A Sociocultural Appraisal of Yorùbá Kegites’ Songs

This is a study of how the oral aesthetics of textual production by a group, the Kegites, are used in the construction of an identity rooted in a collective context that reflects a socio-political engagement with the complex social histories of the Yorùbá society and Nigeria at large. The study identifies common practices of the Kegites and themes of the texts of their songs. It shows the practice of engagement by the Kegites through which identity can be textually constructed in ways that politicize self-representation and challenge discourses grounded in the colonial and postcolonial histories of the Yorùbá people. Through the discussion of themes such as ancestral presence, the aesthetics of orature, and the political significance of group or society (ẹgbé) ̣ among the Yorùbá, the paper seeks to showcase the presence of a characteristic of Yorùbá oral literature in which personal, cultural, economic, social and political issues become inseparable. It demonstrates how oral text reflects societal elements and performers use various societal elements to create an expression of an identity within the multiple currents and traditions by taking the rules, creativity, and artistry of self-representation and shaping them with cultural content, as well as with the rhythms and speech patterns of the Yorùbá people.

Conclusion

The conclusion, We’re Supposed to Be Engaging, acknowledges that public relations creates, shapes and promotes a politics that is embedded in our major institutions, our common practices of mediated debate, and the way we collectively think about what “the public” is and what it ought to do. This conception of democratic politics is so deeply engrained in our habits of action that even when we fight for better representation of those voices that are continually left unheard or denied participation or the right to engage, we retain its premises instead of attempting to challenge it at its base. Rather than turn to publicity to inform, engage, and mobilize, we call for a return to the authority of scientific models of inquiry in the fields of culture and politics.

Über einige Aspekte des diplomatischen Verkehrs zwischen dem Hochmeister und Kaiser Sigismund von Luxemburg

On some aspects of the diplomatic traffic between the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order and Emperor Sigismund of Luxembourg The diplomatic traffic between the Grand Master of the Teutnic Order and Emperor Sigismund of Luxembourg was carried out according to the common practices of diplomacy in late medieval Europe. Nevertheless, this topic deserves further exploration due to Sigismund’s efforts to impose suzerainty upon the Grand Master and the Teutonic Knights. This issue influenced their mutual relations after Sigismund’s election as Roman-German King in 1410/1411. There are numerous surviving sources, especially in the archive of the Teutonic Order in Berlin (GStA PK), such as legation’s instruction, dispatches and, last but not least, the political correspondence between the Grand Master and Emperor Sigismund. These sources can shed light not only on the complicated diplomatic relation between above-mentioned two entities, but also, due to richness of their content, on late medieval diplomacy in general. Based upon the research findings by Klaus Neitmann, who explored the Order’s legation exclusively, this paper tries to expand the field of research by including the legations of Sigismund. From this perspective only several selected aspects of the topic are examined in the study: 1) defining a legation (foreign mission) and its characteristic features; 2) the diplomatic traffic between the Grand Master and Sigismund of Luxembourg from a prosopographical perspective; and 3) the personal composition and communication at the court of Sigismund. The richness of sources makes new questions possible concerning not only this specific diplomatic traffic, but also late medieval diplomacy in general as well. However, the definite answers might be delivered after compiling a thorough list of all legations from both sides, which in light of the large number of primary sources must be reserved for another study.

Challenges in Service Provision to Children and Families from Linguistically Diverse Backgrounds

The purpose of this study was to examine and describe experiences and perceptions of speech-language pathologists (SLPs) serving children and families from culturally and linguistically diverse populations. Twenty SLPs were interviewed using an online audio platform regarding common practices, resources and supports, challenges, and communication. Participants' responses to the semi-structured questions were transcribed and analyzed to identify themes in experiences. Results suggested six overall themes including: considerations for assessment; cultural impact; linguistic access and barriers; professional preparedness; impact of COVID-19; and helpful tips and resources. The discussion includes recommendations and resources to address obstacles.

Signalling Three-Way Intersections: Is Redundancy Better Than Only Mandatory or Prohibitory Signs?

