published_or_final_version / Public Administration / Master / Master of Public Administration

Between 2016 and 2023 the Brazilian Ministry of Culture (MinC) was abolished and reinstated twice. This dissertation explores how disputes about the nature of democracy in Brazil have coalesced around ‘culture’ over recent years by examining a set of progressive cultural policies that have been implemented since 2004 in the context of the first Workers’ Party administration under Gilberto Gil as the Minister of Culture. Amongst these policies is the program Pontos de Cultura which marked the first time the Brazilian state took measures to actively secure the cultural rights of historically marginalized sectors of the population. The focus on securing and actualizing rights explicitly locates the program within the horizon of the Brazilian Constitution of 1988, also referred to as the Citizen Constitution, which extended a set of socioeconomic rights to actors who had not have these guaranteed previously. Aimed at grassroots institutions engaging in some form of cultural activity (ranging from community memory projects to theatre troupes and blocos de carnaval), Pontos de Cultura offered financial support to selected initiatives and designated them as pontos de cultura (‘cultural points’). By 2012, several thousands of such pontos existed all over Brazil. Based on 22 months of ethnographic fieldwork and archival research between 2015 and 2019 at pontos de cultura in the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro (including the municipalities of the Baixada Fluminense, the neighboring city of Niterói and the countryside of the state) as well as amongst policy makers and administrators, this dissertation analyzes the singular dynamic which the program developed in the urban peripheries in the state of Rio de Janeiro and the forms of political imagination it has given rise to. The policies under study explicitly proposed a critical engagement with existing concepts of ‘culture’ in Brazil. By tracing the different connotations that ‘culture’ has acquired over time and in relation to different political moments, the dissertation demonstrates how the conceptual associations between culture and the nation, culture and the state as well as culture and democracy in Brazil have made cultural policy a potent catalyst for novel ways in which actors from the urban peripheries articulate claims to the state, as well as a central site of dispute about the moral future of the country.

published_or_final_version / Comparative Literature / Master / Master of Philosophy

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1994.

This dissertation studies the creative practices of citizens who use cultural resources to engage in political criticism in contemporary Cuba. I argue that, in order to become visible as political subjects in the public sphere, these citizens appeal to cultural forms and narratives of self-representation that elucidate the struggles for recognition faced by emerging social actors. I examine blogs, garage bands, art performances, home art exhibits, digital literary supplements, improvised academies, and informal networks of publication that, as forms of aesthetic experimentation with stories of everyday life, disclose a social text. I suggest that their narrative choices emphasize their status as 'regular citizens' in order to distinguish themselves from both traditional voices of political opposition and institutionally accredited cultural producers--professional artists, academics, musicians. This recasts sites of cultural production as models of alternative citizenship where the concept of the political is re-imagined and where the commonplace, pejorative meaning of the term amateur is contested. On the fringes of the republic of letters, adjacent to traditional sites of cultural production, these oblique uses of culture consequently question legitimate forms of public speech. They demand that the way in which the relationship between aesthetics and politics in Cuba has been traditionally studied be reconsidered. Read in tandem with discourses against and about them from the lettered city--in literature, cultural criticism, film, and visual arts--I also follow the trope of the amateur under revolutionary cultural politics. I suggest that these contemporary voices have a contradictory genealogy in the cultural practices of the early decades of the Cuban Revolution. I try to show that these cultural practices become politically and socially significant because they try to resist--though not always successfully--cooptation by two forces: the remnant of bureaucratic, state-capitalist tendencies on one hand, and the rapid commercialization of popular culture for a foreign audience on the other. As a result, both the reconfigurations of the cultural field and the contested meanings of democracy in post-Cold War Cuba are re-examined through a reading of informal hubs of cultural production. The functions of culture in late socialism can be then comparatively studied by looking at an institutional framework in transition through the social and political subjectivities that are both expressed in, and constituted by, corresponding aesthetic practices and forms.

M.A. (Communication Studies) / This dissertation will concentrate on the manner in which the signification system of popular culture in advertising texts operate within the context of changing South African or post apartheid society. Social and political changes have taken place virtually overnight and it is therefore not surprising that the effects of these transformations have not yet filtered through to all layers of society. Furthermore, such quick changes cannot take place without causing at least some ripples of dissent and upheaval within certain sectors of society which may include cultural groups or even business. The author will consequently examine the effect which social changes have had on the perceptions of advertisers in the marketplace and the manner in which their brands are portrayed within advertising texts. More specifically, an investigation will be undertaken into the manner in which Popular Culture, whiph is inherently South African, has been incorporated within the contents of those texts. Popular Culture, it will be argued, has moved away from being a term used by classical Marxists to describe a so-called mass culture. In fact, within the context of a postmodern society, in other words, one which is essentially multi-faceted, the . concept Popular Culture-encapsulates that which is used within the day-to-day living experience to make a statement of dissent with the mainstream. Therefore the task set by this dissertation is manifold. the first instance we will place the South African market within a historic, cultural and economic context. In other words, we will attempt to trace the life-world of the South

