This thesis fills a significant gap in secondary literature on the role of Jewish refugee soldiers from Germany and Austria, who served in the British army during the Second World War, 1939-45. It goes further than any previous specialised works in this area by examining the social issues surrounding the refugee soldier's experiences in the army, such as their relationship with British soldiers and their personal attitudes towards the policies of the War Office. There are few surviving documentary sources specifically detailing the service of refugees. To compensate this there has been an emphasis on the gathering of oral testimonies. These interviews, conducted by the author, provided the opportunity to analyse crucial issues left unanswered within other documentary sources, principally the underlying theme of the refugees' religious and national identities. This study examines the development of the refugees' identities from their experiences under Nazi rule, to their service In the British army and eventual naturalisation as British citizens. The thesis is organized into eight chapters. Each analyses key moments and dilemmas experienced during the refugee servicemen's army service. This study demonstrates the dynamic interplay that existed between the refugees' own sense of self, and that which was held by the government in power. It also examines the perception of refugees held by British born soldiers and the general civilian population. These interactions were crucial in determining the lives of these men. The thesis concludes by illustrating that the refugees' Jewish and national identities altered considerably as a consequence of their wartime experiences, and that the British War Office largely remained needlessly suspicious of the refugee soldiers throughout much of the war.

The present study is concerned with the problems of race relations in Peninsular Malaysia, with special reference to the Chinese community. My main thesis is that Chinese institutions and organizations, together with their values, economic and political activities tend to make interaction and integration difficult in the conflict-prone Malaysian plural society. However, despite the tremendous amount of dissensus and conflict, the society has managed to survive through the fact that the various component segments are bound together not only by political institutions, but also by their being involved in the same economic institutions. The study begins with an Introduction, which examines the main structural features of the Malayan society during the colonial period to 3erve as a background for discussion. Chapter 1 deals with the overall stratification and structure of the Chinese community. Particular attention is paid to Chinese guilds and associations which tend to perpetuate social distinctions between Chinese and Malays. Chapter 2 attempts to examine Chinese role in Malaysian economy. It tries to show the relative position of the Chinese in Malaysian economy and concludes that the Chinese are far from controlling Malaysian economy as has been alleged. Chapters 3 and 4 trace Chinese politics in pre-war and post-war Malaysia. Three main currents of influence on the Chinese during the pre-war period - Chinese secret societies, The Kuomintang and the Malayan Communist Party - are examined. For the post-war period, an attempt is made to examine Chinese participation in party politics as well as their relatively subordinate position in the Alliance Party. Chapter 5 examines Chinese education in Malaysia. Attention is focused on the various governmental efforts to devise a national education policy and its implications for Chinese education. The political significance of the education issue is also examined. Chapter 6 endeavours to analyse race relations in Malaysia, focusing on the sources of conflj o - : between Chinese and Malays. A brief account of the 1969 iial riots is also provided. Chapter 7 deals with the problems of national unity. It is argued that the Malaysian plural society is held together by political as well as economic institutions. Some deliberate attempts to foster unity are also examined. Chapter 8 attempts to examine some theoretical framework. It focuses on two major problems, namely the inadequacy of some Western theoretical models and the theory of the plural society and its relevance in Malaysia.

The world was shocked by the Islamic Revolution of Iran in 1979 because it was unexpected and out of keeping with the deposed Shah's attempts at secular modernisation. This thesis attempts to make sociological sense of the implications of the Revolution for education in Iran in terms of ideological influences. The research reported in this thesis attempts to discover the nature of the social and cultural changes that occurred following the 1979 Revolution. Adapting Max Weber's interpretative approach, it focuses on the changing patterns of shared meanings and social relations in schools in one area of North West Iran. Taking a deliberately one-sided approach to educational change, this thesis isolates the impact of Islamic ideology on schools in the area where ethnographic fieldwork was conducted in 1995-96. Interviews, participant observation in schools, questionnaires and analysis of official documents were the chosen methods of research. The aim was to discover how Islamic ideology has been promulgated and how it has affected the day-to-day social relations of school teachers, pupils and administrators as well as their relations with parents and local authority officials. The main findings not only confirm the pervasiveness of Islamic ideology in Iranian schools but also document its influence over matters such as curriculum design and delivery, the segregation of the sexes in schools, and the teachers' conditions of work and professional development. Nevertheless, there is also evidence that the stated aims of educational reform were not always achieved and that some changes were ironic. The findings also showed that the recent history of change in Iranian schools calls for a flexible understanding of such notions as modernity, tradition, patrimonialism, and bureaucracy. Iran has certainly tried to modernise its educational system since 1979 but it has done so in ways which challenge much of the received wisdom about modernisation processes.

