Symbol Of Power Research Articles

Representation of the Concept “Water” in Literature: An Eco-Feminist Perspective

This paper explores the representation of the concept of “water” within literature from an eco-feminist perspective, highlighting the intersections between environmental and gender issues. By analyzing the works of Kyrgyz writer Chingiz Aitmatov, alongside a broader linguistic and cultural investigation into the concept of water in the Kyrgyz worldview, the paper reveals how water serves as a powerful symbol of life, purity, and continuity. Aitmatov's works, deeply rooted in the ecological landscapes of Kyrgyzstan, often portray water not merely as a physical substance but as a carrier of cultural and spiritual values, reflecting a profound connection between the land and its people. Through an eco-critical and feminist lens, the paper examines how these literary depictions of water challenge anthropocentric and patriarchal narratives, proposing a more inclusive relationship with the natural world. By integrating ecocriticism with feminist theory, the analysis explores the significance of water in expressing themes of fertility, sustenance, and resilience, which are often intertwined with the experiences and voices of women. The paper argues that the eco-feminist perspective offers valuable insights into the ways literature can contribute to a deeper understanding of environmental issues and gender dynamics, advocating for a more sustainable and equitable coexistence with nature.

How culture builds nations: the power of symbolism over nation-building

Nationalism studies differ in terms of approaches to the subject. Various opinions on a given topic focuses on different aspects of nationalism, its core elements, and causal links between ends, ways, and means. This paper focuses on culture, arguably one of the most influential dimensions among other layers constituting and shaping nationalism among different nations. In doing so, it considers Anthony Smith’s explanation of national identity, which, according to the latter, is shaped by a fundamental consensus among the population on things like culture, religion, history, language, ethnicity, political values, and norms of behaviour and aims and other related notions. The causal link between nation and culture is revealed by making a holistic account of different sub-elements of culture like memories and narratives; language, poetry, and art; national folklore and symbols; social norms, traditions, etc, in different historical eras and seeing their role in a nation-building process. The paper also focuses on a modern-day example, an ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine that has exceeded the boundaries of a mere military domain and is also visible from a cultural perspective. The paper’s main finding is identifying elements affecting nation-building and making it work. While all these different elements of culture were, are, and will be used in the future in a nation- building process, perception remains a vital factor. Culture and its elements can certainly significantly impact nation-building. However, in the end, it will always depend on how individuals, communities, and populations perceive national symbols, the historic heroic deeds of their ancestors, poems and literature, and norms of social behaviour and traditions. Without socially constructing these perceptions, the “us vs them” narrative might not materialize.

마한의 시작과 만경강, 그리고 금마

In the Mangyeong River basin, one can observe the establishment, development, integration, and disappearance of the early Iron Age culture from the 4th to 3rd centuries BC to the turn of the era. Representative material cultures of this period include clay pottery, long bronze swords, and iron products found nationwide. The region, especially the Mangyeong River basin, was at the core of the early Iron Age culture, where bronze production technology rapidly advanced, and primitive iron culture coexisted. Notably, the areas with the highest density of relics are in present-day Iksan, Wanju, and Jeonju. A significant shift occurred in the 2nd century BC. In the first half of this century, based on the technology exemplified by bell-shaped vessels, bronze-making technology peaked, establishing the area as a center of importance. In the latter half, the size of relics grew, social stratification accelerated, and bronze burial mounds with vast artifacts disappeared, replaced by the appearance of iron artifacts. Thus, the symbols of power for the top ruling class, represented by long bronze swords, shifted to iron, reflecting a change in the societal structure. The most pivotal point in the early Iron Age can be pegged to the 2nd century BC, which is directly linked to the arrival of King Jun.
 Relics related to the time of King Jun's arrival are most densely distributed in Iksan, Wanju, and Jeonju. If we categorize based on the distribution pattern of the relics, rather than the current administrative districts, the areas can be divided into: the western region of Miruksan centered on Hamyeol, Hwangdeung, and Osan; the western region of Hwangbangsan and southern region of Miruksan centered on Geumma, Wanggung, and the western Wanju; and the area covering Jeonju and the eastern Hwangbangsan, including Jeonjucheon and Gosancheon streams. The central points of these regions can be redefined as Iksan, Geumma, and Jeonju. While many tasks remain to be addressed, based on currently available literary records and archaeological investigations, the area with the highest concentration of relics from the 2nd century BC related to King Jun's arrival can be identified as the Geumma.

