Introduction

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Livnat Holtzman
Keyword(s):  
The Political ◽  
Rhetorical Devices ◽  
Political Events ◽  
Standing Up ◽  
Definition Of

This chapter introduces the corpus of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt and its role in shaping the traditionalistic definition of anthropomorphism through the case-study of an anthropomorphic tradition attributed to Mujahid, one of the earliest Quran exegetes. According to this tradition, the ‘honourable station’ (maqām maḥmūd) which is mentioned in Quran 17:79, denotes that the Prophet Muhammad will sit on the heavenly throne with God. This marginal tradition which was rejected by the majority of the traditionalists became an iconic text due the relentless efforts of the Baghdadian Hanbalites of the ninth and tenth centuries. The Hanbalites toiled to prove the antiquity and the authenticity of the text, while using an array of rhetorical devices to promote this text and sanctify it. Thus, Abu Bakr al-Marwazi (d. 888), who was Ahmad ibn Hanbal’s (d. 855) foremost disciple, used to illustrate Muhammad’s sitting on the throne by standing up and sitting down. This gesture conveyed the Hanbalite creed that Muhammad’s sitting on the throne was actual rather than metaphoric. The political events that accompanied this anthropomorphic text are also surveyed in this chapter.

One step up and two steps back? The Italian debate on secularization, heteronormativity and LGBTQ citizenship

2018 ◽  
Vol 65 (5) ◽  
pp. 591-607 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisa Bellè ◽  
Caterina Peroni ◽  
Elisa Rapetti
Keyword(s):  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Political Conflict ◽  
Interesting Case ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Political Events ◽  
The Family ◽  
One Step ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Shed Light

The aim of this article is to furnish insights of the Italian public debate on the recognition of LGBTQ rights, which can be understood as an interesting case study of the complex relationship between (multi)secularisation processes and re/definition of citizenship models. More specifically, the article analyses two political events related to this debate that took place in Rome in June 2015. The first is the Family Day demonstration, promoted by conservative Catholic groups; the second is the LGBTQ Pride parade, promoted by various gay, lesbian and transsexual/gender associations. We analyse the official statements issued by the two organising committees of the demonstrations, adopting the framework and methods of the Critical Discourse Analysis. Above and beyond an evident political conflict between the two discourses, we try to shed light on their mutual construction on the basis of what we call ‘naturalization’ and ‘universalization’ processes.

scholarly journals The (No-)Public Space. Reviewing the Transformation of Al-Qaed Ibrahim's Urban Image

2020 ◽  
pp. 177-192
Author(s):  
Iman Hegazy
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
The Political ◽  
Urban Image ◽  
Political Conflicts ◽  
Political Events ◽  
The One ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

Public spaces are defined as places that should be accessible to all inhabitants without restrictions. They are spaces not only for gathering, socializing and celebrating but also for initiating discussions, protesting and demonstrating. Thus, public spaces are intangible expressions of democracy—a topic that the paper tackles its viability within the context of Alexandria, case study Al-Qaed Ibrahim square. On the one hand, Al-Qaed Ibrahim square which is named after Al-Qaed Ibrahim mosque is a sacred element in the urban fabric; whereas on the other it represents a non-religious revolutionary symbol in the Alexandrian urban public sphere. This contradiction necessitates finding an approach to study the characteristic of this square/mosque within the Alexandrian context—that is to realize the impact of the socio-political events on the image of Al-Qaed Ibrahim square, and how it has transformed into a revolutionary urban symbol and yet into a no-public space. The research revolves around the hypothesis that the political events taking place in Egypt after January 25th, 2011, have directly affected the development of urban public spaces, especially in Alexandria. Therefore methodologically, the paper reviews the development of Al-Qaed Ibrahim square throughout the Egyptian socio-political changes, with a focus on the square’s urban and emotional contextual transformations. For this reason, the study adheres to two theories: the "city elements" by Kevin Lynch and "emotionalizing the urban" by Frank Eckardt. The aim is not only to study the mentioned public space but also to figure out the changes in people’s societal behaviour and emotion toward it. Through empowering public spaces, the paper calls the different Egyptian political and civic powers to recognize each other, regardless of their religious, ethnical or political affiliations. It is a step towards replacing the ongoing political conflicts, polarization, and suppression with societal reconciliation, coexistence, and democracy.

scholarly journals The political economy of peacebuilding: The case of women's cooperatives in Nepal

2013 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Smita Ramnarain
Keyword(s):  
The Political ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Everyday Activities ◽  
Peace Processes ◽  
Sustainable Peace ◽  
Credit Cooperatives ◽  
Peace Initiatives ◽  
Definition Of

Critiques of liberal, top-down approaches to peacebuilding have motivated a discussion of alternative, locally-led, and community-based approaches to achieving and maintaining sustainable peace. This article uses a case study of women's savings and credit cooperatives in post-violence Nepal to examine the ways in which grassroots-based, locally-led peace initiatives can counter top-down approaches. The article presents ethnographic evidence from fieldwork in Nepal on how cooperatives expand through their everyday activities the definition of peace to include not only the absence of violence (negative peace) but transformatory goals such as social justice (positive peace). By focusing on ongoing root causes of structural violence, cooperatives problematize the postconflict period where pre-war normalcy is presumed to have returned. They emphasize local agency and ownership over formal peace processes. The findings suggest ongoing struggles that cooperatives face due to their existence within larger, liberal paradigms of international postconflict aid and reconstruction assistance. Their uneasy relationship with liberal economic structures limit their scale and scope of effectiveness even as they provide local alternatives for peacebuilding.

