This dissertation presents an investigation into the identity transformation of the character of Wikus van der Merwe, the protagonist of the film District 9 (2009), from a postcolonial perspective. In the first instance, I argue that the film can be regarded as an allegory of the apartheid era in South Africa, and that the marginalised aliens in the film can therefore be seen as metaphorically representing the suppressed races of the apartheid era. The humans and aliens in the film are initially represented as binary opposites of each other: the humans are positioned as the normative in-group diametrically opposite the aliens, who are regarded as the non-normative out-group. In its ideological context, apartheid can also be understood as a type of colonialism. Like those who were marginalised by colonial practices, the aliens in the film are regarded as the other, mainly because of their physical, corporeal otherness. In the film Wikus experiences a bodily as well as an emotional transformation - and thus also an identity transformation – from a normative, Afrikaans-speaking white male (the self) into a non-normative and strange-looking alien (other) – with reference here to how normativity and otherness were conceptualised in the context of apartheid. Consequently, Wikus’ metamorphosis results in a hybrid figure, which demonstrates that the boundaries between self and other are permeable. Wikus’ unique identity as both self and other, as well as his increased self-awareness, illustrates his new identity position in an in-between space in which the self and other can be both, ironically, accommodated and destabilised. This dissertation demonstrates how the notion of hybridity (which is a key concept in postcolonial discourse) in the film works to destabilise the discourse of the self and other, and in this way hints at the possibility of a broader identity platform where all identities are validated. / M.A. (Graphic Design), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

This dissertation presents an investigation into the identity transformation of the character of Wikus van der Merwe, the protagonist of the film District 9 (2009), from a postcolonial perspective. In the first instance, I argue that the film can be regarded as an allegory of the apartheid era in South Africa, and that the marginalised aliens in the film can therefore be seen as metaphorically representing the suppressed races of the apartheid era. The humans and aliens in the film are initially represented as binary opposites of each other: the humans are positioned as the normative in-group diametrically opposite the aliens, who are regarded as the non-normative out-group. In its ideological context, apartheid can also be understood as a type of colonialism. Like those who were marginalised by colonial practices, the aliens in the film are regarded as the other, mainly because of their physical, corporeal otherness. In the film Wikus experiences a bodily as well as an emotional transformation - and thus also an identity transformation – from a normative, Afrikaans-speaking white male (the self) into a non-normative and strange-looking alien (other) – with reference here to how normativity and otherness were conceptualised in the context of apartheid. Consequently, Wikus’ metamorphosis results in a hybrid figure, which demonstrates that the boundaries between self and other are permeable. Wikus’ unique identity as both self and other, as well as his increased self-awareness, illustrates his new identity position in an in-between space in which the self and other can be both, ironically, accommodated and destabilised. This dissertation demonstrates how the notion of hybridity (which is a key concept in postcolonial discourse) in the film works to destabilise the discourse of the self and other, and in this way hints at the possibility of a broader identity platform where all identities are validated. / M.A. (Graphic Design), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Entre os anos anteriores à Guerra Civil e o pós-abolição, o tema da mistura racial e da cidadania dos libertos já era objeto de disputas nos Estados Unidos. Diferentes grupos envolvidos nesta discussão se apropriaram do exemplo de outras nações escravistas das Américas para analisar as experiências de cativeiro e liberdade na sociedade norte-americana. Foi neste período que grupos antagônicos como abolicionistas negros, cientistas, viajantes e escravistas incorporaram o exemplo brasileiro às suas disputas, pois o Brasil, conhecido como país miscigenado e supostamente sem preconceito racial, era marcado por uma intensa população negra que eles acreditavam conviver harmonicamente com a população branca. As interpretações sobre estas notícias eram divergentes. Enquanto abolicionistas afro-americanos se apropriaram do exemplo brasileiro, porque acreditavam que o país era uma referência de igualdade racial e liberdade, os cientistas, escravistas e viajantes entendiam o país no contexto do que acreditavam ser todas as nações latino-americanas: um país de clima tropical que, ao contrário dos Estados Unidos, favorecia a existência de formas de vida exageradas e inferiores. Além disto, a mistura racial e a excessiva quantidade de pessoas negras, muitas delas libertas e cidadãs, confirmavam ainda mais as diferenças entre a sociedade brasileira e a norte-americana. Até mesmo os imigrantes sulistas que vieram para o Brasil após o fim da Guerra Civil e que, inicialmente, foram atraídos pela manutenção do cativeiro no país, registraram seu descontentamento com a intensa miscigenação. Assim, esta tese investiga estas diversas impressões sobre o Brasil, produzidas por diferentes setores da sociedade norteamericana. Interessa-nos entender como estas notícias sobre o país foram apropriadas pelo debate político sobre escravidão, abolição e relações raciais nos Estados Unidos. É também nosso objetivo perceber como estes grupos criaram uma imagem do Brasil em oposição a uma ideia de nação americana, enfatizando diferenças que seriam utilizadas para formar identidades nacionais distintas, sobretudo no que diz respeito às relações raciais de cada país. Para analisar estes usos e apropriações de uma sociedade sobre a outra, utilizarei uma variada documentação composta por relatos de viagem, textos jornalísticos e científicos, jornais da imprensa negra abolicionista e cartas escritas por imigrantes confederados no Brasil que foram enviadas para seus familiares que viviam no sul dos Estados Unidos / Between the years preceding the Civil War and following abolition, the theme of racial mixing and the citizenship of freed blacks had already been widely disputed in the United States. The various groups involved in this discussion appropriated the example of other American slave nations in comparison to the experience of captivity and freedom in North- American society. It is in this period that opposing groups such as black abolitionist, scientists, travelers and slave owners incorporated the Brazilian example to their political disputes, once the Latin American country, known to be miscegenated and supposedly without racial prejudice, was marked by an intense black population that lived harmoniously with the white population. The interpretations of these reports were divergent at best. While African American abolitionists appropriated the Brazilian example because they believed Brazil to be a reference for racial equality and freedom; the scientists, slave owners and travelers understood the country in the context of what they believed was true for all Latin American nations: Brazils tropical climate, unlike the United States, favored the existence of exaggerated and lower forms of life. In addition, the racial mixing and the excessive black population, many who lived as freed citizens further confirmed the differences between the Brazilian and North American society. Even the American southerner immigrants who came to Brazil after the Civil War, who were initially attracted by the maintenance of captivity, expressed their discontent with the intense miscegenation. This thesis investigates these varying views on Brazil produced by different sectors of American society. We are interested in understanding how news about the country was appropriate to the political debate on slavery, abolition and race relations in the United States. It is also our objective to understand how these different groups have created a certain image of Brazil in opposition to an idea of an American nation, highlighting the differences that would eventually be used to form distinct national identities, especially in regard to race relations in each country. In order to analyze the appropriations of one society about the other, I will use a large collection of documentation, composed by travel narratives, journalistic and scientific articles, the newspapers of the African-American abolitionist Press and the letters written by confederate immigrants in Brazil sent to their family members who lived in the American south

Entre os anos anteriores à Guerra Civil e o pós-abolição, o tema da mistura racial e da cidadania dos libertos já era objeto de disputas nos Estados Unidos. Diferentes grupos envolvidos nesta discussão se apropriaram do exemplo de outras nações escravistas das Américas para analisar as experiências de cativeiro e liberdade na sociedade norte-americana. Foi neste período que grupos antagônicos como abolicionistas negros, cientistas, viajantes e escravistas incorporaram o exemplo brasileiro às suas disputas, pois o Brasil, conhecido como país miscigenado e supostamente sem preconceito racial, era marcado por uma intensa população negra que eles acreditavam conviver harmonicamente com a população branca. As interpretações sobre estas notícias eram divergentes. Enquanto abolicionistas afro-americanos se apropriaram do exemplo brasileiro, porque acreditavam que o país era uma referência de igualdade racial e liberdade, os cientistas, escravistas e viajantes entendiam o país no contexto do que acreditavam ser todas as nações latino-americanas: um país de clima