Are You a Designer Bride? Power Relations Between Popular Media and the Indian Bride

In recent years, the bride has become a representative fashion icon of clothing, cosmetic and entertainment industry in India. Designers like Sabyasachi Mukherjee, seem to project the bride’s access to bridal couture as a symbol of empowerment, emancipation and even nationalism. However, statistics would prove that Indian brides still carry the burden of cultural evils like dowry, domestic abuse, psychological pressures of marriage and child-bearing. Television shows like “Band, Baaja, Baraat,” lavish weddings of Bollywood actors like Anushka Sharma and Deepika Padukone have evoked new aspirational images in the imagination of the Indian middleclass. The present paper attempts to question the proliferation of wedding couture as a symbol of power and resistance to power. It aims to explore the route maps of capitalist desire and the seduction of women into this ambiguous role-play; are fashionable brides dressed in hot pants foolish consumers or artful minds who bend patriarchal structures even if for a short time? The paper will be premised on theories of popular culture, post-feminism, everyday feminism and cultural studies. It will enable us to address the reductive approach of contemporary capitalism towards complicated ideas of gender, class, caste, money, religion and region in Indian marriages. It will refer to ideas by Germaine Greer, Gloria Steinman, Stephanie Genz, Maitrayee Chaudhuri, Bharati Chibber, Santosh Desai to investigate into the empowering images of young brides as curated and exhibited by popular media.

Roxelane, figure historique et personnage littéraire

The legal wife of the Turkish Sultan Suleiman II the Magnificent, Roxelana, also known as Hurrem Haseki Sultan or Anastasiya Lisovska, has enjoyed great popularity and recognition over the years. This fact is reflected in numerous literary works. The fictional character Roxelana figures in plays and historical novels by Turkish, French, Italian, English authors, from the 16th century onwards. Ukrainian authors became interested in this heroine relatively late (beginning with the 19th century). The novel 'Roxolana' by Osyp Nazaruk, first published in 1930, achieved the most remarkable success in this sense. An incredible story of the extraordinary destiny of a slave from Ruthenia who became the sultan’s legal wife in the Ottoman Empire, edifyingly reveals all the firmness, ambition and dignity that characterize Ukrainian women, used to facing the scourges of life. It took the author an extensive and in-depth historical research to create a convincing authentic character who became the symbol of female power and patriotism.

La fraise : histoire d’un accessoire et de sa terminologie

Between specialised and general language, the domain of fashion is of great interest for the study of terminology: a terminology that, following the trends of an era, evolves over time and space. In this context, this study focuses on a fashion accessory of ancient origin and on its terminology: the ruff.Very fashionable in the 16th and 17th century, after having symbolised the austerity and rigour of the Reformation and the Counter-Reformation, the ruff became a symbol of elegance and power. Nowadays, some fashion companies have reintroduced this accessory whose value has changed: contemporary ruffs are extravagant accessories for their shapes and sizes, that inevitably evoke the 16th and 17th century. The study of ruffs requires heterogeneous sources, such as manuals of fashion history, technical documents and lexicographic resources. Moreover, iconographic sources – paintings, sculptures, sketches – are to be collected and analysed, since they clarify similitudes and differences between different types of ruffs. After having described the most important sources for this study, the history of ruff is presented into details, in order to describe its different models. Then, a terminological analysis is conducted: the French terminology of this accessory is presented, with a focus on the difference between the termsfraise, collerette and gorgerette. The French terminology is compared to the Italian one and a French-Italian glossary is prepared in order to answer to the needs of experts of communication, translator and people working in the fashion field.

Woodlawn Cemetery

This paper begins with a vignette to situate the reader in the landscape of the Woodlawn Cemetery and gain a better context for the analysis that follows. Through primary and secondary research, the Woodlawn Cemetery reveals the ways that temporality, power, and culture are reflected in this deathscape. Historical records of the Woodlawn Cemetery support the argument that temporality is being realised in the landscape in a linear way, here, time is an important part in shaping the landscape. The concept of memoryscapes, which involves spaces of memory, show that the connection of nonlinear time also exists within deathscapes, specifically within the Woodlawn Cemetery. Power is imbued in the landscape of the Woodlawn Cemetery through burials. Burials in this deathscape serve as powerful symbols of control when considering concepts such as necro-colonialism and the establishment of war monuments. Through methods such as walking the land there are other overt displays of power at the Woodlawn Cemetery that reflect the ownership of the land and governance of access imposed by the City of Saskatoon. This paper focuses on how aesthetics are used to manipulate emotions and ease the discomfort of confronting death and create a sense of familiarity for Euro-Canadians. An analysis of the surrounding landscape and changing attitudes toward death through time support the idea that death is not something to be looked upon by everybody as it has been deemed a private affair.

