The purpose of this dissertation is two-fold: one is to analyze the narratives of Acis and Galatea written by Ovid, and the two libretti by Handel's librettists including Nicola Giuvo (1708) and John Gay (1718) with John Hughes and Alexander Pope; the other is to correlate this textual analysis within the musical languages. A 1732 pastiche version is excluded because its bilingual texts are not suitable for the study of relationships between meaning and words. For this purpose, the study uses the structural theory- -mainly that of Gérard Genette--as a theoretical framework for the analysis of the texts. Narrative analysis of Acis and Galatea proves that the creative process of writing the libretto is a product of a conscious acknowledgement of its structure by composer and librettists. They put the major events of the story into recitative and ensemble. By examining the texts of both Handel's work, I explore several structural layers from the libretti: the change of the characterization to accommodate a specific occasion and the composer's response to contemporary English demand for pastoral drama with parodistic elements, alluding to the low and high class of society. Further, Polyphemus is examined in terms of relationships with culture corresponding to his recurrent pattern of appearance.

This study sought to determine the therapeutic effectiveness of client-therapist dyads in a residential treatment center for emotionally disturbed adolescents. The theories of George Kelly's personal construct psychology were utilized in assessing the dyadic relationship. The four elements investigated were organizational similarity, understanding, organizational congruency and predominant selves. The sample consisted of 140 dyads comprised of 10 adolescent boys and girls and 14 therapeutic staff of a residential treatment center in the southwest United States. Responses to Kelly's Role Construct Repertory Test were compared to four relational factors—parental/respect, identity, problem-solving, and sexual/affection—and two rating scales of client-therapist preference and ratings of therapeutic effectiveness. Contrary to expectations, as content similarity among dyads composed of clients and staff increased, there was not an increase in functional aspects of the therapy relationship. Possible mitigating factors may have been level of client disturbance and/or methodological issues relating to how organizational similarity was determined. Dyadic understanding was not found to be related to perceptions of the therapy relationship. This may be a function of adolescent of adolescent clients' need for independence and resistance to adult understanding and control. Therapy dyads with a moderate level of lateral or vertical organizational congruence were not found to be curvilinearly related to functional aspects of the therapy relationship. However, a weak linear relationship regarding client perceptions of the therapy relationship was noted on four measures. Several methodological recommendations related to the instruments used to determine therapeutic effectiveness and the means of eliciting personal constructs on the REP test.

I deal with the democratic school term in my diploma thesis. I clarify the term, I present few of the democratic schools and critical pedagogy. My goal is to highlight the qualities of the democratic school and demonstrate the arguments for considering it as equal and adequate to classical education system. I highlight the importance of attention and financial support from MŠMT for the democratic schools. Few of the democratic schools and the movements were inspired by the concept of independent british boarding Summerhill school and his founder Alexander Sutherland Neill. I will describe pedagogical principles of A. S. Nell and the history of Summerhill school in my thesis. Partial goals are to clarify in what extant and how were employed the principles of Summerhill school in schools in the Czech republic; and how can be the pedagogy of A. S. Neill followed in Czech settings. I will decribe my own point of view on the schooling and teaching. I will compare them to several schools, e.g. Scio school, Ježek bez klece school, Neškola, Sudbury Valley School, Neue Schule etc. after that. I will address the terms unschooling, democracy and boarding school. I employ a method of comparison, analogy, analisis and synthesis.

Mgr. Magdalena Bystrzak The "Slovak Question" in Early Alexander Matuška's Works ABSTRACT The presented thesis deals with the issue of the "Slovak question" in early Alexander Matuška's works of 1930s. The author has in mind that A. Matuška's attitude towards the Slovak question was shaped by his contacts with the Czech intellectual elite during his studies at the Charles University in Prague (1928-1934). She comes out of an assumption that the "Slovak question" has mainly a cultural character in early A. Matuška's works. In the first part of the thesis, the author tries to show the character of the discourse on the "Slovak question" in 1930s. By researching debates on the "Slovak question" in representative cultural journals of the time, the author tries to point out that the "Slovak question" debate was not only about the emancipation of a the Slovak nation, but also about the modernization of the Slovak society. A. Matuška's early works are interpreted as a part of this effort. Both the second and the third parts are devoted to those aspects of A. Matuška's early works that the author considers as the critic's proposals for the modernization of the Slovak society. The second part is focused on his rejection of the romantic paradigm of the Slovak culture and on the A. Matuška's refusal of the then views...

