Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2005. / Supervisor: Shernaz B. García. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--Liberty University, 2010. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (D. Ed. Min.)--Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 118-122).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Ohio University, November, 2003. / Title from PDF t.p. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 167-182)

Thesis (M.A.)--Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, South Hamilton, MA, 2003. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 11-13).

Thesis (M.A.)--Columbia Biblical Seminary and Graduate School of Missions, Columbia, S.C., 2000. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 149-154).

This research centres on the Balinese performance tradition known as topeng which translates as Balinese masked dance-drama. In Bali this genre is performed traditionally in spaces reserved for religious ceremonies. The research questions the extent to which, and how, it may be possible for a non-Balinese person to embody a culturally coded, sacred object (the mask) and how a woman is able to make meaning and express herself within a genre which is traditionally the preserve of men. The research has therefore sought to develop an individual and intercultural approach to both the design of new masks and their performance. The thesis critiques modes of cultural understanding in relation to notions of balance, based on colonial and dualistic trajectories between Bali and the UK. Alternative modes of exchange explore in-between and hybrid space that is informed by Lo and Gilbert’s dynamic model of intercultural practice which they visualise as a ‘spinning disc held by an elastic band’ (Gilbert and Lo 2002: 45). The key issues explored are notions of training; the relocation of ritual and the cultural specificities of ‘home’; mask-making and design; non-Balinese stories on which to base alternative performances of topeng, ones that more strongly position female characters; and finally the embodiment of Balinese masks from a traditional and also a somatic perspective. The practical form the research takes is through making masks and devising performances, the outcomes of which form a part of the thesis. The thesis both discusses and practically demonstrates how particular modes of embodiment, for instance cakra work, somatics and experiential anatomy may serve as strategies to communicate to a Western perspective how to bring ‘life’ to the mask, how to make it ‘work’ from a Balinese position and how these modes can assist in the process of intercultural (self) translation.

Taking into account the general approaches to ethics in the West, i.e. virtue ethics, deontological ethics and consequentialist ethics, aimed respectively at the agent, the act and the consequence, the study draws on Ricoeurian and Confucian concepts of reciprocity as the theoretical foundation for the development of the model. Ricoeurian reciprocity is employed for its theoretical strength in stressing reciprocity between equal parties while Confucian reciprocity is strong for its position on reciprocity between unequal parties, since translation tends to involve both equal parties and unequal participants. Confucian reciprocity is given more prominence because it does not preclude the possibility of a junzi-type role (junzi=jun zi/gentleman[-like]) on the part of the agents to work for larger missions or higher values even between unequal inter-actants for a higher reciprocity. As a highly complex area, translation ethics involves issues of texts, languages and cultures as well as individuals, collectivities and larger communities like nations. Good and evil can be done to them by translation and translators. Though efforts to undertake translation ethics have been intensive, a critical examination of the existent models and views finds that they are not comprehensive or effective enough to address the complex issues involved. The dissertation attempts to overcome this insufficiency by striving to formulate a more comprehensive model, a model with greater explanatory power, named the 'Ethics of Reciprocity in Translation' model. Reciprocity presupposes pairs of entities and parties while any translation project involves such pairs. In a translation project, there is the translator the agent, translating the process and translation the product, and the model of 'Ethics of Reciprocity in Translation' sees the undertakings of translation from the perspective of harm and benefits incurred in and by translation to the pairs of entities and parties involved in or affected by a translation project, covering all these three dimensions. Taking into account the general approaches to ethics in the West, i.e. virtue ethics, deontological ethics and consequentialist ethics, aimed respectively at the agent, the act and the consequence, the study draws on Ricoeurian and Confucian concepts of reciprocity as the theoretical foundation for the development of the model. Ricoeurian reciprocity is employed for its theoretical strength in stressing reciprocity between equal parties while Confucian reciprocity is strong for its position on reciprocity between unequal parties, since translation tends to involve both equal parties and unequal participants. Confucian reciprocity is given more prominence because it does not preclude the possibility of a junzi-type role (junzi=君子/gentleman[-like]) on the part of the agents to work for larger missions or higher values even between unequal inter-actants for a higher reciprocity. The study argues that the ethics of reciprocity in translation centres on a translation project, whereby active parties such as individual persons, collectivities and nations, and passive entities including texts, languages and cultures ought not to be harmed but rather mutually benefited. They constitute the content of the ethical reciprocity. To achieve such reciprocity, translators and other agents are faced with three general alternatives: not-translating, 'equivalent' translation and manipulated translation, depending on the text type and quality as well as the value the translation project aims to establish. The model thus developed is therefore dynamic, integrated and multi-layered, combining virtue ethics and principle ethics to cover a wider scope of whether to, what to and how to translate. This model of 'ethics of reciprocity in translation' is tested to three sets of cases for its validity and possibilities: cases of ethical reciprocity in translation, cases of ethical non-reciprocity in translation and cases where the model is not relevant. In each set, three examples of literary, semi-literary and non-literary texts are analysed respectively. Though not intended to apply in all translation projects, the model would hopefully make a valid and comprehensive one on the ethics of translation in general contexts.

