This dissertation explores the ways in which affective responses to disabled bodies are represented and how this invites us to read these bodies aesthetically. I argue that this affective impact... Show moreThis dissertation explores the ways in which affective responses to disabled bodies are represented and how this invites us to read these bodies aesthetically. I argue that this affective impact can be understood as an affordance, a term I use to describe how the appearance of and interaction with disabled bodies produces affective responses such as fear, wonder, or disgust. I study the relationship between representation and affective reactions through literature and other art forms. Through close readings of literary texts and works of art, this dissertation offers an alternative to so-called model thinking—an approach that emphasizes categorization. Instead, I propose a reading that focuses on how bodily capacities are culturally and socially translated into (dis)abilities. Unlike taxonomic approaches that categorize and generalize, this method allows moving from the particular to the private. Works of art, although prone to generalization, emphasize their unicity and resist categorization. By analyzing how different art forms represent disabled bodies, the dissertation brings a new dimension to understanding our emotional responses and the aesthetic appreciation of bodily diversity. Show less
This book is about three West African sign languages with different time-depths, community sizes and patterns of social interactions. Adamorobe Sign Language (AdaSL), Ghana, is an old village sign... Show moreThis book is about three West African sign languages with different time-depths, community sizes and patterns of social interactions. Adamorobe Sign Language (AdaSL), Ghana, is an old village sign language used by 33 deaf people. Langue des Signes de Bouakako (LaSiBo), Côte d'Ivoire, is a new village sign language, used by six deaf people. Língua Gestual Guineense, Guinea-Bissau, is an emerging school-based sign language used by around 500 deaf people.In the three sign languages, 45 narratives of personal experiences were analysed to better understand how the time depth, the community size and the socialisation frequency influenced the three sign languages. Four different descriptive analyses of the narratives were carried out. Study 1 analysed the structure of the narratives, following Labov & Waletzky's model (1967) and Freytag's dramatic pyramid (1894). Studies 2, 3 and 4 focus on specific narrative devices that work to make narratives more convincing, as part of Labov's (1972) "evaluation" component. These devices refer to the moments when storytellers give dramatic prominence to narratives through the incorporation of characters, such as the use of different signing perspectives (Study 2), the use of role shifting between characters and constructed dialogues (Study 3) and the use of different types of descriptions of the animal (Study 4).These studies show that AdaSL and male LGG signers use devices that reflect a greater ability to capture the audience's attention, while LaSiBo and female LGG signers tend to show similar patterns in using simpler or reduced devices.This study shows that the frequency of social interaction between deaf peers is the most crucial factor in language change over time. Show less
This in-depth study explores how women navigate corporate careers and take decisions in pursuit of a meaningful work and personal life. It analyzes the lived experiences of female employees working... Show moreThis in-depth study explores how women navigate corporate careers and take decisions in pursuit of a meaningful work and personal life. It analyzes the lived experiences of female employees working at major firms in Japan and South Korea to reveal how women's agency interacts with a changing environment inside and outside the workplace. It applies the comprehensive Gender Organization System's framework and interpretive approach with life story interview method to identify constellations of factors that influence women's work-family behaviors and attitudes over time. The careful analysis of individual interviews with 24 Korean and 39 Japanese women underscores that we must first understand the specific contexts individuals deal with in localized settings and explore women's personal interpretations of broad concepts to advance the increasingly broad theories in the gender and work literature. The findings suggest that dynamics and conditions at the work group level, and particularly the role of immediate supervisors, are of higher significance than the general organizational or socio-institutional context. Show less
The thesis reconstructs Carl Schmitt's 1956 monography on 'Hamlet'. By scanning and unearthing books, essays, think-pieces, articles, personal diaries and private correspondence, this investigation... Show moreThe thesis reconstructs Carl Schmitt's 1956 monography on 'Hamlet'. By scanning and unearthing books, essays, think-pieces, articles, personal diaries and private correspondence, this investigation fully addresses the unwritten philosophy of history -partially developed- in Schmitt's late thought. The question of tragedy, theater, art and myth are also discussed. Show less
