This thesis presents a detailed study of the seventeenth century diplomat Sir Anthony Sherley's Relation of his Travels into Persia (1613). Sherley and his younger brother Robert travelled to Persia with a sizeable company of experienced English military officers who had originally been detailed to bolster the defences of Ferrara against an expected invasion by the Papal States in late 1597. Sherley remained in Persia for six months, which coincided with the Shah's return from a military expedition that had effectively secured his eastern frontiers against invasion, and as he embarked on preparations for a war of reconquest against the Ottomans, which was seized on by Sherley and his brothers to produce a stream of books, assuming credit for the later outbreak of war between the Muslim powers. Anthony and Robert Sherley were celebrated for inciting the Persians to war against the Turks, and their reputation was cemented with the publication of John Day, William Rowley and George Wilkins' play entitled Travails of the Three English Brothers (1607). Day, Rowley and Wilkins' Travails, as well as the brothers' persistent self-promotion through the medium of popular print, has led to the erroneous notion that they were responsible for the establishment of Anglo-Persian diplomatic relations. This thesis provides an account of Sir Anthony Sherley's experiences prior to his journey to Persia, traces his shifting objectives as reflected in the clusters of texts published by and about the Sherley brothers, argues that his account was partly presented as an allegorical romance, and highlights the Machiavellian and Tacitean influences behind the Relation.

Cette étude a pour objectif principal d’améliorer notre compréhension de la pratique de l’analyse d’affaires (ou business analyse). Les analystes d’affaires sont souvent considérés comme incontournables pour la transformation numérique des organisations et leur survie dans la quatrième révolution industrielle. Malgré une utilité de la pratique de plus en plus reconnue par les milieux d’affaires et des initiatives pour la professionnaliser, il subsiste une opportunité d’amélioration de la définition de l’analyse d’affaires en tant que métier. En effet, les dimensions reconnues d’un métier (« rôles », « tâches », « savoir-faire » et « connaissances ») restent à explorer pour définir la composition de l’analyse d’affaires. Dans cette optique, une analyse de la littérature académique a été réalisée pour extraire les définitions de l’analyse d’affaires pour identifier et explorer ses dimensions. Les résultats démontrent, d'une part, que l'analyse d'affaires se définit comme un métier à travers cinq dimensions (« rôles », « tâches », « savoir-faire », « savoir-être » et « connaissances ») et, d'autre part, que les éléments contextuels « secteur organisationnel » et « finalité » circonscrivent sa définition en un type idéal ou en profils spécialisés. Nous espérons, avec cette recherche, enrichir les connaissances sur l’analyse d’affaires qui pourront être transférées vers les programmes académiques, les associations professionnelles et les milieux d’affaires afin de favoriser la compréhension de cette pratique ainsi que son évolution. / This study aims to improve our understanding of the practice of business analysis. Business analysts are often considered essential for the digital transformation of organizations and their survival in the fourth Industrial Revolution. Despite the utility of the practice increasingly recognized by the business community and initiatives to professionalize it, there remains an opportunity to improve the business analysis definition as an occupation. Indeed, the recognized dimensions of a profession (“roles”, “tasks”, “know-how” and “knowledge”) remain to be explored in order to define the composition of business analysis. In this perspective, an analysis of the academic literature was conducted to extract the business analysis definitions and to identify its dimensions. The results demonstrate, on the one hand, that the business analysis is defined as an occupation through five dimensions (“roles”, “tasks”, “know-how”, “soft-skills” and “knowledge”). On the other hand, the “organizational sector” and the “purpose”, as contextual elements, can circumscribe the definition into an ideal-type or into specialized profiles. With this research, we hope to improve the knowledge of business analysis that can be transferred to academic programs, professional associations and the business community in order to promote the understanding of this practice and its evolution. / Résumé en espagnol