The aim of this bachelor thesis is to critically examine the relationship between the Swedish state and the indigenous Sámi people, with special attention to land-use conflicts. Throughout history, the Swedish state has subjected the Sámi people to severe violations of their human and indigenous rights, such as forced relocation and land acquisition. Because of the historical context, and because it has been used in previous research on the Swedish-Sámi situation, the thesis uses settler colonial theory. The method is Fairclough’s critical discourse analysis (CDA) on communicative events from the government, state-owned forest enterprises and Sámi actors. Three research questions guided the analysis: 1) How does the proposed law of consultations describe the possibility for Sámi influence? 2) Are the state owned forestry enterprises reproducing settler colonial power structures in Sápmi? 3) How do Sámi actors describe the state’s forest politics? The conclusions were that it is uncertain if the proposed law of consultations satisfies requirements of free and prior informed consent (FPIC) as they are formulated in international law. Furthermore, the state-owned forestry enterprise Sveaskog reproduces settler colonial structures with some of their statements, for example by relating to state ownership of land that was stolen from Sámi people as unproblematic. Lastly, Sámi actors mostly portray the state’s forest politics in a negative light, emphasizing how the space for reindeer husbandry is shrinking due to irresponsible forestry methods.

Marinmåleriet som genre i allmänhet, och dess undergenre skeppsporträttet i synnerhet har länge haft en marginaliserad ställning inom svensk konsthistorieskrivning. Genom att undersöka den svenske marinmålaren Pehr Wilhelm (P W) Cedergrens (1823-1896) skisser söker jag ta reda på utifrån vilka premisser svenska marinmålare under 1800-talets senare hälft. Detta gör jag genom att undersöka vilka motiv som förekommer i P W Cedergrens skisser, och hur konstnären skildrar fartyg i dessa. Fokus i undersökningen är Cedergrens skissbok från sin studieresa i samband med Världsutställningen i London 1851. Metoden för undersökningen är kvalitativa arkivstudier, där jag sedan utför formal- och kontextanalyser på mitt urval. Analysen av skisserna utförs med hjälp av sociolog och konstvetare Janet Wolffs marxistisk-inspirerade teorier om konst som social produktion. Uppsatsens analysdel består av Världsutställningens bakgrund, en historisk redogörelse för det västerländska marinmåleriets framväxt, en biografi över Cedergren, analyser av konstnärens skisser samt en avslutande diskussion. Resultatet av undersökningen visar dels att förutom fartyg avbildar Cedergren en mängd andra motiv såsom landskap, byggnader och människor. Dels visar undersökningen att Cedergrens avbildningar av fartyg i de analyserade skisserna ofta är präglade av tekniska aspekter, snarare än estetiska. Då dessa aspekter förekommer i en del av materialet är detta dock snarare avhängigt kontexten.

This thesis investigates the semantic values of the two concepts “smallholding” (Swe. “småbruk”) and “smallholder farmer” (Swe. “småbrukare”), as well their role and function as central concepts in the public debate about the “agricultural rationalisation” (Swe. “jordbrukets rationalisering”) reform initiated by the Swedish government together with industry actors in the late 1940s. Studying articles in the newspapers published by two Swedish farmers’ associations, as well as government documents and political pamphlets, I employ the concept of “temporalisation” developed by Reinhart Koselleck as part of his theory on conceptual history in order to identify implicit and biased expectations on “modernity” ruling against smallholding as a viable form of farming in the future. I also study how rationalisation advocates’ descriptions and opinions are contested in the writings of smallholder activists and practicians. I argue that the meanings and associations attributed to smallholding and its modus operandi in the late 1940s, strongly influenced by the “agricultural rationalisation” debate of the time, disqualified it from any modernising project on grounds that were oftentimes ideological rather than rational or factual. I further argue that a misunderstanding of the modus operandi and purpose of smallholder farming, prompted by the application of industrial concepts and ideals as well as undue comparisons with other trades and professions, exaggerated the poor socio-economic status of smallholder families. This resulted in a temporalisation of the “agricultural rationalisation” debate, depicting large-scale industrial agriculture as a thing of the future and smallholding as a thing of the past.

