Abstract The purpose of this research is to examine the experiences of first-generation, highly educated Iranian women who came to Canada to pursue further education in a ‘just’, ‘safe’, and ‘peaceful’ place. The research has revealed that these women who were fleeing from an ‘oppressive’ and ‘unjust’ Iranian regime face new challenges and different forms of oppression in Canada. This dissertation examines some of the challenges that these women face at their place of work and/or at graduate school. The research findings are based on narratives of eleven Iranian women who participated in in-depth interviews in the summer of 2008. These women, whose ages range from 26 to 55 and are of diverse marital status, all hold an academic degree from Iran. They were also all enrolled in different graduate schools and diverse disciplines in Ontario universities at the time of the interviews. The research findings indicate that their presence in Canada became more controversial after the September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade centers in New York. Historically, the social images imposed on Middle Eastern women derive from the Orientalism that arose following the colonization of the Middle East by Western imperialists. The perpetuation of such images after the 9/11 attack has created a harsh environment for the participants in this research. After 9/11 most immigrants from the Middle East were assumed to be Muslim and Arab, which many North Americans came to equate with being a terrorist. In order to analyze the participants’ voices and experiences, I have adopted a multi-critical theoretical perspective that includes Orientalism, anti-colonialism and integrative anti-racist feminist perspectives, so as to be equipped with the tools necessary to investigate and expose the roots of racism, oppression and discrimination of these marginalized voices. The findings of this research fall under six interrelated themes: adaptation, stereotyping, discrimination, being silenced, strategy of resistance, and belonging to Canadian society/ graduate school. One of the important results of this research is that, regardless of the suffering and pain that the participants feel in Canadian graduate school and society, they prefer to stay in Canada because of the socio-political climate in Iran.

Abstract The purpose of this research is to examine the experiences of first-generation, highly educated Iranian women who came to Canada to pursue further education in a ‘just’, ‘safe’, and ‘peaceful’ place. The research has revealed that these women who were fleeing from an ‘oppressive’ and ‘unjust’ Iranian regime face new challenges and different forms of oppression in Canada. This dissertation examines some of the challenges that these women face at their place of work and/or at graduate school. The research findings are based on narratives of eleven Iranian women who participated in in-depth interviews in the summer of 2008. These women, whose ages range from 26 to 55 and are of diverse marital status, all hold an academic degree from Iran. They were also all enrolled in different graduate schools and diverse disciplines in Ontario universities at the time of the interviews. The research findings indicate that their presence in Canada became more controversial after the September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade centers in New York. Historically, the social images imposed on Middle Eastern women derive from the Orientalism that arose following the colonization of the Middle East by Western imperialists. The perpetuation of such images after the 9/11 attack has created a harsh environment for the participants in this research. After 9/11 most immigrants from the Middle East were assumed to be Muslim and Arab, which many North Americans came to equate with being a terrorist. In order to analyze the participants’ voices and experiences, I have adopted a multi-critical theoretical perspective that includes Orientalism, anti-colonialism and integrative anti-racist feminist perspectives, so as to be equipped with the tools necessary to investigate and expose the roots of racism, oppression and discrimination of these marginalized voices. The findings of this research fall under six interrelated themes: adaptation, stereotyping, discrimination, being silenced, strategy of resistance, and belonging to Canadian society/ graduate school. One of the important results of this research is that, regardless of the suffering and pain that the participants feel in Canadian graduate school and society, they prefer to stay in Canada because of the socio-political climate in Iran.

