This MA thesis provides a close analysis of William Faulkner's most famous short story, "A Rose for Emily." The focus the thesis is motivated by what I take to be the central theme of the short story: community and its functioning. Shifting the focus from the main character to the narrator, I want to "rectify" the perception of the short story which owns its renown largely to its "shocking" or "gothic" aspect. The utilized methodology is chosen with respect to the proposed interpretation. The prism through which the text is approached is narratology. To account for the peculiar narrator of "A Rose for Emily," I use the narratological framework of "collective narrative" ("we narration"). Another important theoretical framework introduced in order to interpret the short story is the interdisciplinary concept of "collective memory." Some sociological conceptions of community are discussed. In the introductory chapter, I mainly discuss the concept of person in narrative and argue against the traditional distinction between first and third person narratives. In the second chapter, I provide an introduction to the technique of collective narrative. The third chapter provides a close reading of "A Rose for Emily" in the context of collective narrative. Firstly, I identify the narrator as essentially...

Title: Czechoslovak and Czech tennis players at the Grand Slam tournaments Objectives: Diploma thesis is divided into two chapters. The aim of the first chapter is to make a comprehensive and valuable overview of the historical development of the greatest tennis tournaments called the Grand Slam from the very beginning until the present. The second part of this thesis focuses on Czechoslovak and Czech men's and women's tennis players who achieved the greatest success in these tournaments. Methods: I used historiographical method in my diploma thesis. Other methods used in this thesis are based on this method. In the first chapter, which is focused on the Grand Slam tournaments, I applied mostly progressive method which captures events from the past until the present. In the second chapter, which is aimed at Czechoslovak and Czech players, I used biographical and chronological methods. Results: Czechoslovak and Czech tennis players have been the most successful at Wimbledon, they have won there fourteen times. Wimbledon is followed by French Open with ten victories. Fewest victories have achieved our players at Australien Open and US Open. Among men, Ivan Lendl was the most successful in the men's single with eight victories at the Grand Slam tournaments. Among women, Martina Navrátilová dominated...

Master of Science / Department of Grain Science and Industry / Sajid Alavi / The objective of the study was to investigate extrusion as an alternative processing method and grain sorghum as a viable substitute for corn in fortified blended foods (FBFs) used in nutrition and food assistance programs around the world. In the first part of this study, sorghum-soy blend (SSB), corn-soy blend (CSB) and whole corn-soy blend (WCSB) were developed using extrusion and compared with traditional CSB13 for physico-chemical and sensory properties. After milling of extrudates, average particle size (PS) ranged between 341-447 microns, with 78-85% below 600 microns. In general, Bostwick flow rates (VB=12-23 cm/min) of rehydrated blends (11.75% solids) were within standard specifications but higher than CSB13. Descriptive sensory analysis indicated that the sorghum-based rehydrated blends were significantly less lumpy and had a more uniform texture as compared to corn-based blends and CSB13. In the second part, the impact of decortication level and process conditions was investigated with respect to sorghum-based extruded blends. Degree of gelatinization of the whole sorghum-soy blend (WSSB) and decorticated sorghum-soy blend (DSSB) extrudates ranged from 93-97%. Expansion ratio (ER=3.6-6.1) was correlated with specific mechanical energy input (SME=145-415 kJ/kg; r=0.99) and average particle size after milling (PS=336-474 microns; r= -0.75). Rehydrated blends at 20% solids concentration provided recommended energy density (0.8 kcal/g) for FBFs. Bostwick flow rates had high correlation (r = -0.91) with pasting data (final viscosity) obtained using rapid visco analyzer (RVA). Addition of oil (5.5%) prior to extrusion was also studied, and resulted in process instabilities and also lower shelf-life as determined via descriptive sensory analysis (rancid and painty attributes) and gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (hexanal, heptenal and octanal concentrations). In conclusion, extruded sorghum-soy blends met standard specifications for energy density and consistency (Bostwick flow rate), and were superior in some aspects as compared to extruded corn-soy blends and traditional corn-soy blends (CSB13). Relationships between extrusion mechanical energy input, expansion, particle size after milling and consistency of rehydrated blends were established. Consistency of the rehydrated blends is an extremely important criterion as it affects the ease of ingestion by target consumers (children below 5 years, in this case).

This thesis asks why the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) continues to exist and remain relevant in the defence of North America following the disappearance of the threat of the Soviet Union at the end of the Cold War. This thesis argues that NORAD’s binational nature is key to understanding the command’s continued role in continental defence. By employing the international relation theories of functionalism and neoliberal institutionalism as a lens of analysis to understand binational defence cooperation, NORAD’s origins as a binational defence command tasked with the air defence of North America, and its acquisition of its responsibilities for drug interdiction, the continental interior, and for maritime warning are analyzed. NORAD’s longevity and continued relevance can be attributed to the command’s binational nature, which has allowed the command to focus on and institutionalize specific functional-technical solutions to select issues of mutual concern in continental defence and security for Canada and the U.S. / May 2016

