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This study investigates about the meaning of the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001. The purpose of this study is to illustrate the meaning of the USA PATRIOT Act from an archaeological perspective (in the Foucauldian sense). Rather than accepting the Act and its formulations this study excavates the discursive elements that give meaning to the Act within the current socio-political sphere. In this sense this is a Foucauldian archaeology of patriotism in the United States of America illustrated and explicated through the current discourse created by the USA PATRIOT Act. Moreover, this research intends to illustrate how the patriotic discourse affects our current spatial practices. By analyzing the contemporary patriotic discourse through the lens of spatial theory what is sought is to briefly sketch the conceptual landscapes that are created through this discourse. This study applies the concepts and theories of Michel Foucault, Edward Soja, and Homi Bhabha as well as other postcolonial theorists to analyze the USA PATRIOT Act as a discourse that is linked and shaped by history and a discourse that is active in the design and content of our spaces.

Ce mémoire explore l’influence de l’évolution des représentations historiques des rébellions des patriotes, telles que formulées par les historiens réputés, sur les manuels scolaires québécois publiés entre 1982 et 2006. Il démontre qu’entre ces deux années, qui correspondent à deux réformes scolaires successives, les conceptions des rébellions de 1837 ont beaucoup évolué dans l’historiographie universitaire. Ce mémoire montre pourtant que les manuels scolaires issus de la réforme de 2006 demeurent attachés à un récit historique caractéristique d’une historiographie plus ancienne. / This thesis studies the effect on Québec history textbooks published between 1982 and 2006, of the changing historical representations of the Lower Canada Rebellions visible in the works of renowned historians. It shows that in the historiography, the perception of the 1837 Rebellions evolved in this period, which saw two reforms of the high-school history curriculum. It concludes, however, that the textbooks published after the 2006 school reform remain attached to a historical construct typical of an older historiography.

This thesis takes a closer look at the USA Patriot Act and the literary debate that has followed the passing of that Act. The aim of the thesis is to define what freedom is for the two opposing sides using McCallum's freedom model. The literary analysis shows that the most common argument from authors who are pro Act is that in desperate times like these one must relinquish a part of the individual's freedom to ensure the safety of the collective. Amongst those authors who are against the Act concerns are raised for the possibilities of abuse as a result of increased government power such as the ability to detain immigrants for long periods of time, surveillance and increased exchange of information between federal agencies.

This research will analyze the impact of bipartisan politics and the media's conflicting role in influencing public perceptions regarding national security issues. The central focus is on popular media narratives, critically examined as an impediment to fostering unified public solidarity or opposition regarding the enactment of controversial legislation. In light of the increase in geopolitical conflict and the pervasive nature of terrorism, this study attempts to analyze the media's public role versus the privacy of clandestine agencies whose policies, albeit controversial address critical national security concerns. As a result, the conflict inherent between institutional and public spheres provides the groundwork for discursive and objective analysis.Empirical data collection and critical analysis of relevant materials; academic journals, online archives and published works by individuals active in media and national security, provide the primary source of qualitative data. Research was primarily inductive. Analysis effectively combined data from various qualitative sources in an effort to justify the central hypothesis. Contemporary tragic events also provided a supplemental source of relevant content. It is important to note, such events resonate with the rationalization arrived at in the conclusion.The principle aim of this research was to address the question: Does the media's promotion of the bipartisan political agenda impede or enhance national security policies? In addition, is the role of the media reflective of state subservience or does the media actively challenge national security initiatives, e.g. curtailing of civil liberties, human rights violations and loss of constitutional freedoms? The analysis further subjected by cross-disciplinary inquiry and academic theories pertinent to achieving the principle aims of this research.The theoretical framework and methodology utilized was consistent with political discourse analysis (PDA), specifically textual, as all discursive elements were present within the collected source materials. Additional analysis utilizing mediatization and audience theories provides the proper contextualization within communicative and media studies. Contemporary events surrounding geopolitical conflict, race relations and terrorism in relation to the institutional and international response, provides further demonstrable results, which is commensurate with the overall conclusions of this study.The outcome and results of this research indicate that mainstream media provides both a support role, emphasizing status quo narratives concerning national and international political perspectives and policy, and also a contradictory role impeding domestic solidarity by exacerbating political division along the usual bipartisan lines. The specific focus on legislation that results in expanding judicial powers surrounding national security concerns. Such policies often interpreted as contrary to the preservation of domestic freedoms. These findings correlate with Couldry and Hepp's notions of institutionalist mediatization theory regarding the media as innately powerful agents of change, imparting influence on audiences and non-media actors.

