This diploma thesis A Gender Analysis of Selected Novels of Miloš Urban researches two concrete literary texts, novels Sedmikostelí and Lord Mord, which are analysed from gender perspective. By using two methods, feminist "resisting reading" and discursive analysis, there are uncovered various ways of female's characters construction, which are put in the social and cultural context. Theoretically the work is patterned on Judith Fetterley's concept, which was created during second wave of feminism, and it is connected to new poststructuralist and deconstructivist approaches. In this theses literature is perceived as space of impressing and encountering different discourses. Senses, categories and relations, incuding gender relations, are deconstructed in this space. This theses's core is the analysis of different categories and forms of femininity, which are reproduced in Urban's texts. It tries to show the possibility to read literary text "against the hair" and to not succumb to its interpellations. In this way it stresses personality of reading individual and his/her ability to complete/reshape text during every single process of reading and to produce new senses and categories. Keywords: feminism, gender analysis, Lord Mord, Sedmikostelí, Urban Miloš, resisting reading, women characters

This thesis discusses the contrasting publication and reception histories of Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre (1847) and Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights (1847) and the complex role of Victorian gender norms in shaping those histories. In addition, the thesis examines the interplay between the Brontes’ works and their dialogues with Victorian gender norms and expectations of women on the creation of modern intertextual interpretations such as the Twilight (2005) and Fifty Shades of Grey (2011) novel series. The publication histories of Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights can be best understood in relation to the social context provided by the gender norms and pressures that governed (or sought to govern) women’s behavior during the nineteenth century. Emily and Charlotte’s novels both opposed these gendered social norms to varying degrees but received widely different receptions during their lifetimes. Emily’s text was relatively negatively received and Charlotte attained literary success. An analysis and discussion of the interplay between their publication histories, the social norms and pressures that shaped those histories, and contemporary responses to the main female and male characters in their novels, Catherine Earnshaw, Heathcliff, Edgar Linton, Jane Eyre, and Mr. Rochester, can shed light on their opposing receptions. In addition, this thesis explores how a gendered analysis of the effect of Victorian social norms and pressures on these texts and their receptions illuminates how modern appropriations by popular series novels Twilight and Fifty Shades of Grey interpret anew the gender tropes the Brontes explored in their narratives. The characters in these novels, this thesis argues, follow a comparably gendered pattern of behavior in comparison to their literary predecessors. This thesis reads the female and male characters created by E.L. James and Stephenie Meyer for the ways they echo both the characterizations in the Bronte novels and the social and gendered pressures to which they conform. The connected characterization highlights female self-consciousness, morality and sexual innocence, and a desire for wealthy dominant male partners with sexual and emotional dysfunction. Finally, it is important to place this discussion within the wider cultural narrative that includes contemporary cultural engagement with these ‘popular’ interpretations of the Brontes’ work as a piece that fits into the larger archive of women’s culture.

This thesis reviews the participation of Tłı̨chǫ women in the environmental assessment (EA) of the NICO project proposed by Fortune Minerals Limited. Undertaken in 2012 in the Northwest Territories, this particular EA saw a precedential engagement between traditional knowledge and western science. Although this EA did not take a gendered approach, Tłı̨chǫ women’s stories and participation in the EA supported the Tłı̨chǫ Government’s interests throughout the review process and in the final mitigation measures. Predominate scholarship does not typically cast Indigenous women as participants in or beneficiaries of EAs and resource extraction projects. Results from this thesis support more recent scholarship that urges for an ethnographic and contextual analysis of each scenario. Ethnographic methods helped me to reveal the culturally specific, diverse and complex ways Tłı̨chǫ women participated and shared their stories in the Fortune Minerals EA. Tłı̨chǫ women’s stories, I found, were important and relevant to the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board’s assessment of the potential social and ecological impacts of the NICO project. I conclude that this EA is exemplary of Indigenous women’s agency within a regulatory process and offer suggestions for how to incorporate a gender-based analysis into future EA processes. / Graduate / 0733 / 0326 / janellek@uvic.ca

