Rozprawy doktorskie na temat „Being”

Striking stone against metal, Kwakwaka’wakw hereditary chief and carver Beau Dick (1955-2017) and his companions broke the Haida copper, Taaw on the steps of the Canadian Parliament buildings in 2014. This act was a call to action in dialogue with the Indigenous grassroots movement, Idle No More, and a revival of a shaming rite prohibited for over 60 years under the Indian Act. Following their journey to Ottawa, Taaw and the other coppers were displayed in the University of British Columbia Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery's 2016 exhibition, Lalakenis/All Directions: A Journey of Truth and Unity, described as both cultural belongings and living beings. The categories of belonging and being communicate ongoing and active relationships between the coppers and First Nations communities, as well as their statuses as sentient entities. Endowed with supernatural power, or ’nawalakw in Kwak’wala, coppers occupy a central position within potlatch ceremonies. While the term ‘belonging’ could be said to have imposed Western property language and objecthood on the coppers, the term ‘being’ introduced the coppers as active subjects in the copper-breaking ceremony. Since the nineteenth century, anthropologists have studied coppers as both economic property and animate objects in the potlatch system. A discussion of coppers as living beings can also be situated within a recent return to animism in anthropology and a wider rethinking of human/nonhuman categories in new materialism and posthumanist theories. Locating the Lalakenis exhibition within the ongoing debate over the display of sacred materials, I propose an ontology of coppers, beings and belongings in the intercultural public spaces of the National and Provincial capitals and the Belkin Gallery.
Arts, Faculty of
Art History, Visual Art and Theory, Department of
Graduate

The world of the 20-21st century is one of rapid change - for family life, for our work environments, in friendship structures and general attitudes about ourselves. We question who we are and our values. We seek to understand ourselves more fully as individuals and as groups within a world of flux. Within this context a significant change that has taken place in the church is the growing emergence of people remaining single for a variety of reasons. I understand that the term 'single' denotes that group of baptised Christians who have never married and who have chosen to remain single or who continue to affirm their singleness but not foreclosing on the possibility of marriage. As with any change, the transition that is required is never easy. Raymond Brown (1979) touched upon this type of transition and movement for change in society when he said that more and more are finding the single life-style suitable as new territory in which to dwell. They see the structures of society beginning to shift. They see a growing awareness on the part of many people toward an acceptance of single adulthood. This growing awareness has also been paralleled within the thinking of the church. However, many single men and women 'generally feel that the church has geared its ministry toward those who are married and towards nuclear family units'. The reflection by Brown reflects my own thought about being single, particularly with regard to single people and their being church. I will argue in this thesis that being single has theological value as a way of living out one's baptismal call to follow Christ in work, relationships, in attitudes and values. This thesis represents a critical search in, my own need for self-understanding as a single person together with other single people as I believe we contribute to our society and to our Christian calling. At the beginning of Mark's gospel Jesus' baptism is recorded as a prelude to his ministry: It was at this time that Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptised in the Jordan by John. No sooner had he come up out of the water than he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit, like a dove, descending on him. And a voice came from heaven, 'You are my Son, the Beloved; my favour rests on you' (Mark 1:9-11). Jesus' baptism is the impetus and is at the heart of his ministry for a mission that is favoured by God. Likewise, baptism is at the heart of the single person's way of living for Christ. Further, the sentiments of Paul in Ephesians 3: 14-21 serve as a goal for all Christians which includes single men and women. Paul speaks about a unique relationship with Christ, one based on love and openness to Christ. This, then, is what I pray, kneeling before the Father, from whom every family, whether spiritual or natural, takes its name: Out of his infinite glory, may he give you the power through his Spirit for your hidden self to grow strong, so that Christ may live in your hearts through faith, and then, planted in love and built on love, you will with all the saints have strength to grasp the breadth and the length, the height and the depth; until, knowing the love of Christ, which is beyond all knowledge, you are filled with the utter fullness of God. Glory be to him whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine; glory be to him from generation to generation in the Church and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen. Jesus' baptism as depicted in Mark together with Paul's thoughts concerning the reception of the power of the Spirit for our hidden selves to grow in love and faith and journeying with others in the Christian tradition, represent the underlying theological attitude of this thesis about the single person. The single person by the nature of his or her baptism, is called to follow Christ - to grow in personal stature as one who is open to the presence of Christ in and through the events of daily life. Integral to this baptismal call is the need to challenge those constructs which don't enhance and give voice to the single person within the church. I consider that one such construct is the notion of 'vocation' as it has been used traditionally in the church's thinking for its self-understanding. In this regard, it is my contention that 'vocation' is about following Christ in and through baptism. How one lives one's life is his or her career choice; how one lives in response to Christ - whether as married or single, priest or religious. It is our primary vocation to follow Christ as promised at baptism. The chosen definition, however, ought not to exclude those Christians who, for reasons beyond their control, for example find themselves living the single life because of their separation from their partner or are widowed, although the primary thrust of the definition will focus on those Christians who continue to affirm their choice for the single way of life. The term Church here is explained by Lumen Gentium 9: 'This was to be the new People of God. For, those who believe in Christ, who are reborn not from a perishable but from an imperishable seed through the Word of the living God (cf. 1 Pet. 1:23), not from the flesh but from water and the Holy Spirit (cf. Jn. 3:5-6), are finally established as 'a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a purchased people.' This definition has been chosen as it articulates a point of view about the people who comprise the church. In particular the definition speaks of the 'signs' of baptism - water and the Holy Spirit. It is these signs that characterise those called by God through baptism to be the people of God, the purchased people. I argue that the sacrament of baptism is what characterises all in the church irrespective of their state. The primary methodology for our critical examination of the meaning of the single state is by case study. The Case Study method will allow me to elaborate upon a developmental theological perspective from within the Vatican Council documents. By this method I examine the single state from within the ecclesial as well as a sociological understanding. Secondly a dialectical approach will enable me to argue the case for the single state as a valid way of life. From this I aim to highlight the single state and its key attributes as well as to provide a personal perspective about single living. Further, this secondary method allows me to highlight the way in which single people contribute to, and are a part of the life of the church. This twofold methodology enables me to look at the particular issue of the single state within the wider context of the church, and to argue for the significance of the part to the whole.

