Political Purposes Research Articles

Why it is impossible to write a biography of William Shakespeare. Reс. ad op.: Y. Dureau. Why it is impossible to write a biography of William Shakespeare: multiple names. Contradictory sources and political purposes. Lewiston; New York: Edwin Mellen Press, 2018.

Why it is impossible to write a biography of William Shakespeare. Reс. ad op.: Y. Dureau. Why it is impossible to write a biography of William Shakespeare: multiple names. Contradictory sources and political purposes. Lewiston; New York: Edwin Mellen Press, 2018.

Historical policy of communist Romania in the opinions of PPR diplomacy

The article proposes to look at the phenomenon of the historical politics of the authorities of communist Romania through the prism of opinions on this subject from the diplomacy, also communist, of the Polish People's Republic. It is about opinions of representatives of a state whose citizens during the communist period were not subjected to and did not succumb to such strong political indoctrination as in other satellite states of the Kremlin on the subject of a state which, from the 1960s onwards, conducted the most independent and distanced foreign politics from the Kremlin among these satellites and which went furthest among these states in instrumentally using historical politics and the often accompanying nationalism for political purposes. As the Polish observers have argued, the Romanian authorities saw in the image of Romanians and Romanian history created by them a valuable tool to shape for themselves the favor of society, its views and public sentiment depending on the political demand of the moment. It was most controversial among Poles, but supported by the Romanian public, that the Romanian authorities used history to more or less openly attack the Soviet Union in the name of defending their sovereignty. The Polish authorities also viewed with distance the theory deriving modern Romanians from the ancient Dacians and generally considered Romanian historiography to be biased and unreliable. In spite of the fall of communism, unlike in Poland, the picture of Romanian history shaped earlier, with a strong nationalist accent, is still readily accepted by Romanians.

Travel and the “Italian Question” among English Catholics, 1836–1870

ABSTRACT This article is a study of Italian travel as it was understood by English Catholics from 1836 to 1870. In contrast to a historiography that has largely focused on Protestant tourism, this article highlights the presence of a (sometimes countercultural) tradition of Catholic engagement with Italy that achieved prominence during the critical years of the Risorgimento. Drawing on travel narratives, press reports, reviews, debates and ecclesiastical documents, this article highlights the key role of travel in politically constructing the Italian peninsula. Writing about travel allowed English Catholic commentators to combat both domestic and international concerns, with caricatures of Protestant tourists serving important political purposes from the pulpit to parliament. The article will then go on to analyse Catholic attempts to mobilise an independent tradition in response, arguing that while such attempts were only ever partially realistic, they achieved a lasting influence over the expectations and actions of English Catholic travellers in Italy.

The use of party websites for political information among Spanish party activists

Scholars have shown that activists use the Internet for political purposes more often than passive rank-and-file members. Previous research indicates activists engage in different types of activities and with various levels of intensity. However, it is unclear to what extent such modes of party activism are linked to different uses of digital resources. Our paper contributes to the existing research by explaining what drives party website usage as an informational tool among different groups of party activists. Building on survey data from delegates attending party conferences between 2008 and 2017 in Spain, we test three main organisational drivers of party website use: the modes of internal activism, holding party offices, and ideological congruence. Our results confirm that those activists engaging in a wider range of activities, holding a party office, and being more ideologically congruent with their parties are more likely to use the party website frequently than the rest.

Angry tweets. How uncivil and intolerant elite communication affects political distrust and political participation intentions

ABSTRACT Hostile speech by politicians is increasingly prevalent on social media, especially for regular social media users. However, studies that compare the effects of political incivility versus intolerance on recipients’ emotions, political distrust, and political participation intentions are lacking. Findings of an experimental study (N = 297) indicated that uncivil speech had no significant effect on young recipients’ negative emotions. In contrast, intolerant speech elicited negative emotions, which increased political distrust and political participation intentions. Further, we assumed that a female politician using incivility/intolerance elicits stronger emotional reactions than a male politician. However, effects appeared independent of the gender of the communicator. Implications are discussed.

