The aim of this study was to explore language censorship in Zimbabwean films in Shona and English. The study concentrated on the themes of politics, culture and economic in the genre of the documentary, feature and short film genres. It was demonstrated that the Zimbabwean laws enabled authorities to impose censorship strategies that ranged from banning, restriction, persecution of filmmakers, withdrawal of films from circulation, and threats of withdrawal of permits of film retailers. These visible, direct and banal forms of censorship have forced some filmmakers to flee the country. Most of the filmmakers who have remained in the country have been forced to deal with themes that appear harmless to the state. This state induced form of self-censorship on the filmmakers has resulted in the production of uncritical, and unreflective films whose staple diet were embedded in cultural stereotypes. The study argued that language is a signifying practice that cannot be interpreted in a single direction. Thus, despite these realities of film censorship some filmmakers deliberately encoded or used verbal and visual film language that generated surplus meanings with which the films could be re-read in ways that reveal new linguistic strategies to evade and challenge both the restrictive censorship laws as well as criticise the undemocratic political culture that has taken root in Zimbabwe. The study used eclectic theories such as Marxism, audience-reception approach, critical legal theories and language theories to analyse the films. The explanatory capacity of these theories helped to reveal the contradictory ways in which the desire to impose restrictions on film meanings was constantly undermined in the innovative language of the films. / African Languages / D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)

published_or_final_version / English / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

In 2001, Syria opened its media outlets to private ownership for the first time in over forty years. This thesis conducts a critical discourse analysis of the economic coverage of the sole Syrian political daily newspaper al-Watan and asks how media liberalization in Syria is more so emblematic of pro-market economic reforms as opposed to media reform. In this sense, it is the economic content of al-Watan that signifies how a private media outlet – under the guiding force of “red lines” and other regulatory mechanisms, yet financially “liberated” via advertising revenue and wealthy regime-friendly backers – can demonstrate its utility to the regime by providing a reiteration of its social-market economic policies all the while existing as a public embodiment of the regime’s willingness to embrace a marketized Syrian society. Simply put, al-Watan is a perfect vehicle for propagating the regime’s gradualist pro-market reforms in the public sphere. / text

Through historical and content analyses of war coverage, this study qualitatively addresses emotional quality, use of sources, and implied use of technology to better understand the tension between Vietnam and Afghanistan war correspondents and their military counterparts. Early American democracy aspired to give total freedom to its people. But the American military, in its quest to uphold the ideas of democracy, has often challenged the freedom of press clause set forth by the United States Constitution. Since the Vietnam era, the relationship between the military and the media has been plagued by questions of censorship, assertions of falsehood, and threats to national security. But it is the technological advancements in both reporting and combat techniques that have caused a disappearance of the nostalgic war coverage that American correspondents once prospered from. The possibility of returning to journalists' vision of unrestricted press access is all but lost due to such advancements.

Reposant sur un devis qualitatif, la présente recherche vise à comprendre les attitudes des bibliothécaires québécois vis-à-vis la liberté intellectuelle et la censure dans le contexte des bibliothèques publiques. Les données ont été colligées par le biais d’entrevues semi-structurées menées auprès de 11 bibliothécaires, dont six directeurs, responsables en tout ou en partie du développement des collections ainsi que de la gestion des plaintes relatives à l’offre documentaire. Les témoignages recueillis ont fait l’objet d’une analyse thématique. À l’instar des études antérieures ayant porté sur le sujet, la présente recherche a permis de constater qu’il existait un écart entre les attitudes des participants vis-à-vis la liberté intellectuelle en tant que concept et la liberté intellectuelle en tant qu’activité. Tout en étant en faveur de la liberté d’expression, les bibliothécaires étaient en accord, sous certaines circonstances, de mesures restrictives. Plus que des défenseurs de la liberté intellectuelle, les bibliothécaires seraient ainsi des gardiens du consensus social, ayant sans cesse à (re)négocier la frontière entre les valeurs individuelles et sociétales. L’analyse des données a également permis de révéler que les bibliothécaires québécois seraient moins activement engagés que leurs collègues canadiens et américains dans la lutte pour la défense et la promotion de la liberté intellectuelle. Ce faible engagement serait notamment lié à une importante variable culturelle. L’absence de lobbies religieux et le développement tardif des bibliothèques publiques ont en effet été identifiés comme deux facteurs qui auraient une influence sur l’engagement des bibliothécaires québécois en faveur de la liberté intellectuelle. / The objective of this qualitative study is to understand the attitudes of Quebec librarians with respect to intellectual freedom and censorship in the public library arena. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 11 librarians, including six directors. These staff were involved in varying degrees in the development process of their library collections and/or in the management of challenges. Their comments were subjected to a rigorous thematic analysis. Similar to previous studies which have focused on this topic, this research showcases the difference between participants’ attitudes regarding intellectual freedom as a concept, and intellectual freedom as an activity. In other words, the participants were in favor of freedom of expression, while at the same time being supportive, under certain circumstances, of restrictive measures. The analysis of the results shows that librarians, while proponents of intellectual freedom, serve primarly as guardians of societal consensus, continually drawing and redrawing the boundary between individual values and societal values. This research ultimately shows that Quebec librarians are less actively engaged than their Canadian and U.S. counterparts in efforts to defend and promote intellectual freedom. Analysis of the data leads to the hypothesis that this weak commitment is intimately related to cultural variables unique to Quebec. The contemporary absence of religious pressure groups and the tardy development of public libraries in Quebec have in fact been identified as two factors tied to the history of the province influencing the professional work environment and the behavior of librarians in the struggle for the defense and promotion of intellectual freedom.