This thesis is about the construction and reconstruction of the national identities in Bangladesh, from the Pakistan era to the birth of Bangladesh, to present time. In the light of this political framework, I am looking at the ways in which the state, through the control of the medium of television sought to shift a more syncretic and secular nationalism to a more Islamicist one called Bangladeshi nationalism. I am also looking at Satellite television and the way in which this ruptures the national identities. The study employs the qualitative method to offer an elaborate description of the problem of this national identity by exploring the role of TV officials as cultural artists and the political brokers, as well as the state, in utilising the medium of television for inculcating the certain kinds of identities. The responses of the various professional groups as the middle class viewers of the state television and satellite television in this context has been examined, regarding the question of national identity. The qualitative method has been employed in this work to obtain an in-depth analysis of the problem of nationalism and its association with the history, culture and religion of the middle class in Bangladesh. Through such a procedure this work contributes in demonstrating the fragmentation, multiplicity and plurality of the national identities of the middle class of Dhaka City who find the narrative of the history of the Liberation War and cultural heritage in anomalous ways in various televised programmes under the different political constituencies of Bangladesh.

This thesis examines Anglo-Kuwaiti patron-client relations between 1957-1963 using substantial archival material from Britain and the United States. The thesis has contributed to the literature of Anglo-Kuwaiti relations and to the theory of international clientelism. The theoretical model was applied to both primary and secondary source material linked to Anglo-Kuwaiti relations. This combined with a traditional diplomatic historical approach to the thesis, produced a number of conclusions and highlighted a number of themes that dominated Anglo-Kuwaiti relations. The themes that dominated the actors in this period included the increased internationalisation of the Gulf, the importance of Kuwaiti oil and sterling deposits to Britain, Arab nationalism and the influence of Nasser, the problem of over-flying rights, strategic concerns, Cold War tensions, the decline in British power and the Arab-Israeli conflict. Another important theme explored throughout the thesis is Kuwait's emerging statehood, implemented by the al-Sabah by the joining of Kuwait to various international organisations. Insecurity often evoked foreseeable policy responses from the client, and many actions of other states produced likely, if not always predictable, reactions of both patron and client. The model of clientelism gave substance to these decisions. In the case of the client, Kuwait, goals of internal autonomy with external security were both expected and observed. The c1ientelist model depicted clearly Anglo-Kuwaiti relations. The principle argument of the thesis developed from the contention that patrons facing a decline in power in the international system use clientelism to bolster their economic position. But a reduction in asymmetry of power with the client ensures that the relationship declines. In the case of Britain and Kuwait, as British power declined, its interests in Kuwait became more economic and financial than political and strategic. In a broader context a transformation of this s011 is generally to be looked for as a great power declines.

This thesis focuses upon French colonial discourses at the height of the French imperial encounter with Indochina: 1900-1939. It examines the way in which imperial France viewed her role in Indochina, and the representations and perceptions of Indochina which were produced and disseminated in a variety of cultural media emanating from the metropole. Framed by political, ideological and historical developments and debates, each chapter develops a socio-cultural account of France's own understanding of her role in Indochina, and her relationship with the colony during this crucial period. The thesis asserts that although consistent, French discourses of Empire do not present a coherent view of the nation's imperial identity or role, and that this lack of coherence is epitomised by the Franco-indochinese relationship. The thesis seeks to demonstrate that French perceptions of Indochina were marked above all by a striking ambivalence, and that the metropole's view of the status of Indochina within the Empire was often contradictory, and at times paradoxical. Indeed, the thesis argues that Indochina was imagined through a series of antitheses which reflect the incoherent nature of French colonial discourse during this period. This thesis uses as its primary material a variety of key cultural media which informed the popular perception of Indochina during this period: metropolitan and Franco-indochinese school manuals; the writings and designs of French colonial urbanists; the works of influential colonial apologists; 'official' texts relating to the organisation and impact of the Exposition coloniale of 1931; travel journalism; and metropolitan fiction relating to Indochina. The discursive approach that this thesis takes, focusing clearly upon the socio-cultural dimension, should provide an important re-evaluation of French Indochina and its legacy, and should make a contribution to the understanding of France's relations with her colonial territories during the first half of the twentieth century.

No description available.

Nürnberg, University, Diss., 2003--Erlangen. / Erscheinungsjahr an der Haupttitelstelle: 2002.

