scholarly journals Training gender: Discursive analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Sarah Lobrot
Keyword(s):  
Social Practices ◽  
Gender Violence ◽  
Power Structures ◽  
Normal Behaviour ◽  
Training Material ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Gender Awareness ◽  
Nations Department ◽  
Integrated Or ◽  
The Military

<p>The aim of this thesis is to examine the discursive practices that have arisen from gender training in peace operations with the following research questions: “how is the discourse of ‘gender-awareness’ constructed through UN gender-training material for peacekeepers? How does this discourse contribute to further shaping representations of gender, violence and security?” To help answer my research questions, I proceed to a discourse analysis of the gender-training package created in 2001 by the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations (UN DPKO) called Gender and Peacekeeping In-Mission Training.  The analytical frameworks chosen for this research paper are Michel Foucault’s notion of discourse and Laura Shepherd’s ‘analytical strategies’. Using Foucault’s understanding of discourse, this paper examines the social practices of gender in the military field (peace and security): how are these social practices embedded in knowledge (in what ways are the notions of gender approached? Do they form a universal truth?)? How does this discourse act through and upon subjects (male and female peacekeepers)?  Building on Shepherd’s work, this thesis seeks to interrogate and deconstruct the concept of ‘gender-awareness’ in the UN training material around three dominant discursive sites (called Shepherd’s ‘nodal points’): [1] ‘how the relations between women and men are structured’ (gender), [2] ‘how they are affected by violent conflict’ (gender and violence), and [3] ‘how the mere presence of peacekeepers further impacts on those relations’ (gender, violence and security).  The literature review first addresses the construction of feminities and masculinities in war and peace. It demonstrates that women are constructed as being ‘peacemakers’ and that their feminity is shaped as being ‘peaceful’ and as ‘mother of the nation’ whilst masculinities are shaped through war. Secondly, it looks at the ways in which gender has been integrated (or mainstreamed) into UN policies: showing gender as a synonym for women.  The research discovers that ‘gender-awareness’ as a discourse in the UN gender-training material is composed of: [1] gender that equates ‘sex’ and ‘women’, [2] the dichotomy between women positioned as ‘victims’ and men as ‘heroes’ (expected normal behaviour) and [3] universals such as women’s rights, which ignore cultural contexts in their approach to gender. The paper also further investigates the discourse of ‘gender-awareness training’, which I argue has been established as a ‘tool’ in the military field, but not as a critical concept. This tool seeks to produce understanding (knowledge, i.e. what is produced as truth) of gender, violence and security and to regulate the agents’ (i.e. male peacekeepers’) behaviours.  These findings are important as they add to the literature which demonstrates how gender is de-politicised while sex is politicised and how women are excluded from both the realm of peace (security) and the realm of war (violence). It reinforces the idea that discourse is repeated and that for the UN to (re-)think gender in meaningful and creative ways, it becomes necessary to deconstruct the way power structures are shared.</p>

scholarly journals Training gender: Discursive analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Sarah Lobrot
Keyword(s):  
Social Practices ◽  
Gender Violence ◽  
Power Structures ◽  
Normal Behaviour ◽  
Training Material ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Gender Awareness ◽  
Nations Department ◽  
Integrated Or ◽  
The Military