Little is known about the requirements of a comprehensibly written paragraph. This makes it difficult for Dutch secondary school teachers to teach their pupils how to write a paragraph. This... Show moreLittle is known about the requirements of a comprehensibly written paragraph. This makes it difficult for Dutch secondary school teachers to teach their pupils how to write a paragraph. This dissertation presents a rationale that shows which aspects of language are important when writing paragraphs. It is a didactic design study in which declarative knowledge, skills and self-efficacy beliefs were brought together in toolboxes. An important implication of this study is that the paragraph can play a role in the teaching of formulation skills in secondary education. Show less
In de loop van de eerste vier decennia van de twintigste eeuw dringt de poëzie vanaf 1880 door in bloemlezingen voor de hoogste klassen van gymnasium en h.b.s. In deze studie worden de overwegingen... Show moreIn de loop van de eerste vier decennia van de twintigste eeuw dringt de poëzie vanaf 1880 door in bloemlezingen voor de hoogste klassen van gymnasium en h.b.s. In deze studie worden de overwegingen om poëzie te bloemlezen en de keuzes die daaruit voortkomen van een vijftal bloemlezers (allen leraren) beschreven. Elk van hen propageert een methodiek om poëzie in de literatuurles te verwerken, van een open, globale kennismaking tot een intensieve analyse van een gedicht. Soms wordt een gedicht van een context voorzien maar doorgaans wordt een gedicht als zelfstandige tekst aangeboden. Naast deze bloemlezers brengt voordrachtskunstenaar Paul Huf ter ondersteuning van het onderwijs op een veertiental grammofoonplaten zijn gesproken bloemlezing. Zijn voordracht kan als voorbeeld dienen. Verder inventariseert deze studie de inhoud van 85 schoolbloemlezingen uit de periode 1898–1941 met in totaal 6758 gedichten van 254 dichters. Uit deze inventarisatie blijkt naast de voorkeur voor dichters uit de eerste jaren vanaf 1880 de vrij snelle popularisatie van anderen in de loop van de jaren 1920, 1930. Bloemlezers volgen op literair-historische gronden keuzes van voorgangers, daarnaast tonen zij een brede persoonlijke keuze. Schoolbloemlezingen representeren de voortgang van de contemporaine poëzieproductie en representeren het belang dat docenten voor de literatuurles hechten aan poëzie. Show less
Gabriel Paiuk’s project Mutable Audible investigates how that which is heard – the audible – is formed as inherent to material, collective and technical circumstances. The audible is conceived as... Show moreGabriel Paiuk’s project Mutable Audible investigates how that which is heard – the audible – is formed as inherent to material, collective and technical circumstances. The audible is conceived as not exclusively bound to the private realm of the mind or the will of the individual listener, but as dependent on the diverse operations that inform how a sensorial engagement with sound takes place. To account for the mutable character of the audible, Paiuk postulates a novel concept of sound image built upon the work of the French philosopher Gilbert Simondon. This notion is unhinged from previous uses of the term, namely those that define it as a visual surrogate or a mental representation. Rather, the image is conceived as a node in a cycle of functions that articulate a metastable relationship between sensing agent and milieu. The result of this reconsideration is twofold. On the one hand, the sound image is postulated as a tool to address the audible as a variable locus of engagement with the world. On the other, it unsettles assumptions that keep the image anchored to its traditional visual-centric forms and techniques and drives its transformation to encompass the realm of sound. The variable form in which the audible is produced is explored across four artistic works which constitute the experimental backbone of the dissertation. Show less
The book analyzes the manuscript on the Dutch language attributed to the Japanese scholar of Dutch Shizuki Tadao (1760 – 1806). It is often argued that the Japanese scholars’ knowledge of Dutch was... Show moreThe book analyzes the manuscript on the Dutch language attributed to the Japanese scholar of Dutch Shizuki Tadao (1760 – 1806). It is often argued that the Japanese scholars’ knowledge of Dutch was not particularly advanced, as they were mostly limited by their broken understanding of the contents of Dutch grammatical handbooks and dictionaries. The present book questions and investigates this claim with the goal of understanding the actual role played by Dutch sources in the learning of Dutch grammar.Shizuki can be considered as the first Japanese who studied the European theory of grammar. His representation of it is highly relevant within the history of linguistic thought. In the analysis of Shizuki’s manuscripts, this book concentrates on the representation of the categories of the parts of speech and of morphosyntactic phenomena related to verbs. While describing Dutch grammar, Shizuki often mentions other Japanese authors, like Ogyū Sorai and Motoori Norinaga. This book analyzes their works in relation to Shizuki’s manuscripts and his Dutch sources, contextualizing Shizuki’s theories and demonstrating their relationship to his sources. The book argues in favor of a new positioning of Shizuki and the other rangakusha within the scholarly environment of Early Modern Japan. Show less