The most well-known events and occurrences that caused the American Revolution are well-documented. No scholar debates the importance of matters such as the colonists’ frustration with taxation without representation, the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, and the Coercive Acts. However, very few scholars have paid attention to how the 1772 English court case that freed James Somerset from slavery impacted American Independence. This case occurred during a two-year stall in the conflict between the English government and her colonies that began in 1763. Between 1763 and 1770, there was ongoing conflict between the two parties, but the conflict temporarily subsided in 1770. Two years later, in 1772, the Somerset decision reignited tension and frustration between the mother country and her colonies. This paper does not claim that the Somerset decision was the cause of colonial separation from England. Instead it argues that the Somerset decision played a significant yet rarely discussed role in the colonists’ willingness to begin meeting with one another to discuss their common problem of shared grievance with British governance. It prompted the colonists to begin relating to one another and to the British in a way that they never had previously. This case’s impact on intercolonial relations and relations between the colonies and her mother country are discussed within this work.

PhD (Political Science) / Department of Development Studies / No serious study into the contemporary politics of Zimbabwe can ignore the celebrated influence of nationalism and the attendant role of elite leaders as a ‘social force’ in the making of the nation-state of Zimbabwe. This study analyses the role played by nationalism as an instrument for political mobilisation against the white settler regime in Rhodesia by the Zimbabwe African People Union (ZAPU) and the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU). Therefore, of particular importance is the manner in which the evolution and comprehensive analysis of these former liberation movements, in the political history of Zimbabwe have been viewed through the dominant lenses of nationalism. Nationalism can be regarded as the best set of beliefs and the worst set of beliefs. Being an exhilarating force that led to the emergence of these nationalist movements to dismantle white minority rule, nationalism was also the same force that was responsible for dashing the dreams and hopes associated with an independent Zimbabwe. At the centre of this thesis is the argument that there is a fault line in the manner in which nationalism is understood as such it continued to be constructed and contested. In the study, nationalism has been propagated as contending political narratives, and the nationalist elite leaders are presented as a social force that sought to construct the nation-state of Zimbabwe. Thus, the study is particularly interested in a comparative analysis of the competing narratives of nationalism between ZAPU and ZANU between the period of 1977 and 1990. This period is a very important time frame in the turning points on the nationalist political history of Zimbabwe. Firstly, the beginning of this period saw the struggle for the liberation of Zimbabwe climax because of concerted efforts by both ZAPU and ZANU. Secondly, the conclusion of this period saw the death of ZAPU as an alternative to multi-party democracy within the nationalist sense and the subsequent emergence of a dominant socialist one-party state. Methodologically, a qualitative approach has been employed where the researcher analysed documents. / NRF

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The key aim of this work is a method of patriotic education in our schools, mainly in the first grade of primary schools. The point of this work is to awaken patriotism in society again. In the first step we are informed about the important ideas that enable to develope the assumptions neccesary for the patriotic recognition and for an increase in patriotic feeling. The theory pays the attention to morality, influencing behaviour; for example, material and physical values and the aesthetic. It describes each historical term individually, from the beginning of national recovery during the first half of 19th century to the present days. It underlines the need to understand correctly the individual ideas and it points out the general chaos and risks of their interpretations in society. It recognises the important tasks that our society has to face to maintain the education of patriotism succesfully. The practical aspect contains the class discussions, interwiews and analysis of individual pupils, teachers, directors and it compares the level and quality of class debats with teacher`s attitude. The main thing was to find out the teachers' personal feeling about patriotism, his or her attitude towards its education and the way he or she communicates this during the lessons.