This document explores the performance of taboo on the stage. The exploration is focused around the establishment of my personal aesthetic, which was developed through my studies at Virginia Commonwealth University. Starting with my first trip to Broadway, my journey goes through the class work that I did at VCU and the two plays that I did on the Shafer Street Alliance Laboratory Theatre stage: my performance and use of latex costumes in Funnyhouse of a Negro, and my direction and the troubles with producing Killer Joe. The exploration concludes with a look at the theatre in parts of Virginia and the ability to pursue an acting career with an aesthetic that pushes boundaries.

La recherche présentée dans le cadre de ce mémoire porte sur le développement de la Théorie linguistique de la traduction telle qu’élaborée par des traducteurs soviétiques à partir des années 1950. Ce mémoire vise à démontrer les particularités de l’évolution des connaissances traductologiques sous la pression politique, idéologique et institutionnelle du régime soviétique (1922-1991). En particulier, le travail cherche à expliquer les raisons qui ont abouti à l’isolement théorique de la traductologie russe. À partir de la théorie du polysystème littéraire d’Even-Zohar et de son analyse de la structure des systèmes littéraires, ce mémoire examine la structure et l’évolution des différents facteurs (producteur, institutions, produit, répertoire, marché) qui ont façonné la configuration spécifique de la Théorie linguistique de la traduction en tant que produit du système soviétique de traduction, tel qu’il se développe dans les conditions particulières du polysystème littéraire soviétique. L’analyse des travaux des auteurs dits « canonisés » de l’approche linguistique russe (Fyodorov, Retsker, Švejtser, Barkhoudarov, Komissarov) permet de montrer comment la Théorie linguistique de la traduction s’est imposée comme la seule théorie capable de survivre au contexte soviétique de pression idéologique et de contrôle total du régime communiste. Ce sont ces facteurs qui expliquent aussi le décalage théorique et institutionnel observé entre les traductologies russe et occidentale. / The research presented in this work focuses on the development of the Linguistic Theory of Translation as initially formulated by Soviet translators in the 1950s. The goal of this study is to analyse the particular evolution of translation scholarship in the Soviet era (1922-1991) in a context of political, ideological and institutional pressure and control. Besides, this work seeks to clarify the reasons why the Russian approach to translation became isolated from other theoretical developments in the field. Based on Even-Zohar’s theory of literary polysystem and his analysis of the structure of literary systems, this thesis examines the various factors (producer, institutions, product, repertoire, market) whose changing configuration conditioned the development of the Linguistic Theory of Translation, as a product of a specific translation system within the Soviet literary polysystem. Our analysis of the works of “canonical” theoreticians of the Russian linguistic approach to translation (Fyodorov, Retsker, Švejtser, Barkhoudarov, Komissarov) shows that the Linguistic Theory of Translation was the only theory that could survive the Soviet context of ideological pressure and total control of the communist regime. These very factors, we also argue, explain the theoretical and institutional gap that separates the Russian Linguistic Theory from Western approaches to translation.