James Summers (1828-1891) is the first British professor who conducted systematic research on Chinese grammar. As a former missionary, he had been directly exposed to vernacular Chinese, which... Show moreJames Summers (1828-1891) is the first British professor who conducted systematic research on Chinese grammar. As a former missionary, he had been directly exposed to vernacular Chinese, which enabled him to teach and research it at King’s College London in his later career. This dissertation provides a complete picture of his research on Chinese grammar throughout his publications. It further brings Summers to prominence in the historiography of linguistics. By tracing which and whose ideas inspired him and who he, in turn, influenced, this study identifies his position relative to other linguists. The dissertation claims that Summers was able to integrate the research of his predecessors and arrange their findings and conclusions in his own clearly pedagogically oriented research, abandoning the purely theoretical conclusions to help his students learn Chinese efficiently. Show less
The Bibliotheca Enchusana or Librije of Enkhuizen is one of the oldest libraries that are still preserved in situ in the Netherlands and can rightfully be called a unique book historical monument.... Show moreThe Bibliotheca Enchusana or Librije of Enkhuizen is one of the oldest libraries that are still preserved in situ in the Netherlands and can rightfully be called a unique book historical monument. In this dissertation the history of the Librije is reconstructed through a new scholarly catalogue, which is based on a hands-on examination of all the books from the library’s holdings. The catalogue contains extensive bibliographical descriptions as well as information about the physical evidence of every book’s unique history, such as inscriptions of former owners, binding details, and manuscript annotations. Together with information from archival documents, the new catalogue helps to better understand the holdings of the Librije, their origin and history, as well as the use and function of the library since its foundation. Subsequently, this dissertation explores how the specific character of Enkhuizen influenced the Librije and how the role of the library changed throughout history. Show less
"Change, alter, or perhaps transform?" Selecting the perfect word for a specific context, such as when composing a report or a speech, is all the easier with a thesaurus at hand. These... Show more"Change, alter, or perhaps transform?" Selecting the perfect word for a specific context, such as when composing a report or a speech, is all the easier with a thesaurus at hand. These lexicographic resources are invaluable for looking up alternative words or phrases that convey a specific meaning. In addition, thesauri offer a number of uses beyond looking up alternative phrasings: they are veritable treasure troves for cultural, linguistic, anthropological, and literary-critical research — especially when these resources are arranged in a topical fashion, a hierarchical ordering of its groups of loosely synonymous words according to their meaning. This doctoral dissertation investigates how Web-based dissemination of historical language thesauri can be improved to facilitate academic explorations of language and culture. The investigation includes a case study of "A Thesaurus of Old English", expressing it in a Linguistic Linked Data form and making it available through the web application Evoke, newly developed by the author of this dissertation. A number of researchers, taking part in the research project Exploring Early Medieval English Eloquence, have engaged with these two digital resources and show that thesauri are by no means exhausted by previous investigations. The results demonstrate that both the new dissemination form and the innovative functionalities provided by the web application can offer novel ways in which to explore and analyse thesaurus content of this early medieval variant of the English language. Show less
Over the centuries, the French language has had a lot of influence on the Dutch language. Thousands of words from French entered Dutch and apart from that, Dutch has borrowed morphological... Show moreOver the centuries, the French language has had a lot of influence on the Dutch language. Thousands of words from French entered Dutch and apart from that, Dutch has borrowed morphological elements such as suffixes from French. Moreover, it is assumed that the popularity of certain Dutch morphosyntactic constructions can be attributed to language contact with French. Despite the fact that histories of Dutch often speak of so-called ‘Frenchification’ because of these French influences, hardly any empirical research has been carried out so far on the actual influence of French on Dutch. The aim of this thesis is to provide insight into the influence that French had on the Dutch language between 1500 and 1900. This is done by means of corpus analyses with the diachronic Language of Leiden corpus, which comprises texts from Leiden from different social domains. The corpus analyses aim to trace the language changes in Dutch as a consequence of language contact with French on three language levels: lexicon, morphology, and morphosyntax. In this way, this thesis aims to contribute to a better understanding of the historical language contact between Dutch and French. Show less
