Modern Liberal Research Articles

A Study of Female Growth Narrative of Greta Gerwigs Coming-of-age Film

This article introduces the development of feminist films, explores the combination of coming-of-age films and feminism, and introduces Greta Gerwigs film history and her film works in the past six years. First, the article introduces the famous women director-Greta Gerwig and her career as an actress and director. Second, it introduces the background of the three films. Through the introduction of three films in the past six years, the paper believes that Greta Gerwig has formed her own unique style of female coming-of-age films. Third, this paper treats of the three ways that Greta Gerwig developed her style. These three ways are: highlighting the female perspective of the film through the mumblecore style, showing the diversity of modern feminist narratives through multiple narratives, and challenging the patriarchal world through the image of an object gazed at by men. Through unique cinematic practice, Greta Gerwig increasingly shows her own characteristics in feminist coming-of-age films.

‘It is not about beauty … or is it?’ Fashion, body positivity and authenticity in micro-celebrities affective practices online

This article focuses on Italian micro-celebrities and their engagement with body positivity within the framework of affective labour and authenticity performances online, specifically through Instagram. The body positivity discourse has been embraced by very different subjects, negotiating sometimes conflicting ideals such as empowerment, social liberation, commercial exploitation and neo-liberal individualistic co-optation of the same values. Among many, I will focus on two accounts: influencer/content creator Muriel (@murielxo) and content creator Denise D’Angelilli (@dueditanelcuore). Muriel and Denise D’Angelilli are two different examples of how many young female micro-celebrities discuss issues such as beauty standards, harmful stereotypes against non-conforming bodies and female empowerment, mostly starting from their own experiences, sharing intimate accounts of their lives and images of their bodies. This type of sharing can be framed as a specific type of affective labour performed by creators negotiating their online presence and self-branding through a performance of authenticity. Moreover, the article focuses on their adoption of peculiar fashion practices and fashion choices and how these practices contribute to their ongoing narrative around authenticity and body positivity. While in the case of Muriel we have a ‘professional’ content creator who builds her online persona through the more institutional co-optation of fashion language, sponsored content and modelling jobs, @dueditanelcuore is insistently using her apparent lack of interest in fashion as a marker of an authentic self. Far from being genuinely opposite, I argue that both strategies are part of a constant negotiation between ‘authentic’ empowerment and post-feminist individualism that permeates online conversations around body positivity.

Work-family trajectories across Europe: differences between social groups and welfare regimes.

Work and family trajectories develop and interact over the life course in complex ways. Previous studies drew a fragmented picture of these trajectories and had limited scope. We provide the most comprehensive study of early-to-midlife work-family trajectories to date. Using retrospective data from waves 3 and 7 of the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), we reconstructed work-family trajectories from age 15 to 49 among almost 80,000 individuals born between 1908 and 1967 across 28 countries. We applied multichannel sequence and cluster analysis to identify typical trajectories and multinomial logistic regression models to uncover their social composition. The results revealed six common trajectories. The dominant and therefore standard trajectory represents continuous full-time employment with having a partner and children. Women, the lower educated and persons from conservative and liberal welfare regimes are underrepresented in this trajectory, whereas men, higher educated people and those from social-democratic, Eastern European and Baltic welfare regimes are overrepresented. The other trajectories denote a deviation from the standard one, integrating a non-standard form of work with standard family formation or vice versa. Mothers in a stable relationship generally work part-time or not at all. When mostly in full-time employment, women are more likely to be divorced. Lower educated persons are less likely to have work-family trajectories characterized by full-time work and a non-standard family, yet more likely to be non-employed for large parts of their life with standard family formation. Younger cohorts are underrepresented in non-employment trajectories, but overrepresented in part-time employment trajectories along with a partner and children as well as full-time employment trajectories with divorce. Individuals from Southern European and liberal regimes are more likely to be non-working and self-employed partnered parents and those from social-democratic regimes are more likely to be full-time employed divorced parents. We also found pronounced gender differences in how educational level, birth cohort and welfare regime are associated with work-family trajectories from early to midlife. Our findings highlight the socially stratified nature of earlier-life work-family trajectories in Europe. Potential implications for inequalities in later life are discussed.