The modern society’s increasing focus on individualization and development of identity can imply new challenges for the individual. The importance of personal branding together with people's social media use gives employers the opportunity to analyze social media platforms in order to form a perception of the candidates. In that way, cybervetting emphasizes the importance of a favorable self-presentation. Managing your social media and building your personal brand online can serve as a marketing strategy for potential job opportunities. Today, there are no directives or guidelines for how cybervetting may be performed. Although the concept of cybervetting and personal branding are relatively new, there is extensive previous research on the subject. Previous research emphasizes the importance of personal branding in the labor market and describes cybervetting as a debatable practice. The study aims to examine students' reasoning regarding the use of cybervetting in recruitment processes and whether it affects the student’s social media presence. The study is based on qualitative interviews with students studying a social science program at Örebro University. The theoretical framework consists of Zygmunt Bauman’s (2000, 2005, 2008) theories about the modern human and society. Furthermore, Goffman’s (1959, 2020) dramaturgical perspective on social interaction is applied. The results indicate an agreement between the students’ experiences and perceptions of the importance of personal branding on the labor market. The students are well aware of how they present themselves on social media and are united in the perception that self-presentation varies on different social platforms. / Det moderna samhällets allt större fokus på individualisering och identitetsskapande medför nya utmaningar för individen. Det personliga varumärkets betydelse i samband med människors användning av sociala medier ger möjlighet för arbetsgivare att undersöka sociala medier för att bilda sig en uppfattning av kandidater. Individers användning av sociala medier tillåter arbetsgivare att undersöka sociala medier för att bilda sig en uppfattning av kandidater. Nätgranskningar understryker på så sätt vikten av att framställa sig själv på ett fördelaktigt sätt. Att hantera sina sociala medier och forma sitt personliga varumärke online kan fungera som en marknadsföringsstrategi för potentiella arbetsmöjligheter. Idag finns inga direktiv eller riktlinjer för hur nätgranskningar får utföras. Trots att begreppen nätgranskning och personligt varumärke är relativt nya, finns det omfattande tidigare forskning kring ämnet. Tidigare forskning betonar vikten av det personliga varumärket på arbetsmarknaden och beskriver nätgranskning som en omtvistad praktik. Studiens syfte är att undersöka studenters inställning till nätgranskningens användning i rekryteringsprocesser och om det påverkar studenternas närvaro på sociala medier. Studien utgår från kvalitativa intervjuer med studenter som går ett samhällsvetenskapligt program på Örebro universitet. Det teoretiska ramverket består av Zygmunt Baumans (2000, 2005, 2008) teorier om den moderna människan och samhället. Vidare tillämpas även Goffmans (1959, 2020) dramaturgiska perspektiv om social interaktion. Studiens resultat tyder på att det finns en enighet bland studenternas upplevelser och uppfattningar av det personliga varumärkets betydelse på arbetsmarknaden. Studenterna är väl medvetna om hur de framställer sig själva på sociala medier och är eniga i uppfattningen att man framställer sig olika på olika sociala plattformar.

Denna kvalitativa studie syftar till att undersöka hur fenomenet Brand Communities skapas och upprätthålls inom det svenska modefältet. Brand Communities innebär en grupp människor som är sammankopplade på grund av ett gemensamt intresse kring samma varumärke. Studien inkluderar Brand Communities från tre varumärken inom olika segment vars konsumenter undersökts genom semistrukturerade intervjuer. Netnografiska observationer har följaktligen genomförts för att undersöka varumärkena samt deras konsumenter. De teoretiska ramverk som har tillämpats i analysen är Brand Community, Brand Loyalty, Brand Love, Lifestyle Marketing samt förtrollning. Resultatet tyder på att likasinnade människor befinner sig inom samma community. Där har historia och personifiering av varumärket möjligen lett till att medlemmarna i gemenskapen har identifierat sig med den livsstil varumärkena presenterar. Slutligen påvisas det att medlemmarna i ett community aktivt bidrar till att upprätthålla gemenskapen, detta genom att skapa och utveckla relationer med varandra. Då dessa gemenskaper bringar sammanhang och betydelse för människor kan Brand Communities skapa ett magiskt element och därigenom återförtrolla medlemmarnas liv. / This qualitative study aims to investigate how the phenomenon of Brand Communities is created and maintained in the Swedish fashion field. Brand Communities are a group of people who are connected due to a common interest in the same brand. The study includes Brand Communities from three brands in different segments whose consumers are investigated through semi-structured interviews. Netnographic observations have consequently been conducted to study the brands as well as their consumers. The theoretical framework that has been applied in the analysis are Brand Community, Brand Loyalty, Brand Love, Lifestyle Marketing and enchantment. The result indicates that like-minded people exist within the same community. The history and personification of the brand has possibly led to members of the community identifying with the lifestyle that the brands present. Finally, it is demonstrated that the members of a community actively contribute to maintaining the community. This by creating and developing relationships with each other. As these communities bring context and meaning to people, Brand Communities can create a magical element and thereby re-enchant members' lives.

