqw, as well as an analysis of their internal structure and the syntactic status of their arguments, using the framework of Distributed Morphology.Show less
Research master thesis | Literary Studies (research) (MA)
some documents under embargo
2025-03-20T00:00:00Z, 2025-03-20T00:00:00Z
This thesis explores the conceptual mechanisms that underlie utopian world-making and rest on grammatical structures, identified as ‘grammars of utopia’. Examining case studies from modern and...Show moreThis thesis explores the conceptual mechanisms that underlie utopian world-making and rest on grammatical structures, identified as ‘grammars of utopia’. Examining case studies from modern and contemporary English and Greek literature, the thesis shows utopia to be both beyond and within grammatical limits: the conception of an ideal society, which a utopia is, is a gesture away from a given reality – its limitations, more precisely – as well as towards an alternative one, and this latter is the one drawing limits to the utopian thought anew. Herbert George Wells’ A Modern Utopia (1905), James Joyce’s Ulysses (1922), Aldous Huxley’s Island (1962), and Sotiris Dimitriou’s The Silence of the Dry Weed (2011) map five categories without which we cannot make sense of or construe utopian narratives: modality, polarity, conditionality, subjectivity, and mood. Therefore, close reading these works provides a first grammatical ‘study of Utopian fantasy mechanics’, as proposed by Fredric Jameson (2005, xiii). Αt the same time, all texts try (and more or less succeed) to remap these five configurations and invite possibilities of alternative grammars of utopia that are yet to come.Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
under embargo until 2025-01-31
2025-01-31T00:00:00Z
Vilela is a language isolate from El Chaco (Argentina) with just one semi-speaker left. Prof. Dr. Golluscio directed its documentation within the DOBES Programme (2003-2006) and is involved in its...Show moreVilela is a language isolate from El Chaco (Argentina) with just one semi-speaker left. Prof. Dr. Golluscio directed its documentation within the DOBES Programme (2003-2006) and is involved in its grammatical description. However, its phonology is understudied, and only a few observations (Llamas, 1910; Viegas Barros, 2001; Lozano, 1970/2006) and specific studies (Grawunder & Golluscio, 2014) have been made so far. In addition, and despite its endangerment level, only one article has focused on how language attrition affected the retrieved data (Golluscio & González, 2008), and only scarce mentions of phonological processes were made. Investigations of phonetics and phonology represent a relatively late arrival within the otherwise well-established field of language attrition studies (ca. the second half of the 2010s). Therefore, this thesis has a double aim. I will first describe the Vilela's (segmental) phonological system, analyzing the available acoustic and phonological information and my fieldwork data (bibliographic research and elicitation sessions in Resistencia). Next, I study how phonological and phonetic attrition has affected and is still affecting Vilela and what this can bring to current language attrition research.Show less
Research master thesis | Classics and Ancient Civilizations (research) (MA)
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This thesis focuses on the philosophical meaning of literal silence in the later Platonic tradition (first to sixth century AD). With ‘literal silence’ I mean the phenomenon or act of silence...Show moreThis thesis focuses on the philosophical meaning of literal silence in the later Platonic tradition (first to sixth century AD). With ‘literal silence’ I mean the phenomenon or act of silence itself that is explicitly indicated in a text. As this thesis shows, silence is not a static but a dynamic concept whose meaning is transformed over time. The first chapter treats the silent philosopher trope in the (Neo)Pythagorean tradition and shows that silence was seen as a philosophical virtue and a (better) alternative to language. These types of silence were intentional and immanent, and also often communicative. The second chapter focuses on quietness as a characteristic of the first principle and as an ontological posture in Middle Platonic and Neoplatonic thought. In this philosophical development, silence is no longer immanent to speech but transcends the human capacity for language. In the last chapter, I show how the thoughts on the limits of language impact the dialectical method and the literary form of some Christian Platonic dialogues that stand out for their silent interlocutors. The conclusion reflects on the different instances of silence and shows how their meanings flow into each other while being transformed throughout antiquity with every author.Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