Hume’s liberalism based on Scottish jurisprudence

This study develops a view of Hume’s is/ought distinction as an extension of Scottish jurisprudence that, in turn, was influenced by Pufendorf’s discussion of entia moralia. Further, it investigates the unique role that Hume’s sentimentalism played in the production of elements in the context of liberalism under the rule of law, independently of previous philosophical traditions.First, we observe that Hume’s is/ought distinction corresponds to a distinction between uncivilized and civilized entities, rather than between amoral rationality and moral passions. Next, analyzing Hume’s argument for “moral evidence,” we find that such evidence is necessary for various activities, such as consent or trading, in the field of moral entities as civil societies. Finally, a study of Hume’s stance with respect to civil and common laws shows that his moral sentimentalism, which includes the is/ought distinction and moral evidence, suggests a new possibility for social development that is distinct from previous rational forms of jurisprudence. From this discussion, a unique sprout of modern liberalism can be seen in Hume’s theory of justice.

Artistic specificity of the image of a woman in the novel K. Tuchkova «Vyhnání Gerty Schnirch»

In the article examines the artistic features of «women's literature» in modern Czech literature. In recent decades, in the literature of various countries, we have observed an increase in the activities of female writers. Feminism and gender studies, which arose earlier, contributed to the formation of the image of a new woman in an artistic work, to the interpretation of events from the point of view of gender. Bozhena Nemtsova and Karolina Svetla, representatives of the last wave of the Czech national movement, started the tradition of «women's literature» in Czech literature. In modern Czech literature, the work of K. Tuchkova occupies an important place. The object of our research is the novel by the modern Czech writer K. Tuchkova «Vyhnání Gerty Schnirch», which is considered from the standpoint of feminist criticism The literary activity of K. Tuchkova is the subject of a complex analysis by Czech literary critics, however, her works have not yet received proper research in Ukraine, and our article is thought of as one of the first steps in this direction. In her novel «Vyhnání Gerty Schnirch» attention is focused on the depiction of acute social cataclysms from a woman's point of view. The novel has a clearly structured composition: it consists of a prologue and five chronologically consecutive chapters. «Vyhnání Gerty Schnirch» is considered in the context of the pan-European artistic trend, taking into account modern feminist studies. K. Tuchkova's prose continues the literary tradition of women's writing that has developed in Czech literature. The central role of female characters, close attention to the role of a woman as a mother, depiction of large-scale historical events from a female perspective, socio-didactic orientation — all this testifies to the high skill of the writer and assigns her a proper place in the modern literary process.

Interpreting Women in Historical Dramas from a Feminist Perspective

Since Chinese TV dramas have been in full swing, women have been playing an increasingly important role in TV dramas, echoing the contemporary social theme of feminism, such as the transformation of roles from housewife to strong woman. For example, from housewives to career women, women have their own unique artistic images in TV dramas. Contemporary TV dramas allow us to see the image of women in different periods of China, especially in historical TV dramas, where the way of womens survival and development is more meaningful to explore in the context of patriarchal and male-centered society and the ancient idea of balance, and the female roles in them are diverse, such as in Qing Ping Lue and The Story of Minglan, which are going to be explored in this paper. This paper will translate the language of female characters in TV dramas into modern feminism through specific cases, analyze its commonalities with modern new womens consciousness, and explain the reasons and processes of its development. At the same time, it will promote the dissemination of feminism in our daily life and raise its status by giving feasible solutions to specific cases.

The Spiritual Turn: The Religion of the Heart and the Making of Romantic Liberal Modernity, By Galen Watts

The Spiritual Turn: The Religion of the Heart and the Making of Romantic Liberal Modernity, By Galen Watts

Vision for a sustainable energy transition and decarbonization: A case study of students surveyed at a Chilean University

This study analyzes public perception towards the energy transition and decarbonization in Chile, and how these preferences change with political ideology, as well as distance between power plant installations and people’s homes. Due to a lack of scientific research on civil society preferences for energy production in Chile, we used a convenience sample and conducted a survey among future decision makers (current university students) to identify which factors impact their acceptance or rejection of energy sources. In addition, we asked them about their vision for the future energy mix. In total, 164 valid questionnaires were collected. Results show that the level of acceptance and preference changes with political ideology, with social liberals being more willing to change their lifestyle and increase their willingness to pay for a faster inclusion of clean technologies in the energy mix. Higher levels of education increase this willingness to pay. The level of acceptance decreases up to 56% for solar and wind when the installation is located within a radius less than 5 km from the population’s homes. The level of rejection is 97% for hydroelectricity and 99% for non-renewable power plants if they are located at distances lower than 5 km. The decentralization of energy policy decisions and the consideration of local society would be relevant for an energy transition towards renewable sources.