Путь к империи: становление придворной художественной культуры в России в петровское время

In the course of the project, the author investigates the area of Russian court art culture in the first quarter of the 18th century associated with the formation of the new state ceremonial. For the first time, the authors cover practically all key ceremonies regulating the life of the monarch and his family: coronation, marriage and funeral ceremonies, triumphs and ceremonial meetings organized both in Russia and abroad. The article follows the development of the major principles of festive and mourning decorations and — to the extent possible — their further development throughout the 18th century. Particular attention is paid to symbols of power and insignia, as well as the jewellery art at the Russian court. Based on the materials collected, the author uncovers the circumstances of the design and use of a number of graphic works, regalia, orders, and precious settings for the court jewels, elucidated the typology and terminology of jewellery, and significantly expanded the existing understanding of the work of the craftsmen who executed the royal orders of the Romanovs.
 In the process of this research, the project team introduced the unpublished graphic and written materials, new facts and names, made a number of attributions and clarifications, including terminology.
 The findings are presented in the published collective paper, which contains besides the authors’ text the annexes comprising the publication of the 18th century documents and rich illustrations (more than 330 images): Tyukhmeneva E.A., Bykova J.I. A Path to Empire: Formation of the Art Culture at the Russian Court of Peter the Great. Ceremonies, Regalia, Jewels. Moscow: BooksMArt, 2022 — 448 p: illus.

M.S. Hrushevsky Institute of Ukraine Archeography and Source Studies

This research deals with the immediate consequences of the subordination of the most influential prince of Southern Rus', Daniel Romanovich, to the Mongol Empire at the beginning of 1246. It considers the problem of issuing symbols of Mongolian kaans' power to subordinate rulers, jarligs (yarlyks) and paitza, to the Galician and Volhynian princes (knyazes), conducting censuses of population on the conquered Galician-Volhyn lands for taxation, and introduction of taxes and duties by the Mongols in the territories, they conquered. Due to the conciseness of sources, in the GalicianVolhynian lands existence only part of the taxes and duties, known in other lands of Rus', can be confirmed. More clear conclusions can be drawn regarding the problem on introduction the Mongols’ possible direct rule in Galicia, however currently known sources cannot reaffirm this assumption. In the same way, the sources do not contain information about the Horde origin of a small specific stratum of the population called “Ordyntsy” and “Kalannyie” on the territory of Galicia. The combination of known factors in the subordination of the Galician-Volhynian princes confirms the previously made assumptions about their rather specific status within the Mongol Empire.

Visual aspects of online political communication in Belarus during the political crisis of 2020

An empirical study of the visual political communication via Telegram channels during the political crisis in Belarus in 2020 is introduced. The method of qualitative and quantitative content analysis was applied to 625 images and videos retrieved from competing Belarusian Telegram channels during two weeks before and after the election day of August 9, 2020. The results revealed both the general characteristics of the visual political communication in Belarusian Telegram sector and the way opposing political forces used visual content in the period under analysis. The pro-government channels maintained a value-oriented approach, engaging visuals to broadcast Belarusian values and state power symbols. Their visual content involved prominent public and political figures. The opposition channels applied visuals to denounce the authorities and their supporters, as well as to mobilize the opposition-minded Telegram users. They employed a greater variety of visual forms, relying mostly on user-generated content, e.g., live reports from protest sites. Visuals with protesting crowds, casualties, and opposition symbols were aimed at evoking a sense of involvement: they were meant to become triggers for transiting from online activism to actual offline protests.

Women farmers’ access to marshlands for agricultural food production in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Land is a crucial resource in agricultural food production and serves as a symbol of wealth, power, and identity for rural communities. Yet, the persistent gender gap in accessing land and other productive resources has resulted in the poor performance of largely female-dominated smallholder agriculture. This study applies a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative and qualitative data from 232 participants to increase understanding of how women farmers access land for agricultural production in Kabare and Mulungwishi marshlands in the southeastern Democratic Republic of Congo. We articulate our research around these questions: (i) How do women access land and perceive land tenure security in marshlands? (ii)What are the sources of inequality in land access patterns in marshlands, as perceived by women farmers? (iii) What factors affect women's desire to own or acquire farmland?The findings show significant differences in patterns of women's access to land, its size, and the perception of land tenure in the two regions. Women farmers interviewed are aware of gender inequalities firmly rooted in each area's customs and cultural norms, which tend to give men more opportunities to access and control family land resources.Interestingly, a considerable proportion of women (11%) often expressed a desire for land ownership, with marital status, household size, and income generated per cropping season being the significant predictors. The findings provide insights into women's pathways, determinants of acquiring land, and related challenges. Findings call for policy interventions to strengthen women's empowerment and prioritize their access to productive resources.