What is 'the news' and how does it differ from 'news'? The latter speaks to power, diversity of news media, and multiple publics. This dissertation is an ethnographic study of 'the news' and 'news... Show moreWhat is 'the news' and how does it differ from 'news'? The latter speaks to power, diversity of news media, and multiple publics. This dissertation is an ethnographic study of 'the news' and 'news' in, respectively, an institutional and a popular public on the Dutch Caribbean islands, Curaçao and Sint Maarten. The metaphor of the ‘glasshouse’ refers to how social life on these islands took shape under Dutch colonial rule and has since evolved as part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Like (real) glasshouses, built as regulated atmospheres to optimize the growth of plants outside their natural habitat, I argue that as part of the Dutch colonial project Curaçao and Sint Maarten were designed and regulated as social environments according to capitalist principles. Yet, as unruly transformations emerge in (real) glasshouses, so do unforeseen flowering and mushrooming take place on Curaçao and Sint Maarten. With a focus on news as a social process that generates common, contested, and at times cathartic senses of belonging, this dissertation aims to broaden the understanding of what 'news' means and does, while showing how everyday dynamics of 'the news' and 'news' articulate the creative transformations around (re)imagining and constructing the island communities. Show less
This thesis discusses the earliest Iranian loanwords in Tocharian, a branch of two Indo-European languages spoken in Western China during the first millennium of our era, as well as an early... Show moreThis thesis discusses the earliest Iranian loanwords in Tocharian, a branch of two Indo-European languages spoken in Western China during the first millennium of our era, as well as an early stratum of so-called "BMAC" loanwords in Tocharian. Show less
This thesis examines the practice and effects of the Chinese Communist Party’s religious and minority policies in Xinjiang on the eve of the wholesale repression of Islam and Uyghur culture after... Show moreThis thesis examines the practice and effects of the Chinese Communist Party’s religious and minority policies in Xinjiang on the eve of the wholesale repression of Islam and Uyghur culture after 2016. Based on government papers and speeches, publications and communications by the China Islamic Association, as well as fieldwork in Xinjiang itself and among the Uyghur diaspora in Europe between 2013 and 2018, this thesis specifically looks at the shift in the Chinese Communist Party approach to Islam in the context of the “Xinjiang problem”. State restrictions on Uyghur religious life and the state’s apprehensions of Islam as a vessel and cause of Uyghur unrest already existed since the 1990s. The policies of repression and control in Xinjiang have been addressed by several studies, showing that they fueled the use of Islam as an anti-Chinese symbol of resistance. But there was also a state-backed positive policy on Islam, which sought to bind religious communities more firmly to the Party-state, using Islamic scripture and Islamic authority figures to stimulate cultural and political loyalty among Muslims. This thesis looks at this “functionalization” of Islam by the Chinese state to understand what exactly changed in the CCP’s approach in the 2010s, why it changed, and whether the new policies in Xinjiang constituted a deeper shift in the Party’s dealing with religion. Show less
This thesis describes the Ashéninka language as it is spoken in the Gran Pajonal plateau and the upper Ucayali River in Peru, an area where the last Andean foothills give way to the Amazonian... Show moreThis thesis describes the Ashéninka language as it is spoken in the Gran Pajonal plateau and the upper Ucayali River in Peru, an area where the last Andean foothills give way to the Amazonian lowlands. The number of speakers is estimated at around 10,000. This language forms part of the so-called Ashé-Ashá dialect continuum, which is part of the group of Campan languages, a subgroup of the Arawak language family. The Ashéninka people live in so-called 'comunidades nativas', indigenous settlements with official authorities that are legally recognised in Peru.The thesis presents a description of the phonology, morphology and syntax of the language. The discussion of the morphology is by far the longest, with the description of verbs comprising roughly half of the thesis due to the complex verbal morphology. Furthermore, the text discusses the relations within the Ashé-Ashá dialect continuum, compares the reality status systems of the different Campan languages and shows the partial loss of this system in Ucayali-Pajonal Ashéninka. Other relevant findings include the probable origin of the word 'campa', the non contrastive but distinctive affricates, the long adjectives denoting forms, the discussion of the subject cross-referenced with a suffix instead of the usual prefix, the proposal of the existence of a future suffix in all Ashé-Ashá varieties, and some suffixes that have not been mentioned in the literature on other Ashé-Ashá varieties.Moreover, the thesis contains annexes with 11 glossed texts from different genres and a vocabulary of 625 words. Show less