The world of the 20-21st century is one of rapid change - for family life, for our work environments, in friendship structures and general attitudes about ourselves. We question who we are and our values. We seek to understand ourselves more fully as individuals and as groups within a world of flux. Within this context a significant change that has taken place in the church is the growing emergence of people remaining single for a variety of reasons. I understand that the term 'single' denotes that group of baptised Christians who have never married and who have chosen to remain single or who continue to affirm their singleness but not foreclosing on the possibility of marriage. As with any change, the transition that is required is never easy. Raymond Brown (1979) touched upon this type of transition and movement for change in society when he said that more and more are finding the single life-style suitable as new territory in which to dwell. They see the structures of society beginning to shift. They see a growing awareness on the part of many people toward an acceptance of single adulthood. This growing awareness has also been paralleled within the thinking of the church. However, many single men and women 'generally feel that the church has geared its ministry toward those who are married and towards nuclear family units'. The reflection by Brown reflects my own thought about being single, particularly with regard to single people and their being church. I will argue in this thesis that being single has theological value as a way of living out one's baptismal call to follow Christ in work, relationships, in attitudes and values. This thesis represents a critical search in, my own need for self-understanding as a single person together with other single people as I believe we contribute to our society and to our Christian calling. At the beginning of Mark's gospel Jesus' baptism is recorded as a prelude to his ministry: It was at this time that Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptised in the Jordan by John. No sooner had he come up out of the water than he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit, like a dove, descending on him. And a voice came from heaven, 'You are my Son, the Beloved; my favour rests on you' (Mark 1:9-11). Jesus' baptism is the impetus and is at the heart of his ministry for a mission that is favoured by God. Likewise, baptism is at the heart of the single person's way of living for Christ. Further, the sentiments of Paul in Ephesians 3: 14-21 serve as a goal for all Christians which includes single men and women. Paul speaks about a unique relationship with Christ, one based on love and openness to Christ. This, then, is what I pray, kneeling before the Father, from whom every family, whether spiritual or natural, takes its name: Out of his infinite glory, may he give you the power through his Spirit for your hidden self to grow strong, so that Christ may live in your hearts through faith, and then, planted in love and built on love, you will with all the saints have strength to grasp the breadth and the length, the height and the depth; until, knowing the love of Christ, which is beyond all knowledge, you are filled with the utter fullness of God. Glory be to him whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine; glory be to him from generation to generation in the Church and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen. Jesus' baptism as depicted in Mark together with Paul's thoughts concerning the reception of the power of the Spirit for our hidden selves to grow in love and faith and journeying with others in the Christian tradition, represent the underlying theological attitude of this thesis about the single person. The single person by the nature of his or her baptism, is called to follow Christ - to grow in personal stature as one who is open to the presence of Christ in and through the events of daily life. Integral to this baptismal call is the need to challenge those constructs which don't enhance and give voice to the single person within the church. I consider that one such construct is the notion of 'vocation' as it has been used traditionally in the church's thinking for its self-understanding. In this regard, it is my contention that 'vocation' is about following Christ in and through baptism. How one lives one's life is his or her career choice; how one lives in response to Christ - whether as married or single, priest or religious. It is our primary vocation to follow Christ as promised at baptism. The chosen definition, however, ought not to exclude those Christians who, for reasons beyond their control, for example find themselves living the single life because of their separation from their partner or are widowed, although the primary thrust of the definition will focus on those Christians who continue to affirm their choice for the single way of life. The term Church here is explained by Lumen Gentium 9: 'This was to be the new People of God. For, those who believe in Christ, who are reborn not from a perishable but from an imperishable seed through the Word of the living God (cf. 1 Pet. 1:23), not from the flesh but from water and the Holy Spirit (cf. Jn. 3:5-6), are finally established as 'a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a purchased people.' This definition has been chosen as it articulates a point of view about the people who comprise the church. In particular the definition speaks of the 'signs' of baptism - water and the Holy Spirit. It is these signs that characterise those called by God through baptism to be the people of God, the purchased people. I argue that the sacrament of baptism is what characterises all in the church irrespective of their state. The primary methodology for our critical examination of the meaning of the single state is by case study. The Case Study method will allow me to elaborate upon a developmental theological perspective from within the Vatican Council documents. By this method I examine the single state from within the ecclesial as well as a sociological understanding. Secondly a dialectical approach will enable me to argue the case for the single state as a valid way of life. From this I aim to highlight the single state and its key attributes as well as to provide a personal perspective about single living. Further, this secondary method allows me to highlight the way in which single people contribute to, and are a part of the life of the church. This twofold methodology enables me to look at the particular issue of the single state within the wider context of the church, and to argue for the significance of the part to the whole.
Thesis (Masters)
Master of Philosophy (MPhil)
School of Theology
Full Text

Les jeunes environnementalistes, en cherchant une concordance et une cohérence entre leurs styles de vie et leurs idéaux, entre leurs pratiques individuelles et la collectivité dont ils sont membres, parviennent à créer et adopter des pratiques démocratiques alternatives et innovatrices. Ces jeunes feraient alors de leur vie et de leur quotidien une oeuvre politique. Ainsi, par leur profonde remise en question (et dans certain cas, leur plus décisif rejet) de la politique institutionnelle, les jeunes écolos parviendraient, par leur engagement politique différencie, à rendre compte du caractère poreux des frontières du politique. Cette thèse est une étude de jeunes membres de groupes environnementaux à Ottawa, et de leur participation dans ces groupes, permettant de mieux comprendre comment ils font de la politique autrement, d'une part par la forme et le lieu de leur engagement et d'autre part l'expérimentation de nouvelles formes de démocraties et de pratiques démocratiques alternatives.

Thesis (M.A.)--Georgia State University, 2006.
Title from title screen. Marilynn Richtarik, committee chair; Calvin Thomas, Margaret Mills Harper, committee members. Electronic text (84 p.) : digital, PDF file. Description based on contents viewed Apr. 17, 2007. Includes bibliographical references (p. 75-84).

Thesis (B.A.)--California Polytechnic State University, 2010.
Project advisor: Kevin Clark. Title from PDF title page; viewed on Apr. 30, 2010. Includes bibliographical references. Also available on microfiche.

I investigate the ghosts in Elizabeth Bowen’s short stories, “Green Holly” and “The Happy Autumn Fields.” By blending psychoanalytic feminism and social feminism, I argue that these female ghosts are the incommensurable feminine—a feminine that exceeds the bounds of phallocentric logic and cannot be defined by her social or symbolic manifestations. An analysis of Bowen’s ghosts as actual ghosts is uncharted territory. Previous Bowen critics postulate that Bowen’s ghosts are imaginary figments or metaphors. These critics make Bowen’s stories “truthful” representations of the world, but, as such, Bowen’s ghosts become representations of the world’s phallocentric order. In contrast, I argue that these stories adopt a mestiza consciousness. Gloria Anzaldùa postulates that through a subaltern perspective developed outside of western logic, the mestiza reclaims the supernatural that exists outside of the masculine, symbolic order. The female ghosts are the feminine that Luce Irigaray explains, “remain[s] elsewhere” (76) as they live incommensurably in an alternate supernatural realm, disrupting phallic logic.