마이크의 연극적 수행성 탐구

Performativity of the microphone in Richard III directed by Thomas Ostermeir was examined, focusing on the symbolism and the mediality of microphone. Firstly, the microphone functions as a symbol of power. By occupying the center of the stage, it visually dominates the performance, and by amplifying sound, it acoustically dominates other sounds, thus taking control over the plot. Unlike traditional theater where the use of microphones is concealed, the use of the microphone is overtly displayed in the Ostermeier's Richard III. This overt coexistence of Shakespearean drama from his era and the modern technology of the microphone amplifies the sense of unfamiliarity and strengthens the alienation effect. Moreover, the protagonist, Richard, uses the microphone to delicately convey his inner self, engaging the audience in the events and eliciting empathy for the character.

Intercultural Communication Strategy Of Our Country Traditional Culture

Since the 21st century, China's economic strength has been continuously enhanced, its international status has been significantly enhanced, and its voice and influence in the world has been significantly enhanced. Meanwhile, western countries have also created the "China threat theory", which has caused many people who do not know China's national conditions and traditional culture to have a negative impression on China. the reason is closely related to the extreme lack of cross-cultural communication in China. Culture is not only the symbol and important embodiment of a country's soft power, but also the spiritual soul of a country and a nation. After 5, 000 years of development, Chinese culture has become a treasure in the history of human development. In order for China to enhance its own influence, it is particularly important to improve the attraction and appeal of Traditional Chinese culture. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen cross-cultural communication, spread Traditional Chinese culture to all parts of the world, so that people in the world can really love, understand and accept Traditional Chinese culture, and form an influential Chinese culture.

Archaeological site segmentation of ancient city walls based on deep learning and LiDAR remote sensing

Ancient city walls, one of the most notable distinguishing features of Chinese ancient cities, are military defenses constructed of rammed earth. The ancient city walls have considerable study value because they served as the city's boundary and a symbol of power. However, as a result of natural erosion and human activities, many sites have been ruined. Existing optical remote sensing technologies, LiDAR point cloud processing algorithms, and deep learning methods are inadequate for the extraction and segmentation of ancient city wall sites. The novel semantic segmentation method for ancient city wall sites is described in this paper that extracts sites at the pixel level from LiDAR remote sensing data based on deep learning. To begin, the point cloud data collected by airborne laser scanning is processed into DEM data, and the distribution of ancient city walls in the study area is obtained through archaeological survey and expert interpretation. The dataset for deep learning semantic segmentation is then generated using image cropping and data augmentation techniques. Third, implement a U-Net semantic segmentation framework for microtopographic archaeological sites, and predict ancient city wall sites in the testing region after model training. Finally, the deep learning results are optimized using the connected component analysis method, and prediction mistakes such as holes and noise are removed. Taking Jinancheng, the capital city of the Chu kingdom, as an example, the proposed method process can identify and extract the ancient city wall sites at the pixel level, where the evaluation metrics reach 94.12% (Precision) and 81.38% (IoU). The experiment results are excellent due to improvement strategies in the dataset generation, model training, and post-processing steps. Thus, this study is significant for the current survey and protection of ancient city wall sites. The source code will be freely available at https://github.com/wshunli/Open-CHAI-CityWalls.

Plants as Symbols of Power in the Achaemenid Iconography of Ancient Persian Monuments

The art of the Achaemenid Empire flourished in Ancient Persia from the 6th to 4th centuries BCE, and featured stone-carved monumental structures adorned with recurring zoological and floral patterns. Such representations clearly had a symbolic meaning intimately connected to religious expression and the will of deities. Considering the lack of any comprehensive analysis of botanical features, we investigate the recurring plant patterns and the variety of plants depicted. An analysis of the documentation referring mainly to monuments in the two main capitals of Darius I, Persepolis and Susa, showed the presence of certain repetitive elements, such as the so-called rosettes (composed variously of Asteraceae capitula and Nymphaea flowers), palms (Phoenix dactylifera, the tree of life), pines, flowers or bunches and metamorphic elements. Some plants are described in this paper for the first time in the context of Persian iconography, such as Mandragora officinalis in offering scenes as a symbol of fertility and protection against evil spirits, Pinus brutia var. eldarica as a symbol of immortality and elevation to the gods, and the capitula of Matricaria/Leucanthemum as solar symbols. Further interesting elements include cf. Myrtus communis in some crowns and probably cf. Ephedra sp. in offering scenes. Achaemenid art was deeply influenced by the Zoroastrian religion of ancient Persia with its great attention to nature as well as by the nearby civilizations of the Mesopotamian area and Egypt. Most elements were also associated with psychotropic or medicinal attributes, which contributed to their position as symbols of power.

