Western Theories Research Articles

Origami: Japanese Architecture and its Aesthetic Adaptability with the Western Theorists’ Point of View

Origami: Japanese Architecture and its Aesthetic Adaptability with the Western Theorists’ Point of View

Contesting Civilization: Louis Riel’s Defence of Culture at the Collège de Montréal

A newly discovered manuscript of a debate between two college students sheds new light on Louis Riel’s experience in Montreal. By the time the young Métis left Montreal, he was an accomplished public speaker with a sophisticated understanding of Canadian society and culture. This article argues that Riel’s education was not isolating and frustrating but, rather, encouraged him to engage with public issues and moral reform. It demonstrates that Riel, in responding to the debate sparked by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, could engage meaningfully with Western theories of civilization. This debate is examined in the light of mid-nineteenth-century elite Catholic education, missionary and colonial thought, the nature of the civilizing mission, and Riel’s theories of political sovereignty. Tracing Riel’s unique intellectual genealogy provides insight into the diverse and dynamic ways Indigenous people experienced colonialism. Finally, it offers a critique of the “colonial archive,” particularly when it comes to Indigenous identities. Ultimately, Riel was a successful student who could act as an exemplar of “Western civilization” while confidently maintaining his own identity as an Indigenous person.

The Psycho-Sociological Perspective on Civilization: Insights from Malik Bennabi Theory

Throughout history, civilizations have served as the highest level of human progress, and just like countries, empires or societies, they have always been prone to rise and fall. As a result, attempts to understand their dynamics, formation, and decline have been significantly important for sociologists, politicians, anthropologists and historians, both recently and in the past. One of those was the Islamic scholar Abdurrahman Ibn Khaldun, who tried in his book "Muqaddimah" to explain the rise and fall of states, and despite the uniqueness and distinction of his proposition, Ibn Khaldun's contributions confined to the temporal-spatial context that Ibn Khaldun tried to explore, and his theory has not been developed to explain the civilizational dynamics, especially the Islamic civilization. This matter has been noticed by Malik Bennabi, who succeeded in making remarkably systematic contributions to the topic. Through relying on the psycho-sociological essence of Ibn Khaldun's theory. So that, this paper attempts to present some insights from psycho-sociological approach of Malik Bennabi in explaining the rise and fall of civilizations, compared to some Western theories that have addressed the relative topics.

Dōgen and the Linguistics of Reality

The goal of this article is to show how Dōgen’s views of language, perhaps the most “mystical” part of his thought at first glance, can be interpreted in a framework that is wholly rational in the broader sense of the word. Dōgen belongs to a pansemioticist tradition and indeed maintains that being is tantamount to signification, but unlike previous pansemioticists, such as Kūkai, he does not posit a signifying subjective Other to whom the “message” of reality can be attributed. In Dōgen’s view, the meaningfulness of an event is a concomitant characteristic of its very reality, because the availability of reality for us to experience is already a linguistic phenomenon. The article argues that this is not a mystical thesis, but a view that can also be articulated in a more familiar and fully rational idiom, and that it bears similarities with many different Western thinkers and theorists, such as Wittgenstein, Heidegger, Gadamer, Peirce, Jakobson, and others.

Social Issues in Contemporary Russia: Women's Rights, Corruption, and Immigration Through Three Sociological Lenses

This article reviews social science research on women's rights, corruption, and immigration in Russia. Intentionally diverse, our selection of topics illustrates how the same three analytical lenses have been applied across a broad range of scholarship on the postcommunist world. Each lens is bifocal and entails a tension between two extremes. The victims versus agents lens refers to a tendency of scholars to portray their subjects either as passive victims of macrostructural and cultural conditions or as agents who adapt to survive, or even thrive, despite significant challenges. The similar versus exotic lens pits the assumption that Russia is a modern European country against the view that it is too distinctive to be meaningfully compared with the West or analyzed with Western theories. Finally, the old versus new lens represents competing views on the extent to which the institutional, cultural, and structural legacies of the Soviet Union, perestroika, and the 1990s continue to shape Russian society. The broad goal of our review is to highlight the intellectual promise of studying Russia sociologically.