Networking the political: On the dynamic interrelations that create publics in the digital age

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 124-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mette Marie Roslyng ◽  
Bolette B Blaagaard
Keyword(s):  
Mass Media ◽  
Digital Age ◽  
The Political ◽  
Relational View ◽  
Minority Culture ◽  
Mobile Media ◽  
Public Spheres ◽  
Political Actors ◽  
Definition Of

This article argues that the definition of the political and its role in on- and offline public spheres calls for a conceptualization that takes into account the networked connections established between lay and professional political actors, mass media and mobile media. While acknowledging the importance of popular and mass media’s impact on participatory and democratic processes, this article focuses on the cultural citizen and proposes that a rethinking of publics affords a new understanding of the idea of networks as a series of connection points fostering a dynamic and relational view on the political. We illustrate this conceptualization through a case study mapping the agonistic and antagonistic frontiers in communication in a variety of publics and counter-publics in the context of Danish minority culture and politics.

Conflation in political gardening: concepts and practice

2019 ◽  
pp. 22-37
Author(s):  
Lucy Rose Wright ◽  
Ross Fraser Young
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Aspect ◽  
Academic Interest ◽  
Working Definition ◽  
Urban Gardening ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Everyday Space ◽  
Political Turn

This chapter is an introduction to the concept of political gardening; it aims to inform the reader of the political turn in the urban gardening movement. It begins by contextualising the re-evaluation of ‘everyday space’ through the neoliberal processes of privatisation, devolution and entrepreneurialism. It then marries together these processes with the rise of academic interest in urban gardening and a more recently the political aspect of this movement. The chapter then conflates the ideas of political gardening with injustice based on Rawls theory of social justice. Case study examples are then used to unpack the process of political gardening – in six iterative stages - in dealing with these injustices, arriving at a working definition of what political gardening is and that it is not just a term but also a process in which participants undergo towards becoming engaged ‘democratised’ citizens.

scholarly journals Protected black and Acadian electoral districts in Nova Scotia: a case study in institutionalised surrogate representation

2021 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-97
Author(s):  
Michael J. Wigginton
Keyword(s):  
Nova Scotia ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
The Political ◽  
Median Size ◽  
Population Sizes ◽  
Black Populations ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Nova Scotian

From 1991 to 2011, the political representation of the Acadian and black populations of Nova Scotia was ensured via four ‘protected ridings’ - electoral districts with population sizes well below median size created for their significant minority presence, a unique initiative that remains little examined in the literature. Through the reports of the electoral boundaries commissions, I examine the models of representation implicit in this system and use them to further the definition of surrogate representation presented by Jane Mansbridge, finding that what emerged was a system of institutionalised surrogate representation, wherein Acadians and African Nova Scotians throughout the province were represented by the representatives of the protected ridings. Beyond providing an overview of the unique Nova Scotian case, this paper also furthers the literature on surrogate representation by demonstrating that surrogate representation can be subdivided into two forms, which I categorise as ‘promissory/anticipatory surrogate representation’ and ‘gyroscopic surrogate representation’.

scholarly journals The Object-Oriented Politics of Stadium Sustainability: A Case Study of SC Freiburg

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (23) ◽  
pp. 6712 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyle S. Bunds ◽  
Christopher M. McLeod ◽  
Martin Barrett ◽  
Joshua I. Newman ◽  
Joerg Koenigstorfer
Keyword(s):  
Political Process ◽  
Object Oriented ◽  
Environmental Cost ◽  
The Political ◽  
Construction Process ◽  
Carbon Neutral ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Facility Construction ◽  
Key Informant Interview

Sport stadia are political objects that carry an environmental cost. The purpose of this research is to add to previous literature by theorizing the political process of stadium construction in a way that accounts for how environmental issues are introduced into the political process and, therefore, offers a more accurate lens through which to interpret how sustainable stadia are constructed. We conducted a case study of SC Freiburg’s carbon-neutral stadium construction process to theorize the object-oriented politics of sport facility construction. SC Freiburg is a German football club, playing in the Bundesliga. To examine the case, we employed a key informant interview and document analysis using Nexis Uni searches, local newspaper articles, official city documents, and social media websites. The case study of SC Freiburg’s carbon neutral stadium construction process showed that environmental concerns were included through a political process that incorporated the interests of a diverse public of human and nonhuman actors (while excluding some actors whose interests could not be reconciled) to produce a sustainable matter of fact. Additionally, we propose a pragmatic definition of stadium sustainability and suggest that environmental activists should make sure that both human and nonhuman actors with sustainability concerns are included in the stadium’s material public.