Dès le XVIIIe siècle, l’Opéra de Paris est considéré comme un « établissement public ». Ses missions sont nombreuses. Le théâtre doit proposer traditionnellement aux spectateurs des ouvrages lyriques appartenant à un genre national, mais son rôle est aussi de représenter le pouvoir politique, de servir les relations diplomatiques, ou encore de soutenir un pan de l’artisanat. Le fonctionnement du « service public de l’Opéra » soulève des questions d’ordre public et de gestion. Un encadrement normatif a été mis en place. La police des spectacles a été réformée et adaptée aux singularités de l’établissement : le régime de la censure, la surveillance policière, comme les dispositifs de lutte contre les incendies ont été l’objet de mesures précises. La gestion du théâtre a connu plusieurs bouleversements. Les autorités ont hésité entre un système ambigu de délégation à des entrepreneurs subventionnés et un mode de gestion en régie directe. Ces réformes institutionnelles ont eu des incidences sur la condition juridique des interprètes, comme sur le déroulement des carrières et l’organisation de leur caisse de pensions. Toutes les informations nécessaires à l’élaboration de ce travail ne se trouvent pas dans les règlements. La méthode a été de croiser les sources juridiques avec les archives administratives et les bilans comptables, afin de confronter la marche effective de l’établissement avec le fonctionnement « idéal », imaginé dans les bureaux, loin des difficultés matérielles d’exécution. Cette étude révèle la force normative des usages en matière d'administration, ainsi que le phénomène de détournement des textes par les administrateurs. Ce mode de fonctionnement, souvent ignoré de la bureaucratie, demeure le seul élément de stabilité à l’Opéra, depuis le règne de Louis XIV jusqu’à la IIIe République. / Since the eighteenth century, the Paris Opera has been considered to be a “public service corporation”. Many missions were assigned to the theatre: the Opera should traditionally offer the viewer lyrical opuses in a national genre, but it’s role was also to represent the authorities, serve foreign affairs and support a section of the craft industry. The functioning of the "public service of the Opera” raises questions of public order and management. A legal framework was implemented. The police for the theatres was reformed and adapted to the peculiarities of the activity: censorship, police surveillance and fire fighting arrangements were organized by specific measures. The administration of the Opera underwent several upheavals. The authorities hesitated between an ambiguous system of delegation to subsidized contractors and direct state control (or local government control). These institutional reforms had an impact on the legal status of the artists, on the development of their careers and on the organization of their pension fund. All the information necessary for the development of this work is not to be found in the legal regulations. Our method was to cross the legal sources with administrative records and balance sheets, in order to compare the actual running of the theatre with it’s "ideal" functioning, planned in offices, far from the material difficulties of the actual execution. This study reveals the normative force of customary uses in administration, as well as the phenomenon of diversion of the rules by the administrators and the staff. This mode of functioning, often unknown to the bureaucracy, remains the only element of stability in the Opera, since the reign of Louis XIV until the Third Republic.

The Master's thesis Iranian opposition and blogging - the phenomenon of Citizen journalism in a non-free society is focused on analysis of blogging as an opposition's communication tool within the nondemocratic regimes, contemporary Iran in particular. The research question is How can be the opposition's communication performed by blogging and what are the limitations and possibilities of such communication. The primary hypothesis is that the blogs are not used for direct manangement of opposition's actions, but rather as an alternative space for free expression. Four opposition's blogs written in english are analysed by means of qualitative analysis. The main criteria for selection of blogs were that the blog should be actualised on regular basis, based in Iran or at least written by a native Iranian, and clearly be in favour of the opposition's ideology. Content published between march 2009 and march 2010 was selected for analysis, for it was the period of disputed presidential election and following citizen's unrest in Iran. The issues of media's effects are not discussed in the thesis. Aside of the analysis, certain theoretical models of communication and their potential use within Iran's blogosphere are discussed. The analysis finally confirms that the bloggers have a potential to become...

Diploma thesis "Change of the Soviet Union image in the protectorate press based on comparison of the media content from the turn of August/September 1939 and June/July 1941" deals with the manner in which the protectorate newspapers informed about the Ribbentop-Molotov Pact and later about the German invasion of the Soviet Union. The examples of these events and their reflection in the Protectorate press demonstrate how flexibly the protectorate propaganda responded to the current political line. For the purposes of the thesis, there have been selected three newspapers: Polední list, Večerní České Slovo and Venkov. These periodicals were examined in two time-bound periods, from 23rd August till 27th September 1939 and from 16th June till 14th July 1941. The methodology used is a historical comparative analysis, which discusses the transformation of Protectorate propaganda attitudes in the dependence on the historical context, and semiotic analysis, which deals with period media discourse and reveals ideology sustained on the level of sign systems.