Ghost-Stitching American Politics

Ghost-Stitching American Politics

When stories are not the same: power and powerlessness in a Nigerian Museum

ABSTRACT In this paper, we provide an alternative reading to one of the most fundamental claims of the exhibitionary complex, which argues that museums are symbols of power, greatness, wealth, and progress. On the contrary, we adopt Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann's (1996) concept of social constructionism and Star & Griesemer's concept of the border object and infrastructure to deconstruct the possibility of the fixity of meaning in Bennett's argument about the exhibitionary complex. We therefore argue that the many museums in Africa are slightly different. Rather than being a symbol of the people's power, wealth, and greatness, they reflect powerlessness and pain, which characterise their history. With histories such as the Transatlantic slave trade and British imperialism, which lasted through the 17th and 19th centuries, we discuss the Badagry Black Heritage Museum as a site not exclusively about power and greatness. The paper concludes that the defining characteristic of museums is their diversity, which offers multiple perspectives on their functionality, significance, and theoretical underpinnings. While Bennett's idea is laudable, there is a need to open up the concept of accommodating the specific features of museums across the world and develop new concepts or ideologies that reflect them.

Gain maximization of thulium-doped fiber amplifiers based on genetic algorithm with 1900 nm signal

With the development of fiber communication technology, the existing operating wavelength band of fiber amplifiers, such as 1530-1560 nm and 1480-1510 nm, may not be satisfied with the growing requirement in many fields. Therefore, this research emphasizes expanding the available band (1800-2000 nm) and maximizing the gain of the thulium doped fiber amplifier at the central wavelength (1900 nm). The study is based on the two-level energy system of thulium ion, which can cover the objective wavelength. According to the related rate equations solved by the symbol function method and power propagation equations solved by the Fourth order Runge-Kutta method, use MATLAB to simulate a fiber amplifier and study the coeffect amplification effect of thulium doped fiber amplifier to 1900 nm signal light. Use the Genetic algorithm to find the best parameters match (fiber length 1m and doping concentration 3.5) when the gain reaches the maximum (27.5 dB). Through optimizing the collocation of parameters, the gain can be maximized.

Contradictions of Saint Paul’s Cathedral

Saint Paul’s Cathedral is a contradiction. Beautiful and majestic, it combines an almost Catholic shape with a Protestant soul. It is one of the most powerful symbols of England, and a reason for pride for any Londoner. This paper wants to explore the architectural variations of Saint Paul’s, especially before and after the Great Fire in 1666, to unveil the peculiar relationship between the cathedral and the people of London. Although St Paul’s has been a constant for the Londoners, its role in their lives has not always been the same. The progressive change in people’s attitude towards the cathedral went at the same pace as the alteration of the architecture of the building, which mirrored the social, political, and religious changes of the country. From being a central point of commerce and medieval social life during its Norman period and its Gothic style, the cathedral evolved into the highest symbol of religion and power and reached its peak with the design provided by Wren. Looking at the different models of Saint Paul’s, from its first consecration in 604 until today, it is evident that the building has been an active player in English history, adapting itself to necessity. It witnessed the Norman Conquest, the Dissolution of the Monasteries under Henry VIII, and the Great Fire, and it was the symbol of the English strength and resistance in World War II. Therefore, the study of the architectural changes of Saint Paul’s is the study of the city of London, its people, and some of the most significant historical events that shaped England.

ECONOMIC ERRORS OF DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. was — and still is — one of the most powerful symbols in U.S. history. His message of anti-racism along with the exposing of government corruption are just part of the impact he made on the American people. While these are the more noble and respectable of his works, there exist other areas in which Dr. King erred in his judgement. The topic to which this paper will be devoted to will be the erroneous beliefs that Dr. King advocated regarding the failures of capitalism and the push for a more democratic socialist type of economic system. It is important that readers of this work not subject themselves to the fallacy of argumentum ad verecundium — the mistake of assuming that because Dr. King was an expert in one area (civil rights), he is therefore an expert in another (economics).