This dissertation is comprised of two distinct but related components. The larger component is a short novel, titled A Cop, a Thief and a Priest. This is the story of three very different men, the woman they all want, her daughter who gets in the way, the secrets they all try to hide, and a few bedtime stories. Plus a Canadian Native or two. And maybe a bomb, as well. This work of fiction is written with a shifting perspective and varying degrees of adherence to the rules of grammar, depending on the narrator and characters in the scene. The story focuses on seriously flawed people in potentially harmful, though ceaselessly humorous, relationships and how they try to choose the best out of the poor options in front of them. In the course of the novel several Native Canadian/First Nations characters appear. Some are characters within the story, and others are cast members of several bedtime stories told by the three primary male characters. As I am not Canadian First Nations, I had concerns over writing dialogue and characterization of Canadian Native characters. In response to these misgivings, the accompanying critical essay component of this dissertation deals with the issue of a non-Native author writing Native characters. The thesis essay explores this question in the fiction of three Canadian authors who are not Canadian First Nations. I examine specifically their use of grammatical errors in the dialogue of their Native characters as a device to present diction as an element of the character’s status, education, gender, age, race or culture. The three authors chosen are W.P Kinsella, Anne Cameron, and Thomas King. These writers use diction variously, and each is scrutinized according to guidelines drawn from writing theory texts, commercial writing guides, and writing practice prescriptions from successful authors. The conclusions are considered in the crafting of my own First Nations characters.

This dissertation is comprised of two distinct but related components. The larger component is a short novel, titled A Cop, a Thief and a Priest. This is the story of three very different men, the woman they all want, her daughter who gets in the way, the secrets they all try to hide, and a few bedtime stories. Plus a Canadian Native or two. And maybe a bomb, as well. This work of fiction is written with a shifting perspective and varying degrees of adherence to the rules of grammar, depending on the narrator and characters in the scene. The story focuses on seriously flawed people in potentially harmful, though ceaselessly humorous, relationships and how they try to choose the best out of the poor options in front of them. In the course of the novel several Native Canadian/First Nations characters appear. Some are characters within the story, and others are cast members of several bedtime stories told by the three primary male characters. As I am not Canadian First Nations, I had concerns over writing dialogue and characterization of Canadian Native characters. In response to these misgivings, the accompanying critical essay component of this dissertation deals with the issue of a non-Native author writing Native characters. The thesis essay explores this question in the fiction of three Canadian authors who are not Canadian First Nations. I examine specifically their use of grammatical errors in the dialogue of their Native characters as a device to present diction as an element of the character’s status, education, gender, age, race or culture. The three authors chosen are W.P Kinsella, Anne Cameron, and Thomas King. These writers use diction variously, and each is scrutinized according to guidelines drawn from writing theory texts, commercial writing guides, and writing practice prescriptions from successful authors. The conclusions are considered in the crafting of my own First Nations characters.

Orientador: Ana Maria Carlos / Banca: Wellington Ricardo Fioruci / Banca: Cátia Inês Negrão Berlini de Andrade / Resumo: A pós-modernidade, que, segundo a maioria dos críticos, teve início nas décadas de 1950 e 1960, trouxe consigo a necessidade de revisão total do passado, incluindo suas formas artísticas. Imbuídos desse espírito, os autores Noênio Spínola e Mário Prata retomam o clássico italiano de Dante Alighieri, a Divina Comédia, em seus romances Dante visita a comédia paulistana e Purgatório: A verdadeira história de Dante e Beatriz, respectivamente, reinserindo elementos do épico dantesco na capital paulistana, em enredos que se passam nos dias de hoje. Para tal, ambos se utilizam de procedimentos intertextuais destacando-se a paródia irônica, além da adaptação e apropriação literárias. A obra de Spínola apresenta, por um lado, traços de romance policial pela aura de mistério e crime que encerra, enquanto Prata, por outro lado, criou um folhetim permeado de alta comicidade, sendo que ambos, afinal, pelo tratamento dado ao tema e pelo modo de configurar suas obras, se inserem na chamada literatura de massa, aquela que busca