scholarly journals Compromised Critique: A Meta-critical Analysis of American Studies after 9/11

2011 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 733-756 ◽  
Author(s):  
LUCY BOND
Keyword(s):  
Critical Analysis ◽  
American Studies ◽  
Political Rhetoric ◽  
The State ◽  
Frames Of Reference ◽  
The Public ◽  
Crisis Of Representation ◽  
Political Realm

This paper contends that 9/11 remains subject to a crisis in criticism, resulting from the failure of certain strains within American studies to sufficiently separate their modes of critique from the ideological means of 9/11's manipulation. An overreliance upon themes of trauma, and a failure to observe the means by which these discourses have been compromised by their mobilization in political rhetoric, has led to the development of an interpretative void unable to produce a much-needed counternarrative. Whilst the explicit politicization of 11 September has been widely criticized, far less remarked upon is the extent to which the tropes in which 9/11 is represented have been standardized across popular, political, critical and artistic narratives. Failure to challenge the basic terms of this movement has engendered a compromised interpretative field, in which frames of reference slip too easily between the public and the personal, simultaneously militarizing mourning and sentimentalizing politics. This compromises counterhegemonic narratives, neutering the force of their thrust by presenting them as echoing, and even reinforcing, the discourses of the public–political realm. I will contend that this crisis of representation has arisen, at least in part, from the ubiquity of traumatic narratives, which have been transferred across discursive realms, disguising crucial authorial and critical differences, and seeming to validate the perspective of the state by testifying to an apparent unity of interpretation and response.

A Review on the Safety of Journalists in Turkey

2020 ◽  
pp. 148-171
Author(s):  
Bora Ataman ◽  
Barış Çoban ◽  
Özlem Erkmen
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Mass Media ◽  
Critical Analysis ◽  
The State ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Government ◽  
Coup Attempt

In the neoliberal media autocracy of Turkey, mass media are propaganda tools rather than the public watchdogs. The coup attempt in 2016 gave the government additional power to institutionalise this regime. Critical journalists have become the enemies of the state and suffered from threats from various sources. This attack on critical journalism is increasing alongside the deepening of the democracy crises, positioning journalists as victims. This study argues that bridging the fields of journalism safety and victimology would benefit journalists. Therefore, a critical analysis of reports on journalism safety, opponent journalists' social media posts, and related news was performed in order to discuss the possibility and advantages of bridging this gap to help journalists deal with victimisation. The findings demonstrate the acceptance of journalists as a new subject for victims' rights might activate new mechanisms of protection for them. This means searching for new rights can contribute to their physical, mental, and moral recovery.

The Influence of Political Rhetoric on the Evolution of Xenophobia in Africa

2021 ◽  
pp. 71-89
Author(s):  
Mavhungu Abel Mafukata
Keyword(s):  
Political Rhetoric ◽  
The State ◽  
Political Elite ◽  
The Other ◽  
The Public

Xenophobia is historically an old phenomenon in Africa. It has had numerous causes. Political rhetoric has been cited as one of the causes of xenophobia. Franz Fanon predicted in 1968 that Africa would sink into acts of xenophobia at some stage post-liberation. Fanon's prediction was fulfilled when President Kofi Busia of Ghana expelled Nigerian nationals from Ghana in 1969. This chapter used qualitative desktop approach to investigate how political rhetoric influenced the evolution of xenophobia in Africa. Political posturing and grandstanding of political elite and government bureaucrats encouraged xenophobia among locals. This action impedes efforts to eradicate xenophobia in Africa. It is possible for Africa to defeat xenophobia, and to also emerge out of its impact. The state should cooperate with other stakeholders to find a long-lasting solution to xenophobia. Political elite and government bureaucrats should desist from inciting the public for xenophobia. Irresponsible political rhetoric encouraging hatred of one people by the other should be punishable by law.

In Search of the Greek State: A Rejoinder to M.H. Hansen

2004 ◽  
Vol 21 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 107-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moshe Berent
Keyword(s):  
Social Life ◽  
Critical Analysis ◽  
Recent Article ◽  
The State ◽  
Doctoral Thesis ◽  
The Public ◽  
Stateless Society

In a collection of articles based on my Cambridge doctoral thesis (1994) I have argued that, contrary to what has been traditionally assumed, the Greek polis was not a State but rather what anthropologists call ‘a stateless society’. The latter is characterized by the absence of ‘government’, that is, an agency which has separated itself out from the rest of social life and which monopolizes the use of violence. In a recent article Mogens Herman Hansen discusses and rejects my notion of the stateless polis. This paper is a rejoinder to Hansen’s criticism and offers critical analysis of the concept of ‘The Greek State’ which has been employed by Hansen and by other ancient historians. Among the questions discussed: To what extent did the polis have amonopoly on violence? To what extent do the relations between the polis and its territory resemble those of (tribal) stateless communities? Could the State/Society distinction be applied to the Greek polis? How is the Greek distinction between the private and the public different from its modern counterpart and how is this difference related to the statelessness of the Greek polis?