Despite New Zealand receiving the number one ranking for ease of doing business in a major international comparative survey of compliance requirements, SME owners continue to rate compliance as a significant concern. This research project set out to investigate why this was so. The qualitative research undertaken for this thesis involved case study interviews with six SME owners. A resource-based approach was taken, looking at the resources SME owners needed to address the compliance task, and how they sourced and applied these. The scope of the study extended beyond the confines of the workplace to encompass the impact of compliance on the personal lives of SME owners and their families. Firkin’s model of entrepreneurial capital was applied and extended. Accordingly, the study encompassed an examination of economic, human, social, cultural and personal capital. An original concept, temporal capital, was developed to address the application of ‘potentially productive time’ as a resource. The findings are applied to a discussion of the Quality Regulation Review currently underway in New Zealand. It is recommended that SME issues could be more comprehensively addressed by incorporating screens within the Business Cost Calculator that estimate the relative psychic and opportunity costs associated with proposed regulations. A gender analysis of the compliance task was also undertaken. This revealed that the impact of compliance measures may be disproportionately borne by those whose business and personal lives are intertwined, primarily women. The invisibility of these workers has contributed to their needs being inadequately addressed by traditional processes of consultation and data analysis. The thesis concludes that it is not the regulatory regime alone that determines ease of doing business. It is the match between the requirements of the regime and the compliance-related entrepreneurial capital accessible to those subject to it. Recommendations relate therefore, to improving both the institutional capital of the regulator and the compliance-related entrepreneurial capital accessible to the SME.

In this study, I have focused on the process for an eventual reunification of North and South Korea. In this process, Korean political, economic, cultural and religious issues are necessarily present. My study focuses on cultural and religious factors. I adopt the German reunification as a case study. The German reunification process provides Koreans with lessons about the negative changes in the status of German women since the German reunification caused extreme instances of the loss of status and economic opportunity for women. German reunification shows that the unequal situation and systems in society were not only due to political positions. Strong religious factors deeply influenced the German mentality. A similar religion-factor is at work in North Korean society which is influenced by Confucianism and in South Korean society which is influenced by Confucianism and conservative Christianity. I argue that religion is one of the major factors in the political culture of Korea, and religion can either assist a fair and equal process for both women and men or it can in a biased way maintain a male-oriented form of reunification. Consequently, the cultural and religious factors in this process of reunification must include an equalization of women and men. This can only take place if Korean women are major participants in the entire reunification process. There is a serious need for a reunification theology which incorporate gender into Korean theology, thus providing a 'feminist reunification theology.' A 'feminist reunification theology' presents basic theological principles that will help build an egalitarian community. There are three important ways to include women's concern for true reunification: 1) The creation of an egalitarian community in work, family and society; 2) The restoration of humanity by healing love and forgiveness through the power of Cross; and 3) The need for religion to be reformed in which a women can be a co-leader in family, church and nation.

