Many Deaf people today consider themselves a linguistic minority with a culture distinct from the mainstream hearing society. This is in large part because they communicate through an independent language——American Sign Language (ASL). However, two hundreds years ago, sign language was a “common language” for communication between hearing and deaf people within the institutional framework of “manualism.” Manualism is a pedagogical system of sign language introduced mainly from France in order to buttress the campaign for deaf education in the early-19th-century America. In 1817, a hearing man Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet (1787-1851) and a deaf Frenchman Laurent Clerc (1785-1869) co-founded the first residential school for the deaf in Hartford, Connecticut. These early manualists shaped sign language within the evangelical framework of “moral government.” They believed that the divine origin of signs would lead the spiritual redemption of people who could not hear. Inside manual institutions, the religiously defined practice of signing, which claimed to transform the “heathen deaf” into being the “signing Christian,” enabled the process of assimilation into a shared “signing community.” The rapid expansion of manual institutions hence fostered a strong and separate deaf culture that continues to influence today’s deaf communities in the United States. However, social reformers in the mid-nineteenth century who advocated “oralism” perceived manualism as a threat to social integration. “Oralists” pursued a different model of deaf education in the 1860s, campaigning against sign language and hoping to replace it entirely with the skills in lip-reading and speech. The exploration of this tension leads to important questions: Were people who could not hear “(dis)abled” in the religious context of the early United States? In what ways did the manual institutions train students to become “able-bodied” citizens? How did this religiously framed pedagogy come to terms with the “hearing line” in the mid 19th century? In answering these questions, this dissertation analyzes the early history of manual education in relation to the formation and diffusion of religious governmentality, a topic that continues to influence deaf culture to this day. / published_or_final_version / Modern Languages and Cultures / Master / Master of Philosophy

The Federal government's involvement in railroad labor disputes was one of the earliest examples of government intervention in the economy. Initially, when the economy was crippled by railroad strikes in the late nineteenth century, the government stepped in and crushed them with troops and injunctions. The Federal government's other approach was legislative, beginning with the passage of the Arbitration Act of 1888. As the first piece of Federal arbitration legislation, it had a significant impact on the development of subsequent labor legislation, such as the Railway Labor Act of 1926 and the National Labor Relations Act in 1935. Several methods are used to assess the impact and importance of the Arbitration Act. First, the political economy of the Arbitration Act is examined. Railroad owners opposed this legislation, fearing it would hinder their ability to hire, fire, and deal with striking workers. Organized labor favored arbitration, viewing such government intervention as providing a mandate that would compel, even force, employers to recognize unions. The ability of these constituent groups to influence their elected representatives is quantitatively tested using a simple model of legislative choice. The Arbitration Act was viewed as harmless, and even useless, by many Congressmen. Whether this legislation was effective is an important investigation. Two approaches are used to assess the impact of the legislation. The first uses a monthly index of railroad stocks to investigate how the expected future profitability of railroad firms was affected. The price of railroad stocks fell, which implies that the legislation was expected to reduce future profits. Investors felt that this legislation did not serve the best interests of railroad capital. The second approach examines how the passage of arbitration legislation affected strike frequency and duration. The analysis of the impact of the Arbitration Act confirms that the mere presence of arbitration procedures can lead to an increase in strike activity. Evidently, the relative costs of railroad strikes were lowered, thus increasing strike activity. The imposition of legislated bargaining procedures can produce unexpected results, as illustrated by the Arbitration Act's effect on railroad strikes.

By tracing the history of Badagry, from its reconstruction after 1784 until its annexation in 1863, it is possible to trace a number of themes which have implications for the history of the whole 'Slave Coast' and beyond. The enormous impact of the environment in shaping this community and indeed its relations with other communities, plays a vital part in any understanding of the Badagry story. As a place of refuge, Badagry's foundation and subsequent history was shaped by a series of immigrant groups and individuals from Africa and Europe. Its position as an Atlantic and lagoonside port enabled this community to emerge as an important commercial and political force in coastal affairs. However, its very attractions also made it a desirable prize for African and European groups. Badagry's internal situation was equally paradoxical. The fragmented, competitive nature of its population resulted in a weakness of political authority, but also a remarkable flexibility which enabled the town to function politically and commercially in the face of intense internal and external pressures. It was ultimately the erosion of this tenuous balance which caused Badagry to fall into civil war. Conversely, a study of Badagry is vital for any understanding of these influential groups and states. The town's role as host to political refugees such as Adele, an exiled King of Lagos, and commercial refugees, such as the Dutch trader Hendrik Hertogh, had enormous repercussions for the whole area. Badagry's role as an initial point of contact for both the Sierra Leone community and Christianity in Nigeria has, until now, been almost wholly neglected. Furthermore, the port's relations with its latterly more famous neighbours, Lagos, Porto-Novo, Oyo, Dahomey and Abeokuta, sheds further light on the nature of these powers, notably the interdependence of these communities both politically and economically. Badagry's long-standing relationship with Europe and ultimate annexation by Britain is also an area which has been submerged within the Lagos story. But it is evident that the, annexation of Badagry in 1863 was a separate development, which provides further evidence on the nature of nineteenth century British imperialism on the West Coast of Africa.