‘Welcome to favelas, but in Italy’: Urban precariousness, right-wing ideology and phatic nihilism on social media

Numerous social media projects have depicted grim scenes of urban life in big cities. By exploiting crime or garbage collection problems, for example, these pages have created pessimistic ways of perceiving the city and engaging citizens in search of memes or viral videos. This research invested in two multiplatform projects based in Italy, Welcome to Favelas and Simone Cicalone, to verify their inclination to specific ideologies or political intent behind interventions on social media. Using visual metadata and LDA-generated topics, this paper anchors a visual and critical discourse analysis interested in mapping creators’ phatic strategies. Exploratory results suggest a few formulaic, though elliptic, ways of manipulating audiences for crypto-ideological purposes mainly leaning to the right, theorised here as phatic nihilism.

Between Myth and Truth

One of the most important events that took place in Slovenia during the Second World War was undoubtedly the Battle of Dražgoše, fought in January 1942 between the Partisan Cankar Battalion and the German occupying forces. Whereas the course and aftermath of the battle itself have never been disputed, a few important details related to it have for decades remained the subject of debate. Based on the analysis of the most influential historiographical works on the Battle of Dražgoše, the article will demonstrate how the knowledge about the battle—primarily regarding the questions of what German units participated in it and what losses they suffered—has changed over decades as well as how historiographical works also began to be used for political purposes. The aim of the article is to show the importance of (military and war) historiography for the constant striving to find the truth about historical events, regardless of the mythological aura around them.

The Double-Edged Sword: Political Engagement on Social Media and Its Impact on Democracy Support in Authoritarian Regimes

Utilizing data from the Arab Barometer surveys, this study distinguishes between social media and the internet’s general use and their usage for political purposes, examining whether political engagement—obtaining political information and expressing political opinions—on these platforms bolsters or undermines democracy in authoritarian contexts. Initially, political engagement on social media and the internet was positively linked with support for democracy. However, this has recently turned negative, probably reflecting the rise of digital authoritarianism (authoritarian regimes’ use of digital technology to surveil, repress, and manipulate both domestic and foreign populations). This paper argues that there are two potential mechanisms for this: self-censorship and social learning. Self-censorship suggests that individuals critical of the regime may refrain from expressing their political views on social media. Social learning involves acquiring information and forming beliefs through observation and interaction on these platforms. Both phenomena are influenced by digital authoritarianism in two primary ways: First, surveillance and repression by authoritarian regimes suppress political discussion, fostering conformity. Second, tactics like misinformation campaigns, use of chatbots, and artificial intelligence allow authoritarians to flood social media with propaganda, facilitating social learning of authoritarian values. This dynamic is particularly pronounced among those who already trust and support their government.

Charities and politics: where did we go wrong?

AbstractThis paper examines a long-standing doctrine in charities law – that if an organisation's main purpose is political then it cannot be charitable. This doctrine is not without controversy because it has the potential to exclude many worthwhile organisations from charitable status, and fetter worthwhile advocacy by those that do have status. While no jurisdiction remains unwaveringly committed to the orthodox political purpose doctrine, we argue that none so far have confronted the public benefit – and detriment – of political advocacy adequately. This paper proposes a way of assessing the public benefit of political advocacy in liberal democratic societies. It argues that political advocacy can give rise to clear public benefit: this is an indirect or process benefit associated with advocacy itself regardless of the end advocated for. However, recognising political advocacy purposes as charitable should still be subject to two constraints: the altruism requirement (reflected in the ‘public’ aspect of public benefit); and consistency with liberal democratic values (as part of the ‘benefit’ aspect). These constraints are needed because, while political advocacy can generate benefit, detriments may also be associated with political advocacy.