This study is an ethnography of Oka-Soiot human-animal relations in the Eastern Saian Mountains of westernmost Buriatia in South Central Siberia. It follows ten herder-hunter households from their winter residences to their summer camps, describing their year-round relations with dogs, reindeer, horses, and wolves. Although known in Russian literature as descendants of the people who first harnessed and saddled reindeer, contemporary Soiot herder hunters have shifted their skills to other species. Yet they continue to share with their Tozhu, Tofa, and Dukha neighbours a heritage of hunting, aided by transport reindeer. Historically, all four groups engaged other species alongside reindeer to varying degree. This diversity of animals is particularly magnified in Soiot households as a result of their proximity to Buriat settler pastoralists since the 18th century. In the early 20th century Buddhist ritual practice became widespread among these settlers, affecting also Soiot cosmology. Exploring Soiot relations with 'wild' and 'domestic' animals, this thesis positions domestication as 'ongoing perspectival expansion,' experienced at the intersection of shamanist and Buddhist approaches to sentient beings. The first part of the thesis focuses on how people and animals move between perspectives associated with forest and pasture, as a strategy for life in a shared landscape. It presents the Soiot household as a mirror image of the spirit-mastered household, while contrasting it to the Eurocentric model of the domus. It then shows how interspecies collaboration within the household can lead to perspectival expansion among its members, arguing that such a perspective furthers the recognition of affordances in the landscape. This is followed by a study of shamanist and Buddhist approaches to spirit masters, presenting parallel but non-identical views of the landscape. As the perspective of animals become As the perspective of animals becomes expanded in the human household, so householders' perspectives of the landscape are expanded in their encounter with the ritual domain of Buddhism. While Buddhist ritual practice attempts to domesticate spirit masters, it remains vital to Soiot hunters that the domestication of spirit masters remain incomplete, and that reciprocal relations with spirit households are maintained. Part two focuses on proximity between species, introducing dog-human and reindeer human collaborations. It examines the autonomy of dogs as hunters in their own right, and looks at evolving reindeer herd dynamics and species flux in Soiot households. Part three focuses on the material aspect of human-animal relations, focusing on implements and structures of the household as communicative devices rather than tools of domination. Horses and humans are seen to signal their intentions through roping techniques, while wolves and humans 'read each other' through trap design, den placement, and empathy. Being the first ethnography of Soiot human-animal relations, this thesis offers new knowledge to anthropology by filling a void in south Siberian ethnography, while calling renewed attention to a multi species perspective in Siberia. It contributes to classical debates on the human role in animal domestication, and challenges the division between hunting and pastoralist economies in its presentation of households that engage in both, and for whom the two remain inseparable.

"What a piece of work is a man, how noble in reason, how infinite in faculties, in form and moving how express and admirable, in action how like an angel, in apprehension how like a god: the beauty of the world, the paragon of animals! And yet to me what is this quintessence of dust?" In his angry and depressed state, Hamlet finds no consolation in his fellow human beings, but that's not to say that he doesn't attribute them with many fine qualities. But what are we to make of this 'quintessence of dust'? What a piece of work is a (hu)man? How are we to understand ourselves? What's more to the point perhaps is, why should we try? One reason springs to mind immediately that we can point to in order to justify an attempt at such understanding. It is surely true that by way of a greater understanding of ourselves we can come to a more complete understanding of 'the way things are' per se. By coming to a greater and more complete understanding of being a human being we can start to see how what we are informs the way we are and vice versa. For instance, the sort of beings that we are as human beings allows us to experience the world around us in a particular way, it may 'open' the world up to us in some respects, whilst 'closing' it off in others. The kind of understanding that I am aiming for involves an exploration and clarification of what it is to be human; what it is to exist as a human being and if there is anything unique about being a human being. If we look for a dictionary definition of 'human being' we find something like the following: "Of or belonging to the genus Homo ... any man or woman or child of the species Homo Sapiens., Defining human beings in this way places them firmly in the 'natural order' of things, it makes them one species amongst many. Admittedly human beings are probably the most complex species in the natural world, but nevertheless they are open to understanding in just the same way as any other species be it an oyster, a cat or a chimpanzee. If we are to take this 'speciesistic', biological line then, we should aim to understand human beings in purely natural, materialistic terms supplied by the 'best' theory that science can offer to us at the time of investigation. In doing this though we might worry that we are missing out on something 'special' about human beings, surely there is something that sets human beings apart from the rest of the animal kingdom, for instance the fact that human beings possess the kind of consciousness that they do. In fact this worry goes deeper than just worrying about human beings being 'special' in some way and whether or not they are the only species that possess such consciousness. Indeed, we might think that there is in general something special about each animal species; namely that each one possesses a distinctive viewpoint upon the world and that this is only accessible if one is a member of that species. This is precisely the sort of worry aired by Nagel. Of course if Nagel is right, then human beings should have no problem with access to what it is like to be human beings, but he also argues that such access can never be explained in purely scientific, naturalistic terms. His argument focuses on attempts to capture experience from the objective perspective of science and he claims that "no matter how the form may vary, the fact that an organism has conscious experience at all means, basically that there is something it is like to be that organism.' This being the case, if a scientific naturalist account is to succeed '''something it is like to be' features must be given a physicalist account." Nagel denies that this is a possibility, he claims that: "Every subjective phenomenon is, essentially, connected with a single point of view, and it seems inevitable that an objective, physical theory will abandon that point of view." According to Nagel, materialist philosophies rest on the fundamental principle that the whole of reality can be described in objective physical terms. The physically objective world is the only world there is and it exists independently of subjective human or animal perspectives. He describes the materialist conception of reality as saying that underneath the different appearances of things there must lie a reality that is independent of how things appear to human beings or any other animals. The world would exist even if there were no human or other observers in it; hence its true nature must be detachable from how it seems to any observers. This means that according to materialist philosophies, if we wish to reach a conception of the world as it objectively is we have to not think of it from an individual point of view or perspective, and not think of it from a general human perspective. The physical world as it is in itself contains no points of view and nothing that can appear only to one particular point of view. Whatever it contains can be apprehended by a general rational consciousness divorced from the sensory organs of particular individuals or species. Although this conception of reality has been immensely useful in the development of physics, Nagel believes that it cannot be the whole story. He argues that the subjective perceptual points of view which are left out of the objective account continue to exist, furthermore they are the necessary conditions of human beings acquiring evidence about the physical world. Human beings cannot collect evidence except from their spatio-temporal location and this means they must have a perspective; as well as this, the objective conception of the world is formed by mental activity. For Nagel then, a complete explanation of reality will have to take account of these things because they are also part of reality. In his arguments against a scientific, objective conception of reality, Nagel appears to take an overly positivistic view of science and of philosophical analyses that take science seriously. However, I think Nagel is correct though in his attack on materialist theories of mind (and by implication, human beings) even if there are some problems with his arguments.7 In the next chapter I will show how materialist, conventionally naturalistic theories of human beings miss out on essential features of them, and also how non-naturalist accounts miss out on much the same sort of features. Much of this is due to both of them working with the same sort of disengaged view of the world, just the sort of view that Nagel is so critical of. I don't believe that Nagel's criticisms should make us give up on a naturalist programme altogether though. Rather what we need to do is to draw it in as inclusive a way as possible, a way that takes into account not just the 'objective' features of the world, but also the 'subjective' features of human experience of the world. In Chapter 2, I outline just such an inclusive, broad framework. Such a framework provides us with the opportunity to explore the continuity between human beings and other non-human animals, whilst at the same time preserving the uniqueness of being human without having to resort to any form of unnecessary or distorting humanism. In other words, it allows us to place human beings alongside other non-human animals firmly in the 'natural order' whilst at the same time recognising human beings unique characteristics. The most interesting of these characteristics is human beings' 'personhood', which I will explore in Chapter 6. However, human beings are also uniquely 'social' beings and I shall look at this fact in Chapter 4 and show how being a social being is an essential feature of being human. This sociality depends in part upon the 'lived' nature of the human beings bodies and I shall look in detail at this in Chapter 3. However, I believe we also need to guard against any unwarranted humanism whereby human beings are overly distanced from other non-human animals. To this end I shall show how human beings can be regarded as unique but at the same time as continuous with the rest of the 'animal kingdom' in Chapter 5. In the course of this thesis, my primary aim is not to provide conclusive or damning arguments against either conventional naturalism or non-naturalism; rather I hope to weave together the components of an alternative picture, one that presents a more convincing, persuasive and plausible alternative - broad naturalism. As Sherlock Holmes says: "One's ideas must be as broad as Nature if they are to interpret Nature." In other words I intend to show that to come to anything like a full understanding of what it is like to be a human being we have to adopt a broadly naturalistic framework. Conventional naturalism and non-naturalism will be shown to be lacking because they cannot fully account for human beings' experience of the world or of how they are 'at home' in their world. However, at the same time by taking the broad approach we can accept that there are 'truths' in both conventional pictures and weave these into a cohesive whole that can account for the experience of being a human being. Most of all though a broadly naturalistic account will allow us to see what a wonderful 'piece of work' a human being truly is.