Abstract This thesis investigates the extent to which gender considerations are being incorporated into the planning and policy making of the public transport system in Queensland, Australia. Using public transport in South East Queensland (SEQ) as a case study, this thesis analyses why and how gender issues are still being overlooked and excluded from mainstream planning. It investigates the application of a gender analysis approach in theory and practice and provides recommendations for integrating a gender perspective in the development of public transport policy. The study is beneficial in terms of making contributions to promote better understanding of how feminist theory could enhance the development of public transport policy. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods were employed. Participants were selected from different demographic groups (politicians, bureaucrats, academics, women’s subgroups and individuals from the broader community) using theoretical/purposive sampling methods. The collection and analysis of data were guided by feminist sociological theory as a framework and gender analysis was utilised in reviewing transport research, policies, programs, plans and legislation. The thesis findings showed that there are gender differentiated behaviours between men and women in relation to their transport needs. In particular, the manner in which men and women behave is linked to an array of underlying factors such as gender relations, the social role of women and their personal circumstances, household structure, transport-disadvantage issues, and their broader socio-economic environment. The research noted that gaps exist in the current public transport delivery in SEQ. Three main categories of issues were identified namely key gender issues, gender-obscured issues and gender-neutral issues. The key gender issues included personal safety and security, time-space pressured travel, lack of adequate facilities, driver’s knowledge, skills and attitudes, mobility-constraint issues and features of public transport that have gender impacts. The gender-obscured issues included language difficulty, cost and infrequency of service. The gender-neutral issues included but not limited to public transport design, unequal distribution of transport services and impacts specific to areas outside the TransLink network. The research highlights how the issues interlock with the social, economic, cultural, structural and political factors of the environment in which women and men live. The thesis concludes that there is a lack of effective engagement with women, and that greater attention to gender consideration in developing public transport policies is required. While Queensland State Government has made a commitment to improving public transport provision for women, it appears that such rhetoric has not yet been translated into practice. The research also noted that the practicality and political implications of transport policy seem to obtain a higher priority in decision-making domains than gender considerations. Failure to examine both ends of the gender continuum in service delivery will make more difficult the development of public transport policy as a gender-sensitive social policy. Furthermore, public transport policy making should not be undertaken in isolation from other planning activities. Other considerations outside the traditional planning approach have to be examined, so planners will have a greater appreciation of, not only the needs of the conventional public transport users, but also of those not belonging to this category including different subgroups of women. Policy planning often overlooks the construction of women as an homogenous category, without considering that they are a heterogeneous group with tremendous differences in age, ethnicity, religion and class, thus requiring different considerations for policy intervention. Policy planning has been constructed as an exercise with a focus on a narrowly defined scope and immediate concerns, paying little attention to long-term impacts on a broader and holistic level. The consideration of gender in transport planning is a case in point – gender considerations are important in transport planning not only because there are significant differential impacts between men and women, but also because in the long run, these impacts in turn will have great economic and social implications. Economically, the lack of consideration of gender issues in public transport often results in increased travel time for women, leading to loss in productivity for the economy. Socially, difficulties and inaccessibility of public transport for women, particularly in relation to performing and balancing their care and work duties could also lead to increased stress and tensions, affecting family relations and wellbeing, would also incur considerable social costs. Policy planning tends to assume the position of policy makers and rarely considers the policy impacts from a user or benefactor perspective. In the case of public transport planning, how best an experiential perspective rigorously incorporate the users and gender point of view, will require not only consultation but also political will and commitment. A true incorporation of gender consideration into public transport planning will also require the support of other social policies including welfare policies. Hence, the thesis argues that new ways of researching, designing and planning for public transport as a gendered set of practices are required. Keywords public transport planning, gender-sensitive policy, gender equity, women and transport, feminism and transport planning, gender analysis, policy development, and feminist sociology. Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classifications (ANZSRC) 120506 - Transport Planning (40%); 160512 - Social Policy (20%); and 169901 - Gender Specific Studies (40%).

Abstract This thesis investigates the extent to which gender considerations are being incorporated into the planning and policy making of the public transport system in Queensland, Australia. Using public transport in South East Queensland (SEQ) as a case study, this thesis analyses why and how gender issues are still being overlooked and excluded from mainstream planning. It investigates the application of a gender analysis approach in theory and practice and provides recommendations for integrating a gender perspective in the development of public transport policy. The study is beneficial in terms of making contributions to promote better understanding of how feminist theory could enhance the development of public transport policy. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods were employed. Participants were selected from different demographic groups (politicians, bureaucrats, academics, women’s subgroups and individuals from the broader community) using theoretical/purposive sampling methods. The collection and analysis of data were guided by feminist sociological theory as a framework and gender analysis was utilised in reviewing transport research, policies, programs, plans and legislation. The thesis findings showed that there are gender differentiated behaviours between men and women in relation to their transport needs. In particular, the manner in which men and women behave is linked to an array of underlying factors such as gender relations, the social role of women and their personal circumstances, household structure, transport-disadvantage issues, and their broader socio-economic environment. The research noted that gaps exist in the current public transport delivery in SEQ. Three main categories of issues were identified namely key gender issues, gender-obscured issues and gender-neutral issues. The key gender issues included personal safety and security, time-space pressured travel, lack of adequate facilities, driver’s knowledge, skills and attitudes, mobility-constraint issues and features of public transport that have gender impacts. The gender-obscured issues included language difficulty, cost and infrequency of service. The gender-neutral issues included but not limited to public transport design, unequal distribution of transport services and impacts specific to areas outside the TransLink network. The research highlights how the issues interlock with the social, economic, cultural, structural and political factors of the environment in which women and men live. The thesis concludes that there is a lack of effective engagement with women, and that greater attention to gender consideration in developing public transport policies is required. While Queensland State Government has made a commitment to improving public transport provision for women, it appears that such rhetoric has not yet been translated into practice. The research also noted that the practicality and political implications of transport policy seem to obtain a higher priority in decision-making domains than gender considerations. Failure to examine both ends of the gender continuum in service delivery will make more difficult the development of public transport policy as a gender-sensitive social policy. Furthermore, public transport policy making should not be undertaken in isolation from other planning activities. Other considerations outside the traditional planning approach have to be examined, so planners will have a greater appreciation of, not only the needs of the conventional public transport users, but also of those not belonging to this category including different subgroups of women. Policy planning often overlooks the construction of women as an homogenous category, without considering that they are a heterogeneous group with tremendous differences in age, ethnicity, religion and class, thus requiring different considerations for policy intervention. Policy planning has been constructed as an exercise with a focus on a narrowly defined scope and immediate concerns, paying little attention to long-term impacts on a broader and holistic level. The consideration of gender in transport planning is a case in point – gender considerations are important in transport planning not only because there are significant differential impacts between men and women, but also because in the long run, these impacts in turn will have great economic and social implications. Economically, the lack of consideration of gender issues in public transport often results in increased travel time for women, leading to loss in productivity for the economy. Socially, difficulties and inaccessibility of public transport for women, particularly in relation to performing and balancing their care and work duties could also lead to increased stress and tensions, affecting family relations and wellbeing, would also incur considerable social costs. Policy planning tends to assume the position of policy makers and rarely considers the policy impacts from a user or benefactor perspective. In the case of public transport planning, how best an experiential perspective rigorously incorporate the users and gender point of view, will require not only consultation but also political will and commitment. A true incorporation of gender consideration into public transport planning will also require the support of other social policies including welfare policies. Hence, the thesis argues that new ways of researching, designing and planning for public transport as a gendered set of practices are required. Keywords public transport planning, gender-sensitive policy, gender equity, women and transport, feminism and transport planning, gender analysis, policy development, and feminist sociology. Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classifications (ANZSRC) 120506 - Transport Planning (40%); 160512 - Social Policy (20%); and 169901 - Gender Specific Studies (40%).