scholarly journals La crisis del estado de partidos o «Ahora sí que viene el lobo» = The crisis of the state of parties. «yes now comes the wolf»

2015 ◽  
pp. 479 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joan Ridao Martín
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Balance Of Power ◽  
The State ◽  
The Political ◽  
The Public ◽  
Crisis Of Representation ◽  
El Sistema ◽  
Public Corruption ◽  
Participation Mechanisms

In recent times, the disaffection with the political system has grown exponentially mainly due to unrest sparked by both the management of economic and institutional crisis as the reiteration of different episodes of public corruption. No doubt this has intensified the crisis of representation, as old as the representation itself, and exacerbated the critical role they play in today’s political parties. Not surprisingly, these dysfunctions observed bring not only because of varying expertise at managing the public interest but also more structural reasons such as the fact that the weak institutionalization of democratic participation mechanisms has led to the State parties exhibits an extremely opaque and operating oligarchic, in turn, is the source of all kinds of excesses, including corruption or «colonization» of most institutions. In short, the so pervasive power of the parties has undermined the rule of law and substantially limited the effective exercise of democracy to leave little room for citizens to decide on the progress of society. This situation calls for a greater balance of power between it and the political parties.En los últimos tiempos, la desafección hacia el sistema político ha crecido exponencialmente debido sobre todo al malestar suscitado tanto por la gestión de la crisis económica e institucional como por la reiteración de distintos episodios de corrupción pública. Sin duda, ello ha intensificado la crisis de la representación, tan antigua como la representación misma, y exacerbado la crítica al rol que ejercen hoy en día los partidos políticos. No en vano, estas disfunciones observadas traen causa no sólo de la mayor o menor pericia a la hora de gestionar los intereses públicos sino también de razones más estructurales como el hecho de que la débil institucionalización de mecanismos de participación democrática ha dado pie a que el Estado de partidos exhiba un funcionamiento extremadamente opaco y de signo oligárquico que, a su vez, es fuente de todo tipo de excesos, entre ellos la corrupción o la «colonización» de la mayoría de instituciones. En suma, el poder tan generalizado de los partidos ha mermado el Estado de Derecho y limitado sustancialmente el ejercicio real de la democracia al dejar escaso margen para que los ciudadanos decidan sobre la marcha de la sociedad. Y esta situación reclama un mayor equilibrio de poder entre ésta y los partidos políticos

scholarly journals Die standortgerechte Dienstleistungshochschule

1996 ◽  
Vol 26 (104) ◽  
pp. 329-355 ◽  
Author(s):  
Torsten Bultmann
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Education System ◽  
Critical Analysis ◽  
The State ◽  
Historical Aspects ◽  
Higher Education System ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
German System ◽  
Scientific Associations

The German System of higher education is quite apparently in crisis; it needs to redefine it's function and legitimize itself. In the public this is mostly discussed as a question of efficiency. In the course of the past years, conceptional agreements have been made by the state, the economy and scientific associations, upon forms of fundamental reorganization concerning the system of higher education, on the basis of measurable effectiveness in management. Tenor of the article is a detailed critical analysis of these concepts. Above all, this requires a description of the nonfunctioning areas which the system of higher education system shows today, emphasizing on historical aspects.

Is economic inequality a universal evil?

2019 ◽  
pp. 91-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rostislav I. Kapeliushnikov
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Data ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Economic Inequality ◽  
The State ◽  
Fair Play ◽  
Left Wing ◽  
Ordinary People ◽  
The Public ◽  
Discursive Power ◽  
A Current

Using published estimates of inequality for two countries (Russia and USA) the paper demonstrates that inequality measuring still remains in the state of “statistical cacophony”. Under this condition, it seems at least untimely to pass categorical normative judgments and offer radical political advice for governments. Moreover, the mere practice to draw normative conclusions from quantitative data is ethically invalid since ordinary people (non-intellectuals) tend to evaluate wealth and incomes as admissible or inadmissible not on the basis of their size but basing on whether they were obtained under observance or violations of the rules of “fair play”. The paper concludes that a current large-scale ideological campaign of “struggle against inequality” has been unleashed by left-wing intellectuals in order to strengthen even more their discursive power over the public.

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