What does this dissertation on De Haan and language contribute to the ongoing research on De Haan? As I explain in the introduction, this dissertation does not discuss in detail the person and life... Show moreWhat does this dissertation on De Haan and language contribute to the ongoing research on De Haan? As I explain in the introduction, this dissertation does not discuss in detail the person and life of Jacob Israël de Haan himself. The focus has been on the conceptualisation of language and De Haan’s use of language. By making this choice, I do not reduce De Haan to his decadent period, which is often the case, but rather consider his work from the meta-level of language. This dissertation not only shows how De Haan views the phenomenon of language and its use, but also what he is capable of with language, in which way he uses language as a flexible instrument, which language approaches he uses in the process, which language attitudes he can adopt and to what end. Show less
This thesis researches the profession of the upholsterer – or ‘kamerbehanger’ in Dutch – and the role they played in the creation of interiors in the Dutch Republic, in the long eighteenth century ... Show moreThis thesis researches the profession of the upholsterer – or ‘kamerbehanger’ in Dutch – and the role they played in the creation of interiors in the Dutch Republic, in the long eighteenth century (1680-1810). Its research centers on the cities of Amsterdam, The Hague and Haarlem. A total of 234 shops or individual upholsterers working there in this period were found. Hopefully, the index of their names included in this thesis will advance future research. The first chapter describes the way the profession developed, as well as how upholsterers learned the trade, worked, kept their shops and advertised. In the following four chapters, the relation between upholsterer and client is explored in-depth through case studies from the period 1680-1810.Upholsterers provided bed and wall hangings, curtains of all sorts, upholstered furniture and other textile wares. They were a relatively small but diverse group working in the luxury industries, with about 10 shops at any one time in Amsterdam and in The Hague, and about 1-5 shops in Haarlem. Some upholsterers did not have a shop but worked their trade from a single room, or worked for others. Most kept a small shop. For some, this was indeed the best profession (‘le meilleur métier’). Upholsterers such as a Pierre Courtonne or Johannes Deel, working for the Stadholders and the elite of their day, were able to amass fortunes of 20,000-50,000 guilders and played a role in designing interiors. Succes was dependent on factors such as seed money, an up-to-date knowledge of current fashions, and maintaining good relations with clients. Most shops went from father to son, and most of the upholsterers working in the Republic were locals. Only a small percentage were foreign-born, and even though France exercised a large influence on the luxury market in the eighteenth century, this is not reflected in the number of French upholsterers settling in the Republic. Only at the end of the century can an increase in their number be seen, and a handful of ‘French upholsterers’ settle in Holland. They seem to have had an advantage over their Dutch colleagues in that they were able to purchase the latest French wares directly through their connections.Regarding the relationship with their clients, it has been found that most upholsterers played the role of advisor and facilitator, when helping their clients buy a new interior or furniture. All-in-all, the case studies show how upholsterers would balance their client’s quest for the newest and most fashionable furniture and interiors with their budget and the available goods. Show less
This book is about the speech habits of young people from the Qassim region in central Saudi Arabia. It focuses on the way they speak when addressing people who are not from their home region. This... Show moreThis book is about the speech habits of young people from the Qassim region in central Saudi Arabia. It focuses on the way they speak when addressing people who are not from their home region. This way of speaking is referred “White Dialect”. While this term is used more generally in Saudi Arabia, it may not always refer to the same type of entity. In this book, the term “White Dialect” is used exclusively in the way it is used by the young Qassimi speakers that participated in this research. This book investigates the “White Dialect” used by the young Qassimi Arabic speakers and answers three main questions: what is the “White Dialect”? when it is used and why it is used. Besides the “White Dialect”, this book also highlights some of the differences between old and young Qassimi Arabic. The “White dialect” is not a dialect in the common linguistic sense, with relatively stable forms and a clear grounding in one or another group. However, the term “White Dialect” is retained in this book, because it is the term used by the speakers themselves, and thus implies a certain awareness of it as a variety different from other varieties. Results show that the “White Dialect” is a linguistic strategy for Arabic speakers to adopt linguistic features from the range of different Arabic varieties available to them, to produce a spontaneous and fluid form of Arabic that serves their desired communicative motives. Show less
