Contradictory Themes Research Articles

"It's probably an addiction-It can't be anything else": The role of addiction discourse in the self-identity of men who pay for sex.

This study is about the role of the addiction discourse in the self-identity of Israeli men who pay women for sex (MPWS). Using the theoretical framework of symbolic interaction, we identified two main contradictory themes regarding the role of the addict identity in the self-narratives of the participants: one presenting the addict identity as contributing to the participants' positive self-perception and the second as challenging it. Within a social context that often portrays MPWS as perpetrators and abusers, the addiction discourse was a useful source in helping the participants negotiate the dilemma of how to engage in "deviant" acts and still appear to be decent men. While not dismissing the reality of addiction or the distress experienced by some of the participants, we suggest that being "sick" and "having no control over one's actions" might be considered by some MPWS as preferable explanations to being an outlaw, or villain. However, the inconclusive nature of the sex addiction discourse intimidated some of the participants' self-identity, thus stressing the need for a clear definition and further theorization of sex addiction, particularly in the context of sex for pay. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Turkey's Kurdish Insurgency Reappraised (Part I)

As the modern Republic of Turkey—officially established on 29 October 1923—enters its second century and crucial national elections for president and parliament were held on 14 and 28 May 2023 in which the Kurds played a crucial role, this is a particularly important time to reappraise the county’s long-continuing Kurdish insurgency and related events. Over the years, two over-arching, seemingly contradictory themes involving change and continuity have characterised Turkey’s policy toward the Kurds. During Ottoman times (1261-1923) and even into the early Republican days (1923- ), the Kurds were granted a type of separate status befitting their unique ethnic identity. However, probably largely because of the Sheikh Said Rebellion in 1925, Kemalist Turkey abruptly cancelled this policy and instead initiated one of denial, assimilation, and force. The fear was that the Kurds would potentially challenge Turkey’s territorial integrity and divide the state. Only gradually beginning in the 1970s and 1980s, when this position of, denial, assimilation, and the fist had clearly failed, did Turkey cautiously and incrementally begin again reversing its policy and granting the Kurds some type of recognition. Thus this article also will cover the PKK insurgency, as well as Abdullah (Apo) Ocalan’s capture and its consequences. Subsequently, Part II of this reappraisal will bring events up to the present in 2024.

ASEAN quality assurance scheme and Vietnamese higher education: a shift to outcomes-based education?

This qualitative study explored the status of outcomes-based education (OBE) in Vietnam, analysing the strengths and areas for improvement as identified by assessors from the ASEAN University Network-Quality Assurance (AUN-QA) agency in the external assessment reports of 17 study programmes. Convenience sampling was employed to select these programmes. Thematic analysis was used for the narratives of these reports, together with quantitative analysis. The findings indicated that there are some signs of shifting to OBE in Vietnamese higher education as a result of complying with external requirements, yet observed changes tend to be on paper only regarding constructive alignment with curriculum design. The contradictory themes found in this study require further investigation to examine the impacts of AUN-QA on quality improvement in the Vietnamese context. As the research design was limited to content analysis, the voices of various stakeholders towards this regional quality assurance régime have not been fully explored.

How is health education being taught and experienced? A literature review

The purpose of this review was to analyse qualitative studies on health education and highlight how it is taught within the classroom, including the implicit messages about health expressed and the particular pedagogies embraced. Connected to this, post-primary student experiences in health education are explored. Reviewed literature included qualitative and peer-reviewed research from 2009 to 2022. Despite some of this research stemming from international contexts, the resulting findings and discussions presented will directly relate to health education in Aotearoa New Zealand. The review revealed the persistence of two dominant and somewhat contradictory themes: dependence on fear- and risk-based discourses, and the utilisation of critical pedagogy. The review also highlighted a discrepancy between junior and senior health education. Implications for educators, future research and teacher education programmes are also discussed with a focus on the Aotearoa New Zealand context. This review will lend itself to broadening the pedagogical approaches taken by health educators and the effects these have on student experiences.

Migration Decision-Making Process: Dialectic Contradictions Experienced by Asylum-Seeking Women

ABSTRACT Increasing numbers of migrants have fled human rights abuses, seeking refugee status. This study, involving semi-structured interviews with 12 African asylum-seeking women in Israel, explores their decision to leave home, journey to, and enter Israel without legal authorization. It further examines their retrospective view of leaving home amidst their experiences in Israel. Guided by a qualitative descriptive approach, the analysis reveals contradictory themes: autonomy/absence of autonomy in migration decision-making and positive/negative sentiments about life in Israel. We discuss these findings in relation to international migration determinant theories, relational dialectic theory, and research on communicative tensions experienced by refugees.