dar prazer ao leitor, agradá-lo, oferecer entretenimento. Desse modo, é objetivo de nosso trabalho apresentar as principais linhas teóricas acerca dos assuntos citados, bem como traçar o perfil das obras e analisá-las à luz das teorias apresentadas, e em contraste com a obra de Dante, que lhes serviu de base / Abstract: The post-modernism, which began, according to most of the critics, in the 1950's and 1960's, brought within the necessity of totally reviewing the past, including its artistic forms. Taken by that spirit, the authors Noênio Spínola and Mário Prata retake the Italian classic by Dante Alighieri, the Divina Comédia, on their novels, Dante visita a comédia paulistana e Purgatório: A verdadeira história de Dante e Beatriz, respectively, reinserting elements from Dante's epic into the present, in São Paulo's capital. To achieve that, both used intertextual proceedings, in proeminence ironic parody, plus literary adaptation and appropriation. Spinola's work presents, on one hand, characteristics of police novel by the mystery and crime aura that it holds, while Prata, on the other hand, created a folhetim filled in high comicity, being both, after all, by the treatment given to the theme and by the way of putting the work together, related to the so-called mass literature, that one which seeks giving pleasure to the reader, please him, offer entertaining. That way, it's our goal on this work to present the main theories about these issues, as well as to draw out the profile of the two novels and to analise them according to the present theories, and in contrast with Dante's work, which served as a base to them / Mestre

Cette thèse interroge la recomposition des espaces ruraux tunisiens sous l’angle des appropriations foncières, à partir du cas de la région de Regueb. À travers une enquête in situ alliant observations, questionnaires et entretiens, l’étude se focalise sur l’évolution des usages de la terre et des faisceaux de pouvoirs (accès, gestion, vente) des exploitants agricoles. Cette démarche permet de saisir comment cette évolution influence l’agencement de l’espace rural, et comment elle est modelée en retour par ce dernier. Nos données soulignent la diversité croissante des logiques d’exploitation (paysanne, entrepreneuriale, spéculative) et les inégalités socio-économiques entre exploitants. Cette différenciation résulte en partie des politiques publiques mises en place depuis l’introduction de l’économie capitaliste coloniale (fin 19e siècle). L’individualisation de la propriété et la marchandisation de la terre ont érodé la sécurité sociale présente dans l’ancien territoire tribal collectif, exposant les propriétaires à l’instabilité du marché et à une précarisation foncière. Les paysans sont tentés d’un côté de vendre leur terre dans une logique marchande, et de l’autre de la conserver dans une logique symbolique et de sécurisation du capital. La précarisation foncière tient aussi à la pression multiforme du marché foncier et aux inégalités d’accès aux principales ressources (financement agricole, eau, marché). En dépit des stratégies qu’ils déploient, les paysans demeurent soumis à de fortes contraintes. L’étude de cette situation apporte un nouvel éclairage sur les contestations sociales qui ont marqué la région depuis 2010 et ont conduit au départ du Président Ben Ali en 2011. / This Ph.D. dissertation examines the changes in the Tunisian rural areas from the perspective of land appropriation in the region of Regueb as a case study. Through an in situ investigation combining observations, questionnaires and interviews, the study focuses on the evolution of the land uses and the bundles of powers (access, management, sales) endowed by the farmers. This approach makes it possible to understand how this evolution both impacts the organisation of the rural space and how it is a consequence of it. Our data underlines the growing diversity of the farmers’ logic (peasant, entrepreneurial, speculative) and the social and economic inequalities between the farmers. This process is a result of the public policies that were enforced at the start of the colonial capitalist economy (end of the 19th century). The individualization of ownership and the land commodification have weakened the social security that used to exist at the time of the old common tribal territory, exposing the owners to the instability of the market and land precariousness. On the one hand, peasants are tempted to sell their land in an entrepreneurial way; on the other hand, they are willing to keep it for its symbolic value and as a securing capital. This precariousness is also fed by the multifaceted pressure of the land market and by the inequalities of access to the principal resources (money, water, market). In spite of the strategies they use, peasants face huge constraints. This study brings new light on the social contests that have been affecting the region since 2010 and contributed to the departure of President Ben Ali leave in 2011.

