The emergence of Ottoman Turkish popular erotic narratives coincided with the proclamation of the Second Constitution in 1908. Thereafter, the publication of these narratives continued for... Show moreThe emergence of Ottoman Turkish popular erotic narratives coincided with the proclamation of the Second Constitution in 1908. Thereafter, the publication of these narratives continued for around two decades until they were prohibited in the early years of the Turkish Republic on the grounds that they would damage public morality. This dissertation comprehensively reads examples of Ottoman Turkish popular erotic narratives. It provides insight into newly emerging discourses on gender and sexuality in the twentieth-century Ottoman Empire. In addition to investigating the emergence of new discourses on gender and sexuality through which the transition from sexual practices to construction of sexual identities unfolded, this dissertation is intended to demonstrate the Ottoman Empire’s political transition to modernity as well as to the nation state in relation to those newly emerged discourses. Show less
Barrows, as burial markers, are ubiquitous throughout North-Western Europe. In some regions dense concentrations of monuments form peculiar configurations such as long alignments while in others... Show moreBarrows, as burial markers, are ubiquitous throughout North-Western Europe. In some regions dense concentrations of monuments form peculiar configurations such as long alignments while in others they are spread out extensively, dotting vast areas with hundreds of mounds. These vast barrow landscapes came about through thousands of years of additions by several successive prehistoric and historic communities. Yet little is known about how these landscapes developed and originated. That is what this research set out to do. By unravelling the histories of specific barrow landscapes in the Low Countries, several distinct activity phases of intense barrow construction could be recognised. Each of these phases contributed to how the barrow landscape developed and reveals shifting attitudes to these monuments. By creating new monuments in a specific place and in a particular fashion, prehistoric communities purposefully transformed the form and shape of the barrow landscape. Using several GIS-techniques such as a skyline-analysis, this research is able to demonstrate how each barrow took up a specific (and different) position within such a social landscape. While the majority of the barrows were only visible from relatively close by, specific monuments took up a dominating position, cresting the horizon, being visible from much further away. It is argued in this research that these burial mounds remained important landscape monuments on the purple heathlands. They continued to attract attention, and by their visibility ensured to endure in the collective memory of the communities shaping themselves around these monuments. Show less
How are the GDR and the fall of the Berlin Wall remembered? The dissertation “Alles Banane?” deals with this question. It assumes that identity, individual as well as collective, is a social,... Show moreHow are the GDR and the fall of the Berlin Wall remembered? The dissertation “Alles Banane?” deals with this question. It assumes that identity, individual as well as collective, is a social, cultural and political construction based on the memory of the past. This construction is not only pre-shaped by valid cultural conventions but also influenced by images of the past circulating in the community. This dissertation tackles the question how novels and films contribute to the process of shaping collective memory by (re)constructing important places and by disseminating images of historical events in the community. It examines the function of fictional texts as a record of official and alternative memories. To what extend can one speak of conflicting memories in respect to the recent past in Germany? What role do the various social groups play in this context? Is, concerning the memory of the GDR and the fall of the Berlin wall, indeed ‘Alles Banane’? Show less