<p>The aim of this thesis is to examine the discursive practices that have arisen from gender training in peace operations with the following research questions: “how is the discourse of ‘gender-awareness’ constructed through UN gender-training material for peacekeepers? How does this discourse contribute to further shaping representations of gender, violence and security?” To help answer my research questions, I proceed to a discourse analysis of the gender-training package created in 2001 by the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations (UN DPKO) called Gender and Peacekeeping In-Mission Training.  The analytical frameworks chosen for this research paper are Michel Foucault’s notion of discourse and Laura Shepherd’s ‘analytical strategies’. Using Foucault’s understanding of discourse, this paper examines the social practices of gender in the military field (peace and security): how are these social practices embedded in knowledge (in what ways are the notions of gender approached? Do they form a universal truth?)? How does this discourse act through and upon subjects (male and female peacekeepers)?  Building on Shepherd’s work, this thesis seeks to interrogate and deconstruct the concept of ‘gender-awareness’ in the UN training material around three dominant discursive sites (called Shepherd’s ‘nodal points’): [1] ‘how the relations between women and men are structured’ (gender), [2] ‘how they are affected by violent conflict’ (gender and violence), and [3] ‘how the mere presence of peacekeepers further impacts on those relations’ (gender, violence and security).  The literature review first addresses the construction of feminities and masculinities in war and peace. It demonstrates that women are constructed as being ‘peacemakers’ and that their feminity is shaped as being ‘peaceful’ and as ‘mother of the nation’ whilst masculinities are shaped through war. Secondly, it looks at the ways in which gender has been integrated (or mainstreamed) into UN policies: showing gender as a synonym for women.  The research discovers that ‘gender-awareness’ as a discourse in the UN gender-training material is composed of: [1] gender that equates ‘sex’ and ‘women’, [2] the dichotomy between women positioned as ‘victims’ and men as ‘heroes’ (expected normal behaviour) and [3] universals such as women’s rights, which ignore cultural contexts in their approach to gender. The paper also further investigates the discourse of ‘gender-awareness training’, which I argue has been established as a ‘tool’ in the military field, but not as a critical concept. This tool seeks to produce understanding (knowledge, i.e. what is produced as truth) of gender, violence and security and to regulate the agents’ (i.e. male peacekeepers’) behaviours.  These findings are important as they add to the literature which demonstrates how gender is de-politicised while sex is politicised and how women are excluded from both the realm of peace (security) and the realm of war (violence). It reinforces the idea that discourse is repeated and that for the UN to (re-)think gender in meaningful and creative ways, it becomes necessary to deconstruct the way power structures are shared.</p>

Crossing the Pomerium

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Koortbojian
Keyword(s):  
Social Practices ◽  
Civic Life ◽  
Public Monuments ◽  
Religion And Law ◽  
Mediterranean World ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
The Military ◽  
The City

The ancient Romans famously distinguished between civic life in Rome and military matters outside the city—a division marked by the pomerium, an abstract religious and legal boundary that was central to the myth of the city's foundation. This book explores, by means of images and texts, how the Romans used social practices and public monuments to assert their capital's distinction from its growing empire, to delimit the proper realms of religion and law from those of war and conquest, and to establish and disseminate so many fundamental Roman institutions across three centuries of imperial rule. The book probes such topics as the appearance in the city of Romans in armor, whether in representation or in life, the role of religious rites on the battlefield, and the military image of Constantine on the arch built in his name. Throughout, the book reveals how, in these instances and others, the ancient ideology of crossing the pomerium reflects the efforts of Romans not only to live up to the ideals they had inherited, but also to reconceive their past and to validate contemporary practices during a time when Rome enjoyed growing dominance in the Mediterranean world. The book explores a problem faced by generations of Romans—how to leave and return to hallowed city ground in the course of building an empire.

STRUCTURAL AND LOGIC DIAGRAM OF RESEARCH ON THE MILITARY-ECONOMIC SUBSTANTIATION OF THE RATIONAL NUMBER OF ARMED FORCES OF UKRAINE IN THE PROCESS OF FORMING THE PROGRAM OF THEIR DEVELOPMENT

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (12) ◽  
pp. 102-110
Author(s):  
V. Nazarkin ◽  
O. Semenenko ◽  
A. Efimenko ◽  
V. Ivanov
Keyword(s):  
Rational Number ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
The State ◽  
Limiting Factors ◽  
Development Programs ◽  
Power Structures ◽  
Scientific Substantiation ◽  
Conducting Research ◽  
Excess Number ◽  
The Military

The task of choosing the rational number of power structures is always one of the main priorities of any political leadership of the state. An insufficient number of armed forces is a threat to the national security of the state; an excess number creates pressures on the development of the country's national economy. Today, when the development programs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are being formed in the context of the practical application of their units and subunits to carry out combat missions, questions of choosing a priority approach to the formation (justification) of the rational size of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is an urgent issue. The article proposes a structure for conducting research on the development and implementation of the methodology of military-economic substantiation of the rational strength of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the system of defense planning of Ukraine in the formation of programs for their development for the medium and long term. The main objectives of this methodology are: scientific substantiation of the range of the necessary strength of the Armed Forces of Ukraine for the period of the program of their development; the choice of the indicator of the rational size of the Armed Forces of Ukraine according to the years of the program from a certain range of its changes; military-economic substantiation of this number under the influence of various limiting factors. The development and implementation of such a methodology will increase the efficiency of the formation and implementation of development programs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as the efficiency of using public funds for the development of power structures.