Many Black scholars have researched and written about their experiences as Black students at a Predominantly White Institution (PWI). Most of their successes were built on the support they received from their families and friends. More importantly, their personal commitment to being numbered as successful Black students was the impetus for which they were willing to challenge the paradigm that Blacks can indeed succeed in higher education. As a Black Caribbean Diaspora student enrolled at a PWI, I have experienced what it is like to be Black through purposeful living, education, leadership and a divine plan. I have also utilized my Black identity as a vehicle to garner success amidst the challenges I faced being the only Black in academia, readjusting to college life and discovering my own Blackness. It is with this backdrop that I use the Scholarly Personal Narrative (SPN) methodology to write this dissertation and highlight my experience as a Black Caribbean student at a PWI. The research and stories explored during this dissertation were examined through several questions: What is the experience of a Black Caribbean Diaspora student who carries multiple identities at a PWI? What differs, separates, divides, as well as unites, the Black Diaspora students from a racial perspective? How can PWIs communicate confidence in the ability of Black students and engage them in the campus and its academic life regardless of their racial identity? How can Black Diaspora students be retained to successfully achieve a college degree? Additionally, this dissertation focuses on a myriad of experiences and stories from other Black Diaspora students who are from different ethnic backgrounds. This helps to support and answer some of the posed research questions. This SPN methodology includes a literature review on topics of Black Identity Development (Cross, 1978, 1972, 1971), Colorism (Harris, 2009; Reid-Salmon, 2008), and Critical Race Theory (Cole, 2009; Collins, 2007; Roithmayr 1999; West, 1993). Several themes emerged that aligned with my personal narrative and that of my Black Diaspora peers. These included parental involvement, integrative model of parenting (Darling and Steinberg‟s 1993), leadership supported by the African proverb, “it takes a village to raise a child,” and purposeful living where faith for a Black Diaspora student is central to their survival. A number of recommendations for how faculty and staff at PWIs can support Black Diaspora students in their educational attainment emerged: recognizing and acknowledging the differences among Black students; supporting, imparting, accepting and encouraging Black students in their education; and reorienting faculty and administrators in matters of race so as to understand Black Diaspora students. My personal narrative further elucidates and universalizes the notion that Black students can be successful in higher education despite the odds that are sometimes against them.

My collection of short stories delves into government and governance, democracy, citizenship, civil servants, poverty, corruption and nepotism. My stories draw on the traditions of gritty urban crime fiction uncovering crimes of violence, service delivery, vandalism and corruption. They explore themes of mental cruelty and greed, self- preservation and community in rural areas, farms, townships and cities characterized by wrenching contradictions and inequalities.
This epic dramatic poetic verse delves into government and school governance, labour unions, liberation struggle, parenting and a wide range of school perceptions. It interrogates the roles of parents, teachers, students, department of education officials and that of other stakeholders that make use of schools. Influenced by William Wellington Gqoba’s ‘A great debate on education: a Parable’ wayback, it continues the education debate in the current post-democratic South Africa characterized by wrenching contradictions and inequalities.
This thesis is presented in two parts: English and isiXhosa.

Being Isadora is a story of possession. Isadora Duncan, the founder of modern dance, was an intensely creative, free-spirited woman. Her life experiences early last century were as fascinating and tragic as her achievements. In New York in 1985, Isadora's last surviving pupil and adopted daughter, ninety-year old Anna Duncan, is searching for a way to fulfill a long held promise. Isadora wished to control the way she was remembered and had made Anna promise that any remaining film of her dancing would be destroyed. But one film survives and Anna is running out of time to find it. A young Australian journalist, Tamsin Doyle, attends a dance class at the Isadora Duncan Studio and meets Anna, unknowingly becoming part of the quest. Initially the stories of Isadora and Tamsin run parallel, then as Tamsin gets to know Anna, she becomes immersed in a dream world of dramatic incidents from Isadora's life. The dreams become waking experiences and she fears her will is gradually being taken over. She ends up in places - in fact other countries - that she had no intention of being, pursuing an agenda that is not her own. In the second part of the book, she finds herself in Russia, where Isadora lived after the Revolution. She meets and falls in love with Vladimir, the grandson of Isadora's former dance collaborator. Unable to prevent herself being possessed while visiting the school Isadora founded, Tamsin is arrested by the authorities. A Russian KGB officer has his own plans and abducts her, keeping her prisoner in a dacha outside Moscow. He shows her a film of herself dancing and then the surviving film of Isadora. The two are almost identical and a dramatic climax ensues. Themes in the book explore the nature of memory and how it is influenced by photographic and filmic record, love and loss and the way patterns repeat in people's lives in an attempt to change outcomes.