As produções teóricas sobre os países pobres fundamentam a compreensão dessas nações seus problemas e os meios de solucioná-los em uma determinada representação do que seriam essas regiões do globo. Nesse sentido, é possível perceber que o próprio método científico para se abarcar o objeto, a possibilidade de se pensar em progresso, os termos desse progresso, tudo isso está baseado em uma determinada representação do que define esse atraso. A partir dessa perspectiva, esta dissertação analisa a transformação nos termos representacionais utilizados pela teoria do desenvolvimento político que foi produzida nos Estados Unidos durante as décadas de 1950 e 1960. Esta teoria é um objeto especialmente qualificado de estudo por haver se afastado, durante a década de 1960, da representação econômica e ter inserido de forma privilegiada os termos da insegurança, instabilidade e da ordem. Além de destrinchar essas transformações teóricas esta dissertação intenta ainda compreendê-las no interior do contexto de que fazem parte. Tal perspectiva não pretende entender as características desta produção teórica meramente como reflexo direto de interesses econômicos e políticos, mas principalmente verificar como as idéias incluindo aqui as formulações teóricas são importantes articulações que delimitam uma determinada forma de representar ou compreender o entorno social e político e, com isso, guiam as ações que são dirigidas a esse entorno. / Theoretical literature on poor countries uses as a base for its comprehension of these nations their problems and how to solve them a certain representation of what these regions of the globe would be. Accordingly, it is possible to observe that the scientific method itself used to grasp the object, the possibility of thinking about progress and the terms of this progress, are all based on a certain representation of what defines this backwardness. From this perspective, this dissertation analyzes this transformation in the representational terms used by the theory of political development that was produced in the United States during the 1950s and 1960s. This theory is a specially qualified object of study, because during the 1960s, it moved away from an economic representation and inserted, in a privileged manner, aspects of insecurity, instability and order. Besides untangling these theoretical transformations, this dissertation intends furthermore to understand them within their own context. This perspective implies not just in an understanding of the characteristics of this theoretical literature merely as a direct reflection of economical and political interests, but mainly to verify how ideas - including their theoretical formulations - are important articulations that delimit a certain form of representing or understanding our social and political surroundings and, with this, guide actions that are directed to these surroundings.

Due to the fact that corporate environmental reporting (CER) is largely voluntary and unregulated, practice has evolved in the absence of a meaningful conceptual framework. This lack of a normative theory stating what should be the content of CER as well as the methods for measuring reported information being largely volumetric or content based, is advanced as a major limitation in the existing literature. In this study, the wellestablished conceptual frameworks for financial reporting are adapted as the basis for a CER conceptual framework in which four characteristics of CER indicate its quality. Empirical methods for the measurement of such characteristics are also adapted from the financial reporting literature. The main aim of this research is to use the adapted framework to examine the extent of variation in the quality of CER and then to test its applicability to the key motivational theories. The empirical work involves a panel of US and UK firms over a two-year period. This allows cross-sectional comparison to be made between different financial accounting regimes (rules- vs. principles-based) as well as permits examination of the development of CER over time. Further, the empirical work is extended to investigate the interrelationship between the financial and environmental performance of a firm. Evidence in support of the legitimacy and institutional theory explanations for disclosure motivations is comprehensively found through the measures of the qualitative characteristics identified. That is, the use of a novel CER framework based on financial reporting quality here enables a more robust understanding of the reporting behaviours than previous work. Moreover, evidence for CER variation owing to the differences in financial reporting regimes is found and thus, it is reasonable to assert that the culture of financial reporting, to some extent, informs the nature of voluntary non-financial reporting. However, perhaps owing to the short time frame of the investigation, evidence of financial rewards from being environmentally effective or through providing CER is not found. The findings from this research will be of interest to preparers and users of corporate environmental reports as well as to policymakers, particularly in terms of enabling them to assess the quality of reporting and its level of fit with their expectations. Moreover, they also shed light on the link between environmental performance, as manifested in carbon emissions, and what is reported.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-26T18:14:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Adriana Mompean.pdf: 2058401 bytes, checksum: cffa616e830024addd5c796fb1361bb5 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-12-16 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / This research investigates how The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and Folha de S. Paulo built in their contracts of communication some media themes during the election campaign for the US President in 2008, which culminated with the victory of the first American black president. We focused our attention on understanding how such newspapers approached the political position of Barack Obama against his Republican opponent, John McCain. The reports of both US newspapers plus those of the Brazilian one have been discursively analyzed in a time frame that goes from June to November of that year. The aim was to investigate the themes present in the reports and editorials and how their discourses have been built around Barack Obama personality. It was also analyzed the dissemination of narratives structured by the American media in the Brazilian newspaper. The discursive analysis chosen had the support of theories of Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe, whose bases on discourse and hegemony were essential to understand the discursive formations adopted by the print media and the political campaigns of both candidates, the Democratic and the Republican. From this approach we found the nodal points around which have been constituted the discourses of confrontation of both candidates according to the newspapers. As a result, we made explicit the discursive strategies employed in communicative contracts listed in our corpus as an effort to understand the construction of the so-called political myth "Obama" in the print media. It is expected that this research could contribute to deepen the discussion about the press coverage once the presidential election in the United States causes great interest in the worldwide media, also influencing the global news production / Esta pesquisa investiga como os jornais The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times e Folha de S.Paulo construíram em seus contratos de comunicação os temas midiáticos durante a campanha eleitoral para a presidência dos Estados Unidos em 2008, que culminou com a vitória do primeiro presidente negro norte-americano. Centramos a atenção em compreender como os jornais abordaram a postura política de Barack Obama frente ao seu adversário republicano, John McCain. Foram analisadas discursivamente as reportagens dos dois jornais norte-americanos e do brasileiro, em um recorte temporal que compreende os meses de junho a novembro daquele ano. O objetivo foi investigar as temáticas presentes nas reportagens e editoriais e como os discursos foram construídos em relação a Barack Obama. Também foi analisada a ocorrência da disseminação destas narrativas estruturadas pela mídia norte-americana no jornal brasileiro. A análise discursiva escolhida ampara-se nas teorias de Ernesto Laclau e Chantal Mouffe, cujos fundamentos sobre discurso e hegemonia foram essenciais para a compreensão das formações discursivas adotadas pela mídia impressa e pelas campanhas políticas dos candidatos democrata e republicano. A partir desse enfoque encontramos os pontos nodais ao redor dos quais se constituíram os discursos de enfrentamento dos candidatos nos jornais. Como resultado, explicitamos as estratégias discursivas empregadas nos contratos comunicativos enunciados em nosso corpus, em um esforço de entendimento de como ocorreu a construção do mito político Obama na mídia impressa em questão. A expectativa é que esta pesquisa contribua para aprofundar o debate sobre a cobertura jornalística realizada pela mídia impressa, visto que o pleito presidencial nos Estados Unidos desperta grande interesse nos meios de comunicação de todo mundo e influencia toda a produção jornalística mundial