How did the conformist “organization man” of modern welfare society turn into the restless and flexible market-rational individualist of late-modernity? And what role did technology play in this transformation? Drawing from inquiries like these, this doctoral thesis deals with topics such as technology, culture, and the production of social consciousness. The aim of the study is to elucidate the historical emergence of late-modern reason, visible in the socio-material process of automation. The study takes two mundane technical innovations as starting points to investigate dominant social values and rationalities embedded in, and emerging from material transformations in the production process of two late modern, Swedish organizations. Covering a period of roughly fifty years (1960–2013), the analysis relies on the interpretation of a variety of both contemporary and archived sources, including interviews, observations, witness accounts and archived material in the form of staff magazines, newspapers, photographs and official documents. While following a hermeneutical tradition of European ethnology the study is also an attempt to enrich its synchronous cultural analysis of everyday life with theory grounded in historical (dialectical) materialism. Along this line of thought the thesis suggests that many of the qualities, values and everyday experiences attributed to late-modernity, such as “flexibility”, “creativity” and “flat organizations” depend on the reification and embedding of modernist social forms, ideas and relations, such as instrumental rationality, routine labour and bureaucratic taxonomy into the material foundation of daily life.

Ungdomsarbetslöshet är idag ett omfattande samhällsproblem och ett vanligt förekommande debattämne i media. Studiens fokus ligger på hur livsvillkoren för fyra unga vuxna i åldrarna 24-26 år ser ut i relation till deras arbetslöshet, eller blivande arbetslöshet, med utgångspunkt i deras specifika livssituationer. Den teoretiska inramning som använts i studien är baserad på socialt kapital, symboliskt kapital, kulturellt kapital, habitus, livsstilar samt livsplaner. Kvalitativa intervjuer med de fyra unga vuxna, vilka samtliga har någon form av erfarenhet av arbetslöshet, utgör studiens utgångspunkt. I analysen läggs fokus på hur de påverkas av samt hanterar sin livssituation i förhållande till arbetslösheten. Analysen visar att de unga vuxna inget hellre vill än att få ett fast arbete men att de upplever att de på grund av samhälleliga begränsningar och brist på lämpligt nätverk har svårt att finna ett sådant. Framgick gjorde även att de unga vuxna ställer höga krav på sig själva i fråga om att skaffa ett arbete medan de har låga krav på hjälpinsatser från omgivningens sida. / Youth unemployment is a serious social problem and a widely discussed topic in media. The study focuses on the living conditions of four young adults between the ages of 24-26 in their capacity of being unemployed, or living with a risk of being unemployed in a near future, viewed from the life situations of the young adults. The theoretical framework of the study is based on social capital, symbolic capital, cultural capital, habitus, lifestyles and life-planning. The study is based on qualitative interviews with four young adults all having some form of experience of unemployment. In the analysis focus is given to explain how the informants discuss their life situation in relation to unemployment. The analysis shows that the informants want nothing more than to get a permanent job but experience that they due to social limitations and lack of appropriate networks are having trouble finding such. What also appeared was that the informants have high demands on themselves to find a job whilst they have low demands on support from surrounding people.

This essay analyses two swedish magazines about marriage, called "giftermålstidningar", from 1914 and 1924. With ideology as theoretical basis the subject matter is to find words and expressions of ideological influence in the source material. These influences is assumed to come from contemporary marriage laws, which expressed certain views about heterosexual relationships. In addition to the state's laws, the writers in the magazines is presumed to be influenced by other contemporary ideas. Either an older, christian tradition from brittish baptist Frederick Brotherton Meyer, or the swedish economist Knut Wicksell, who represents the Neo-Malthusian world view. This essay tries to dervie these traditions from the concerned magazines in an age of modernity and uncertainty.