Ce travail se concentre sur la place et le statut des femmes dans l’économie informelle. Qu’est ce qui donne à ces femmes l’élan et le courage de travailler dans des conditions précaires et défavorisées ? Quelles sont les caractéristiques distinctives des stratégies dont elles s’inspirent transcender leur position structurellement défavorisée au sein de l’économie ? Quelles sont les barrières auxquelles elles continuent de se heurter dans leurs efforts en vue de lutter contre les injustices de la société ? Afin de répondre à ces interrogations, nous avons réalisé en 2012 une enquête représentative auprès d’un échantillon de 1016 ménages dans la wilaya de Béjaia, parmi 783 femmes actives, un tiers des occupées exerce dans l’informel. L’analyse en coupe instantanée des données de l’enquête met en évidence l’hétérogénéité du secteur informel féminin (diversité des activités, raisons et niveau d’informalité variable, disparités salariales à l’égard des femmes). Celui-ci apparaît ni prépondérant, ni marginal. Nous distinguons deux groupes de femmes informelles, celles ayant des activités de subsistance et celles qui sont juste capables de satisfaire leurs besoins de base. L’analyse multidimensionnelle a permis de cerner différentes typologies de celles-ci (les travailleuses à domicile : couturières, les sous-traitantes de produits alimentaires, les nourrices, les coiffeuses…). L’éducation limitée, le manque de qualification, la richesse du ménage et les normes sociales jouent un rôle important dans l’intégration des femmes au marché du travail informel. Ces facteurs d’ordre économique et socioculturel accréditent l’idée de l’existence d’un secteur informel de survie pour les femmes et mettent en lumière leur rôle de reproduction sociale et non d’accumulation. / This work focuses on the position of women working in the informal economy. What gives these women the momentum and the courage to work in precarious and poor conditions? What are the distinctive features of the strategies that inspired them transcend their structurally disadvantaged position in the economy? What are the barriers they continue to face in their efforts to fight against society's injustices? To answer these questions, we conducted in 2012 a representative survey with a sample of 1016 households in the wilaya of Bejaia; among 783 women employed, one third exert informal activities. The cross-sectional analysis of the survey highlighted the heterogeneity of women in the informal sector. It appears that it is neither leading nor marginal. We distinguish two groups of informal women, those with subsistence activities and those who can barely meet their basic needs. Multivariate analysis identified different categories (homeworkers: dressmakers, sub-contracting food providers, nurses, hairdressers). Poor education, lack of qualifications, household wealth and the social norms play an important role in the integration of women in the informal labor market. These economic and socio cultural factors support the idea of the existence of an informal sector of survival for women and emphasize their role regarding social reproduction, not accumulation.