The Strategies of Human Resource Administration in School Accordance in Buddhist

The purpose of the article was to propose the strategies of human resource administration in school accordance in Buddhism. Documentary study was used for the design, and data was analyzed using content analysis and summarized by descriptive writing. Results of the study showed that new human resource management strategy is the strategy for human resources management in order to make the employees have the performance and behavior to meet the target and the organizational strategy. New role of human resource management must have both a role in shaping the strategy and its role in deploying the organization's strategy to human resources management. It is important to study the principles of Buddhism in relation to the administration of personal affairs that is the principle of Brahmaviharadham IV in order to study mercy management, to study the administration, to study management according to the principle of empathy, and to study the management based on the principle of happiness with focus on personnel administration of educational institution administrators. The concept of management was integrated between western concept and the principle of Brahmaviharadham IV. For a person who is a leader in Buddhism, is to know how to manage the principles and useful methods used as part of the administration. In the development of the work of personnel management in schools requires the use of Buddhist principles as a guide to the direction and direction of management to achieve both the efficiency and effectiveness of the work. If this principle is applied in the management, it will create a good relationship add to the unity by applying Brahmaviharadham IV to the administration of the school according to Western theories. These two principals have the same purpose to administer the school with integrity, to be willing, satisfy and work happily in the organization.

TRADISI MERANTAU MASYARAKAT MELAYU MENERUSI TEKS TERPILIH KARYA HAMKA

As recorded in selected texts written by Buya Hamka, the nomadic tradition of the Malays is loaded with culture and custom elements. The use of selected texts, namely ‘Merantau Ke Deli’ and ‘Di Bawah Lindungan Ka’bah’, was appropriate for the study. This paper also differs from other research due to applying a Western theory to a localised topic such as the Malays’ nomadic tradition. Overall, this study aimed to identify the nomadic tradition by the Malays through specific Hamka works and analysed factors that triggered that phenomenon by applying the theory of migration or the ‘Push and Pull’ Theory introduced by Everett S. Lee (1966). The researchers utilised a qualitative approach, strengthened by Lee’s theory. The theory suggests four factors – factors found within the place of origin, factors in the destination, obstacles and other personal factors. The study found that the Malay characters in Hamka’s works travelled to leave their origin due to poverty and gender issues. Factors at the destination were the promise of a more comfortable life and receiving higher education. It is hoped that this paper could be beneficial and used by researchers in future. Keywords: nomadic tradition, the Malay community, factors, concepts, Theory of Migration by Everett S. Lee.

Reflecting on the History of Sociology in Nigeria: Strategies to Enhance Endogenous Theory within a Global Dialogue

We present a history of Sociology in Nigeria, within the context of intellectual imperialism and the problems of the colonial library. The development of the discipline in Nigeria took place with a great deal of dependence on Western intellectual and financial resources, which led to what some critics have termed the “captive mind.” This is an intellectual posture whereby Western theory is uncritically embraced, while concepts developed internally are harshly judged or ignored. After reviewing these challenges, we turn to consider some of the most promising and innovative contributions to emerge from within Nigerian sociology, providing for “endogenous theory” that has much to offer a wider global sociological dialogue. We note that such theories can take root from pre-colonial indigenous sources, as well as finding inspiration in the current post-colonial realities that mark these times. Building on these cases, we follow Adesina’s call for a “sociology beyond despair,” arguing for the intellectual and moral imperative of building theories inside of Nigeria and outside of the mold of Western assumptions, while still using and contributing productively to global sociology. To help build on this worthy goal, we consider delimiting the role of Western theories rather than eliminating them, while utilizing the rich potential of “abductive analysis” as a route to furthering endogenous sociological knowledge.

Feminine Identity in Refined Male and Female Characters of Wayang Kulit Kelantan

Wayang Kulit Kelantan is one of the traditional theatre performance that holds unique identity. This shadow play performance uses gambalan (shadow puppet) to depict the characters from the Hikayat Seri Rama (a repertoire of Wayang Kulit Kelantan). There are two main characters in Wayang Kulit Kelantan, which are refined characters and rough characters. This research focuses only on the similarity in identity of the refined characters which encompass high percentage of feminine traits. The discussion in this paperwork only focuses on two refined characters which are Seri Rama and Siti Dewi. This discussion is structured based on Gender Schema Theory by Bem, through the application of Bem Sex-Role Inventory as the tool to determine the feminine traits that exist in these refined characters. With the use of this inventory, it is discovered that all three of these characters have high percentage of feminine traits even though from different gender. Therefore this research has made a new discovery through primarily applying western theory in the identification process of refined characters of Wayang Kulit Kelantan.