Literacy and Liberation in Baby Halder’s A Life Less Ordinary

Autobiographical narratives offer a platform for marginalised voices to express their experiences. A Life Less Ordinary, translated into English in 2006, portrays the life experiences of Baby Halder and sheds light on the experiences of Dalit women. Born into a poverty-stricken family, Halder is forced into marriage and motherhood — a reflection of the expectations imposed on women in her community. The title of the memoir underlines the remarkable journey of a marginalised woman who is anything but ordinary. Due to adverse circumstances, Halder was compelled to leave her home and venture out in search of employment. Becoming a domestic worker helped her earn a living. Her book takes us on a turbulent journey from a childhood in a broken family to being forced into marriage at the tender age of twelve, enduring an abusive husband, and ultimately defying societal norms by leaving him and starting work outside her household. According to Ranajit Guha’s definition of the subaltern, Baby Halder embodies three “attributes of subordination”: gender, caste, and poverty. Halder’s wish to fill the gap left in her formal education motivated her to read and write her life story. This paper explores how literacy opens up opportunities for knowledge, self-discovery, and critical thinking, enabling her to question and challenge the norms that once defined her life. It showcases how education can bring about transformation in the life of a marginalised woman striving for personal and social liberation.

Early Feminists of Europe and Bengal– Mary Wollstonecraft and Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain- A Comparative Study

In the context of East and West, Mary Wollstonecraft and Rokeya SakhawatHossain are two pioneering and revolutionary writers in the history ofwomen’s rights movement. Though feminism as a movement started laterthan their era respectively, their intellectual contributions and the everlastinginfluence on the thinking of feminist concern placed them in a distinguishedposition of proto-feminists or mothers of modern feminism. Both of themfought for women’s rights at such a time and social setting when women hadno rights and opinions of their own, when they were not given many basichuman and civil rights in comparison with men, when women had degradedsocial status and therefore the patriarchy was not ready to give them righthonor. For this reason, despite a clear gap in the periods to which they lived,the similarity of their thinking and writings provides adequate ground tobring them under a study of comparison and contrast. The paper attempts make a critical study on Wollstonecraft and Rokeya with special focus ontheir thoughts on society and education, contributions on the emancipationand empowerment of women, role on the elimination of religious bigotry,and above all, their influence on the women’s rights movement ofBangladesh.

A Feminist Analysis of George Bernard Shaw’s Mrs. Warren’s Profession: The Concept of the “New Woman”

Mrs. Warren’s Profession was written in 1893 by the Irish critic and dramatist George Bernard Shaw, who introduced social realism to the British stage. First performed in 1902 in London, the text is a social critique satirizing the stereotypical Victorian norms. Reflecting Shaw’s feminist ideals, the play also contributed to the development of the feminist movement. Mrs. Warren’s Profession introduces the “New Woman” type who rebels against the stereotyped female representations and male-centered conventions of the nineteenth century. The play mainly revolves around a controversial taboo topic, prostitution. Shaw dramatizes this profession through the two untraditional female characters. Kitty Warren is an audacious woman running a brothel to provide her daughter with better life and education standards and Vivie is a highly-educated and independent woman who expostulates her mother for her profession. Mrs. Warren’s Profession stresses that it is the social, economic and moral ills of the society that lead women to choose this profession. This paper, from a feminist lens, links these two non-conformist characters to navigate the ways through which the concept of the “New Woman” is represented. This paper also investigates how these characters protest against the stereotypical female roles imposed on them to gain an autonomous identity within society. Thus, this study, through these two female characters, reveals how this play dethrones the myth of the “Angel in the House,” the ideal Victorian woman, and sheds light on the modern feminism.