From the Editor

From the Editor

Ambivalence, Estrangement, and Opacity

In the wake of Paul Gauguin’s artistic practice, this essay interrogates the work of contemporary visual practitioners who have sought to challenge the legacy of colonial modes of framing through performative engagements with notions of the artistic journey and issues of landscape. A photographic series by Guy Tillim, a film collaboration by Rosalind Nashashibi and Lucy Skaer, a painting by Michael Armitage, and a video work by Tiare Ribeaux point to the possibilities for engaging with the un-seeability and un-sayability of landscape through visual culture. Proposing critical interpretations of the significance of landscape as genre, these four bodies of work allow for conversations around the postcolonial effectivity of specific media, as well as the contradictory subject positions inherent to interactions premised upon conceptions of “return.” The works, titled Second Nature (2010–11), Why Are You Angry? (2017), Paradise Edict (2019), and Ulu Kupu (2022) respectively, offer methods for approaching and critiquing complex and problematic transnational engagements, as well as foregrounding the need for Pan-Oceanic approaches. In line with the theorizations of Epeli Hau’ofa, who argues that Oceanic identity should take a regional form, defined by movements and proximity within the expansive Pacific Ocean, these artists attempt to visualize the complexities of conveying a place as simultaneously lived and imagined. In particular, the projects reckon with the difficulty of engaging with the familiar tropisms that define tropical spaces within the cultural imaginary and attempt to offer heterochronic modes of showing and circulating issues of geographical, botanical, and cultural heritage.

Wagner's Shakespeare: Das Liebesverbot, the Problem Comedy and the Carnivalesque

This paper explores Wagner's early comedic opera, Das Liebesverbot. Though his ‘mature comedy’ Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg has been the focus of much scholarly attention, the composer's first and only other foray into the genre has been much less studied and often outright dismissed. While contemporary scholars have increasingly looked to Wagner's pre-Dutchman operas, they often read them purely in light of his later works; with this examination of his adaptation of Shakespeare's Measure for Measure, I offer a consideration of the young composer's work in its own right. After considering issues of textual and cultural adaptation, this paper offers close readings of several passages of the opera, in tandem with parallel scenes from the original play-text, to show how Wagner's transformation of this not-quite-so-comedic comedy into an expression of the carnivalesque reveals an expansive and cosmopolitan artistic and political philosophy during a period during which he was greatly influenced by the authors of the Junges Deutschland movement. Such a reconsideration disrupts the standard conception of a composer who is still often considered, in his own words, the ‘most German being’. Here, we see Wagner at arguably his most cosmopolitan, adapting the work of an English playwright he revered, altering the plot so that it ostensibly aligned with the ideological outlook of his German revolutionary colleagues, and setting it to music of a decidedly French and Italian flavour, all this in a way that still preserves many of the same, seemingly contradictory themes present in the original play.

A Phono- Stylistic Analysis of Emily Dickinson's poem " Our Share of Night to Bear"

The aim of any stylistic study is the interpretation of written and spoken texts in a way that analyzes the linguistic behavior used in such texts. There are different levels of stylistic analysis. Stylistic phonological analysis tackles sound patterns to observe the foregrounding of linguistic behavior either by deviation or parallelism. This study phonologically analyzes Emily Dickinson's poem," Our Share of Night to Bear." The poem has two contradictory themes: life and death. The study hypothesizes that phonological devices as alliteration, meter, rhyme, and onomatopoeia, manage to present the different two themes of the poem. It depends on (Ufot, 2013) , (Abrams & Harpham, 2014) and (BernardLubin et al., 1971) as phono-stylistic models to discuss the stylistic use of linguistic units of the poem and evaluate the reasons behind the deviations, and how that reflects Dickinson's style in presenting the ideas of life and death. Although, there is a frequent use of ballad meter, which is more conversational than common meters, there are cases of deviations towards the amphimacer meters to foreground a comic paradox that resembles a lonely lady and night.

Disney Classics between Feminism and Victimization of Women: A Historical Analysis

This paper focuses on the two contradictory themes of feminism and victimizing women in Disney Classics, a series of films which are based on famous fairy tales and the development of the changes undergone by these stories over time. The study is carried out through an analysis of the themes of the stories with a critical feminist approach in three chronological stages. Previous studies have explored these themes, but no report to date has used a chronological approach to compare the significance of the mentioned themes with the stages of feminism. These stories develop in line with developments in society and widen their perspective when examined through a feminist lens, and this change is also reflected in the Disney treatments of these tales. Despite the similarities in the plots of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella, The Sleeping Beauty, and The Little Mermaid, the representations of the voice and agency of the female characters in these films differs significantly, especially in the case of Snow White.