This research examines the multi-vectored nature of Belarusian foreign policy since 1996 when Alexander Lukashenka solidified his regime in Belarus until today. The trends in Belarusian foreign policy are analyzed through the scope of interdependency and its intricate interplay with Belarusian national identity, or in other words, how President Lukashenka understands and interprets the Belarusian people. Since the early 2000s, it appeared that Belarus changed its foreign policy in an attempt to become less dependent on Russia and more open to working with new partners. Officially, Lukashenka has consistently maintained a multi-vector approach to Belarusian foreign policy and also in practice, despite intermittent speculation that Belarus might drastically change the dynamics of its foreign policy. Decreasing dependence is not motivation enough to completely alter perceived stability and a reluctance for change among the Belarusian people. Lukashenka uses the flexibility of his foreign policy to try to extract some benefits from global partners; however, the status quo of Lukashenka's foreign policies continues to remain intact. Keywords Belarus, President Alexander Lukashenka, Multi-vector, multipolar, foreign policy, interdependence, national identity, dependence

This project is a response to the author's passion for sport and his curiosity about the architectural process that is necessary to understand and facilitate the inter-relation of body, mind and soul. The potential influence of physical exercise; its correlation with the metaphysical aspects of the individual and how its influence spills over into the larger context of society is investigated. This dissertation attempts to form an architectural response that is indigenous to the local population, the climate and the existing urban condition and ranges from a thorough understanding of the community to the effective contribution that architecture can offer, based on the concept of ‘Sport for Development’ programmes in South Africa. The primary objective of the architectural response is to amplify the potential of sport as a means to peace building and self-actualization within a society that suffers from the effects of crime and violence. Although popular culture believes in the positive potential of sport, Ramon Spaaij identifies factors and conditions that must be met if the positive value of sport is to be enjoyed. The dissertation incorporates these factors and conditions into a multipurpose 'Sport for Development' community complex. This complex aims to augment the existing sport for development programmes in South Africa and serve as a prototype for future sport for development centres that ultimately includes everyone in the process of reconciliation. / Dissertation (MArch(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Architecture / unrestricted

The presented work focuses on the history of Russian America, the only Russian overseas colony located in the territory of today's American state of Alaska, specifically it is concerned with the middle period of its existence, i.e. between the years 1784 and 1818. After a brief introduction of the beginnings of Russian presence in the North Pacific, the thesis deals with its main topics. The first one is the organization of voyages to the islands and the mainland of Russian America. Commercial hunting companies are introduced in this context as a subject representing eastern Russian expansion and the characteristics of hunting expeditions are analysed in detail. The second, key part of the thesis is the analysis of the Russian colonization of Alaska in terms of the relations between Russians and the indigenous people, the creation of base structures and the competitive struggles of Russian traders. Comparison with colonization practices of other colonizing states in this area - Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America - is also included. This chapter is followed by the analysis of the administration of Russian America and its development since the times of hunting-and-trading companies, to the activities of the Russian-American company, a semi-governmental organization with the...

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Both the fashion magazine and the fashion exhibition are powerful and authoritative sites for the representation, interpretation, and construction of fashion. Despite various intersections between the two, their relationship has remained relatively unstudied. This thesis aims to reveal and problematize the relationship between leading institutions in the United Kingdom: British Vogue and the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A). An analysis of British Vogue’s content and the V&A’s fashion exhibitions of Vivienne Westwood: 34 Years in Fashion (2004) and Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty (2015) is employed in order to unpack how these institutions are involved in defining and institutionalizing what fashion is in a national context. This institutional analysis considers the wider implications of the conception of British fashion produced by these institutions in regard to class, race, and gender, as Great British fashion is dependent on a system of representations that reveals hierarchies and exclusions.

Budget cuts at a California community college prompted stakeholders to consider dropping the college's general education information literacy (IL) requirement. Broad institutional outcomes data showed learning gains, but no targeted assessment existed regarding the IL requirement's impact on those gains. This quantitative study used Astin and Antonio's Inputs-Environment-Outcomes (I-E-O) assessment model to address relationships among student characteristics of demographic and prior preparation (Inputs), the IL requirement (Environment), and student reports of information critical analysis behavior and confidence (Outcomes). Study participants were 525 students aged 18 years and older who had completed the IL course with a grade of 2.0 or better and volunteered to complete an anonymous survey. The majority of participants reported the IL requirement had a positive impact upon subsequent coursework, with 87% stating that taking it in the first or second term would be most helpful. Less preparedness for information critical analysis prior to the IL course was significantly correlated (r = -.35, r = -.38, p < .001) with higher reported frequency of 2 measures of information evaluation changes following completion of the course. The 3 hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed that the predictors of student demographic characteristics, prior student preparation, and IL course format contributed significantly to reported information critical analysis and confidence. The study's outcome was a white paper with recommendations to support completion of the IL course requirement early, continue the IL requirement, and repeat the study's survey in the future. Effective IL education promotes information evaluation behaviors essential to informed members of society.