Top Down or Bottom Up? Public Control of the Armed Forces in Post–Soviet Russia

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 746-768
Author(s):  
Nadja Douglas
Keyword(s):  
State Power ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Power Structures ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
Underlying Assumption ◽  
Military Organization ◽  
Public Control ◽  
Soviet Russia ◽  
The Military

This article engages in an analysis of contemporary relations between civic actors and state power structures, notably the military organization, in the Russian Federation. The main focus is on the complex tension and interaction between state-sanctioned forms of control of the armed forces and public control, exercised by grassroots actors. The underlying assumption is that an institutionalization of control of state power structures is taking place in Russia. The article seeks to understand whether these processes are prevalently a top-down or a bottom-up phenomenon, how public control as a “civic duty” can be effectively characterized, and what implications this has for Russian civic activism more generally.

Ecofeminist ‘lines of convergence’: Remapping the American West in Rebecca Solnit’s Savage Dreams

2020 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 105-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daisy Henwood
Keyword(s):  
National Park ◽  
American West ◽  
Test Site ◽  
The United States ◽  
Power Structures ◽  
Nevada Test Site ◽  
Dominant Culture ◽  
The Face ◽  
Resistance To Power ◽  
The Military

This article examines the ways Rebecca Solnit’s Savage Dreams (1994) (re)maps two key locations in the American West. The text centres on Yosemite National Park and the Nevada Test Site, locations emblematic of histories of colonialism, patriarchy, capitalism and the military in the United States. Considering how Solnit constructs a counter-map of these places, this article argues that by tracing ‘lines of convergence’ on a landscape deemed empty by the dominant culture, Solnit both documents and is part of resistance to power structures upheld by traditional cartography. Using an ecofeminist framework based on drawing connections in the face of the dominant culture’s emphasis on fragmentation and separation, I discuss how Solnit exposes the silence and violence of the map. I then consider the ways she constructs a ‘testimonial network’ that counters both. Finally, I suggest that Solnit’s textual counter-map prompts us to re-read the traditional map on connective, ecofeminist terms.

scholarly journals Binarism, Identity (Crisis) and Power Structures in Postcolonial Anglophone Fiction: Analyzing Discursive Strategies in The God of Small Things

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 100
Author(s):  
Sundas Tahreem ◽  
Inayat Ullah ◽  
Tariq Khan
Keyword(s):  
Social Structure ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Social Practice ◽  
Social Practices ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Power Relationships ◽  
Power Structures ◽  
Language And Literature ◽  
Small Things

Binary relationship among people of a particular society creates a power correlation that becomes a common social practice of that society with the passage of time. Social structure is based on power structure of any society that defines social identities on the basis of collective social ideology. The present study is based on Fairclough&rsquo;s approach to Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) that takes discourse as social practice. In this study, an effort has been made to show how social practices create power imbalance in the society. The objectives include study of binary relationships that establish power relationships, role of power structures to define social identities, role of ideology to maintain power and hegemony in social structures and to bring into the limelight the resistance of oppressed class against power structures. The study is delimited to the novel, The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy, and Postcolonial binarism is applied for analysis of the text. Binary relationships of the society have been exclusively studied through Fairclough&rsquo;s approach to CDA. The analysis shows that social identities are ideologically driven on the basis of power relationships and it is due to ideological construction that certain group of people sets up hegemony and dominated group gives its consent to dominant group. Firstly, discourse forms knowledge which defines social relationship. Secondly, ideology is constructed due to power relationships. Lastly, social roles construct social identities on the basis of ideology. Roy also has created some economically weak and socially marginalized characters in her novel which try to go against established social practices to bring disorder in the hierarchy of social structure. The study has research implications for the fields of Language and Literature as the evaluation deals with the exploration of a literary text through the lens of the theories of language and literature. Researchers can also further the scope of the present study by conducting an exclusive and comprehensive study of the selected novel on marginalization of women in the given society.

scholarly journals Institution of Military Chaplaincy in Ukraine: Emphasis on Catholic Church Activities

2020 ◽  
pp. 83-109
Author(s):  
Larysa Vladychenko ◽  
Tetiana Valeriivna Koshushko
Keyword(s):  
Catholic Church ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Religious Organizations ◽  
Power Structures ◽  
Pastoral Work ◽  
Structural Units ◽  
Military Chaplains ◽  
Military Chaplaincy ◽  
The Military ◽  
Catholic Churches

