Currently the most influential accounts of personal autonomy, at least in the Englishspeaking world, focus on providing conditions under which agents can be said to exercise self-control. Two distinct accounts of personal autonomy have emerged in this tradition: firstly, hierarchical models grounded in the work of Harry Frankfurt; and secondly, systems division models most famously articulated by Gary Watson. In this thesis I show the inadequacies of both of these models by exploring the problematic views of the self and self-control underlying each model. I will suggest that the problems faced by these models stem from the fact that they endorse a problematic fragmentation of the self. I suggest that a Nietzschean account of personal autonomy is able to avoid these problems. The Nietzschean account can largely, I show, be drawn from Nietzsche’s understanding of both the ‘man of ressentiment’ and his opposite, the sovereign individual. On this picture wholeness of self – rather than fragmentation of the self – is required in order for us to be most fully autonomous. Furthermore, this wholeness of self requires the kind of integrity which is opposed to the problematic fragmentation endorsed by Frankfurt and Watson.

This study considers the visual representation of the alchemical idea of the philosopher’s stone (lapis philosophorum) in the Harry Potter films: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Columbus 2001), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Columbus 2002), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Cuaron 2004), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Newell 2005), andHarry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Yates 2007). The lapis philosophorum was believed to turn base metals into gold and produce an Elixir of Life. As such, it is envisioned as the ultimate alchemical idea, and this study emphasises how the lapis can function as a signifier for an alchemical worldview within the Harry Potter films. Because the concept and symbolism of the Harry Potter films is largely based on JK Rowling’s (1997; 1998; 1999; 2000; 2003; 2005; 2007) original novels, this study provides a detailed comparison of how alchemical imagery is used in the novels and contrasts this with the visual imagery of the films. This study undertakes a hermeneutic analysis of the transmission of alchemical ideals from the literary to the visual medium. It also provides a detailed analysis of interrelated visual icons in the Harry Potter films that represent the idea of the lapis as an embodiment of alchemical perfection. In addition, by studying the interplay between alchemical imagery in the Harry Potter novels and films, and comparing the worldviews represented by each, this study is able to analyse the dynamics of the hermeneutic process. This study concludes with a consideration of how alchemical theory relates to the discipline of hermeneutics, how it influences the process of interpretation, and ultimately the relationship between the alchemical worldview and current perspectives on authorship. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Visual Arts / unrestricted

The objective of the diploma paper is to outline the economic situation of the company O-I Sales and Distribution Czech Republic, Ltd. The initial effort was to lay down the economic theory. This section describes the methodics that are applied in the practical part of the diploma paper. The practical part is concentrated on four thematic sections: describtion of the company, financial analysis of the company, calculation of bankruptcy indicators, concretely the ratio ZETA from Prof. Altman and the index IN95 and the implementation of creditworthy indicators, namely the model of the vitality from Harry Pollak and the system Balanced Scorecard. Some deficiencies, solution and measures are than refered on the basis of this analysis. The confrontation of the applied methodologies is made at the close of the diploma paper.

"Storied Voices in Native American Texts: Harry Robinson, Thomas King, James Welch and Leslie Marmon Silko" approaches Native American literatures from within an interdisciplinary framework that complicates traditional notions o f literary "origins" and canon. It situates the discussion of Native literatures in a Native American context, suggesting that contemporary Native American writing has its roots in Native oral storytelling traditions. Each of these authors draws on specific stories and histories from his or her Native culture. They also draw on European elements and contexts because these are now part o f Native American experience. I suggest that Native oral tradition is already inherently novelistic, and the stories that lie behind contemporary Native American writing explicitly connect past and present as aspects o f current Native reality. Contemporary Native American writers are continuing an on-going and vital storytelling tradition through written forms. A comparison of the texts o f a traditional Native storyteller, Robinson, with the highly literate novels of King, Welch and Silko, shows how orally told stories connect with the process o f writing. Robinson's storytelling suggests how these stories "theorize" the world as he experiences it; the Native American novel continues to theorize Native experience in contemporary times. Native writers use culturally specific stories to express an on-going Native history. Their novels require readers to examine their assumptions about who is telling whose story, and the traditional distinctions made between fact and fiction, history and story. King's Green Grass. Running Water takes stories from Western European literary traditions and Judeao-Christian mythology and presents them as part of a Native creation story. Welch's novel Fools Crow re-writes a particular episode from history, the Marias River Massacre, from a Blackfeet perspective. Silko's Almanac of the Dead recreates the Mayan creation story o f the Popol Vuh in the context o f twentiethcentury American culture. Each of these authors maintains the dialogic fluidity of oral storytelling performance in written forms and suggests that stories not only reflect the world, but that they create it in the way that Robinson understands storytelling as a form of theory. / Arts, Faculty of / English, Department of / Graduate

