On July 25, 2021, President Kais Saied proclaimed a state of emergency in Tunisia, justifying this through an “extensive” reading of Article 80 of the constitution that enabled him to rule by...Show moreOn July 25, 2021, President Kais Saied proclaimed a state of emergency in Tunisia, justifying this through an “extensive” reading of Article 80 of the constitution that enabled him to rule by decree, to eliminate corruption. While condemned as a coup d’état by Saied’s political opponents – notably, those suspected by Saied to be corrupt – and by many western media, the decision was applauded by the majority of Tunisians. Strikingly, Zogby Research Services’ polls found that more than 70% of the surveyed Tunisians expressed they were “better off” before the so-called Arab Spring. What explains this apparent nostalgia? This thesis investigates what explains the nostalgia for pre-revolutionary Tunisia, focusing specifically on the urban middle class. It finds that there is nostalgia for some aspects of pre-revolutionary Tunisia, in terms of economic and personal security. However, despite negative perceptions of post-revolutionary politics, Tunisian urban middle class members are not nostalgic for the entire pre-revolutionary regime, as they value freedom of expression too much to go back to political repression. Thus, they are unhappy with the increasingly authoritarian turn Saied’s rule has taken.Show less
Aimee Mollaghan is one of the first to combine the concepts of soundscape and psychogeography in the pursuit of examining how the Irish landscape can serve to express emotion, alienation, and...Show moreAimee Mollaghan is one of the first to combine the concepts of soundscape and psychogeography in the pursuit of examining how the Irish landscape can serve to express emotion, alienation, and nostalgia. Focusing on a film about an expatriate sound recordist and his journey from his new home Berlin to that of his childhood. She describes the film as a work that engages with soundscape and landscape in a psychogeographical manner. Inspired by the work of Mollaghan, this thesis delves deeper into the notions of psychogeography and soundscape as described by Guy Debord and R. Murray Schafer. Abiding by Mollaghan’s study, the thesis concentrates on soundscape and psychogeography and its correlation between the experiences of individuals from an expatriate community. Throughout the years, the Japanese expatriate community in the Netherlands has grown increasingly, and so have the institutions and services catered towards Japanese expatriates. Is it possible that the emergence of familiar institutions and activities may create a similar soundscape to that of urban Japan? And if so, does this familiar soundscape evoke negative emotions or acculturative stress among expatriates? This thesis endeavors to explore the link between an unfamiliar soundscape and the loneliness, homesickness and nostalgia that it might evoke.Show less
This thesis looks at the Park Chung Hee's legacy in the context of collective memory theory. After 40 years Park's legacy still lives on. This can partially be explained by collective memory theory...Show moreThis thesis looks at the Park Chung Hee's legacy in the context of collective memory theory. After 40 years Park's legacy still lives on. This can partially be explained by collective memory theory. Elements of collective memory theory can help us understand the continuing existence of Park's legacy. Yet the collective memory theory gives no guarantees for the future.Show less
Landscape occupies a prominent place in the history of Chinese painting and lives on in contemporary art, reflecting the changes which China and more generally the world have undergone in the last...Show moreLandscape occupies a prominent place in the history of Chinese painting and lives on in contemporary art, reflecting the changes which China and more generally the world have undergone in the last few decades. On the wake of their ancestors, contemporary artists still turn to the subject of landscape to express themselves, although this style seems now freed from the stricter boundaries of pre-modern landscape painting. The research has the aim to investigate Chinese contemporary artists’ perception of the changing surroundings through the examination of a selection of artworks that will highlight the role of the landscape as an effective means to convey a wide array of feelings.Show less
In this thesis, two film adaptations of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing, directed by Kenneth Branagh (1993) and Joss Whedon (2013), are analysed, each film representing a particular cinematic...Show moreIn this thesis, two film adaptations of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing, directed by Kenneth Branagh (1993) and Joss Whedon (2013), are analysed, each film representing a particular cinematic tradition within the history of cinema. I argue that the main force at work in both adaptations is a complex nostalgia, one intrinsic to the very notion of 'heritage film' and likewise implicit in Whedon's indebtedness to American screwball comedy.Show less
The nineties in Russia were a hectic period full of change. Gorbachev came to power and implemented new policies such as Glasnost and Perestroika. These policies had an enormous effect on the...Show moreThe nineties in Russia were a hectic period full of change. Gorbachev came to power and implemented new policies such as Glasnost and Perestroika. These policies had an enormous effect on the Russian economy and among other things food shortages appeared. When Gorbachev came to power, people believed in him and the promise of a better future he brought. However when the reforms turned out to have negative economical consequences, people were left disappointed. This national feeling of disappointment was later used by the state to legitimize the change in political course of the new president Putin. This demonizing of the nineties sparked a form of countermemory called ‘Flashmobs’. ‘Flashmobs’ are personal pictures of the nineties posted on social media accounts. This thesis will look at Flashmobs as an expression of reflective nostalgia for the nineties. As a form of democratic protest of people who are saying that the nineties were not all bad, and thereby creating a countermemory against the demonization of the nineties.Show less