The thesis provides a cultural analysis on the micropolitics of Yugoslavia wars in 1992-1995, examining local and global media coverage along with grassroots and historical dimensions. The study offers an extensive overview of scholarly literature on the Balkans, arguing that often omitted local, cultural and historical narratives of the war events reveal complex perspectives on the rationales provided on civil war. Investigating the nationalist social movements in Yugoslavia (1992-1995), the thesis articulates the need to revisit Deleuze and Guattari's framework of micropolitics to understand the cultural and historical dimensions operational in such movements. The study presents local media coverage in Nasa Borba, Borba, and Hrvatsko Slovo, focusing mainly on two major atrocities committed during the Balkan conflict, in order to shed light on the complex role of discourse emerging in war environments. / by Martin Y. Marinos. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2008. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2008. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

by Wong Yan Chau, Christina. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1994. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 175-186). / Chapter I. --- Introduction --- p.2 / Chapter II. --- Historical Background --- p.5 / Chapter III. --- A Review of the Related Literature --- p.14 / Chapter A. --- The Culture Industry Approach --- p.15 / Chapter B. --- The Liberal-Pluralist Approach --- p.26 / Chapter C. --- The Technological Approach --- p.31 / Chapter IV. --- The Theoretical Perspective --- p.36 / Chapter V. --- Methodological Approach to Study --- p.42 / Chapter A. --- Content Analysis of Lyrical Messages --- p.42 / Chapter 1. --- Method --- p.42 / Chapter 2. --- Data --- p.43 / Chapter 3. --- Analytic Framework of the Textual Analysis --- p.45 / Chapter B. --- Analysis of Rock Music within Hegemony --- p.48 / Chapter 1. --- Method --- p.48 / Chapter 2. --- Data --- p.50 / Chapter VI. --- Meanings in Rock Music --- p.52 / Chapter A. --- Themes in each fictional mode --- p.52 / Chapter B. --- Thematic content of Rock Music --- p.54 / Chapter 1. --- The Ironic Mode --- p.54 / Chapter 2. --- The Mimetic Mode --- p.64 / Chapter a. --- Phenomena of Identity Crisis --- p.64 / Chapter i. --- Loss of direction --- p.65 / Chapter ii. --- Roots-seeking --- p.68 / Chapter iii. --- Alternating identity --- p.69 / Chapter iv. --- Alienation --- p.71 / Breakaway --- p.71 / A Stranger in the City --- p.74 / Chapter b. --- Outlook on Life --- p.76 / Chapter c. --- Social Problems --- p.79 / Chapter i. --- War --- p.79 / Chapter ii. --- Incivility --- p.81 / Chapter d. --- The Experience of Growing Up --- p.82 / Chapter i. --- Anti-patriarchism --- p.82 / Chapter ii. --- Wandering --- p.83 / Chapter iii. --- The Loss of Childhood --- p.84 / Chapter e. --- Love --- p.85 / Chapter i. --- Yearning for love --- p.85 / Chapter ii. --- Frustrations with love --- p.86 / Chapter iii. --- Wild love --- p.88 / Chapter iv. --- Inauthentic love --- p.90 / Chapter 3. --- The Leadership Mode --- p.93 / Chapter a. --- The Exploratory Spirit --- p.93 / Chapter b. --- Individuality and Non-Conformity --- p.96 / Chapter c. --- The Authentic Self --- p.98 / Chapter 4. --- The Romantic Mode --- p.102 / Chapter a. --- Nostalgia for a Glorious Past --- p.102 / Chapter b. --- Anarchy in the Demonic World --- p.105 / Chapter c. --- Union with nature --- p.107 / Chapter d. --- The Pastoral Utopia --- p.111 / Chapter e. --- Fictional Characters and Objects Speaking --- p.112 / Chapter 5. --- The Mythic Mode --- p.117 / Chapter C. --- The World View of Rock Music --- p.120 / Chapter VII. --- The Relations of Rock Music to Hegemony --- p.125 / Chapter A. --- Messages of Rock and the Hegemony --- p.125 / Chapter B. --- Music as a Contested Terrain --- p.130 / Chapter 1. --- The Hegemonic Power: Cooptation and Marginalization --- p.130 / Chapter 2. --- The Deviant Culture: Struggle by Means of adaptation and negotiation --- p.140 / Chapter VIII. --- Conclusion --- p.155 / Chapter IX. --- Limitations of the Study --- p.158 / Chapter X. --- Future Studies on Rock Music --- p.161 / Notes --- p.165 / Bibliography --- p.175 / Discography --- p.185 / Appendix 1. The Sample of Rock Songs --- p.187

Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / Includes bibliography / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This dissertation is a conceptual analysis of “institutional culture” in higher education, especially because the concept has become a buzzword in higher education discourse in South Africa. The aim is to develop an understanding of the concept, and more specifically, to explore how institutional culture is organised, constructed and articulated in the institutional documents of Stellenbosch University (SU) and the University of the Western Cape (UWC). These analyses are preceded by an analysis of higher education policy documents. I employ critical hermeneutics as research methodology to construct constitutive meanings of “institutional culture”. Since it is difficult to work with a large set of constitutive meanings, I narrowed the list down to the four most frequently recurring meanings, namely: shared values and beliefs; language; symbols; and knowledge production. These constitutive meanings form the theoretical framework which is used to analyse institutional documents. My findings suggest that all the constitutive meanings of my theoretical framework are addressed in the institutional documents of both SU and UWC, which means that the institutional documents conform to my theoretical framework. SU has, in my opinion, an excellent and comprehensive base of well-prepared and compiled institutional documents. However, most of these documents seem to relate to quality and compliance to national policy requirements, with no significant actions or strategies to address the challenges related to transforming the University’s institutional culture. Even though SU has shown commendable strategic initiatives to transform its institutional culture, there has not been sufficient engagement with the challenges of transformation. Similarly, for UWC, it is my contention that even though UWC is committed to transformation and nurturing a culture of change in order to make meaning of and address the complex challenges of the world, there needs to be more rigorous engagement in shaping and managing strategic direction and planning to ensure an institutional culture to accommodate change. Even though the institutional documents analysed mostly conform to the constitutive meanings of the theoretical framework, what of concern is the lack of an adequate articulation of the concept “institutional culture”. If there is no articulation, it follows that there is an inadequate understanding of the concept. A deeper understanding is crucial if the important link between transformation and “institutional culture” is to be realised. I contend that there exists a disjunction between “institutional culture” and transformation policies. One of the reasons for this disjunction is an impoverished understanding among higher education policy practitioners of the concept “institutional culture”, which creates an impression of compliance with national policy requirements. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie verhandeling behels ’n konseptuele ontleding van “institusionele kultuur” in hoër onderwys, vernaamlik omdat die konsep ’n modewoord in die diskoers in hoër onderwys in Suid-Afrika geword het. Die doel was om begrip van die konsep te ontwikkel, en meer spesifiek om te ondersoek hoe institusionele kultuur in die institusionele dokumente van die Universiteit van Stellenbosch (US) en die Universiteit van die Wes-Kaap (UWK) georganiseer, saamgestel en geartikuleer word. Hierdie ondersoeke word voorafgegaan deur ‘n analise van hoër onderwys beleidsdokumente. Kritiese hermeneutiek is as navorsingsmetodologie gebruik om die konstitutiewe betekenisse van ‘institusionele kultuur’ te bepaal. Aangesien dit moeilik is om met ’n groot stel konstitutiewe betekenisse te werk, is die lys tot die vier mees herhalende betekenisse beperk, naamlik gedeelde waardes en oortuigings; taal; simbole; en die voortbring van kennis. Hierdie konstitutiewe betekenisse het die teoretiese raamwerk gevorm vir die ontleding van die institusionele dokumente. My bevindinge doen aan die hand dat al die konstitutiewe betekenisse van die teoretiese raamwerk in die institusionele dokumente van sowel die US as UWK aan bod kom, wat beteken dat die institusionele dokumente met die teoretiese raamwerk ooreenstem. Na my mening het die US ’n uitstekende en omvattende basis goed voorbereide en saamgestelde institusionele dokumente. Die meeste van hierdie dokumente blyk egter met gehalte en nakoming van nasionale beleidsvereistes verband te hou, met geen beduidende handelinge of strategieë om die uitdagings aan te pak wat met die transformasie van die US se institusionele kultuur verband hou nie. Alhoewel die US lofwaardige strategiese inisiatiewe aanwend om sy institusionele kultuur te transformeer, blyk daar nie ’n genoegsame verbintenis te wees om die uitdagings van transformasie die hoof gebied nie. Eweneens, wat UWK betref, is my argument dat alhoewel UWK verbind is tot transformasie en die kweek van ’n kultuur van verandering ten einde sin te maak van die komplekse veranderinge van die wêreld en sodanige veranderinge aan te pak, ’n meer nougesette verbintenis nodig is rakende die ontwikkeling en bestuur van strategiese leiding en beplanning ten einde ’n kultuur wat verandering tegemoet kom, te verseker. Alhoewel die institusionele dokumente wat ontleed is hoofsaaklik met die konstitutiewe betekenisse van die teoretiese raamwerk ooreenstem, is die gebrek aan voldoende artikulasie van die konsep “institusionele kultuur” rede tot kommer. Die gebrek aan artikulasie lei tot onvoldoende begrip van die konsep. ’n Grondiger begrip is noodsaaklik ten einde die belangrike skakel tussen transformasie en “institusionele kultuur” te verwesenlik. My gevolgtrekking is dat daar skeiding tussen” institusionele kultuur” en transformasiebeleide is. Een van die redes vir sogenaamde skeiding is gebrekkige begrip van die konsep “institusionele kultuur” onder hoër onderwys beleidsrolspelers, wat die idee skep van nakoming van nasionale beleidsvereistes. / Andrew Mellon Foundation