This study looks at the economic, political and social history of women in the Yoruba area of south-western Nigeria in the 19th century using contemporary sources which have remained previously largely untapped for historical studies of women. The century encompassed many key historical developments which affected women; in particular, the decline of the Atlantic slave trade and the growth of an export trade in locally produced palm oil and kernels. Whereas the slave trade had been dominated by men, the processing, transport and trade of palm produce was dominated by women. The extent, nature and effects of women's role in this and other industries such as pottery manufacture, dyeing and food vending, which also expanded and developed during this period, are examined. As demand for palm produce and other goods increased, the labour of both free-born and slave women became more valuable since it was vital for industry at all stages. The study looks at changing labour demands and sources and alterations in the established pattern of the sexual and generational division of labour. Important changes in gender relations are evident and the study illuminates how tensions between men and women and between women themselves were manifest and how both men and women expressed and dealt with these problems. Economic changes were accompanied by largely internal political developments which favoured a few wealthy women. overall, many men perceived and/or experienced that increasing female autonomy posed a threat to the established patriarchal order. The evidence represented in the thesis clearly shows how men attempted to subordinate women in general, tap into their income and limit their political involvement, mainly through the development of exploitative and restrictive aspects of male-dominated politico-religious cults, which were directed specifically at women.

This thesis explores the construction of masculinity in novels written by New Women authors between the years 1881-1899. The fin de siècle was a period during which gender roles were renegotiated with fervour by both male and female authors, but it was the so-called New Woman in particular who was trying to transform the Victorian notion of femininity to incorporate the demands of the burgeoning women's movement. This thesis argues that in their fiction, New Women authors often tried to achieve this transformation by creating male characters who were designed to justify and to mitigate the New Woman protagonist's departure from traditional structures of heterosexual relationships. The methodology underlying this thesis is the notion that men and women were perceived as binary opposites during the Victorian period. I refer to this as the binary code of the sexes. This code assumes that men and women naturally possess diametrically opposed character attributes, and also that “masculine” attributes are perforce better than “feminine” ones. In the body of this work, I argue that New Women authors attempted to contest both of these assumptions by creating, on the one hand, traditional male characters whose masculinity is corrupted in crucial and recurring ways, and on the other, impaired male characters who cannot assume the traditional role of man. The comparison of the New Woman protagonist with the corrupt traditional man elevates her feminine attributes, while the impaired man's dependency legitimises her acquisition of what were otherwise considered “masculine” attributes and privileges, thereby contesting the notion that men and women possess sex-specific attributes at all. The second part of my thesis examines contrasting examples, in which this way of characterising masculinity – as traditional or impaired – is questioned and manipulated. It examines the limitations of the New Women authors' specific approach to reconstructing the binary code.

"This study is interested primarily in the political and economic philosophies which motivated the men who came to power in Texas following the overthrow of the Reconstruction regime, and which dominated the public affairs of the state during those years. It approaches the problem from the viewpoint of the positions of various individuals regarding the more prominent issues of the day, both state and national. The concentrates on the administrations of five governors of Texas and the tenures of five members of Congress. These men are viewed in relation to the times, and Texas is observed in light of its peculiar problems and its relation to the United States as a whole." -- leaf iv.

Gong Yibing. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 109-121). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Introduction --- p.1 / Chapter Chapter I. --- Basic Monetary Terms --- p.9 / Basic Functions of Money --- p.10 / China´ةs Bimetallism --- p.16 / The Terminology --- p.19 / Chapter Chapter II. --- The Influx of Foreign Silver Coins into China --- p.22 / Chapter Chapter III. --- The Circulation of Foreign Silver Coins --- p.39 / The Spread of Foreign Silver Coins in China --- p.39 / Case Study I: Fujian --- p.46 / Case Study II: Guangdong --- p.65 / Case Study III: Jiangsu and Zhejiang --- p.82 / Conclusion --- p.101 / Bibliography --- p.108

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 183-225). / This thesis will analyze the architect William Ralph Emerson's (1833-1917) Boston Art Club building (1881-82) and its station within Boston and New York's art culture. Even though there has been considerable research on the Gilded Age in general and certain art clubs specifically, this club remains a neglected element in art's social history. During the rising development of art culture, a small group of artists founded the Boston Art Club (1854-1950) as a vehicle for production, education and promotion of the arts. To assert their club's presence within patrons' circles, the members commissioned a flagship clubhouse adjacent to Art Square (now known as Copley Square). Emerson, primarily a residential architect and the first Shingle Style architect, won the competition with a unique amalgamation of Queen Anne and Richardson Romanesque styles, an alliance with the nearby Museum of Fine Arts and the Ruskin and the English Pre-Raphaelites. The resultant clubhouse was a declaration of the club's presence amid America's established art culture. Through this building design the Club asserted its status for the thirty years that the arts prevailed on Boston's Art Square. The Art Club's reign, along with the building's prominence, ended when the Museum deemed their building's architectural style out of date, among other reasons. That faithful decision to abandon Art Square and the revival Ruskinian Gothic style would take with it the reverence for the Art Club's building and, eventually, the club itself. Within forty years and through several other struggles the Art Club closed its doors, ending a chapter that began with the need for art in Boston, thrived within the culture of the Gilded Age and sank from the changing trends in architecture. / by Michelle Leah Hoeffler. / S.M.

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