L'administration tunisienne vit des transformations considérables au niveau de ses moyens de fonctionnement et de gestion dues à l'implantation générale des TIC dans son mode d'organisation.À l'heure où de nombreuses équipes se mobilisent pour organiser ou pérenniser cette implantation dans leur structure, il nous parait intéressant de faire un état des lieux de l'existant sur les TIC et les différentes modalités d'évolution.Notre recherche est focalisée plus exactement sur l'analyse du processus du changement organisationnel engendré par les technologies d'information et de communication dans l'organisation. Les TIC en tant que moyen de communication et d'information à l'intérieur de l'organisation ont suscité notre curiosité scientifique. Nous avons essayé, à travers quatre administrations tunisiennes, de retracer les modalités d'appropriation ou de résistance des TIC à travers une analyse méticuleuse des jeux d'acteurs, des formes de perception des TIC pour comprendre par la suite les différentes formes d'usages des TIC et les attitudes des salariés envers ce nouveau modèle d'organisation dans l'administration tunisienne.Le discours promotionnel sur les TIC en Tunisie, soutient l'idée, selon laquelle, ces outils contribueraient à l'amélioration des conditions de travail et à l'accroissement de la productivité des salariés. Ce discours “prophétique” nous allons le confronter à la réalité de l'administration tunisienne et aux usages réels des salariés. Usages “réels” et usages “prescrits”, un écart perceptible dans l'administration tunisienne digne d'analyse et d'approfondissement. / The Tunisian government saw significant transformations in its means of operation and management due to general ICT implementation in itsorganization. At a time when many teams are working to organize and sustain this presence in their structure,it seems interesting to do an inventory of the existing ICT and the different ways of evolution.Our research is focused more specifically on the analysis of organizational change caused by information and communication technologies in the organization process. ICT as a means of communication and information within the organization has raised our scientific curiosity. We tried,through four Tunisian offices to trace the methods of appropriation or resistance of ICT through a deep analyzing office's actors,forms of perception to understand ICT thereafter, the different types of use ICT and employee attitudes toward this new model organization in the Tunisian government.Promotional discourse on ICT in Tunisia supports the idea that these tools contribute to improving working conditions and increasing employee productivity. This "prophetic" speech we will confront the reality of the Tunisian government and the actual use of employees. Uses "real" and uses "prescribed" a perceptible difference in the Tunisian administration worthy of analysis and deepening.

As empresas alocam seus recursos escassos entre dois processos fundamentais: de criação de valor (ex. inovando, produzindo e entregando produtos ao mercado) e de apropriação de valor (ex. extraindo lucros do mercado). Embora ambos os processos sejam pré-requisito para a vantagem competitiva sustentável, a empresa possui considerável liberdade para decidir qual processo será enfatizado. Configura-se um trade-off estratégico que é representado por uma ênfase estratégica, ou seja, a ênfase relativa que a empresa emprega na apropriação de valor em relação à criação de valor. No entanto, poucas pesquisas exploraram o impacto desse trade-off no desempenho financeiro. Quais são os impactos da mudança da ênfase estratégica (criação de valor versus apropriação de valor) no desempenho financeiro das empresas no contexto brasileiro? Uma métrica de ênfase estratégica baseada nos gastos em P&D (criação de valor) e nos gastos de Marketing (apropriação de valor) foi testada e validada no contexto brasileiro. Em seguida, analisou-se o impacto financeiro deste trade-off por meio de cinco indicadores de desempenho (Retorno da Ação, Giro do Ativo, Margem Líquida, q de Tobin e Crescimento de Vendas) por meio de regressões múltiplas. Adicionalmente o trade-off foi investigado segundo três fatores: o ambiente tecnológico, a rentabilidade prévia e a estratégia do passado. A ênfase estratégica foi validada como indicador que mensura o trade-off entre criação de valor (exploration) e apropriação de valor (exploitation) no contexto brasileiro. Quando a empresa enfatiza mais a apropriação de valor relativamente à criação de valor, maior é o Giro do Ativo e o Crescimento das Vendas. Esses resultados podem ser fruto da administração míope de marketing, ou seja, a ênfase excessiva nos resultados de curto prazo por meio da redução dos investimentos em marketing. Isso não minimiza a relevância do processo de criação de valor, mas evidencia a importância dos mecanismos de isolamento na apropriação de parte do valor criado. Duas características da empresa se revelaram como moderadoras da relação entre a ênfase estratégica e o