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This thesis investigates how the use of three futurates (will, shall and BE going to) is constrained in six varieties of World English (American, British, Canadian, Indian, Jamaican, and Philippine...Show moreThis thesis investigates how the use of three futurates (will, shall and BE going to) is constrained in six varieties of World English (American, British, Canadian, Indian, Jamaican, and Philippine). Using a Construction Grammar approach, it is assumed that the futurates are separate constructions, all part of a single network (Bergs 2010). They can then be analysed in terms of form (i.e. their morphosyntactic environment), function (i.e. their semantic and pragmatic meaning) and context (i.e. the types of texts they appear in). The six varieties of World English under investigation here present a cross-section of World Englishes as they are conceptualized by Strang (1970), Quirk et al. (1972), Kachru (1985) and Schneider (2007). The data used in this thesis comes from the ICE-corpora, a collection of corpora with the same methodology and which are thus optimally comparable. The impact of various variables related to form and function was explored using conditional trees and conditional random forests. The results show that the futurates under investigation show a high degree of overlap regarding the environments in which they can be found. The functional variables included do not play a significant role. On the other hand, some variables associated with the futurates’ form do – especially the person and animacy of the subject. Additionally, the futurates are conditioned differently in different varieties of English. However, no clear categorization in terms of the frameworks designed to capture World Englishes (e.g. Kachru’s (1985) Concentric Circles or Schneider’s (2007) Dynamic Model) can be uncovered. This first look at how the use of the futurates is conditioned in six varieties of World English shows that it is an exciting topic for further investigation, as there are interesting differences between the varieties under investigation.Show less
This thesis examines the effects of the so-called Nayaka kings on Kandyan kingship in the first decade of the Nayaka period of the Kandyan kingdom (1729-1750). The thesis concludes that the decade...Show moreThis thesis examines the effects of the so-called Nayaka kings on Kandyan kingship in the first decade of the Nayaka period of the Kandyan kingdom (1729-1750). The thesis concludes that the decade before the Nayaka kings rose to power shows remarkable continuity with the first decade after the Nayaka kings ascended the Kandyan throne, and it is therefore difficult to state that the Nayaka ascension can be seen as a clear break with the former dynasty. The ceremonies at the court do not show any sign of an increased divinization, both Sri Vijaya Rajasinha (1739-1747) and Kirti Sri Rajasinha (1747-1782) even had a bigger emphasis on becoming/being an ideal Buddhist ruler, a Cakravarti.Show less
Research master thesis | Asian Studies (research) (MA)
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For the past two decades, states have been engaged in negotiations concerning acceptable state behavior in cyberspace. Many states have submitted their views on the matter and most recently, cyber...Show moreFor the past two decades, states have been engaged in negotiations concerning acceptable state behavior in cyberspace. Many states have submitted their views on the matter and most recently, cyber norms negotiations have been opened up to the entire membership of the United Nations through the Open Ended Working Group. Chinese representatives have been an active participant in these negotiations since their inception, with their own preferred cyber norms to promote. The success of this promotion, however, has been limited due to several factors. In this research, this attempted norm promotion is examined in detail through primary documentation to assess what these limiting factors entail.Show less
Research master thesis | Arts and Culture (research) (MA)
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Neoliberalism has altered the way in which the subject consumes and subsequently reflects upon media. A popular media genre on the internet nowadays is instruction videos, which can be consumed for...Show moreNeoliberalism has altered the way in which the subject consumes and subsequently reflects upon media. A popular media genre on the internet nowadays is instruction videos, which can be consumed for various reasons, but usually rely on the notion of conveying to the viewer a certain set of skills. Since these media are therefore consumed for a specific purpose intended, the viewer already pre-establishes a certain attitude and understanding, and furthermore gains a reflective understanding of this phenomenon itself. This thesis aims to reconsider the notion of spectatorship through a lens of phenomenology, in order to reevaluate the idea of a spectator's own understanding of their experience of a medium, which this thesis names "cognitive spectatorship," and shows how the genre of instruction videos and this new viewing attitude play into the Neoliberal ideology.Show less