Out of Practice: Justice as Telos of Politics

Abstract: Those advocating practice-dependent approaches to political philosophy have tended to conceptualize justice as a constraint on politics—a position the author calls the "constraint model." This article instead argues that justice is a distinctive purpose or telos of politics—the "internalist model." If the internalist model is sound, justice is no more a constraint on politics than beauty is a constraint on art. The author argues that the constraint model cannot meet two challenges: It cannot distinguish the principles of justice from the requirements of political legitimacy, and it cannot explain how we can gain critical purchase on our practices without collapsing into practice-independent theory. By contrast, the internalist model is able to meet these challenges.

Political Affiliation, Policy Measures, and Intention to Receive COVID-19 and Influenza Vaccines

Our study aimed to assess the impact of political affiliation, personal beliefs, and policy measures on the intention to receive routine COVID-19 and influenza vaccines in the coming year. A cross-sectional study of 1256 individuals at Minnesota State and County Fairs was conducted to assess their intention to receive COVID-19 booster and influenza vaccines in the coming year. The association between vaccine intention and political affiliation, belief in collective responsibility, and workplace/school vaccine requirements were analyzed using multinomial logistic regression. Vaccine intention in the coming year was high among our participants; 65% intended to receive both vaccines, 11% intended to receive only the influenza vaccine, 7% intended to receive only the COVID-19 vaccine, and 17% planned to receive neither. Political affiliation was strongly associated with the intention to receive both vaccines. Republicans were far more likely than Democrats to report plans to receive neither vaccine (aOR: 12.8; 95% CI: 6.2–26.6), or only the influenza vaccine in the coming year (aOR: 8.7; 95% CI: 4.2–17.9). Additionally, those who planned to receive both vaccines were significantly more likely to view vaccines as a collective responsibility. This study highlights the significant influence of political affiliation and beliefs in collective responsibility on vaccine intentions.

Military censorship in Russia in 1914‒1918: structure, features of work, documentary legacy

The relevance of the research topic is related to the continuing problems of control and access to information in the modern information society.The purpose of the study is to provide a systematic understanding of military censorship in Russia in 1914-1918 in the context of the development of the late Imperial state mechanism. Objectives analysis of the structure, activities, and personnel of military censorship in Russia during the First World War; concentration of currently available information on documents of military censorship stored in various Russian and foreign archives.Methodology. The historical and typological method was used to analyze the structure and functions of military censorship, and the historical and genetic method was used to study its development during the First World War. The study of the personnel, the peculiarities of the work of different areas of censorship was carried out using the historical and comparative method.Results. The paper analyzes the legislative framework, structure and directions of military censorship in Russia during the First World War. It is shown that military censorship was a complex, multi-level structure that had no unity of command and included representatives of different, sometimes conflicting departments. These features led to the «scattering» of the documentary heritage of the military censorship authorities in numerous collections of Russian and foreign archives.Conclusions. The complexity of the structure of military censorship created numerous difficulties in the practice of censorship control. The chronic disadvantages of Russian censorship during the First world war years were contradictory decisions, inconsistency and insufficient elaboration of the regulatory framework, which often led to the use of military censorship for purely political purposes (for example, to censor speeches by opposition Duma deputies). The problems of military censorship were aggravated by a chronic shortage of funding, shortage and high turn-over of personnel. As a result, instead of becoming an effective tool in the hands of the government, military censor-ship became one of the factors of the political crisis in Russia on the eve of the Russian revolution.

Public Debt – Economic Growth Nexus: A Systematic Literature Review

The purpose of this study was to present a systematic literature review on the public debt-economic growth nexus. The objective was to provide policymakers and researchers with significant insights on the impact of public debt on economic growth and to provide reliable evidence on the gaps in the literature that require their urgent attention. The study used a systematic review of the literature contained in two databases, namely Semantic Scholar and Google Scholar. The study shows that public debt above the threshold is detrimental to economic growth, while low public debt is conducive to growth, and that the degree of non-linearity in the debt-growth relationship varies considerably depending on the economic status and debt burden of the country. Policymakers in each country should identify the tipping point at which further public debt begins to impede growth. Debt policy should take into account not only fiscal constraints, but also the effectiveness of governance and the possible consequences of eroding public confidence. The study also shows that institutional quality, public investment, production expenditure, foreign direct investment and exports are among the variables that significantly affect the relationship between public debt and economic growth. Policymakers should control the level of public debt and its drivers to support longer-term economic growth. The study also recommends that countries account for public debt and ensure that such debt is acquired only to finance profitable investments that generate future returns, and not for consumption, deficit reduction, wasteful spending, or political purposes.