Being Isadora is a story of possession. Isadora Duncan, the founder of modern dance, was an intensely creative, free-spirited woman. Her life experiences early last century were as fascinating and tragic as her achievements. In New York in 1985, Isadora's last surviving pupil and adopted daughter, ninety-year old Anna Duncan, is searching for a way to fulfill a long held promise. Isadora wished to control the way she was remembered and had made Anna promise that any remaining film of her dancing would be destroyed. But one film survives and Anna is running out of time to find it. A young Australian journalist, Tamsin Doyle, attends a dance class at the Isadora Duncan Studio and meets Anna, unknowingly becoming part of the quest. Initially the stories of Isadora and Tamsin run parallel, then as Tamsin gets to know Anna, she becomes immersed in a dream world of dramatic incidents from Isadora's life. The dreams become waking experiences and she fears her will is gradually being taken over. She ends up in places - in fact other countries - that she had no intention of being, pursuing an agenda that is not her own. In the second part of the book, she finds herself in Russia, where Isadora lived after the Revolution. She meets and falls in love with Vladimir, the grandson of Isadora's former dance collaborator. Unable to prevent herself being possessed while visiting the school Isadora founded, Tamsin is arrested by the authorities. A Russian KGB officer has his own plans and abducts her, keeping her prisoner in a dacha outside Moscow. He shows her a film of herself dancing and then the surviving film of Isadora. The two are almost identical and a dramatic climax ensues. Themes in the book explore the nature of memory and how it is influenced by photographic and filmic record, love and loss and the way patterns repeat in people's lives in an attempt to change outcomes.

This document is a summary of the first steps of my journey into academic research. The dissertation provides in-depth analysis of the theoretical basis of the British National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) priority setting to the neonatal consequences of obstetricians’ tiredness. From being NICE to being tired aims to provide a quantitative perspective of four relevant multidisciplinary topics in health economics. It contains a piece of theoretical work with simulation exercises, a piece of methodology testing with an application to experimental data and two pieces of applied work, one focused on prediction and the other on causal effects. All articles are oriented towards informing public healthcare policies, with the hope that they will inform, someday, somehow, decision-making over the topics covered here.
La tesis incluye 6 capítulos, 4 de los cuáles son artículos independientes más una introducción y las conclusiones. La tesis investiga temas focales de la economía de la salud desde distintas perspectivas. El primer artículo estudia la comparativa en términos de eficiencia y equidad de distintos modelos teóricos de provisión de sanidad pública. El segundo, utilizando datos de un macro-ensayo clínico, utiliza técnicas de aprendizaje automático para la detección de efectos causales heterogéneos. El tercer artículo utiliza también métodos de aprendizaje automático para la predicción pronóstica del modo final de parto utilizando datos del universo de nacimientos en cuatro hospitales españoles. El último artículo estima el efecto causal de las cesáreas no medicamente indicadas sobre la salud de los recién nacidos.

The first chapter of this thesis examines the factors that assist and impede disclosure of homosexuality. Factors have been divided into intrapersonal, interpersonal and societal/environmental categories for convenience of reporting. However, it is recognised that these factors do not exist in isolation of each other. The second chapter investigates the experience of gay fathers who have disclosed their homosexuality to their children. Analysis of interviews carried out with gay fathers suggests a model of disclosure where fathers achieve a realisation of their homosexuality followed by a desire to be honest about it. Fathers then disclosed their sexuality to their children. The effects on the child, on the father and on the father/child relationship are discussed. The impact of supportive others who are important in the lives of the father and children seem to be paramount to a successful outcome. Clinical implications of this study are discussed along with the study’s limitations and ideas for future research. The third chapter examines the experience of a gay man who became a father via donor insemination. Salient factors related to this method of fathering, being gay, and being later contacted by the child are discussed. The final chapter contains the authors’ reflections on a personal experience that impeded disclosure of his own homosexuality. The author entered reparative therapy holding the belief that he did not want to be gay. Following therapy failure, the author reached a position of self acceptance. Implications for clinicians are discussed.

This thesis is an exploration of how artificial lights are used to create atmospheres in a space, andhow they enhance an individual’s well-being. The focus here is placed on students in Sweden,specifically those who live in one-room apartments. Students typically do not invest much intheir lights yet being in Scandinavia, artificial lighting is used to compensate for the lack ofdaylight hours. As such, the lights they have will impact how they go about their day.A light is designed using product design methods to respond to the research question: “to whatextent can a versatile light source alter the atmosphere of a student’s space to enhance their wellbeing?”As the research is situated in Sweden, aspects of the Scandinavian lighting culture will beexamined and implemented in the design. The student’s well-being will be assessed through thetheory of subjective well-being, specifically how it can be enhanced through perceived control.The light design also aims to be socially sustainable, focusing on how individuals’ well-being canbe improved through lighting. The design also attempts to tackle inequalities by showing it canbe made of cheap and accessible materials, as well as being professionally manufactured. Thecheaper version is to ensure students with lower incomes can access the same quality of light asothers, where the light will create a similar atmosphere. Finally, the concept of social lighting isdefined in the context of this thesis. It concentrates on designing the light based on interviewswith students and emphasising the relationship between a student and their apartment.Through interviews and photos, a design brief was formed to understand what type of lightstudents use in their apartment and what they were looking for. After a series of iterations, afinal design was obtained and created. One version was made professionally in metal by BelidLighting. Another was made out of thick card and paper clips, materials easily accessible tostudents. The models were tested by students in their home for two nights, after which aninterview took place to obtain impressions and feedback on the design.It was concluded that a versatile light source altered the atmosphere of a student space toenhance their well-being to a certain extent. This was due to people’s existing relationship withlights, where they don’t generally interact beyond switching them on and off. Nonetheless,participants enjoyed making their own lamp, and found the lamp design quite unique. Thishelped maintain their subjective well-being.

Philosophy
Ph.D.
My aim in this dissertation is to explain Hegel’s motivation for, and the doctrine of, the identity of the identity and difference of thought and being and argue that while thought and being differ, their nature is identical. This identity is used to explain Hegel’s claim that what is real is rational and what is rational is real. The aim of this dissertation is squarely placed within ontology, and my interest is in the structure of being as opposed to metaphysical contents. Within this structure, I argue, Hegel shows us the irreversible method of that which comes to be and ceases to be. This method (or nature) is a rational process of being itself, which, while its contents are forever changing, they do so from the same invariant identity of thought and being. As a matter of method, there is an increasing difficulty in assessing the merit of Hegel’s account of thought and being – obscuring what merit my interpretation may offer. The difficulty is a growing trend in combining Hegel’s work with specific Kantian ambitions where Hegel is forced into cognitive restrictions he does not have. As indebted as Hegel is to Kant, I argue that Hegel’s value lies in his break with Kant’s critical program. This break affords a new understanding of category theory apart from our subjective acts of understanding. With this new understanding, we can grasp the identity of thought and being through what I take to be a more promising account of cognition than what much of contemporary Hegel scholarship has offered by interpreting Hegel’s work as a completion of Kant’s. I sequence the chapters of this dissertation to trace Hegel’s increasing philosophic distance from Kant on those issues that interfere with understanding Hegel’s identity of thought and being. However, to demonstrate this distance and still progress to Hegel’s position apart from Kant, I limit my discussion of Kant to Hegel’s interpretation of Kant’s work and motivation. This limitation comes with the weakness that Kantian responses to Hegel exist but are not presented. However, this dissertation does not aim at defending Hegel’s interpretation of Kant but explains what Hegel has made of Kant’s texts to further Hegel’s arguments. Lastly, for what philosophic utility may be gained from this dissertation, Hegel offers the freedom for critical investigation regarding ontological and metaphysical matters without the presupposition of metaphysical commitments. This topic is treated at length in the last chapter of this dissertation. What is presented in this dissertation is a method by which no more is assumed than the inability to deny that thought exists, as such a denial presupposes thought, and then to trace the implications of the existence of thought according to what its occurrence signifies. Employing this method allows us to be metaphysically neutral and approach being as philosophically accessible.
Temple University--Theses