desempenho financeiro: a estratégia passada e a rentabilidade anterior. A estratégia anterior influencia a ênfase estratégica por meio dos retornos marginais decrescentes. As empresas que mudam sua ênfase estratégica anterior, seja criação de valor ou apropriação de valor, tendem a apresentar retornos superiores (maiores Margem Líquida, Giro do Ativo, Crescimento de Vendas e q de Tobin). Também se identificou que a rentabilidade anterior influencia a estratégia atual da empresa. Se a empresa foi lucrativa, a apropriação de valor é mantida para garantir uma Margem Líquida e um q de Tobin maiores. Por outro lado, as empresas com prejuízo se voltam à criação de valor para fomentar novas oportunidades de ganhos. Por fim, apresentam-se as limitações do estudo com a agenda de pesquisas futuras. / Firms allocate their limited resources between two fundamental processes of creating value (i.e., innovating, producing, and delivering products to the market) and appropriating value (i.e., extracting profits in the marketplace). Although both value creation and value appropriation are required for achieving sustained competitive advantage, a firm has significant latitude in deciding the extent to which it emphasizes one process over the other. There is a strategic trade-off represented by the strategic emphasis: the relative emphasis a firm places on value appropriation relative to value creation. However, few researches have explored the financial impact of this trade-off. What impact does strategic emphasis shift (i.e., emphasis on value creation versus value appropriation) have on firm‟s financial performance in the Brazilian context? A strategic emphasis metric based on the R&D spending (value creation) and on marketing spending (value appropriation) was tested and validated in the Brazilian context. Then, the financial impact of this trade-off was analyzed by five performance metrics (Stock Return, Asset Turnover, Net Margin, Tobin‟s Q and Sales Growth) by multiple regressions. In addition, the trade-off was investigated according three factors: technological environment, previous profitability and past strategy. The strategic emphasis was validated as a metric that measures the trade-off among value creation (exploration) and value appropriation (exploitation) in the Brazilian context. When the firm emphasizes more in value appropriation than the value creation, the Asset Turnover and the Sales Growth are higher. These results may occur because of the myopic marketing management, in other words, an overemphasis on the current term financial performance and the use of marketing tools to inflate current profitability measures. This doesn‟t understate the relevance of the value creation process, but rather highlight the importance of the isolating mechanisms in the appropriation of the part of the value created. Two firm‟s characteristics moderate the relation of strategic emphasis and financial performance: the past strategy and the previous profitability. The past strategy affects the strategic emphasis by the diminishing marginal returns. Firms that change their strategic emphasis (value creation or value appropriation), tend to present superior return (higher Net Margin, Asset Turnover, Sales Growth and Tobin‟s Q). Also the previous profitability influences the current firm‟s strategy. If the firm was profitable, the value appropriation is maintained to guarantee higher Net Margin and Tobin‟s Q. On the other hand, the firms with negative profitability turn to value creation to promote new opportunities of gains. Finally, research limitations and future research agenda is presented.

This thesis is concerned with the fact that people routinely appropriate interactivetechnology. Much of the work in this project was conducted at The Public, aninteractive art gallery in West Bromwich. Examples of appropriation that arepresented range from interactive art, the game Minecraft™, to mundane objectsencountered in daily life. Research Questions posed in this study are: • What are the dynamics of appropriation? • What is the relationship of appropriation to affordance? • How do individuals experience appropriation? Appropriation is the mechanism by which we make objects in the world relevant and personal. This PhD has revealed three dimensions of appropriation namely: • Control: both in terms of ownership and virtuosity. • Ensoulment: the mechanism through which we ascribe personal significance to artefacts. • Affordance: the experiential relationship to artefacts concerned with action on and with them. Appropriation is revealed as a mechanism through which people understand potential action with technology. A traditional view is that people learn how to use a system and once its canonical use is established new uses or appropriations are discovered. What is revealed in this study is that appropriation is bound to our perception of action with technology, commonly explained through the concept of affordance. Appropriation is revealed as the initial act in human encounters with technology.