Deterrence strategies for a small state: Analysis and survey

Abstract Classical deterrence theory has its origins in the era of the Cold War and the nuclear arms race between the USA and the Soviet Union. Therefore, deterrence is mainly studied from the perspective of the superpowers. This study approaches deterrence from the less explored perspective of a small country by analysing academic deterrence literature and further deepening this perspective by means of a survey. As a result, the study produced a new view of how a small state can be positioned in modern deterrence theories, by introducing national and international enabling and preventive factors. The main findings of the research suggest that national enabling factors, such as a strong national defence and the resilience of the society, are important for a small state in terms of compensating for the deficit in influence in relation to superpowers. Limited options for building deterrence can be augmented by means of international enabling factors, such as military and political alliances. Deficits in terms of available military resources and international status could translate into national preventive factors, such as weakness in the eyes of the aggressor. The aggressor’s political intentions and history could appear as international preventive factors if they influence decision-making in an undesirable manner.

Ameliorative projects, psychological essentialism, and the power of nouns

Ameliorative projects design and propagate new linguistic content for some expressions we use for political or social justice purposes. These projects are often driven by an anti‐essentialist agenda: they aim to debunk the idea that social categories such as “woman”, “man”, or “race” are constituted by natural essences. But critics argue that nouns tend to trigger essentialist thinking. And because ameliorative projects typically retain nouns, it is argued that these projects cannot achieve their anti‐essentialist goals. In response, I argue that the psychological effects of noun use tend to support, rather than hinder, the anti‐essentialist goals of ameliorators.

The role of youth extracurricular activities and political intentions in later political participation and civic engagement.

Current literature recognizes that various socialization agents often shape political behavior. This study employs frameworks of political socialization and political agency to explore how extracurricular activities and political intentions established at age 16 influence aspects of political participation and civic engagement at age 20. A 4-year longitudinal study was conducted using a community-based sample of 933 adolescents from a medium-sized Swedish city with a population of approximately 135,000. Data were collected in 2010 and 2014, allowing for an analysis of the impact of extracurricular activities and political intentions developed during adolescence on later political and civic behaviors. The analytical sample comprised 933 individuals (50.8% females; mean age = 16.62, SD = 0.71). The analysis revealed that participation in extracurricular activities at age 16 is a significant predictor of offline political participation at age 20. However, no significant associations were found between these activities and other forms of participation, such as illegal behaviors or broader civic engagement. Political intentions at age 16 also significantly predicted offline political participation at age 20. The findings highlight the pivotal roles of both socialization agents and individual factors related to youth political agency in shaping political trajectories during adolescence. Understanding the effects of extracurricular activities and political intentions on political participation and civic engagement can aid policymakers and educators in developing strategies to foster active citizenship among young people.

The power of materiality: Local orders, interaction and global governance

The article examines the power of materiality in the context of refugee camps, demonstrating how local orders and global governance are intricately interwoven within the material domain. It draws on ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Burmese refugee camps in Thailand to illustrate how sociomateriality can establish spaces of exclusion and associated memberships through their practical implementation, but at the same time permit flexible forms of local manifestations. These aspects represent the tangible realities that people, both ordinary camp residents and local authorities, navigate and achieve in their local public camp life. By means of detailed observation of three distinct camp situations—namely, interactions of membership, checkpoint practices, and the temporary suspension of public camp life—the article argues that mundane sociomaterial practices can both produce and undermine the political intentions of architects to realize materialities of exclusion. Nevertheless, despite their partial and incomplete nature and the capacity of people to circumvent them, the materiality of exclusion is maintained and persists. By elucidating these dynamics, the article contributes to the existing literature that emphasizes the importance of understanding camp governance through the lens of sociomateriality.