Hedonism is not terribly popular as a theory of well-being. And there are good reasons to question whether hedonism even supplies the best account of happiness. Yet hedonism captures something important, and it will be the goal of this essay to articulate just what that is. I suggest that hedonism provides the best account of phenomenal wellbeing (PWB). PWB is a restricted form of well-being that relates to the quality of the experience of a life—or, in other words, the quality of one’s phenomenal life. If wellbeing is characterized as “how well one’s life goes,” then PWB is “how well one’s life goes for her, from the inside.” In rating a life’s PWB, the life is judged solely on the basis of the contents of the experience of that life rated against the experience of the individual’s other possible lives. Unlike well-being, PWB is guaranteed to track more robust experiential benefits that a person gets out of living a life. In this work, I discuss the concept of well-being, including the feature of subjectrelativity that is sometimes ascribed to it; then, after introducing the concept of a phenomenal life, I develop the concept of phenomenal well-being. I propose what I take to be the best available account of PWB, which involves the hedonistic concept of satisfaction. An epistemic model of life-comparison (inspired by Peter Railton’s full information account of well-being) on which phenomenal lives are judged on the criterion of satisfaction is presented, followed by some objections, and replies, to PWB as satisfaction. Finally, some rival accounts of PWB are discussed and critiqued—notably, an account of cognitive life-satisfaction that resembles theories of “life-satisfaction” in happiness theory. The claim is that hedonism supplies the best answer to what makes the experience of our lives go best for us. In the closing chapter, I make some suggestions concerning the significance of this fact.

My work speaks to the processes of adaptation and assimilation, phenomena that explain the way in which we transform life experience and incorporate the effects of such experience into the daily workings of our psyche. To this extent my work is a self-analysis, an autobiographical reckoning, a non-verbal representation of collective experiences rendered in forms upon which images are spontaneously drawn or painted with fiber. The process of making art as a means of accessing creative instincts is a manifestation of the way in which I experience life. Adapting and assimilating to our human condition is an art, a form of survival that allows for self-expression as a technique of understanding, a way of translating beauty into collective consciousness, a means of transforming atrocity too enormous for words, an offer of conversation that transcends human reason, a sharing of imagination that embraces the past, the present and the future. As the world grows increasingly complex, our very existence is threatened by terrorist attacks, natural disasters, and socioeconomic confusion. A culture driven by consumerism responds to global competition for technology that races against the speed of light. Human misunderstanding is relegated to war, courts of law and bi-partisan politics. Adapting and assimilating life circumstances and experiences with a sensitivity to the interplay of intensely colorful fiber in my hands affects an optimistic and energetic reinterpretation of life's complexity. In a time of uncertainty, art is a reason for hope.

This thesis culminates in an exhibition resulting from the artist’s investigation of the relationship between space and time, and on perception and experience of space with connections to ‘everyday’ ideas of space. A recurring link in this paper is the process of ‘being present’ in relation to spatial viewing. The artist’s studio practice focuses on the visual changes she sees within a particular space or spaces, and how these visual changes are perceived and experienced when presented to the viewer in a photographic image. The intention is to present a photographic image to the viewer that not only changes the space from which it originally came, but also highlights the beauty of the space that may be missed or overlooked. The research questions the way people see, the visual representation of the ‘void’ or ‘empty space’, and spatial representation. The paper also discusses how the artist visually perceives and experiences space. The work of other artists and writers who research space, time and perceptual consciousness are also considered.

Thesis (M.A. (Hons.)) -- University of Western Sydney, 2003.
"Submitted in part fulfillment of the degree of Master of Arts (Honours) by Research, School of Contemporary Arts, University of Western Sydney" Bibliography : leaves 104-110.

This dissertation is grounded in a detailed analysis of Paul Tillich's ontology and theology, which allows me to develop a conceptual analysis grounded in a particular ontological theory. Specifically, that theory is the existential ontology developed by Martin Heidegger and theologically codified by Paul Tillich. Based in that analysis, the dissertation develops a philosophical concept of Nature, arguing that the modern understanding of Nature is a product of existential estrangement, the mechanistic understanding of nature of the seventeenth-century scientific revolution, and the technological drive to master nature. The modern concept of Nature is thus deeply ambiguous: Nature is that from which we are apart but simultaneously that of which we are a part. The dissertation then employs Tillich's method of correlation to correlate this concept of Nature with the recently revitalized symbolic name, Gaia, understood through the lens of James Lovelock's Gaia theory. This allows for a religious ethic of environmental conservation -- fully grounded in a scientific, ecological understanding of the life process of the Earth as a whole as well as a systematic and developed philosophical ontology and theology -- guided by the imaginative resource of an image of a living Earth, Gaia.

This thesis is an ethnographic study of an area in Manchester known as the 'Gay Village'. It explores the history and changes in the meaning of this term for the people who live and work in the Village, as well as for those who visit it for leisure. The Village was originally created by gay activists who emphasised being gay as the basis for having a separate gay community. However, since being incorporated into Manchester City Council's culture-led regeneration strategy the area now attracts large numbers of heterosexual male and female users. For many heterosexual Village users being gay attaches as much to 'things' that they feel able to engage with in the making of themselves, as much as what it attaches to persons through the way they define their sexuality. Within the Village previous assumptions about the authenticity of the categories 'gay' and 'straight' have been subjected to much debate. The aim of the thesis is therefore to subject current understandings of contemporary gay and straight sexuality to critical analysis and to explore how ideas about sexual identity may be changing in Britain in the first decade of the 21St century.