Submitted by Oliveira Santos Dilzaná (dilznana@yahoo.com.br) on 2016-07-05T19:00:14Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação del Ana Soraya Vilasboas Bomfim.pdf: 26048886 bytes, checksum: aa35e4f9fbd84e0ed5080dd311a3a5cd (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Oliveira Santos Dilzaná (dilznana@yahoo.com.br) on 2016-07-06T12:31:20Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação del Ana Soraya Vilasboas Bomfim.pdf: 26048886 bytes, checksum: aa35e4f9fbd84e0ed5080dd311a3a5cd (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-06T12:31:20Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação del Ana Soraya Vilasboas Bomfim.pdf: 26048886 bytes, checksum: aa35e4f9fbd84e0ed5080dd311a3a5cd (MD5) / O principal objetivo deste estudo é compreender o trabalho de teleatendimento, partindo-se da hipótese de que o capital se apropria da emoção humana para transformá-la em “habilidade emocional”, como meio e instrumento para produzir mais trabalho e mais riqueza, condição essa que tem levado ao adoecimento crescente dos trabalhadores. Por meio de estudo de caso, que articula estratégias quantitativas e qualitativas, procurou-se captar as peculiaridades do “saber fazer”, na ótica de quem faz, a fim de entender a realidade do trabalho nas centrais de teleatividade, utilizando conceitos e características da Sociologia do Trabalho e da saúde do trabalhador. Realizaram-se 33 entrevistas individuais e formou-se um grupo focal. Dos casos estudados, resultou ser tal população predominantemente do sexo feminino, de moradores em bairros de baixa renda, sob uma organização de trabalho de forte exigência temporal, fluxo informacional intenso, em tempo padrão, obedecendo a um roteiro formatado que eles repetem seguidamente, e ainda, que os serviços/produtos são diversos conforme a empresa contratante. Executa-se o trabalho com emoções contidas, administrando-se também as emoções do cliente usuário, a fim de obter mais lucro. Para os teleoperadores do século XXI, as estruturas das centrais de teleatividades representam a sociedade empresarial das Novas Tecnologias, onde o trabalho continua pouco prazeroso e alienante como o da fábrica, além de constituir uma sobrecarga física e mental com elevada prevalência de doenças osteomusculares, do sistema nervoso, do aparelho respiratório, e transtornos mentais e comportamentais. The main goal of this study is to understand teleassistance work, taking on the general hypothesis that capital appropriates human emotion to transform it in ‘emotional ability’, as instrument and means of producing more work and wealth, and this condition has induced to workers’ increasing condition of sickness. The study of case articulates qualitative and quantitative strategies and points to capture ‘the knowledge of doing’ from the actor’s viewpoint, to understand the reality of work in teleactivity centers. Conceptions and characteristics of Work Sociology as well as about worker’s health conditions have been used, thirty three interviews were carried out and a focal group formed. From the studied cases it turned out to be the population predominantly of female sex, living in quarters of low income, there is high demand of time in work organization, intense informational flow in standard time according to a formatted schedule that they continuously repeat, and that services or products are diverse among the contractual companies. They do their work with contained emotions also managing the clients’/ users’ feelings, aiming at more profit. To XXI century teleoperators, the structures of teleactivity centers represent the enterpriser’s society of New Technologies, where their work stays little pleasing and alienating as the one in factory. It also requires physical and mental overweight with high prevalence of osteomuscular sickness, damages of the nervous system, breathing apparatus diseases and mental and behavior problems.