This thesis undertakes a study of four films, directed by Arab directors from Palestine, Lebanon, America and the United Arab Emirates, and argues that these works speak back to the negative representation of Arabs in mainstream Hollywood films. It examines the methods these directors have deployed to contribute to a consciousness on a cultural level. These include the films Amreeka (dir. Dabis, 2009: USA, National Geographic Entertainment), Paradise Now (dir. Abu-Assad, 2005: USA, Warner Bros), West Beirut (dir. Doueiri, 1998: Belgium, France, Norway, Lebanon: 38 Production) and City of Life (dir. Mostafa, 2009: UAE: Filmworks). I argue that these films speak back to the representation of Arabs created by Hollywood. In all the films I analyse the representation of the characters, which allows viewers into their frames of reference and makes them relatable. The characters are ordinary people facing the situations of everyday life in various settings. Whether it is the limitation of their geographical location while living under occupation in Palestine as in Amreeka and Paradise Now, emigrating to America and coping with xenophobia as in Amreeka, living in a country exploding as civil war breaks out as in West Beirut, or adjusting to multiculturalism as in City of Life, filmmakers are allowing viewers into the lives of Arabs, representing them in terms of all their successes, failures, vulnerabilities and excesses. They are human beings with the same concerns as all humanity, for peace in their countries, the stability of their societies and the safety of their families. My investigation analyses the films through the theoretical lenses of Stuart Hall’s theory of representation (2012), Edward Said's Orientalism (1997), and decoloniality as advocated by Maldonado-Torres (2014) and Mignolo (2011). A postmodern reading of City of Life is made within Baudrillard's theory of hyperreality (2010), Lyotard’s concept of the grand narrative (1986) and Žižek’s concept of the dematerialisation of real life. A close reading of the films, using the research methods of semiotics and narratology, enables a deconstruction of some obscure elements, such as the embedded meaning in dialogue or the messages implicit in the mise en scène. In the process, cultural contradictions and similarities are explored and uncovered. / English Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (English)

Text in Afrikaans / In this thesis the term post-colonialism in the Afrikaans drama is investigated, focussing on the post-sixties. The term post-colonialism is difficult to define. Not only are theories of post-colonialism in a state of continuous flux and shifting emphasis, but as a result of different colonial dominations, separate identities have been constructed in South-Africa; so that defining the terms colonial, post colonial and post-colonial proves to be even more problematic. The purpose of this study is to determine to what extent the Afrikaans drama fits into these discourses. The basic point of departure is the fact that post-colonialism played a considerable role in the development of the Afrikaans drama, at the same time providing a more varied scope. The research covers several aspects of post-colonialism in Afrikaans drama; each dealt with in a separate chapter. A multitude of perspectives are featured within the broader discourse in order to obtain multiple norms and standards in a phase of self-criticism. The focus falls mainly on themes and not on performance aspects. New perspectives on issues such as canon texts, silence, hero-worship, the portrayal of woman, patriarchy, and neo-colonialism are presented (chapter 1). In chapter 2 focus falls on the period before 1960, and notably the question of nationalism (associated with apartheid) and the portrayal of the Afrikaner. The literary canon, forms of violence and the position of the super-Afrikaner are viewed in a new light during the re-writing of post-colonial history and the resulting paradigm shifts after 1960. Renewed emphasis is placed on discourse concerning land (chapter 3). Contrasting concepts regarding race, class, language, gender and religion are reconsidered in order to contribute towards the heterogeneous nature of post-colonialism (chapter 4). The function of theatre is to re-evaluate in the context of a post-1994 democratic system. Texts now focus especially on empowerment, re-discovery and re-ordering of history, reconciliation, inter-cultural contact and a post-apartheid syndrome (chapter 5). Anti-hegemonic resistance in Afrikaans literature since the sixties has confronted writers with the challenge of depicting or creating a larger post-colonial reality through their texts. / Afrikaans and Theory of Literature / D. Litt. et Phil. (Afrikaans)