How can a character from a children’s book become so divisive that he causes arguments amongst adults? This essay uses transactional reader response theory to explain the reason why the character Severus Snape from the Harry Potter book series by J.K. Rowling is so controversial. Applying notions from reader response theorists such as Rosenblatt and Iser together with earlier research on Snape will show how the reader’s opinion is affected by both the text itself and their own personal experience. A poll was created and posted on Facebook with over a thousand replies. This data is analysed and used to apply the theory on real examples. The conclusion of the essay is that Snape is both good and bad. He acts heroically but is also vindictive and petty. Snape is perhaps the most human of all Rowling’s characters and each reader recognises a little of themselves in him that they can relate to. Because of ongoing arguments regarding Snape readers have to constantly defend their opinion. As the opinion is re-evaluated it is also strengthened each time readers reconsider the story of Snape and, like Snape himself once asked Professor Quirrell to do, decide where their loyalties lie.

To be able to develop their reading skills, pupils need not only to practise but also to be willing to practise. Being enticed to read is therefore an important factor for the development of reading. Research has shown that part of the attraction of reading is that readers can recognize themselves in the different constituents of a book, for example being able to identify with characters and finding the setting plausible. The books about Harry Potter have enticed many young people all over the world to read, and the question of what this attraction consists of is an interesting one, especially with regard to the fact that the books have many elements of magic and seemingly alien elements. The aim of this study is to investigate and reveal potential opportunities for self-recognition offered to the reader by the Harry Potter books. The study consists of a textual analysis focusing on Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. The study shows that both books offer the reader multiple opportunities for self-recognition, which can be linked to factors such as the reader’s emotional participation and the motifs in the books.

Dieser Beitrag möchte Reflexionen über ein prominentes Beispiel der Kinder- und Jugendliteratur anhand des Zauberlehrlings Harry Potter mit seinen Geschichten und magischen Welten vorstellen. Die britische Autorin Joanne Kathleen Rowling hat im Jahr 1990 den Zauberschüler Harry Potter erfunden. Aus dem Blickwinkel von Hauptfiguren im Alter von Kindern und Jugendlichen beschreibt Rowling das Angesicht einer überraschenden, aufregenden und faszinierenden aber auch ungleichen, in sich zerrissenen und auseinanderdriftenden Schule und ihrer Umwelt – diese Welt wirkt wie ein Spiegel unserer Zeit und vielleicht ist genau deshalb Harry Potter als Bildungsromanreihe so erfolgreich.

Denna uppsats studerar vilka åsikter och attityder Wattpad läsare uttrycker gällande Anna Todds två huvudkaraktärer från fanfiction berättelsen After. Läsarna kommunicerar genom läsarkommentarerna i fanfiction-versionen och frågeställningen besvaras genom att studera utvalda kommentarer i kommentars sektionen. Analysen fokuserar på att studera vilka attityder läsarna uttrycker samt om de distanserar sig eller sympatiserar med huvudkaraktärerna. De huvudsakliga teorierna för studien handlar om textuniversum, receptionsteori och romance. Metoden är närläsning. Uppsatsen visar hur det bildas olika tolkningsgrupper och fangemenskaper som stödljer olika åsikter, normer och attityder.

By way of five microhistories focusing on the lives of Cecelia Davies Sylvester, Hannah Director, Leon Koerner, Harry Adaskin, and Nathan Nemetz, this study examines various modes of integration for Jews within particular periods of British Columbian (BC) history. Each microhistory explores the boundaries that were crossed and fostered by Jews whose careers and social contributions led them outside the confines of the established Jewish community. These Jews represent the vanguard of Jewish integration for each era to which they contributed.

History gives Harry S. Truman rightful merit for his help in establishing Jewish homeland in 1948. Although more than 63 years have passed since the declaration of Israeli independence, the true motives that lead President Truman to recognize Israel are still being discussed and disputed. Shortly after his inauguration in April 1945, the thirty-third president found himself in a difficult position when a majority of the Jews who had survived Nazi concentration camps could not or did not want to return to their countries of origin. Instead, they declared their wish to emigrate to Palestine, where Zionists had already been trying to establish a Jewish commonwealth. However, at that time there was a widespread uncertainty whether Franklin Delano Roosevelt's successor would have the same opinion about the post-World War II settlement in Palestine or not. It is the objective of this thesis to analyze the complex set of reasons that made President Truman support political Zionism. As we know, this process ultimately culminated with a prompt recognition of a newly established Jewish state. To answer the question what was the main reason behind this decision, domestic and external factors the president had to consider will be examined. The emphasis will be placed on American military and economic interests...