Political recognition of the multicultural nature of Mexico has advanced the understanding of how people live together, as well as how they value and respect each other’s differences. The migration of indigenous populations from rural areas of the country to urban settings has transformed the cities, and also schools, into places of remarkable cultural diversity. This study examines the processes of identity formation of indigenous children in two urban schools in Jalisco, Mexico. By studying the processes of identity formation, I focus on understanding how indigenous children represent themselves within the wider social discourses and dynamics of power, which might be either reinforcing or limiting their opportunities to strengthen their ethnicity. By using an ethnographic approach, from a critical theory perspective, this study focus on listening to indigenous children’s voices, rather than the other voices and experiences within the school setting. The study was conducted in two schools in the municipality of Zapopan, in the State of Jalisco, Mexico. Over a period of 14 months, I conducted semi-structured interviews with 22 indigenous children, balanced by gender and age, from 4 different ethnic groups: Mazahua, Nahua, Purepecha, and Totonaco. I also interviewed 22 mestizo children, 10 teachers, 3 principals, and 7 parents. The schooling experiences of indigenous children are discussed in the study. Elements such as language use, territory (geographic and symbolic), family networks, and their attachment to their communities of origin were identified as the crucial factors for indigenous children to represent, or sometimes deny, themselves as being indigenous. The analysis also highlights the silences, racism, and ethnic blindness that indigenous children face in urban schools. Meritocratic educational approaches within neoliberal discourses of competition, individual effort, and autonomy were embedded in the children’s schooling experiences, thereby shaping their learner identities. This study seeks to contribute to the pursuit of providing indigenous children with educational services that recognise and reinforce their ethnic identity. It is also my objective that children’s voices open up a dialogue with those responsible for the educational and social policies, in order to create a common front that might challenge the racism veiled as indifference and/or a desire for ‘equality’ in Mexican urban schools.

Esta investigación identifica la percepción de la interculturalidad en un programa de educación comunitaria para líderes y lideresas sociales. Los participantes son 24 participantes del programa, 4 maestros y la responsable general; para el recojo de información se utilizó grupos focales y entrevistas a profundidad. Los resultados constatan que la concepción de interculturalidad se ha complejizado de acuerdo a cada nuevo contexto del programa, aunque aún se encuentra en proceso de continua reflexión y construcción con todos los actores de este programa. Algunos de los maestros entrevistados desarrollan en el aula estrategias educativas que promueven la afirmación de la identidad cultural y la interculturalidad, pero continúa siendo un desafío reflexionar con ellos entorno a la interculturalidad y lineamientos pedagógicos. Finalmente, las actividades educativas que se realizan fuera de clases resultan significativas para los participantes contribuyendo al reconocimiento del otro, el respeto a la diversidad y la construcción de un proyecto común. / Tesis