The political discourse that has emerged as a consequence of establishing a European regulatory framework for GMOs has not been without problems. This dissertation addresses the political and regulatory challenges created by the development and use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in the EU. The underlying hypothesis in the dissertation is that the emergence of a European policy in the field of GMOs has appeared through new reflexive forms of governance. The aim of this research is to understand how these reflexive forms of regulation have emerged and operate within the EU, with a particular focus on the two GMO directives 90/220/EEC and 2001/18/EC. However, the study scrutinises the regulatory regimes from the 1970s onwards by investigating how the regulatory framework regarding GMOs has been developed and implemented in the EU. This is done through an analysis of the notion of ‘risk’ and the ‘precautionary principle’ since these concepts have been at the forefront of the GMO regulation debate. The empirical approach focuses on how the European Commission, the European Parliament and the European Council as well as other actors and institutions articulate ambivalence, interpretations and uncertainties in the decision-making processes regarding regulative measures for GMOs, with an accent on risk and the precautionary principle. The main empirical material has been documents concerning the inter-institutional process involved in the regulatory process of making the two directives. The analysis indicates that during the process of implementing GMO regulations, new steering strategies have appeared within the EU’s decision-making institutions when the objective of the regulation has taken centre stage in political and scientific controversies. / Den politiska diskursen som har uppstått som en följd av upprättandet av ett europeiskt regelverk för GMO har inte varit utan problem. Denna avhandling behandlar de politiska utmaningar som alstrats av skapandet och tillämpningen av genetiskt modifierade organismer (GMO) inom EU. Den underliggande hypotesen i avhandlingen är att framväxten av en europeisk politik på området för GMO har uppstått genom nya reflexiva regleringsformer. Syftet med denna forskning är att förstå hur reflexiva regleringsformer har uppkommit och opererar inom EU, med särskilt fokus på de två GMO direktiven 90/220/EEG och 2001/18/EG. Studien analyserar lagstiftning från 1970-talet och framåt genom att undersöka hur lagstiftningen om genetiskt modifierade organismer har utvecklats och implementerats i EU. Detta görs genom en analys av begreppen ‘risk’ och ‘försiktighetsprincipen’ eftersom dessa begrepp har varit centrala för debatten om GMO lagstiftningen. Den empiriska metoden fokuserar på hur Europeiska kommissionen, Europaparlamentet och Europeiska rådet samt andra aktörer och institutioner har uttryckt ambivalens, tolkningar och osäkerhet i beslutsfattandet gällande reglerings åtgärder för genetiskt modifierade organismer, med tonvikt på risk och försiktighetsprincipen. Det huvudsakliga empiriska materialet är dokument gällande den interinstitutionella processen som ägde rum när de två direktiven skapades. Analysen visar att implementeringen av GMO lagstiftningen har skapat nya styrningsstrategier i synnerhet i de fall där ändamålet med lagstiftningen har varit föremål för politiska och vetenskapliga kontroverser.

The focus of this essay lies on examining the modernistic aesthetics of prose in Thorsten Jonsson’s novel Konvoj (1947). When Walter Benjamin wrote ”The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction” he proved that new technological inventions affected the reception of art. By studying Konvoj in light of Benjamin’s theory, this study indicates that the technology of modernity affects the narrative and the use of metaphors in the novel. In addition I want to investigate how Konvoj can be studied through the theories of Marshall Berman, Theodor W. Adorno and Anthony Giddens, and this by envisioning the modernistic prose as a response to the 19th century modernity. This study illustrates that the style and the narrative aspects of the novel can be understood through modernity, and that the plot (and the characters) are all affected by it. The protagonist of the novel, Antoni Borowski, becomes an object when he is caught in a situation he can’t control, but also a subject when caught in situations he is capable of taking control of. The analysis shows that Konvoj is not only an innovative and an experimental novel in terms of its narrative, but also a novel in which the distinction between nature and culture affects the protagonist Borowski with confusion and alienation.