Ces dernière années l' « innovation » est au cœur de la stratégie de l'entreprise, elle est également attiré l'attention des chercheurs. En sciences de Gestion, les chercheurs étudient non seulement sur les innovations technologiques, mais aussi les innovations organisationnelles et managériales. Cette thèse étudie ces trois types d'innovation dans le cadre d'un projet innovant de la Supply Chain. Elle s'intéresse au processus de la diffusion d'innovation au sein de la Supply Chain, ainsi que l'appropriation par les acteurs des principaux éléments de ce processus. L'objectif est de vérifier les étapes de diffusion d'un projet innovant et d'analyser l'appropriation par les acteurs au niveau de la direction, de la division et de l'opérationnel d'un grand groupe industriel. Après avoir effectué l'examen des revues de littérature sur les théories d'innovation, de Supply Chain Management ainsi sur le Management du projet, un modèle conceptuel est établi. Par la suite, une recherche exploratoire qualitative est menée au sein du Groupe Schneider Electrics. Les données ont été collectées grâce à trois moyens : les entretiens individuels, l'observation et la participation au terrain et les documents internes de l'entreprise. Les données obtenues sont analysées par le technique de codage sur la base de grille thématique. Les résultats confirment que les innovations dans le Supply Chain Management incluent l'innovation organisationnelle et l'innovation managériale mais pourraient aussi contribuer à l'innovation technologique. Un projet innovant se diffuse en 5 étapes : i) Identification des problèmes, ii) Mise en relation problèmes / projet innovant, iii) Lancement du projet, iv) Déroulement du projet et v) Clôture du projet. Les analyses montrent également les acteurs s'approprient plus ou moins ; et différemment les principaux éléments de ce processus : la valeur du projet, les actions d'accompagnements, les outils spécifiques au projet ; etc. Dans cette thèse, le modèle de la diffusion d'un projet innovant est validé, les contributions et les perspectives sont ainsi proposées à la fin. / Recently, "innovation" has become the core strategy of the enterprises; it also attracted attentions by researchers. In Management Science, The research of innovation is not only confined to technological innovations but also including organizational and managerial innovation. This thesis examines three types of innovations within a framework of a supply chain, which includes innovation project, the process of diffusion of innovation concerning the supply chain, and the ownership of the actors on the main elements in the process. The research objective of this thesis is to verify the steps of diffusion to an innovative project and analyze the absorbing level of the actors within an innovation project, with the actors including the top management level, the division level and operation level in a big industrial group. A conceptual model has been established on the basis of literature review on the theories of innovation, supply chain management and project management. Subsequently, an exploratory qualitative study is conducted in Schneider Electric. The data was collected through three approaches: individual interviews, field survey and internal documentations. Then, the quantitative content analysis including the coding technique is used to deal with the data obtained. The results provide that the supply chain management innovations is not only including organizational innovation and managerial innovation, but may also contribute to technological innovation. The diffusion of an innovative project involves five steps: i) Identification of problems, ii) Matching problems / innovative project, iii) Launching of the project, iv) Execution of the project, and v) Closing of the project. The analysis also shows different absorbing level from the actors on the mains elements of this process. In this thesis, the model of diffusion of innovation project has been validated; the contributions and perspectives have been thus proposed.

My dissertation focuses on an analysis of postmodern narrative strategies in Milan Kundera's The Unbearable Lightness of Being (ULB) and The Book of Laughter and Forgetting ( BLF) . By analysing the postmodern ab/use of narrative strategies, I argue that postmodern fiction marks a decided shift from both classical realism and modernism. My dissertation has predominantly been motivated through my contention that postmodern fiction is not elitist as it has been perceived to be. Rather, I suggest that postmodern fiction ab/uses narrative strategies to deconstruct the ontological boundaries between the political and private and fiction and 'fact'. Consequently, postmodern fiction interrogates the contrived intelligibility of History. A further argument that I raise is that postmodern fiction through its (re) appropriation, subversion and use of parodic structures creates.narrative space for the Other. In order not to canonize Kundera's texts, I situate both ULB and BLF as 'nodes' within a diffuse network of intertextual discourse. My analyses of the postmodern narrative strategies in ULB and BLF, attempt to interrogate the diffuse 'nature' of postmodern fiction which resists both authorative analysis and closure. In exploring the relationship between recuperation and postmodern narrative strategies in ULB and BLF and other works and/or texts of fiction, I argue that postmodern fiction does not revel in its narrativity, it constitutes, instead, a political strategy / Afrikaans and Theory of Literature / M.A. (Theory of Literature)