‘Going to Collage’: Ali Smith’s <em>Autumn</em> and Post-Liberal Democratic Imagination

Across her many works of fiction, Ali Smith at once laments the breakdown of civic conversation and, in what seems a paradoxical move, draws stark ethical demarcations between characters who represent different political orientations. This tension is acute in her Seasonal Quartet, and especially the first of the four novels, 'Autumn.' Hailed on publication as the first serious literary response to Brexit, 'Autumn' gives vivid account of the 'end of dialogue' at a time when 'all across the country, there was misery and rejoicing.' On one hand, in 'Autumn' and elsewhere, Smith laments the consequences of the 'end of dialogue' between citizens and populates her fiction with sympathetic characters who notice, with alarm, that 'people [are] saying stuff to each other and none of it ever actually becom[es] dialogue.' Yet on the other hand, her work is itself partisan, specifically in its tendency to draw caricatures of complacently xenophobic middle-class Britons. This article argues that this tension is in fact crucial to the political outlook suggested in Smith’s work, which hints at a positive, post- or nonliberal vision according to which neither novels, nor politics, draw democratic power from empathetic exchange or dialogue, but rather through world-affirming judgment. The specific sort of judgment Smith endorses, I argue, is rooted in 'Autumn's' 'collage' aesthetic, and its significance crystallizes when read alongside Hannah Arendt's account of political judgment. For both Smith and Arendt, the foremost threat to contemporary political life is not partisanship, but rather, the fragility of the 'common world,' and Smith proposes that the collage aesthetics of work like hers play a specific function in helping restore the 'common world.' This article thus proposes that Smith, read alongside Arendt, articulates an original, political purpose for art in the contemporary era.

China’s Belt and Road Initiative

Is China using the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to advance its economic development or to fulfill broader geopolitical objectives? While the BRI is often touted as a primarily economic venture aimed at addressing domestic overcapacity, this paper posits that political objectives are equally important. Drawing on selectorate theory, I assess whether China uses this initiative for political purposes. If so, it would be more likely to partner with authoritarian countries it sees as more amenable to political influence. Using logistic and Cox models to analyze data from 2013 to 2020, I find that political considerations are as relevant as economic ones. This research contributes to a more nuanced understanding of the BRI within global political and economic contexts and explains China’s international strategy.

Social ruination and alternative materialities in a dissonant landscape of modernity: The case of GAP in Halfeti, Turkey

I examine in this article state-led infrastructural projects as embodiments of modernity and the way their divergent material transformations “play out on the ground.” I argue that such projects, through the way they transform material surroundings, provide a commentary on these modernization processes and surpass the intention of their creators. I focus on Halfeti, a town impacted by the southeast Anatolian project (GAP), a state-led damming project in southeast Turkey. GAP drastically transformed the social and material fabric of the town with the aim of developing the region by becoming modern. GAP involved forced relocation, the construction of uninhabitable zones, the redistribution of habitable territory, and the imposition of living standards on individuals, and can thus be held accountable for ruination. I focus on the way GAP has reused and strategically appropriated ruins for political purposes, simultaneously I take the processual part of ruination, into account. Meaning an outcome of a situation in which one is left behind with material leftovers after destruction, including personal feelings and emotions that continue to play a role in the aftermath of a such a violent event. I explain how renovated houses in Old-Halfeti, as well as newly built structures in New-Halfeti evoke social ruination. Subsequently, through alternative materialities, as expression givers to complex stratifications of histories which are ignored in dominant state-led infrastructure projects, the impact and importance of neglected and submerged infrastructures are understood. Alternative materialities give way to the agency of the material, and the way it brings about affect, shapes longing or nostalgia and expresses different histories. By considering the intertwined dynamics of social ruination, political appropriation of spaces, and the unveiling of alternative materialities, a more nuanced understanding of this landscape emerges and demonstrates the dissonance of modernity.