This thesis forms the first application of scientific analysis (thin section petrography, electron microprobe and scanning electron microscopy) to Neolithic ceramics from Fars province, Iran. The research specifically addresses the questions surrounding the choice of raw materials, production techniques and the use and consumption of ceramic vessels at these village sites. I have sought to attempt a deeper understanding of the past socio-economic context of ceramic production and consumption, as well as draw comparisons with wider ceramic technologies in the surrounding regions of Iran, Mesopotamia, Anatolia and Central Asia. Analysis and interpretation of decorated ceramics from Neolithic Southwest Iran has traditionally focused on decorative designs, where coloured pigments have clearly played an influential role. However, very little was specifically known about the raw materials, manufacture, and production stages of these wares. The samples selected for analysis include newly excavated and previously unpublished ceramics that have been incorporated into an updated typology. This is then used to provide detailed characterisation of the materials and techniques employed by past potters to create the wares. Ceramics from different sites and valley locations were compared, and the development and changes in pigment raw materials and painted motif selection is demonstrated across different village sites and throughout the Neolithic time period. The introduction of manganese black and bichrome designs at Tol-e Nurabad is particularly interesting amidst the widely used iron oxide pigments and monochrome designs recorded from other sites. The choice of these raw materials is considered in respect to potters’ interaction with their surrounding landscape and in the context of other crafts and productive technologies. The transfer of potting knowledge is also considered, with visible evidence of a range of skill levels and marked corrections and adjustments made to painted motifs on the vessels studied. The use and consumption of vessels in Neolithic Fars is based on the remains of kitchen hearths and cooking equipment, namely clay balls and river cobbles, combined with use-wear analysis to show that plain wares were not subjected to direct heat and that painted wares were most likely used in the presentation and consumption of food. The painted motifs and decorative designs created on Neolithic vessels in this study are compared to other excavated sherds and whole or reconstructed vessels and show a broad similarity in apparent manufacture and painted designs. I suggest that this is evidence of the capacity of ceramics to store visual information, and to signify the Neolithic style of design that was actively shared and participated in across village sites in Fars. This was potentially done to demonstrate group membership and contribute to the construction of community, perhaps at feasting events which have been proposed across this region during the Neolithic, which would have provided venues for the consumption of such ceramics alongside the transference of decorative schemes between villages. Wider comparisons with contemporary Neolithic wares in the surrounding Iranian region, as well as Mesopotamia, Anatolia and Central Asia are also drawn, linking the communities of Fars with wider Neolithic technologies and styles.

Exploiting recently-released files from the United Kingdom’s National Archives at Kew, this thesis is a case study of the complexities of engaging in diplomacy with a revolutionary regime – a regime that had come to power in a state with which there had previously been friendly co-operation and profitable commercial relations. Specifically, it analyses the evolution of the British diplomatic experience and especially the role played by British diplomats in dealing with Iran between 1978, when widespread discontent against the Shah made it clear that his pro-Western regime might not survive, through the revolution of 1979, the dawn of the Islamic Republic and the American embassy hostage crisis, until the end of 1981, by which time it was clear that Anglo-Iranian relations were mired in difficulties, with Britain conducting business via an ‘interests section’ under a protecting power, Sweden. The main purpose of this thesis is to investigate how well British diplomats performed as they conducted relations during a major revolution, against a highly uncertain backdrop, with Iranian domestic affairs in constant flux. Comparisons are made to the British experience of previous revolutions, especially those in France, Russia and China. In exploring the relationship and interactions between Britain and Iran, the thesis not only looks at how foreign policy towards Iran was shaped by the British government in London (particularly via the Foreign and Commonwealth Office), but also at how the British embassy, and later the interests section, in Tehran, helped to shaped policy at home while dealing with the grave uncertainties in Iran. To this end, in addition to looking at major international issues, like the fallout from the hostage crisis, the implications of the Iranian upheaval for the Cold War and the impact of the Iran- Iraq conflict, the thesis explores three major questions. In chronological order these are: the supposed failure of the embassy, under Sir Anthony Parsons, to predict the downfall of the Shah (where the thesis draws on works that discuss intelligence ‘surprises’); how diplomats at the embassy faced the upheaval in Tehran, during the revolution itself; and how the interests section was established and staffed, under Swedish protection. The thesis therefore combines some of the conventional focus of works of international history (such as political crises, war and trade) with questions that have arisen from the literature on diplomatic practice (such as the daily work of ambassadors, the value of interests sections as compared to embassies and interactions within the diplomatic corps).