Policy instruments attitudes and support for government responses against Covid‐19

AbstractAn individual's political attitudes have been documented as the most important predictor of acceptance of government measures against the COVID‐19 pandemic. Their effect, however, is somewhat unclear and cannot be reduced to one dimension. In this article, we test whether general attitudes toward policy instruments might, together with left–right orientation, authoritarianism, social liberalism, and attitudes to state intervention, explain attitudes to policy instruments used to combat COVID‐19. The predictiveness of models of attitudes toward three different types of policy instruments to address the COVID‐19 pandemic was tested using a study of Czech university students). We found that individuals' general attitudes toward policy instruments are best measured by posing direct survey questions. Structural equation modeling was used to estimate the independent effects of general attitudes toward three different types of policy instruments on attitudes toward specific policy instruments for combating COVID‐19. We found that an individuals' general tendency to prefer an information, regulatory, or economic instrument significantly affects their attitude toward specific policy solutions, even after controlling for political orientation. These results provide novel empirical evidence for the autonomy of policy instruments attitudes (APIA) theory. The general attitudes toward policy instrument types are reflected in individuals' attitudes toward specific policy instruments, such as those used to combat COVID‐19.

Satisfactory, but not enough: Liberalism’s outlooks on the Russian war in Ukraine

The Russian war against Ukraine is an attack on liberal values. This essay bases itself on the critical analysis of few selected exponents and defenders of modern liberalism in International Relations, which recently appeared in some media outlets and academic reviews. It critically engages with this International Relations’ theory and offers the advantages and limitations, interpretations, and outlook on it considering the aggression in Ukraine. Most of all, it discusses the advantages – security concerns, principles of ethics, defence of national independence, spread of democracy – and the disadvantages – security threats, fallacy of trade, geopolitical return of Russia, lack of State-level analysis – liberalism’s spectacles entails. Liberalism is convincing in analyzing the facts and has a good theoretical frame for exploring historical and geopolitical events. However, it risks being too naïve and incomplete in its diagnosis.

The Illustration of Thatcher's Theatre in Caryl Churchill's Serious Money: A social Feminist study"

Caryl Churchill 's work marks by a deep contribution to both feminism and socialism, as well as a desire to do different experience. She credits with reshaping modern theatre and introducing new subjects matter ideas. Her systematically experimental plays integrate an examination of gender with the social disparity in British society. Churchill performs a major role in the development of modern feminist stage by putting women at the forefront of theatrical activity and discussing a wide variety of socio-feminist concerns . This study aims to question the prevailing social philosophy at the time and displays a strong women that defy patriarchal society and disrupt gender conventions to gain power. Churchill intends to portray women's condition under Thatcher's regime . As in a patriarchal society, women must be obedient, reliant, subservient according to traditional norms and social standards, and they should stay under patriarchal domination by staying at home to raise children without the freedom to study, work, or even to be successful and independent person. Therefore , Churchill wants to examine the success of Margaret Thatcher in the patriarchal society and the consequences of her regime on women circumstances . This study hypothesizes that Churchill has affected by Thatcherism in her era and this influences her style of writings. This paper starts with an introduction of Thatcher's regime and Serious money play , then follows the methodology of the study and the discussion comes afterwards and it ends with a conclusion that points out the results of discussion .

The Intellectual Odyssey of James R. Crotty: From the War on Vietnam to a Socialist Alternative to Global Capitalism

We summarize the intellectual journey of James R. Crotty in this tribute. We discuss how Crotty’s approach to macroeconomics based on Marxian and Keynesian insights led to a series of flexible models based on realistic assumptions that help us better understand the contradictory evolution of capitalism from the 1970s to the 2010s. The basic building blocks of Crottyian macroeconomics consist of the emphasis on macro foundations, focus on the concrete capitalist processes with their endogenous, dynamic, and conflict-ridden nature, and the centrality of money, credit, and competitive dynamics of the capitalist system. We also discuss how a study of these dynamics led to his final work on “liberal socialism” as the way to end the disruptive cycles of capitalism. We argue that those aiming to construct a solid theoretical foundation to guide the understanding, transformation, and transcending of contemporary capitalist societies would find much inspiration in Crotty’s intellectual legacy. JEL Classification: E11, E12, B51

Gender Aspirations in Chinese Marriage Market: A Study of Differences in Gender and the History of the Standards of Marriage

Throughout the history of China, the conception of marriage in Chinese traditional philosophy, such as Confucianism, has remained longstanding and influential even in modern Chinese society. The standards and the social and familial obligations for both sexes that result from such matrimonial beliefs, however, have developed in conflict with modern lifestyles and mindsets, especially for females. This article, through an in depth analysis of the expectations of marriage of both genders, their views on marriage and their expectations of the other spouse, and a variety of current events and movements, aims to further understand the status quo and future outlook in the Chinese marriage market from social, cultural, and economic perspectives. In the current Chinese marriage market, there remain two stereotypical sets of standards for a perfect spouse for both males and females, which are both reinforced through prevalent dating attitudes and disapproved of by modern feminism, the new lifestyle pursuits of the younger generation, and the deprioritization of marriage by females.