The management and organization of philanthropy: New directions and contested undercurrents

AbstractThe case for theoretical scrutiny of philanthropy's achievements and problems, in the institutional settings in which it operates, has never been stronger. In this introduction to IJMR’s special issue on philanthropy, we examine the developing levels and directions of institutional philanthropy scholarship, together with the consensual and contradictory themes they exemplify and the theoretical leads to which they give rise. Modern philanthropic theory is still largely based on archetypes developed in the early 20th century that accord a central role to foundations in addressing social challenges, yet the complex health, education and social service fields within which philanthropy operates have changed dramatically. We argue for the elevation of, and deepening directions for, theoretical study of institutional philanthropy. At present, institutional philanthropy has a modest theoretical literature, at the same time as we can notice an extensive and growing grey literature in the philanthropic community, often grounded in traditional strategic management. We reflect on the grey literature's potential development into theoretical scholarship, drawing on and fusing with a broader range of academic disciplines and organizational theories, and the linked study of the field as a discourse community. Here, the challenges of visibility and transparency in relation to privacy are significant, whether for accountability or research access.

Satirical Antiracism: Digital Protest Images in Afro‐Brazilian Media

AbstractThis article presents satire, irony, and parody as a means to contest racist structures through media production. I specifically examine the Is That OK With You? YouTube Series as it presents a break from traditional relationships between humor and race in Brazil by turning attention toward systemic racism. I theorize “satirical antiracism” as a way to understand how Afro‐Brazilians deploy satire to make visible the contradictions and inconsistencies of the racial order. Satirical antiracism is a form of activism that invokes the tension of contradictory subjects, such as humor and racism in communicating its message.

Intimate Uncertainties: A Mother Returns to Poetic Inquiry

Poetic inquiry offers the opportunity to become intimate with those multiple facets of self that shape our understanding. However, as scholars, even when we engage in creative forms of inquiry, we often find ourselves driven to ignore certain aspects of our identities. To acknowledge the personal within our research is uncomfortable and some have even argued, irrelevant. I believe our stories of the personal are extremely relevant, reflecting a landscape of multiple, fluid, intersecting and often contradictory subjectivities. As scholars, each of us has or will struggle at some point along our journey in relationship to our place within our work of doing research. The struggles may be different, but the discomfort is shared. Across the space of this article I use poetic inquiry to enter into discomfort and uncertainly as I try to make sense of what it means to engage in scholarship as a new mother. Through poetic inquiry my story does not exist in isolation, but instead becomes one of many in the larger dialogue of discomfort, uncertainty, self and possibility across the landscape of doing research and being human.

PARADOXES AT LEXICAL, SYNTACTIC, AND TEXTUAL LEVELS


 
 
 The presented article aims to study the problem of contradictory concepts, ideas by discussing oxymoron and antithesis, to give an outline of these very important and frequently used stylistic devices, their peculiarities and classification; also, to identify those new classes which were revealed after meticulously studying the material under investigation. Exactly these classes are the novelty that is suggested in the given article. Besides, the article studies contradictory themes developed in the text what we call a textual paradox.
 
 

Tech and me: an autoethnographic account of digital literacy as an identity performance

This paper is an autoethnographic account of developing digital literacy, as seen through references to identity, both in direct and indirect relationship to digital technology. Conceiving of digital literacy as a process that includes identity change, and identity as constituted by actions performed, posts from my blog focusing on educational technology written between 2011 and 2019, are analysed and coded. An initial analysis uses a framework, which sees digital literacy as an interaction between skills, practices and identity. The findings highlight not only the importance of identity but also the need for a more detailed understanding of identity than the one provided by this model. Findings related to identity are then analysed further. In the process, four specific and contradictory themes are revealed – technology advocate, technology sceptic, technology adept and technology novice. In addition, the importance of other identity markers in relation to technology is explored. In the context of individuals and organisations prioritising the enhancement of digital literacy, this paper suggests that the role of identity in such enhancement is critical and is not sufficiently captured in current research and discussion.

Oxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids to produce lipid mediators.