tropical que, ao contrário dos Estados Unidos, favorecia a existência de formas de vida exageradas e inferiores. Além disto, a mistura racial e a excessiva quantidade de pessoas negras, muitas delas libertas e cidadãs, confirmavam ainda mais as diferenças entre a sociedade brasileira e a norte-americana. Até mesmo os imigrantes sulistas que vieram para o Brasil após o fim da Guerra Civil e que, inicialmente, foram atraídos pela manutenção do cativeiro no país, registraram seu descontentamento com a intensa miscigenação. Assim, esta tese investiga estas diversas impressões sobre o Brasil, produzidas por diferentes setores da sociedade norteamericana. Interessa-nos entender como estas notícias sobre o país foram apropriadas pelo debate político sobre escravidão, abolição e relações raciais nos Estados Unidos. É também nosso objetivo perceber como estes grupos criaram uma imagem do Brasil em oposição a uma ideia de nação americana, enfatizando diferenças que seriam utilizadas para formar identidades nacionais distintas, sobretudo no que diz respeito às relações raciais de cada país. Para analisar estes usos e apropriações de uma sociedade sobre a outra, utilizarei uma variada documentação composta por relatos de viagem, textos jornalísticos e científicos, jornais da imprensa negra abolicionista e cartas escritas por imigrantes confederados no Brasil que foram enviadas para seus familiares que viviam no sul dos Estados Unidos / Between the years preceding the Civil War and following abolition, the theme of racial mixing and the citizenship of freed blacks had already been widely disputed in the United States. The various groups involved in this discussion appropriated the example of other American slave nations in comparison to the experience of captivity and freedom in North- American society. It is in this period that opposing groups such as black abolitionist, scientists, travelers and slave owners incorporated the Brazilian example to their political disputes, once the Latin American country, known to be miscegenated and supposedly without racial prejudice, was marked by an intense black population that lived harmoniously with the white population. The interpretations of these reports were divergent at best. While African American abolitionists appropriated the Brazilian example because they believed Brazil to be a reference for racial equality and freedom; the scientists, slave owners and travelers understood the country in the context of what they believed was true for all Latin American nations: Brazils tropical climate, unlike the United States, favored the existence of exaggerated and lower forms of life. In addition, the racial mixing and the excessive black population, many who lived as freed citizens further confirmed the differences between the Brazilian and North American society. Even the American southerner immigrants who came to Brazil after the Civil War, who were initially attracted by the maintenance of captivity, expressed their discontent with the intense miscegenation. This thesis investigates these varying views on Brazil produced by different sectors of American society. We are interested in understanding how news about the country was appropriate to the political debate on slavery, abolition and race relations in the United States. It is also our objective to understand how these different groups have created a certain image of Brazil in opposition to an idea of an American nation, highlighting the differences that would eventually be used to form distinct national identities, especially in regard to race relations in each country. In order to analyze the appropriations of one society about the other, I will use a large collection of documentation, composed by travel narratives, journalistic and scientific articles, the newspapers of the African-American abolitionist Press and the letters written by confederate immigrants in Brazil sent to their family members who lived in the American south

Centred on the architecture of the Winnipeg Civic Auditorium, this thesis tangentially investigates the presence of Anglo-Saxon race mindedness in a place civic planners call the metropolitan centre of North America (Watt, 1932). The introduction situates the building tangentially in Manitoba's history. By thinking about the Civic Auditorium in a tangential manner I aim to attack the linear and sequential framework found in Eurocentric historical accounts. Doing this, my thesis criticises western architectural history and welcomes Indigenous reinterpretations of civic planning and urban aesthetics. I aim to philosophically attack the informational rhetoric of the cultural turn (Fabian, 1983). My thesis participates in the production of a material turn discourse, wherein the important philosophical relationship between objects and occidental culture is demonstrated (Otter, 2010; Bennett & Joyce, 2010; Hamilton, 2013). It utilises the Civic Auditorium as a touch stone to demonstrate the important ways that architecture has agency in the production of racism. / February 2016