At intersections, drivers need to infer which ways are allowed by interpreting mandatory and/or prohibitory traffic signs. Time and accuracy in this decision-making process are crucial factors to avoid accidents. Previous studies show that integrating information from prohibitory signs is generally more difficult than from mandatory signs. In Study 1, we compare combined redundant signalling conditions to simple sign conditions at three-way intersections. In Study 2, we carried out a survey among professionals responsible for signposting to test whether common practices are consistent with experimental research. In Study 1, an experimental task was applied (n=24), and in Study 2, the survey response rate was 17%. These included the main cities in Spain such as Madrid and Barcelona. Study 1 showed that inferences with mandatory signs are faster than those with prohibitory signs, and redundant information is an improvement only on prohibitory signs. In Study 2, prohibitory signs were those most frequently chosen by professionals responsible for signposting. In conclusion, the most used signs, according to the laboratory study, were not the best ones for signposting because the faster responses were obtained for mandatory signs, and in second place for redundant signs.

Looking for the optimum security architecture in Europe: EU and NATO – together or apart?

The recent years saw the most turbulent period of transformation of the liberal world order since the end of the Cold War. This directly aff ects transatlantic relations, historically serving as a beacon of the Washington’s foreign policy. This notwithstanding, while the U.S. foreign policy priorities have been changing, the members of the transatlantic community have seemed to be drifting further apart, which causes the development of alternative projects to maintain European security. This article aims to compare the current state of aff airs in the transatlantic and the European security systems, relying on the parameters, developed within the framework of the security communities theory, so as to access their feasibility and prospects. The author proceeds from the assumption that the relevant collective identity serves as a key factor for NATO’s and EU’s CFSP success and analyzes its ideational, institutional and practical components. New discourse is perceived as a starting point for transforming the identity of communities through formulating and justifying their main tasks. NATO is currently developing its new narrative while working on the alliance’s new strategic concept, with the EU elaborating on the idea of its “strategic autonomy”, creating a more vibrant and well-grounded story than NATO. However, to be translated into common practices the discourse should be rooted into a well-developed system of institutional communication channels, which is a distinctive feature of NATO, but not the EU. As a result, NATO’s experience in common practices, though not always successful and mutually complementing, creates an inertia within the community, providing for its stability and allowing for timely resolving inner confl icts. In this regard, the EU “strategic autonomy” is a matter of continuous systemic eff ort, rather than that of time.

The War for Civilization

This final chapter examines the reading habits of troops on the Western Front during the First World War. Literary levels among soldiers were a major preoccupation among many commentators in the period. At the beginning of the war a scarcity of reading matter was often remarked on at the front. Eventually, many means, official and unofficial, were used to acquire books by those on active service: borrowing, sharing, theft were common practices in reading culture. Among the official means for print distribution, several effective schemes were promoted. The Camps Library Scheme of the YMCA enabled book provision all along the Western Front. While the British government invested in propagandizing mentalities among the ranks, soldiers themselves used books, newspapers, and trench journals for their own ends. The varieties of literacy among troops in this period were as diverse as the reading materials themselves.

The everyday emotional lives of aid workers: how humanitarian anxiety gets in the way of meaningful local participation

Participatory approaches to humanitarianism, peacebuilding, and international development promise to listen to the voices of local aid beneficiaries. However, aid workers often listen to these voices through reductive narratives of aid beneficiaries, ventriloquizing their voice and inhibiting meaningful participation. Why do aid workers – despite humane intentions – continue to rely on reductive narratives? This paper inquires how the everyday emotional lives of aid workers make reductive narratives persist. Based on 65 semi-structured interviews in Singapore, Jakarta, and Aceh, and 40 aid worker books and blogs, I show how aid workers regularly experience emotional anxieties that question their complicity in the suffering of others and their powerlessness to do anything about it. Reductive narratives resonate and persist because they allow aid workers to cope with these anxieties. I illustrate the emotional resonance of three reductive narratives – civilizing; romanticized; and impersonal narratives – in three common practices of local participation in aid work: professionalized standards; visiting the field; and hiring locals. Given the emotional origins of reductive narratives, rational critique is insufficient for reforming or decolonizing aid work. Rather, change must also involve engaging the underlying emotions of aid workers.