The PhD dissertation studies the construction of trade protection in the United States and the European Union. It focuses in particular on measures of contingent protection, comprising anti-dumping duties, countervailing duties and safeguards. The dissertation adopts a constructivist approach based on narrative analysis: broadening the conventional scope of political economy research on trade, the analysis combines the study of narratives with the concept of ‘discourse coalition’. The period under investigation spans over the period 2010-2014, covering the Obama Administration and the mandate of European Commissioner for trade Karel De Gucht. Adopting a comparative approach of the US and EU trade policy, the dissertation provides a detailed analysis of the US administration’s and the European Commission’s discourses on trade protection, and includes an analysis of a large array of other actors’ alternative, or competing constructions of contingent protection. The dissertation demonstrates that a specific type of unilateral enforcement plays an underestimated role in the construction of contingent protection. It also emphasizes that policy actors consider contingent protection as necessary to convince people that the trading system is fair; the research proposes the concept of ‘discursive embedded liberalism’ to account for this specific construction of trade protection. The research underlines elements of continuity and change, showing that many elements of the current crisis within the international trade regime were already in the making in the period under investigation. / Doctorat en Sciences politiques et sociales / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Small islands developing states (SIDS) sustainability is a United Nations’ aim. Their markets are often influenced by external policies imposed by larger economies. Could an anti-competitive measure affect the food vulnerability of a SIDS? This research examines the effects of an external non-tariff measure (NTM) on Puerto Rico’s (PR) agribusinesses. It explores the effects of a maritime cabotage regulation (US Jones Act) on the affordability and accessibility of produce and grains. PR imports 100% of their needs of grain and over 85% of fresh produce. PR’s food imports are generally from the US and the trade service is restricted to the use of the US maritime transportation. As a result, the supply chain of these two sectors although different, are limited by the US Act that may impact the cost of food, its availability, firms’ efficiency and other structures of production. Using a mixed convergent design, PR’s agrifood supply chains were explored and analysed in relation to the maritime cabotage regulation. Oligopolistic structures and collusion between maritime transporters and local agribusinesses importers limit the access to data, but other internal factors also have a role. Fieldwork shows that while the cabotage regulation itself is a constraint, interaction with others NTM and the current political framework between US and PR are relevant. Factors such as lack of efficiency, poor innovation and a self-limitation of the agribusinesses firms were found. The novelty of this research is the use of mixed methods to evaluate the effects of cabotage on the agrifood supply chain.

This diploma thesis deals with the issue of the main conflicts in the Republic of Sudan. In the first part the author describes the historical development of Sudan with focus on the period from 1956 till today. The main attention in this section is devoted to the political and economical development as well as to foreign policy. The second part concentrates on the conflict between the northern and the southern part of the country. The author analyses the ethnical and religious background, the development of the civil war and the principles of the 2005 peace agreement with the view to the future of the separated states. Then, the author describes in detail the issue of the rebellion in the western province of Darfur, tries to elaborate on the reasons for the rebellion, the influence of foreign countries and the current state of negotiations between the Government of Sudan and the rebels from Darfur.The third part focuses on the foreign policy of The United States of America, the European Union, China and Egypt. The author selected these countries as having the major impact on the development of Sudan and the both conflicts. Last chapter of the thesis looks at the challenges that Sudan and South Sudan will have to face in the near future. Finally, the author elaborates on the impact of these issues on international policy and the space for possible external policies in Sudan and Southern Sudan.