The chemistry, biochemistry, pharmacology and molecular biology of oxylipins (defined as a family of oxygenated natural products that are formed from unsaturated fatty acids by pathways involving at least one step of dioxygen-dependent oxidation) are complex and occasionally contradictory subjects that continue to develop at an extraordinarily rapid rate. The term includes docosanoids (e.g. protectins, resolvins and maresins, or specialized pro-resolving mediators), eicosanoids and octadecanoids and plant oxylipins, which are derived from either the omega-6 (n-6) or the omega-3 (n-3) families of polyunsaturated fatty acids. For example, the term eicosanoid is used to embrace those biologically active lipid mediators that are derived from C20 fatty acids, and include prostaglandins, thromboxanes, leukotrienes, hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acids and related oxygenated derivatives. The key enzymes for the production of prostanoids are prostaglandin endoperoxide H synthases (cyclo-oxygenases), while lipoxygenases and oxidases of the cytochrome P450 family produce numerous other metabolites. In plants, the lipoxygenase pathway from C18 polyunsaturated fatty acids yields a variety of important products, especially the jasmonates, which have some comparable structural features and functions. Related oxylipins are produced by non-enzymic means (isoprostanes), while fatty acid esters of hydroxy fatty acids (FAHFA) are now being considered together with the oxylipins from a functional perspective. In all kingdoms of life, oxylipins usually act as lipid mediators through specific receptors, have short half-lives and have functions in innumerable biological contexts.

A Confluence of Anticolonial Pathways for Indigenous Sacred Site Protection

AbstractThe confluence of the Little Colorado and Colorado Rivers is an Indigenous socio‐ecological landscape, revolving in large part around water resources. Substantial surface and groundwater use within the Little Colorado River (LCR) basin threatens the water sources of the confluence, springs in the LCR basin, and specifically the Hopi Sipapuni—a sacred site of cultural emergence. To address concerns about diminished flows of sacred springs, we engaged in praxis through collaborative, reciprocal, community‐based research processes. Through the lens of anticolonial theory, we ask: Can federal policies be employed in an anticolonial pursuit of water and sacred site protection? How do Indigenous grassroots organizers envision protection and work to re‐Indigenize water management? Semi‐structured interviews with Indigenous community organizers and federal land managers were coupled with policy analysis of the National Historic Preservation Act/Traditional Cultural Properties, the ongoing LCR Adjudication, and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Findings point to multifaceted, complex, and contradictory themes that elucidate the continued influence of colonization on water governance and the degree to which protection solutions can be anticolonial. Criteria were generated for anticolonial protective pathways that highlight the centrality of reciprocal relationships, Indigenous Knowledges, and meaningful inclusion. While details about protection pathways for the confluence and Sipapuni are many, the salient finding is that the struggle for water protection in the LCR is the struggle for protection of inherent Indigenous rights.

The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Polish Nation as a Contradictory Subject in Lithuanian History Textbooks After Regaining Independence in 1990

Abstract After Lithuania regained its independence in 1990, its history textbooks have been rewritten several times in order to conform to the new major Lithuanian historical narrative. This article analyses the causes and outcomes of common Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth history and the Polish nation as an ethnic minority in independent Lithuania as presented in Lithuanian educational system during the end of twentieth century—beginning of the twenty-first century. It is based on the research of curricula for Lithuanian history education and Lithuanian history textbooks.

Saving a victim from himself: The rhetoric of the learner's presence and absence in the Milgram experiments.

This paper contests what has remained a core assumption in social psychological and general understandings of the Milgram experiments. Analysing the learner/victim's rhetoric in experimental sessions across five conditions (N=170), it demonstrates that what participants were exposed to was not the black-and-white scenario of being pushed towards continuation by the experimental authority and pulled towards discontinuation by the learner/victim. Instead, the traditionally posited explicit collision of 'forces' or 'identities' was at all points of the experiments undermined by an implicit collusion between them: rendering the learner/victim a divided and contradictory subject, and the experimental process a constantly shifting and paradoxical experiential-moral field. As a result, the paper concludes that evaluating the participants' conduct requires an understanding of the experiments where morality and non-destructive agency were not simple givens to be applied to a transparent case, but had to be re-created anew - in the face not just of their explicit denial by the experimenter but also of their implicit denial by the victim.

The conception of “equipment” by Charlotte Perriand: cross-over between Le Corbusier and Japan

ABSTRACTThis paper aims to clarify the conception process of the “equipment” notion, which is one of the key notions of French creator Charlotte Perriand (1903–1999), using her articles. First, in chapter 2, this paper analyses Perriand’s notion of “equipment” during her Atelier Le Corbusier period. Next, chapter 3 treats her understanding of Japan and chapter 4 analyses the transformation of her notion of “equipment” during her stay in the country. Finally, chapter 5 discusses the characteristics of Perriand’s “equipment”, comparing them with Le Corbusier’s. By examining Perriand’s descriptions of “equipment”, it is found that Le Corbusier’s architectural ideas and her experience in Japan were deeply reflected in the “equipment” notion. However, in the formation of Perriand’s notion, contradictory subjects – industrial techniques and crafts, standards and diversity, and walls and para-walls – coexisted, so the influences of Japan and Le Corbusier cannot be separated. It is concluded that the formation of “equipment” was a process where Le Corbusier, Japan and Perriand herself interacted mutually.