De retour de ses voyages en Ethiopie, l’explorateur scientifique basco-irlandais, Antoine d’Abbadie, fit appel, en 1864, à l’architecte Eugène-E. Viollet-le-Duc pour édifier sa demeure. Le restaurateur de Notre-Dame de Paris et son collaborateur, Edmond Duthoit, qui fut en charge du suivi du chantier et de la décoration, proposèrent une œuvre originale, voire délirante, rare par son homogénéité stylistique et à l’image des goûts éclectiques de son commanditaire et de son épouse. Pour la construction du château d’Abbadia, ils puisèrent dans des sources d’inspiration associant le Moyen Age, la science, la religion, l’Orient et l’Ethiopie, composant dès lors un véritable métissage artistique. Cette thèse s’intéresse non seulement aux modes d’expression de ces influences, mais elle tente également d’explorer les motivations, les significations et la raison d’être d’une telle mixité sur le plan historique et social. La masse des archives permit, enfin, de mettre en lumière l’important réseau des acteurs, notamment des artistes et artisans renommés, qui participèrent à la construction d’Abbadia. L’étude de cette singulière demeure s’articule donc autour des personnalités affirmées de ses commanditaires tout en resituant le château au sein de l’histoire de l’art et de l’architecture du XIXe siècle. / When he came back from his travel in Ethiopia, the bask-irish scientist explorer, Antoine d’Abbadie, appealed in the architect Eugène-E. Viollet-le-Duc in 1864 in order to build his castle. Notre-Dame de Paris’ restaurator and his associate, Edmond Duthoit, in charge of the construction site and decoration, proponed an original and delirious work, rare from its stylistic homogeneity and in the image of its owner’s and his wife’s eclectic tastes. As for the château d’Abbadia’s building, they drew in several inspirations which associated Middle Ages, science, religion, Orient and Ethiopia, which therefore composed a true artistic interbreeding. This thesis consists in studying these influences’ modes of expression, and besides, it tries to explore the motivations and the meanings of such a mixity on historical and social viewpoint. At last, the massive archives permitted to highlight the important web of the actors, in particular well-known craftsmen and artists, who participated to Abbadia’s building. So the study of this singular home is built around its owner’s assertive personalities while setting the castle in 19th century’s history of art and architecture.

English summary The main objective of this thesis is to present some key issues relevant for postcolonial field of study with respect to two basic areas of interest: concepts of identity and place, respectively displacement in contemporary postcolonial discourse and their reflection in fiction, too. The thesis should provide the potential reader with basic theoretical background based on the most fundamental sources and by means of selected literary works it should support (or disclaim, if necessary) conclusions reached by the most notable theories. This dissertation work consists of three major parts. In the introduction, apart from providing the motivational, theoretical and literary objectives of the thesis, I cover some basic difficulties that may occur when dealing with the postcolonial field of study. The central part of the thesis can be divided into two parts, each of them consisting of two further sections. The first one, "Identity in Postcolonial Discourse", is focused on one of the key terms in all of postcolonial theory: identity and other concepts related with it. I cover the basic development of theoretical reflection concerning this concept, drawing primarily from secondary sources dealing with it. The theoretical part on identity is succeeded by a chapter "Reflections of Identity in the...