As a discipline Counselling Psychology places considerable focus on models of reflective practice within its pluralistic and critical knowledgebase. To that end personal therapy is a defining requirement of Counselling Psychology training. Nevertheless, given the emphasis that the discipline places on the therapist’s use of self and aspects of personal and professional development, there is limited understanding regarding the experiences of trainees as a unique client group. This study sets out to explore the therapeutic experiences of trainee Counselling Psychologists in the UK, with particular focus on the meanings that participants assign to their role as clients. Semi-structured and exploratory interviews were conducted with seven Counselling Psychology trainees who had been in personal therapy throughout their doctoral training. Data were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Three Superordinate themes emerged from the data: In search of a narrative (defining purpose), Being a trainee, being a client, and Learning from therapy. The themes were complex and seemed to describe interpersonal and intrapersonal processes. The three superordinate themes further divided in to twelve Sub-themes, chosen to represent the diversity of the individual experiences claimed by the participants. Of particular interest was the pervasiveness of the concept of the therapist’s vulnerability, and the ways in which trainee Counselling Psychologists attempt to make sense of their own experiences of vulnerability in relation to their developing professional identity. The findings of this study are expected to inform the current approaches to Counselling Psychology training and practice, and further highlight the importance of cultivating an introspective and critical attitude that allows for a greater appreciation of the sameness between client and therapist, and a more constructive acknowledgement of the influence of personal therapy in one’s development as a therapist.

PONTIFÍCIA UNIVERSIDADE CATÓLICA DO RIO DE JANEIRO
Ser criança, ser adulto, ser professor: encontros, diálogos e desvios com crianças de seis a dez anos, tem como objetivo conhecer o que falam crianças de seis a dez anos da experiência de ser criança no mundo contemporâneo e de como se dão as relações entre elas e os adultos. O referido objetivo se desdobra em questões que orientam a investigação: o que as crianças falam sobre ser criança? Como revelam em seus discursos e brincadeiras a compreensão que têm de si, dos outros e do mundo social? O que as crianças falam da relação delas com os adultos, jovens, idosos? Que temas, conversas e perguntas as crianças trazem? As crianças falam da escola, dos professores? O que as crianças falam sobre a realização de pesquisas com elas? Que assuntos consideram importantes como temas de pesquisa? A escuta das crianças aconteceu em dois campos empíricos: dentro e fora da escola. Dentro da escola, o diálogo se deu com crianças dos primeiros anos do Ensino Fundamental em uma instituição da rede pública municipal do Rio de Janeiro. Fora da escola, o encontro com as crianças ocorreu em uma instituição não governamental sem fins lucrativos, empenhada na formação e na produção artística cultural. O estudo teve como estratégias metodológicas a observação e a realização de entrevistas coletivas. A investigação aborda as contribuições dos Estudos da Infância como campo interdisciplinar de conhecimento, que fornece elementos para pensar a infância e a criança no âmbito das Ciências Humanas e Sociais. A pesquisa problematiza as condições que a contemporaneidade tem oferecido para as relações entre adultos e crianças. A atualidade desta reflexão, que indica a contemporaneidade como tema de análise, traz para o debate as contribuições da antropologia filosófica de Martin Buber e de Walter Benjamin, interlocutores teórico-metodológicos desse estudo. A tese discute a concepção de infância fundamentada na obra de Benjamin. As análises destacam: (i) a categoria ser criança, considerando o que dizem e percebem desta condição e os significados de ser criança para elas; (ii) as crianças como depoentes privilegiados de sua condição, nos dão pistas sobre o mundo que construímos para elas e sobre as relações estabelecidas entre elas e os adultos; (iii) temas, conversas e indagações trazidas pelas crianças. Na escuta das crianças a tese enfatiza a necessidade de pensar a criança como semelhante ao adulto na sua humanidade, valorizando-a, em busca de estabelecer com ela uma relação de alteridade. No mundo contemporâneo, o olhar da criança como outro olhar é precioso para a história do homem.
Being a child, being an adult, being a teacher: encounters, dialogues and deviations with 6-10 year old children aimsto cognize 6-10 year old children s discourses about their experience of being children in a contemporary world and how the relationship between them and adults happen. The research objective is unfolded into issues which conduct the investigation: what do children say about being a child? How is it revealed in their speeches and plays their understanding about themselves, about the other and about the social world? What do children say about their relationship with adults, young people and elders? Which topics, discourses and questions do children bring? Do children talk about school, about the teachers? What is the children s opinion about conducting a research with them? Which issues do they believe to important as research themes? The listening to the children s discourses occurred in two empirical fields: inside and outside school. Inside school, the dialogue took place with children in the first grades of an elementary Rio de Janeiro city public school. Outside, meetings with the children were arranged in a nongovernmental and nonprofit institution which deals with artistic cultural-artistic formation and production. Observations and group interviews were used as the study methodological strategies. The research approaches the contribution of the Children s studies as an interdisciplinary field of knowledge, which provides elements to consider the child and the childhood in the scope of Human and Social sciences. The thesis questions the conditions that contemporaneity has offered to the relationship between children and adults. The topicality of such reflection, which results in the modernity as topic of analysis, bring out the debate on Martin Buber and Walter Benjamin s (theoretical-methodological interlocutors of this research) philosophical anthropology contributions. The study discusses the understanding of childhood based on Benjamin s work. The analyses underline: (i) the being a child category, taking into account what is said and perceived by children about this condition and the meanings they convey of being a child; (ii) the children, as privileged deponents of their own condition, offer us some hints on the world we build for them and on the relationship set between them and the adults; (iii) topics, conversations and inquiries raised by the children. When listening to the children s discourses, the present thesis stresses the necessity of considering the child as similar to an adult in respect to their humanity, valorizing the child, in the search of establishing with them a relationship of otherness. In the contemporaneous world, the child s eye as another eye is needed in the human history.

In Being and Time Heidegger posits Dasein's Being as essentially Being-with-Others. However, he only occasionally refers to Dasein's sociality, and throughout Being and Time there are sections where Heidegger seems to be setting out a more robust social structure which would allow us to understand how this Being-with-Others takes place. For example, he talks of solicitude (Fiirsorge) in both division I and II, as well as more oy~dy in §74 of division II where he talks of the community of authentic people (das Volk), but he never expands on these. It will be the purpose of this thesis to ask precisely how we might understand, what he calls, 'the various possibilities of community a well as of society'. Clearly an account of Dasein's sociality must take into account its different modes of Being- with-Others: i.e. indifferent, inauthentic, and authentic. But it is not apparent how Heidegger envisages the development of those social possibilities and what he ultimately sees them as amounting to. I will argue that understanding sociality and community in Being and Time presents us with three formulations that show a tension between authenticity and community. The first is a minimal form of community, conceived as one where Dasein has an inauthentic relation to the Other. The second is a more substantial form where Dasein becomes authentically bound together in a shared 'Destiny'. This conception will be shown to be in tension with the first one. This will lead me to ask whether we can envisage a third option that arguably avoids this tension between a generation of authentic Dasein and those inauthentic ones. I will question whether a viable 'third way' is to posit a formulation where authenticity depends on community, or rather where 'community' is not only compatible, but is a necessary condition of authenticity.