International collaboration for mutual benefit: a Southwest China and Southeast United States partnership

ABSTRACT China’s return to social work education, after a nearly 35-year absence, opened the door for partnerships like the 2012 China Collaborative partnership between the Council on Social Work Education’s (CSWE) Katherine A. Kendall Institute, the China Association of Social Work Education (CASWE) and the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW). The University of Alabama School of Social Work (UA SSW) was selected to participate in the collaborative and was connected to the Southwest China Region, specifically partnered with Yunnan University. This manuscript will share the strategies used to engage faculty and students from each partnering institution. Data collected by UA SSW over the five-year partnership will be utilised to contribute to the discussion of the extent to which Western knowledge and theory about social work education might usefully be applied to the Chinese context.

Non-institutional Factors in Shaping Rural Elections and Governance in China: a Pragmatist Perspective

What type of micro individual factors may affect rural elections and governance in China? What may affect the dynamics of power politics in rural China? Based on intensive field interviews with rural residents, our research finds a gap between what good governance requires and what fair, competitive elections can provide in rural China. We argue that habits, social skills, and chaxu geju (差序格局) are causal factors that determine the roles and action orientation of elites in rural China, correspondingly shaping the dynamics of power politics in rural areas. Rural elections select the elites who are candidates to govern the countryside; however, the habits, skills, and chaxu geju of rural elites are crucial but neglected factors that can significantly affect the outcome of rural governance. This new theoretical framework which we call a pragmatist theory of agency and power politics is derived from Western pragmatist theory and Chinese indigenous theory. This approach of merging Western theories and Chinese indigenous theories has substantial potential to provide insights into rural politics in contemporary China.

When the World Laughs: Film Comedy East and West

When the World Laughs: Film Comedy East and West

International relations as a system and a discipline: From the westphalian to the post-westphalian world order

The review is devoted to the analysis of scientific work of Amitav Acharya and Barry Buzan, The Making of Global International Relations. Origins and Evolution of IR at its Centenary (Cambridge and New York, Cambridge University Press, 2019, 383 p.). Structurally, the work consists of an introduction and ten sections. Well-known Western theorists of international relations gave their vision of the evolution of the Westphalian world order during the twentieth century. They also revealed the reasons and nature of the transition of the world order to Post-Westphalian international relations after 1989 and substantiated the causes, principles and effects of the emergence and development of knowledge about International Relations. Based on the study and critical rethinking of the theory and practice of international relations of the XX – early XXI century (until 2017/2018) the authors singled out several meaningful blocks. This grouping allowed us to state the modernization of the Westphalian model of international relations and the formation and development of the science of International Relations in the Сenter and in the Periphery under the influence of a number of fateful events. First of all, we are talking about the impact of the two world wars, bipolar confrontation and the process of decolonization on the evolution of the Westphalian international system. The genesis of the discipline of International Relations after the end of the First World War was accompanied by the active expansion of its institutionalization, subject field and the inclusion of the periphery in this space. Radical changes in the world and international relations after 1989 led to the globalization of international relations and the final formation of the Post-Westphalian world order. The conceptual analysis of the evolution of international relations during the XX–XXI centuries on the basis of fundamental research by Western scientists and also theorists from outside the Western core allows us to state their essential changes under the influence of two world wars, globalization, decolonization and changes in the ratio of forces between the Сenter and the Periphery.

Single-rating, multi-rating 360° performance management and organizational outcomes: evidence from the UAE

PurposeThis study is an academic attempt to bridge the gap between Western theories and the under-researched non-western contexts by studying the characteristics of traditional and modern performance management systems (PMSs) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Drawing on the expectancy theory, this study aims to discuss the significant causal relationship between the implementation of single-rating, multi-rating 360° performance management (PM) and organizational outcomes such as trust, commitment, satisfaction and intention to leave.Design/methodology/approachUsing the self-reported measures and survey method, data were collected from 439 employees from different organizations across the UAE. Explanatory factor analysis, simple linear regression and multi-group were used to test the proposed conceptual model and examine the mediation and moderation impact.FindingsThe study explored the best-practices attributes of the traditional single-rating, multi-rating 360° PM within a non-western context. This study also provides empirical evidence on the significant role of uncertainty avoidance and power distance orientation as a mediator between the relationship between these PMSs and trust, commitment, job satisfaction and intention to leave. Finally, this paper examined the effect of many demographic variables (such as gender, age, industry type […]) on the relationship between the independent variables and the dependent variables.Originality/valueThis study extends research on PM theories and models. Another important aspect of this study is that its model has been tested on the UAE’s data, an underrepresented geographic region in the management literature. Given all the PM’s positive characteristics, the way that this feedback is viewed and interpreted by employees may be moderated according to the employee’s management level, age, gender and many other demographics.