The article deals with the problem of military chaplaincy service formation in the period of independence of Ukraine as one of the priority directions of relations between the state and religious organizations in Ukraine. The current state of military pastoral care is analyzed directly in the context of Catholic churches activities in Ukraine in this aspect. In particular, the institutional component of the Catholic churches is clarified, statistics demonstrating the quantitative and percentage composition of the Catholic churches in the religious network of Ukraine are provided. The results of sociological surveys of the religious situation in Ukraine and the identification of religiosity of the population in the context of Catholic churches are analyzed. The opinion of the population of Ukraine regarding the trust in religious organizations, religious leaders (including the leadership of the Catholic churches) and the military formations of Ukraine is examined. The opinion of the population on the expediency of establishing a military chaplaincy institute in Ukraine is also clarified (through the results of sociological surveys). The organizational division of the internal structure of the Catholic churches in Ukraine is presented, and it is also clarified which structural units are responsible for coordination with the Ukrainian power structures and organization of pastoral work. Attention is drawn to the review of the cooperation of the Catholic churches in Ukraine with the military formations of Ukraine in the aspect of pastoral activity. Special attention is paid to the coverage of the various areas of pastoral work directly by the military chaplains of the Catholic churches and the coordination of this work by the relevant structural units of the Catholic churches. In particular, conferences, meetings, trainings, pilgrimages on the organization and implementation of pastoral work in the field of military chaplaincy. Also, consideration is given to the activities of the advisory body on military chaplaincy at the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine (which includes, in particular, the Catholic churches in Ukraine) and its contribution to the establishment of the Institute of Military Chaplaincy in Ukraine. The inter-denominational cooperation of the churches in Ukraine, including the Catholic ones, was considered in establishing a military chaplaincy institution in independent Ukraine through the activities of interfaith associations. It has been found that the issue of legislative securing of the Institute of Military Chaplaincy in the Armed Forces of Ukraine remains urgent. In this regard, the legislative work in this area and the involvement of Catholic churches in Ukraine are highlighted.

scholarly journals The Features of the Domestic Political Development of Mauritania during the Reign of Mohammed Ould Abdel Aziz (2009–2019)

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 607-621
Author(s):  
Maria I. Makhmutova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Civil Wars ◽  
Political Development ◽  
Political Instability ◽  
Political Activity ◽  
Power Structures ◽  
Coup D'etat ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Arab Spring ◽  
The Military

This article is devoted to the study of domestic political development of Mauritania during the ten years President Mohammed Ould Abdel Aziz’s reign (2009–2019). The author focuses on the main challenges to the regime supported by the military junta, as well as on the key reasons for its preservation, despite the presence of sharp contradictions within the state. The army, entrenched in power structures, had to face such problems as terrorism from Al-Qaeda, the Arab spring, and the assassination attempt on the president. At the same time, the country’s authorities were able to address these problems through a tough fight against extremism. One cannot fail to note the introduction of the practice of expanding the circle of parties loyal to the president and the national dialogue with the opposition, which not only contributed to the legitimization of Abdel Aziz’s personality, but also continued his political activity. This occurred while most regimes in the Arab East either fell or were faced with lengthy civil wars. In addition, the author notes that the elections and referendum, as elements of democracy, have been used more than once by Abdel Aziz to advance his interests, despite protests and criticism from opposition parties. In fact, in 2017, the country’s leadership was able to rewrite the constitution for itself and subjugate the legislative and judicial branches of the government. It is worth stating that Abdel Aziz became the first head of state who, in the entire modern history of Mauritania, was able to ensure a peaceful transfer of power after the end of the second presidential term. This decision did not force citizens to experience another coup d’état and political instability. In general, the author comes to the conclusion that the rule of Abdel Aziz had two main features: the desire to retain all the levers of power and, if political instability is brewing, to initiate negotiations with the opposition. These contradictions were not resolved, and the pendulum constantly swung depending on the domestic political background in the country.

Formalized Informal Learning

2017 ◽  
pp. 1928-1949
Author(s):  
Karin Tweddell Levinsen ◽  
Birgitte Holm Sørensen
Keyword(s):  
Informal Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Interaction Design ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Longitudinal Research ◽  
Social Practices ◽  
Network Society ◽  
School Settings ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
New Research

Longitudinal research projects into social practices are both subject to and capture changes in society, meaning that research is conducted in a fluid context and that new research questions appear during the project's life cycle. In the present study emerging new performances and uses of ICT are examined and the relation between network society competences, learners' informal learning strategies and ICT in formalized school settings over time is studied. The authors find that aspects of ICT like multimodality, intuitive interaction design and instant feedback invites an informal bricoleur approach. When integrated into certain designs for teaching and learning, this allows for Formalized Informal Learning and support is found for network society competences building.

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