This dissertation focuses on the actors and agencies in the transnational Buddhist networks that were involved in the making of Buddhism in Indonesia from 1900 to 1959. Using the framework of... Show moreThis dissertation focuses on the actors and agencies in the transnational Buddhist networks that were involved in the making of Buddhism in Indonesia from 1900 to 1959. Using the framework of transnational networks, this dissertation endeavours to understand how Buddhism gradually secured a place in Indonesian society. By viewing the late-colonial and early post-colonial period as a continuum in which Buddhism continued to take root, it connects developments that have thus far been treated as separated by the demarcation line of Indonesian independence.Furthermore it argues that modern Buddhism in the Indonesian archipelago developed as a result of global and regional religious transformations. Particularly important was the spread of Theravada Buddhism in South and Southeast Asia. Especially, the dissertation investigates the dominant roles of lay people, Buddhist missionaries and intellectuals who were living in and travelling to colonial Indonesia. The Peranakan Chinese were the primary local actors in this process because of their pivotal role in the making of modern Buddhism from the beginning of the period under consideration until the post- independence years. The Peranakan Chinese community can be seen as a “place” where people from various backgrounds articulated their ideas about Buddhism and interacted with others. Show less
The study of revolutions is at the forefront of the growing field of International Historical Sociology. As International Historical Sociology scholars have sought to uncover the spatio-temporally... Show moreThe study of revolutions is at the forefront of the growing field of International Historical Sociology. As International Historical Sociology scholars have sought to uncover the spatio-temporally changing character of international relations, they have come a long way in overcoming ‘unilinear’ and ‘internalist’ conceptions of revolutionary modern transformation. In this article, I re-evaluate the extent to which the International Historical Sociology of ‘bourgeois revolutions’ has succeeded in remedying unilinear conceptions of the transition to modernity. I argue that ‘consequentialist’ approaches to the study of bourgeois revolutions tend to obscure the radically heterogeneous character of revolutionary transformations, both within and outside Western Europe. Drawing on Political Marxism and Robbie Shilliam’s discussion of Jacobinism, I first provide a non-consequentialist reading of the revolutions of modernity within Western Europe, and then utilize this reinterpretation to provide a new interpretation of the Turkish Revolution (1923–1945). My aim is to demonstrate that a non-consequentialist conception of ‘bourgeois revolutions’ will enable us to historicize and theorize more accurately the co-constitution of international relations and revolutionary processes, hence providing a stronger foundation for the International Historical Sociology of modern revolutions. Show less
Since the early 1960s, Chilean history has been characterised by the implementation of widely different political projects. Despite the ideological differences between them, these projects have... Show moreSince the early 1960s, Chilean history has been characterised by the implementation of widely different political projects. Despite the ideological differences between them, these projects have shared a strong orientation towards modernity and odernisation. All of them have been focused on making Chile a ‘modern country’ in a relatively short period of time, based on different interpretations of what modernity is. These projects have been labelled the ‘Revolution in Liberty’ (1964-1970), he ‘Chilean Road to Socialism’ (1970-1973), he ‘Silent Revolution’ (1973-1990), and more recently ‘Growth with Equity’ (1990-2006). This study shows that these projects share key characteristics in their conception and implementation. They have all been based on modernising doctrines and economic development theories, and have focused on the state, technocracy, and state planning as the main motors for modernisation. As a result of their competition and interaction, these projects have left lasting legacies, which have crystallised into particularly stable patterns of modernity. Show less
