In this thesis, I have analyzed the meaning of family, mother(hood), and mothering as depicted in Gong Ji-young’s novel My Happy Home (chŭlgŏun naŭi chip). The analysis of this novel is based on...Show moreIn this thesis, I have analyzed the meaning of family, mother(hood), and mothering as depicted in Gong Ji-young’s novel My Happy Home (chŭlgŏun naŭi chip). The analysis of this novel is based on various literature on the concepts of household, family, mother(hood), single motherhood, and types of mothering, in addition to a discussion of the situation of South Korean families and mothers. I discuss the various methods Gong uses to indicate how family, mother(hood), and mothering are conceptualized by society and how she herself defines these concepts. The analysis indicates a level of rejection, but also agreement with society’s view on these concepts and Gong’s own interpretation.Show less
Because of a rapid-ageing society, Japan is facing a shrinking society in which the relative amount of elderly citizens will increase substantially. Elderly citizens are at larger risk of...Show moreBecause of a rapid-ageing society, Japan is facing a shrinking society in which the relative amount of elderly citizens will increase substantially. Elderly citizens are at larger risk of eventually moving to an elderly care facility or passing away. When their houses become uninhabited or unmanaged, they are designated as an empty house, or akiya. In this thesis, I will investigate the question of how this rapid rise in empty houses can be explained from the perspective of the social dimension of homeownership.Show less
Research master thesis | History: Societies and Institutions (research) (MA)
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This study focuses on the political history of Maguindanao, a polity along the western coast of Mindanao (present-day southern Philippines) from ca. 1680 till 1760. Primarily using the archives of...Show moreThis study focuses on the political history of Maguindanao, a polity along the western coast of Mindanao (present-day southern Philippines) from ca. 1680 till 1760. Primarily using the archives of the VOC (Dutch East India Company), it examines three interrelated historiographical issues: (1) the nature of political rule in Maguindanao, (2) the upland-lowland geopolitical divide and the (3) question of Maguindanao political decline. This thesis argues that these issues are better understood if seen from the perspective of complex intra-familial politics. By using the family as a lens, this thesis highlights the important role of women in the conduct of politics. It also dilutes the seemingly rigid division between the upland and lowland Maguindanao by viewing political factions not in terms of fixed political centers, but rather as a consequence of changing family alliances and rivalries.Show less
