This thesis explores the ways in which selfhood is constructed and expressed in The Oprah Winfrey Show. The current debate on talk shows within Media Studies tends to cohere around two positions. On the one hand, talk shows are seen as exemplars of Trash TV in which confessions of private pain are exploited for commercial gain. On the other hand, the programmes are seen as a site of empowerment for marginalised people normally denied a voice in the public sphere. This thesis moves away from this binary by examining the cultural context in which Oprah is produced. It examines the show in the light of two distinctive, but at times, overlapping, traditions of thought in American culture in which conflicting versions of self are constructed. These two traditions are the' elite' cultural criticism, and an African American mode of thought that includes a black feminist perspective. The thesis argues that these traditions represent systematic discursive cultural practices that are available as a means through which to read the show. In the 'elite' cultural criticism, selfhood is constructed as empty, anxious, fragmented and dislocated. This version of self is the product of commercialism, commodification and image saturation and is made manifest in the popularisation of therapy. In the strand of African American thought that this thesis discusses, the self is posited as recoverable through the excavation of a personal and collective history, through story-telling, and is situated in relation to close, significant others. The thesis argues that Oprah is an ambivalent text in which both versions of selfhood are identifiable. Further, it is argued that the persona of Oprah Winfrey is the embodied site of these conflicts, acting as the conduit for the expression of a self that emerges from the clash of antagonistic forces. Thus, The Oprah Winfrey Show is used as a case study for the exploration of the ways in which contradictory cultural constructions of self combine in a carnivalesque play to produce something new. This thesis makes the case for an avoidance of the binary that marks the TV talk show debate by exploring the ambivalence that constitutes the text. This, it is argued, presents a fruitful way of thinking through the complexities of a popular cultural phenomenon such as Oprah.

In this multi-case qualitative research study I explored the beliefs and practices of selected Tanzanian pre-primary educators, with regard to the role of play in early years education. The purpose was to gain insights into how the educators conceptualize play, understand its contribution to development, and if and how they incorporate it into their teaching/learning activities. Factors influencing their beliefs about play also were investigated. The study helps address an imbalance in the professional knowledge base in Early Childhood Education by providing research about play from a non-Western context. Fifteen interviews were conducted with three head and five pre-primary teachers from four schools. Observations (a total of 240 minutes at each school) were made to establish the presence of play and playful behaviour, with selected sessions video-recorded. Video clips, used to aid recall of, and reflection on, teaching practices and activities supported the teachers’ interviews. Information from observations and curricular document reviews was used to enrich the findings from interviews. Data were thematically coded and Fleer’s (2002) three sociocultural planes (personal, interpersonal, and community) used to analyze the influences on participants’ beliefs and practices. Findings indicate that play is primarily understood to consist of enjoyable physical activities which teachers can exploit to motivate/activate children before and during lessons, but such play was not seen to contribute directly to the cognitive/academic development education is expected to enhance. Large class size, parents’ demands for written work, curriculum requirements and teachers’ limited competence were found to impede provision for play in the classroom. Implications and recommendations for contextually appropriate policy, curriculum, and pre-primary teacher education programs are outlined. The need for expansion of traditional notions of play and its role in education, as well as the use of traditional games and culturally meaningful materials in the curriculum are highlighted. / Graduate