The purpose of this study was to identify the relationship between religious commitment, spiritual well-being and psychological well-being in college students. The Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS) and Psychological Well-Being Scale (PWBS) were administered. Also frequency of church attendance was assessed. Canonical Analysis was used to investigate the data from 425 participants to determine if there is relationship between religious/spiritual well-being and psychological well-being. A statistically significant relationship was found between religious/spiritual well-being and psychological well-being. The following describes the nature of the relationship. First, participants who experience existential well-being tend to be self-accepting and to a lesser extent have mastery of their environment and a purpose in life. Second, participants who experience existential well-being and to a lesser degree, religious well-being tend to accept themselves, have a purpose in life, possess mastery of their environment, positively relate to others, feel they are growing personally, and are autonomous. This study provided evidence of a relationship between religious/spiritual well-being and psychological well-being. Implications and limitations of the study, as well as recommendations for future research are discussed.
Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

Originally presented as author's thesis (Ph.D.)--Duquesne University, 2006.
Also available online. Thesis title: "Being touched by music: a phenomenological-hermeneutical approach to understanding transformational musical experience." Includes bibliographical references (p. 105-112) and index.

When people describe themselves as being “in the game” this is often thought to mean they have a sense of presence, i.e. they feel like they are in the virtual environment (Brown/Cairns 2004). Presence research traditionally focuses on user experiences in virtual reality systems (e.g. head mounted displays, CAVE-like systems). In contrast, the experience of gaming is very different. Gamers willingly submit to the rules of the game, learn arbitrary relationships between the controls and the screen output, and take on the persona of their game character. Also whereas presence in VR systems is immediate, presence in gaming is gradual. Due to these differences, one can question the extent to which people feel present during gaming. A qualitative study was conducted to explore what gamers actually mean when they describe themselves as being “in the game.” Thirteen gamers were interviewed and the resulting grounded theory suggests being “in the game” does not necessarily mean presence (i.e. feeling like you are the character and present in the VE). Some people use this phrase just to emphasize their high involvement in the game. These findings differ with Brown and Cairns as they suggest at the highest state of immersion not everybody experiences presence. Furthermore, the experience of presence does not appear dependent on the game being in the first person perspective or the gamer being able to empathize with the character. Future research should investigate why some people experience presence and others do not. Possible explanations include: use of language, perception of presence, personality traits, and types of immersion.

Jessica Bell’s MFA thesis exhibition, All things being equal., presents the very idea of constructing a painting as a way of making sense of the world. Simple materials and formal devices make allusions to ordinary events and experiences. The works bear the marks of incidental studio occurrences, which conjure a conversation between the will of objects and the artist’s intention to activate them. Canvas and stretchers appear like characters, assuming the posture of active participants instead of subservient structure. The pieces engage with and resonate in one another, emphasizing the temporal relationship with the physical space. The forms are deliberately abstract and minimal, drawing our attention to subtle differences in the surfaces of material, gentle play with volume and light, and the quiet passage of time. All things being equal. was exhibited at the Ottawa Art Gallery’s Firestone Gallery in Ottawa from August 21 through September 13, 2015.

This thesis emerged from the author’s quest to increase her personal and professional effectiveness, to become more congruent, and to be a better person in the world. The thesis discusses how to move from Argyris and Schon’s behavioural model 1 (seeking answers externally, blaming others, avoiding responsibility, controlling behaviour and the belief that there is one right way) to model 2 (seeking answers from within, accepting responsibility, living in a state of flow, surprise and emergent possibilities, looking at the world in multiple ways and collaborating with others). Drawing from her own experiences and interactions with others, the author explores issues such as how people learn the qualities that enable them to be better people; what experiences have enabled people to move toward model 2; what happens when a group, especially within an organisation, moves toward model 2 and how does this happen; and how can conditions be created to enable individuals or groups to move toward model 2.
Master of Science (Hons)

The aim of The Poetics of Being is to inquire into how the apperception of the Being of beings is produced. We will recognize this production not primarily in philosophy, but in a medium accessible to us all, theatre. Although the Romantic tradition of literary criticism from Herder to Bloom has noted that Shakespeare produces an exceptional sense of what is [true], so much so that he is said to create the impression of nature or life, no one has so far attempted to show how precisely Shakespeare affects this experience. Contrary to T. S. Eliot, who is unable to discern any kind of poetics in Shakespeare’s plays, we have discovered an insistent and consistent pattern of inadequation, a kind of mismatch. The thesis argues, that the predominant tropes of inadequation are falsity, dissimilarity, nothing, indefinition, elision and substitution. We shall show that these figures of inadequation are the universal means by which Shakespeare, almost imperceptibly, compels the spectator to infer the apperception of what is [true]. On the basis of these tropes of inadequation the thesis makes the fundamental philosophical claim that the cognition of Being through non-Being is a negative form of what Heidegger calls the ontological difference. We call this the negative ontological difference. The thesis demonstrates that with the exception of some Pre-Socratic thinkers, Plato in the Sophist, the work of Pseudo-Dionysius, and the writings of Derrida, the bulk of the tradition of Western philosophy has argued Being in terms of positivities. While the thesis does not question the possibility of realizing the ontological difference in a positive fashion, as does Heidegger’s philosophy of unconcealment, the thesis claims that the negative ontological difference, or ontological contradiction, is the more forceful process by which we become aware of what is [true].

Ernest Hemingway wrote to F. Scott Fitzgerald that “The good parts of a book may be only something a writer is lucky enough to overhear or it may be the wreck of his whole damn life — and one is as good as the other” (305). With that, I created a collection of short stories that analyzes my generation of women’s struggles. Framing the thesis are two stories involving three women, Lindsey, Jenny, and Sarah, “The Generation of Discontent” and “Revisions,” with the characters attempting to sort through love, success, and happiness in society. The piece “The Bachelor” has Amanda torn between her currently successful life and the glamour and sometimes infamy of being on ABC’s reality show The Bachelor. In “Eggs Kennedy Style,” the fine line between delusion and dreams becomes defined in both Nan and Kelley of being one of America’s royal Kennedy family. “Cops and Robbers” shows the inner turmoil of women who do not aspire to be mothers and feel guilty for their aspirations as well asthe resulting resentment when they have to give up their dreams. The ideas of taking your loved one for granted and life goals become the driving aspect of “Flat Tire” where story picks up in the middle of major fight between Nicole and Tommy stemming from him dropping the garter the night before at their friend’s wedding. “Almond Blossoms” between a flashback to Amsterdam with Sam’s Dutch fling Andric and present time suburban Ohio with her finance Kevin showing the conflict of being single compared to being settled. As Fitzgerald said, “An author ought to write for his generation” (ix) and I wrote based on my personal experiences as well as my friends’ tales and tribulations that tell of our generation’s struggle. Giving a voice to the high hopes and resulting discontent I feel is important which models the Modern writers like Fitzgerald’s Gatsby’s green lighted hope for Daisy. I hope to revive a bit of that Modern era in my time though our green light just might be the glow of The Bachelor from the television.