scholarly journals The Impact of Uncertainty Money Growth on the Economic Growth of South Asian Countries during 2004-2016

2019 ◽  
pp. 29-42
Keyword(s):  
Political Participation ◽  
Political Culture ◽  
Political Action ◽  
The Political ◽  
Government Officials ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Government ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Impact

Political culture, as a part of public culture and a group of beliefs, virtues, norms and approaches with views to the political area, is one of the basic issues which has been paid attention and the subject of many researches, especially since the second half of the 20th century. The topic of this article is studying Afghanistan political culture as well as answering the question of which impacts it has had on Afghanistan political participation during the after-2001 years. Also, in this research, by using an analytic-descriptive method, at first, the definition of political culture and its features in Afghanistan are presented and then, the occurred changes in the indexes of Afghanistan political coopetation in the recent decades are studied too. Political culture, as the system of empirical beliefs, symbols, virtues and the norms, which are regarded as the foundation of political action and the political behaviours of the public people, parties and the government officials is one of the basic issues which has been considered and studied by many experts of politucal area for the recent era. The continuity and strength of any any kinds of cooperations depends on the society political culture origin as it is a very important factor for defining the political social identity of the public members and determining their views, virtues and norms toward politics and authority. Moreover, in this study, at first,the level of changes in the last-two-decade political culture of Afghanistan society is discussed and then its impact on political participation is analysed through explaining the tie between beliefs and behaviours as well as a case study over the political cooperarion increase.

scholarly journals Democracy and Populism. The Constitution of the Political Community in Early Post-War Hungary

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 37-55
Author(s):  
Máté Zombory
Keyword(s):  
Historical Context ◽  
Political Community ◽  
Jewish Question ◽  
The Political ◽  
The Public ◽  
German Question ◽  
Post War ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Discursive Field

This article proposes to reconsider the relation between populism and democracy. Instead of taking democracy as a given, it will study populism in the context of democratization in a case study from a historical sociological perspective. The post-war and pre-Cold War historical context is analyzed here on the example of Hungary. First, I analyze the public debate on democracy in order to map out the discursive field in which the different political positions were taken. I show that the debate was about the legitimate definition of the political community, the demos. Second, I situate the political wing of the Hungarian populist movement in this discursive field. I establish that the position of the populists’ party did not differ considerably from the standpoint of the other participants: the basic populist claims and references were articulated as part of the problem of democracy. Third, I analyze the continuity of the populist tradition in the context of the post-war redefinition of the ethnoscape, that is, in relation to the “Jewish question” and the “German question”.

scholarly journals THE IMAGE OF UKRAINIANS IN POLES’ MENTALITY. A CASE STUDY BASED ON JOURNALIST PIOTR POGORZHELSKI’S BOOK “UKRAINIAN BORSCH”

2019 ◽  
pp. 91-106
Author(s):  
Cristina Godun
Keyword(s):  
Public Awareness ◽  
Historical Memory ◽  
The Political ◽  
Negative Stereotypes ◽  
Cultural Image ◽  
Political Events ◽  
The Press ◽  
National Stereotypes ◽  
Ukrainian Society

The article aims at presenting the geopolitical, social and cultural image of Ukraine, seen through the eyes of the author, the Polish journalist Piotr Pogorzhelski, former Kiev correspondent of the National Radio Polonia. This imagological portrait, which carries us through the history and national stereotypes, means to bring Ukraine closer to Romanian readers. Despite the neighborhood and the presence of the Ukrainian community in Romania, Romanians don’t know their northern neighbours very well, older generations show preconceived ideas and a distorted historical memory. Piotr Pogorzhelski’s book, translated into Romanian and published in 2015 shortly after the dramatic events on the Maidan Nezalezhnosti, aims to raise public awareness and draw attention to the political and socio-cultural potential of Ukraine and the Ukrainians. The same goal pursues «The Ukrainian Borsch» in Poland, a country where Ukraine is a frequent topic of discussion in the press, because the connection between Poland and Ukraine has always been very strong, despite some historical difficulties. The majority of Poles treat Ukraine with a sense of deep affection due to family roots or nostalgia for the western territories of Ukraine, which once belonged to Poland. And yet, among the Poles who manifest openness and an increased interest in Ukraine, the image of this country and its inhabitants is due to narrow negative stereotypes. On the background of current political events and taking into the account the lack of knowledge about Ukraine in Romania, «The Ukrainian Borsch» seems to be an indispensable and appropriate tool for shaping the collective portrait of Ukrainians and contemporary Ukrainian society.

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