scholarly journals Introductory Chapter: Financial Crises

Author(s):  
Stelios N. Markoulis
Keyword(s):  

Author(s):  
Eileen Keller

The introductory chapter presents the main themes of the book. It illustrates the recurrence of financial crises and discusses the contours and limits of the financial sector reforms implemented in response to the global financial crisis from 2007 to 2009. It spells out the specificities of banking and outlines the implications of the crisis for the future role of banks in so-called bank-based financial systems. The chapter spells out the empirical puzzle and discusses the shortcomings of existing theoretical approaches in accounting for it. The social learning approach and the methodology of the research on which the book builds are presented. The chapter summarizes the book’s main argument and closes with a short chapter outline.


Author(s):  
Youssef Cassis

The introductory chapter provides a historical perspective to the discussion of international centres after the Global Financial Crisis and Brexit. It addresses three sets of questions. The first concerns the definition and ranking of international financial centres; the second concerns the effects, over the long run, of global financial crises on international financial centres, in terms of rise, decline, recovery, and reconfiguration; and the third concerns the ability of international financial centres to reinvent themselves in the face of new adverse conditions. The last set of questions is relevant to the likely effects of Brexit, and takes into account the fact that, historically, leading economic powers have always given rise to a major financial centre. The final part of the introduction is devoted to a presentation, against this historical background, of the eight core chapters of the book.


Author(s):  
Ioannis Kokkoris ◽  
Rodrigo Olivares-Caminal

Author(s):  
John Marmysz

This introductory chapter examines the “problem” of nihilism, beginning with its philosophical origins in the ideas of Plato, Immanuel Kant, Friedrich Nietzsche and Martin Heidegger. It is argued that film is an inherently nihilistic medium involving the evocation of illusory worlds cut loose from objective reality. This nihilism of film is distinguished from nihilism in film; the nihilistic content also present in some (but not all) movies. Criticisms of media nihilism by authors such as Thomas Hibbs and Darren Ambrose are examined. It is then argued, contrary to such critics, that cinematic nihilism is not necessarily degrading or destructive. Because the nihilism of film encourages audiences to linger in the presence of nihilism in film, cinematic nihilism potentially trains audiences to learn the positive lessons of nihilism while remaining safely detached from the sorts of dangers depicted on screen.


Author(s):  
Pål Kolstø ◽  
Helge Blakkisrud

Russian societal nationalism comes in various guises, both ethnic and imperialist. Also Putin’s rhetoric is marked by the tensions between ethnic and state-focused, imperialist thinking. Noting the complex interplay of state nationalism and societal nationalism, this introductory chapter examines the mental framework within which Russian politicians were acting prior to the decision to annex Crimea. The chapter develops a typology of Russian nationalisms, surveys recent developments, and presents the three-part structure of this book: official nationalism, radical and other societal nationalisms, and identities/otherings. It concludes that after the annexation of Crimea, when the state took over the agenda of both ethnic and imperialist nationalists in Russia, societal nationalism finds itself at low ebb.


Author(s):  
Nancy Woloch

This introductory chapter provides an overview of single-sex protective laws. The longevity of protective laws rests in part on reformers' bifocal defense. The goal of such laws, their proponents claimed, was to compensate for women's disadvantages in the labor market and to serve as the linchpin of a larger plan to achieve wage-and-hour standards for all employees. This double-planked rationale—though contradictory—proved versatile and enduring; it suited constituents with varied priorities. Protective laws' longevity also rested on effective social feminist organization and, after 1920, on the federal Women's Bureau. In retrospect, single-sex protective laws were an unwieldy means to achieve egalitarian ends—or what women reformers of the 1920s called “industrial equality.” However, critics charged that the laws failed to redress disadvantage and even compounded it. Protection's supporters also confronted developments they could not anticipate and shifts in attitude they could not foresee.


Author(s):  
Justin Farrell

This introductory chapter briefly presents the conflict in Yellowstone, elaborates on the book's theoretical argument, and specifies its substantive and theoretical contributions to the social scientific study of environment, culture, religion, and morality. The chapter argues that the environmental conflict in Yellowstone is not—as it would appear on the surface—ultimately all about scientific, economic, legal, or other technical evidence and arguments, but an underlying struggle over deeply held “faith” commitments, feelings, and desires that define what people find sacred, good, and meaningful in life at a most basic level. An overview of the subsequent chapters is also presented.


Author(s):  
Biancamaria Fontana

This introductory chapter provides an account of Germaine de Staël's approach to politics that brings out the independence and originality of her contribution. Its main focus is the evolution of her views in the years 1789 to 1800, when she had the opportunity to take part (albeit intermittently) in French political life, and to set forth projects and strategies connected with it. The chapter touches only on Staël's best-known—and more widely studied—fictional and literary works, though naturally these do also have some political relevance. It has been suggested that the protracted exile into which she was forced during the empire was at the origin of Staël's major literary achievements, as it provided her with both the opportunity and the incentive to develop her true potential as a writer.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document