La thèse porte sur la mise en scène de la guerre dans les entraînements militaires aux États-Unis. Elle étudie des faux villages moyen-orientaux qui servent pour l’entraînement de pré-déploiement en Irak et en Afghanistan. On retrouve ces villages sur diverses bases militaires, comme au National Training Center (NTC) de Fort Irwin (Californie), où une douzaine de faux villages afghans et iraquiens ont été construits depuis 2007 dans le contexte de la contre-insurrection afin de préparer les troupes aux guerres de type urbaines et asymétriques. Dans ces environnements immersifs, l’armée américaine tente de reproduire les paysages socioculturel et religieux où se tiennent les missions : mosquées, salons de thé, marchés extérieurs, maisons traditionnelles forment le décor. Afin de préparer les soldats au terrain humain, une rencontre culturelle est simulée entre eux et la population locale à travers des jeux de rôle. Des acteurs, qui sont parfois d’origine afghane et iraquienne, sont embauchés pour jouer la population locale, ce qui servirait à prévenir un certain « choc culturel » anticipé sur le terrain et augmenter la sensibilité culturelle des soldats. Des experts de l’industrie du cinéma comme des pyrotechniciens et des artistes-maquilleurs participent également à ces simulations pour les rendre plus « réalistes » à travers leurs effets spéciaux. La thèse étudie les rationalités et les technologies à l'œuvre dans les faux villages et les manières dont elles soutiennent cette mise en scène « culturelle » de la guerre. Elle examine les pratiques matérielles et discursives des performances qui s’y déroulent. En quelles instances les exercices de simulation s’inscrivent-ils dans un régime de représentation racialisé? Comment l’orientalisme américain est-il articulé dans ces espaces? Quels mythes politiques et discours dominants circulent dans ces géographies fictives? La thèse problématise la représentation et la production de savoirs sur l’autre. Ce faisant, elle participe à la discussion sur l’altérité entamée par plusieurs courants théoriques et champs disciplinaires dont elle s'inspire, notamment les cultural studies, les critical race theories et la critique postcoloniale. L’analyse est basée sur une observation de courte durée au NTC. Le Centre offre des visites guidées de la base qui permettent au public d’assister à une journée d’entraînements dans les faux villages. J’ai participé à deux reprises à ces « NTC Box Tours ». J’ai également mené des entrevues semi-dirigées avec plus de vingt vétérans d’Iraq et d’Afghanistan afin de discuter avec eux de leur expérience d’entraînement de pré-déploiement et du rôle de la culture dans les simulations militaires. / The thesis looks at the performance of war in military training in the US. It studies the mock Middle Eastern villages that are used for Iraq and Afghanistan pre-deployment training. These villages are found on several military bases such as the National Training Center of Fort Irwin (California), where a dozen of oriental towns were implemented since 2007 in order to prepare the troops for urban and asymmetrical type of warfare in the context of counterinsurgency. In these immersive environments, the US military tries to reproduce overseas sociocultural and religious landscapes: mosques, tea rooms, street markets, traditional houses and so on form the set. To prepare the soldiers to the human terrain, a cultural encounter between them and the local population is simulated through role play. Actors, sometimes from Iraq and Afghanistan, are hired to enact the local population. This is said to prevent an anticipated “culture clash” on the ground and raise cultural awareness amongst the soldiers. Experts from the filmmaking industry such as pyrotechnics and makeup artists also take part in these simulations – working to make them more “realistic” through their special effects. The thesis examines the rationalities and technologies at stake in the mock villages, and the way they sustain the « cultural » mise en scène of war. The research interrogates the material and discursive practices of the performances taking place in the mock towns. In what instances are the simulation exercices anchored in a racialized system of representation; how is the American orientalism being rearticulated in these spaces; what political myths and hegemonic discourses are circulating in these fictive geographies? The thesis problematizes the ways of knowing and representing the other. Therefore, the research takes part to the discussion on otherness initiated by diverse theoritical accounts and academic fields, such as cultural studies, critical race theories, and postcolonial critique. The analysis is based on a short observation at NTC. The Center offers guided tours of the base, allowing the general public to attend to one day of training in the mock villages. I participated twice in these “NTC Box tours”. I also conducted semi-directed interviews with more than twenty Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, in which they share with me their experiences of pre-deployment training and their thoughts on the place of culture in military simulations.

Postkoloniale Theorie bezeichnet ein breites Spektrum theoretischer Zugänge zu und kritischer Auseinandersetzungen mit historischen und gegenwärtigen Machtverhältnissen, die im Zusammenhang mit dem europäischen Kolonialismus und seinen bis heute währenden Fortschreibungen stehen. Als Gründungsdokument postkolonialer Theorie gilt Edward Saids Studie „Orientalism“ (1978). Postkoloniale feministische Theorie fokussiert auf die Situation von Frauen bzw. auf vergeschlechtlichte Identitäten in (neo-)kolonialen Settings. Neben der Konstruktion von Gender und Geschlechterrollen sind Sexualität und Begehren wichtige Topoi postkolonialer Theorie. Ein weiteres Themenfeld stellt die Dekonstruktion eurozentrischen / westlichen Wissens dar.

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