The subject of this thesis (Images of femininity and masculinity in Ještěd novels by Karolína Světlá) is a gender analysis of selected prose of Karolína Světlá, focused specifically on the works such as Vesnický román, Kříž u potoka, Frantina, Kantůrčice and Nemodlenec. The theoretical part presents basic principles, approaches and methods of the feminist literary theory including concepts focused on analyses of power and domination out of which I mostly use the work by Pierre Bourdieu. The theoretical part also contains positioning the writer's work within the literary-historical context and introducing source texts. The core of the thesis is a gender analysis based on my interpretation of texts and the method of resistant reading that concentrates on specific gender aspects in the entire series of works - the subject of my interest is creating masculinity and femininity (including gender attributes and roles or myths and archetypes), narration of the story from a gender perspective, forms of motherhood and fatherhood, topics of power, violence and sexuality. Attention is also paid to the motives of a victim or romantic love. Not only was this part greatly inspired by the work of foreign authors (Bourdieu, Beauvoir, Pratt), but also by many Czech studies and books applying approaches of the...

<p>Land use change is a major cause of degradation to freshwater ecosystems. Excess nutrients and toxins, physical infrastructure, and habitat removal can lead to deleterious impacts on water quality, flooding, and biological integrity. The overarching inquiry of this dissertation was to assess how social and ecological dimensions of stormwater interact to influence stormwater and its management. A three-part study was conducted to investigate the ecological and social dynamics of aquatic ecosystems. In part one, I investigated the impacts of urbanization on stream metabolism— a fundamental ecological process. The proliferation of inexpensive water quality sensors has allowed researchers to investigate stream functional processes at a high temporal resolution. I used high-resolution dissolved oxygen data to estimate gross primary production (GPP) and ecosystem respiration (ER) across 12 urban creeks in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA. I used descriptive statistics and regression models to investigate the influence of light, temperature, and hydrological disturbances on GPP and ER. The results demonstrate that urbanization shifts metabolic regimes towards highly productive summers with substantial declines in GPP following summer storm events. My research shows that ER is associated with water temperature and is resistant to hydrological disturbances. These findings have management implications because as summer heat and storms intensify with climate change, my work suggests that stream organisms will become more vulnerable to scour and hypoxia.</p><p> </p><p>In part two, I conducted a systematic literature review to identify salient social norms impacting water quality best management practice (BMP) adoption across urban and rural lands. Furthermore, I synthesized situational factors that mobilize and reproduce social norms associated with BMP adoption. The results demonstrate that social norms create expectations for conventional farming practices and manicured residential lawns, as well as a social responsibility for neighborly cohesion and environmental stewardship. Social norms supporting water quality BMPs were fostered during times of management uncertainty and in response to social sanctions and benefits. I found that social norms supporting water quality BMPs were more readily mobilized when supported by key community leaders, knowledge brokers, and institutional actors.</p><p> </p><p>In part three, I examined if and how an individual’s race, gender, and education level shape one’s concern about and willingness to participate in stormwater management. Stormwater risks can be immediate burdens and at times life-threatening for marginalized people because environmental injustices based on race, gender, and class can dictate exposure to and recovery from environmental risks like flooding and water pollution. Although marginalized groups bear the brunt of environmental risks, they are not likely to be perceived by others as highly concerned about the environment. I investigated differences, if any, in peoples’ willingness to participate in stormwater management based on their race, gender, and educational level by analyzing community opinion surveys in Charlotte, North Carolina. Results suggest that socially marginalized individuals are more concerned about creek flooding than others and subsequently more likely to participate in conservation behaviors. This analysis calls attention to how adverse environmental conditions may shape the perspectives of those experiencing them and facilitate a greater willingness to engage in conservation practices. Collectively, this dissertation highlights the interconnectedness of human and ecological drivers of function and resilience in aquatic freshwater ecosystems with implications for future directions of freshwater management that prioritize social equity and sustain social infrastructures.</p>