The Relevance of Jim Crotty’s Keynes Against Capitalism to Solving Macro economic Problems under Conditions of Class Conflict

Was Keynes trying to save capitalism or create “Liberal Socialism”? Jim Crotty’s unique approach to this long-standing question makes his work an outstanding contribution to heterodox macro policy. Tracing Keynes’s policy positions from World War I to Keynes’s death in 1946, Jim combines rich historical detail with Keynes’s insistence that the realism of assumptions affects the truth content of hypotheses. Jim’s book can serve as a guide to policy positions to sustain full employment through the socialization of investment under conditions of class struggle. Contrary to the position that Keynes denied class conflict, there is no fundamental contradiction between Marx’s assumption of class conflict and Keynes’s policy positions in support of full employment through the socialization of investment. JEL Classification: E6, E11, E12

Principals’ Managerial Styles As Determinat of Public Senior Secondary School Efectiveness in Kwara State

Education is a basic rights and the needs for its provision in most efficient manner towards ensuring social liberation, political, economic and cultural development of countries cannot be undermined. However, the efficacy of secondary schools has raised deep concern among stakeholders in the sector. Thus, the study examines principals’ managerial styles as determinant of public senior secondary schools school effectiveness in Kwara State. Nigeria. Descriptive research design of correlation type was adopted for this study. The population of the study was made up of 6, 483 teachers and 384 principals in all the 384 public senior secondary schools in the three senatorial districts that constitute Kwara State (Kwara Central, Kwara North and Kwara South). Ten public senior secondary schools were randomly selected from each of the three senatorial districts that make up the Kwara State, thus 30 public senior secondary schools were selected for the study. Also, 279 teachers were selected using Research Advisor (2006), Managerial Styles and School Effectiveness Questionnaires (PMSSEQ) were designed for the collection of relevant data from the repondents. The instruments were validated and subjected to reliability study. The data gathered for the study were statistically analyzed using descriptive research statistic of frequency, percentage answer the research questions, while Pearson Product – Moment Correlation was used to answer the second research question. The findings of the study revealed that principals’ managerial styles determined school effectiveness in public senior secondary school in Kwara state. It was recommended among others that: capacity buildings through seminars, workshops and conferences should be periodically organized for secondary school principals to update their managerial knowledge and skills on global leadership styles thereby enhancing effectiveness of the schools. Also, principals’ should not restrict themselves to just one managerial style of leadership, but rather varying them depending upon the circumstances for overall improvement and effectiveness of the school system.

The Respect For Race and Culture In a Modern Feminist Society: An Analysis of Beauty Product Advertising Messages on Instagram

This research aims to analyze how beauty brands communicate their messages through Instagram advertisements and determine whether Indonesian beauty standards have changed. This research uses a qualitative approach because it is still uncommon for a qualitative approach that analyzes how and why messages are formulated in beauty advertising. This research also uses a semiology analysis method to explore the meaning of communication messages based on Roland Barthes's model, which includes denotation, connotation, and myth. The sample of advertisements is eight from the screening results of 82 populations and is classified as visual feminism, women's representation, gender equality, women's empowerment, and natural beauty. The result shows that three beauty brands use signs such as sentences and models that promote differences in beauty standards, and the beauty standards in Indonesia have changed over time. The implications of the results of this study recommend the need for quantitative research to examine consumer opinion and behavior.

The Perception of Social Inequality Around the Globe. Editorial Introduction to the 2019 ISSP Social Inequality Module and Selected Country-Level Findings

The International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) recently released the 5th survey on the perception of social inequalities. The data was collected in more than 30 countries around the globe. This introduction offers an overview of the substantive contributions that are included in the two special issues on these data. It also presents results from an analysis of the recent ISSP data that shows how people perceive social inequalities, assess current levels of taxation and the performance of the government, experience inequality, and to what extent they trust other people. Despite evident variations across countries, the analysis highlights that respondents’ views continue to align with the conventional classification of countries into liberal welfare states, Scandinavian welfare states, continental welfare states, and post-communist countries.