ART AND ACTS OF SEEING IN THE WORK OF JOHN KINSELLA

This essay investigates the development of seeing as an affective, political and potentially transformative practice across the course of John Kinsella’s poetic career. It analyses how seeing becomes a means for Kinsella to apprehend the relationship between self and environment and to consider how local-scale is tied to broader-scale change. At the same time, it traces Kinsella’s concern at the ways in which Western theories of vision shape and reinforce structures of power, particularly in terms of gendered and colonial violence. Moving through and then past ekphrastic debates, I argue that Kinsella considers how poetry and art might, in their own ways, ethically engage with both the human and more-than-human and actively navigate and reflect upon states of connection.

Antithesis versus Inspiration: Chinese Clothing in the Eyes of Western Theorists and Fashion Designers

Dress is a part of Chinese cultural heritage that has fascinated Western audiences for centuries. On the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of China, there are items related to textiles, embroideries and certain examples of Chinese clothing. This article analyses issues connected with the different uses of Chinese dress in the West. To fashion theorists such as Bell, Wilson, Sapir and Veblen, Chinese dress was the opposite of modern Western clothing and did not deserve to be called fashion. However, researchers such as Welters, Lillethun and Craik have opposed viewing fashion theory through a Eurocentric prism in their desire to rewrite fashion history. Fashion designers drew ideas from China, treating it as a source of inspiration to create their own original designs. For some of them, such as Yves Saint Laurent, it was a China of their imagination. In certain cases, they made use of porcelain designs or dragon motifs in their own collections, for instance, in designs by Cavalli and Ford. The incorporation of Chinese garments into Western collections has also become visible.

Emancipating Chinese (im)politeness research: Looking back and looking forward

Chinese data have been frequently used as a testing ground of Western theories of (im)politeness. While making significant progress, most of the existing studies still concentrate on the dominant Confucianist social norms and analyze a limited number of variants of face-to-face and mediated interactional contexts. By adopting an emancipatory approach to (im)politeness research, we seek to broaden the scope of Chinese (im)politeness research. In this paper, we review the major studies of Chinese (im)politeness published in English and Chinese outlets from the emancipation of theories of (im)politeness, research methods, and contextual variations. The results show evidence for both the Same Position and the Different Position in the East-West debate at various levels of analysis. We argue that scholars should further examine underlying assumptions held by researchers and interlocutors, constructing generalized models for contrastive analysis and seeking for cross-fertilization between Chinese and Western politeness theories.

VISI, MISI, TUJUAN DAN FUNGSI PENDIDIKAN ISLAM

Education is a process that is carried out consciously or deliberately in order to increase knowledge, insight and experience to determine life goals so that they can have a broad view towards a better future and with education itself can create quality people. As Western theory, educators in Islam are people who are responsible for the development of their students by trying to develop all the potential of students, both affective (feeling), cognitive (creativity), and psychomotor (intention) potential. Education is a cultural process to enhance human dignity that lasts a lifetime. Education is always developing, and always faced with changing times. Such is the cycle of development of change in education, otherwise education will be left behind by the changing times that are so fast. For that change in education must be relevant to changing times and the needs of society in that era, so it is important to design as early as possible which can be outlined in the Vision, Mission, Objectives and Functions of Islamic Education

Oriental fissures in the western canonical structure: Li Shutong and his aesthetical revolution against Chinese theatrical conventions

ABSTRACT This article focuses on the revolutionary power exerted on Chinese modern drama by Li Shutong (Master Hongyi, 1880–1942), the highly respected pioneer of modern drama and art in China. His work with the drama club Spring Willow Society revealed Li Shutong’s effort to employ the formulae and formalities in Chinese drama to challenge western canonical power and established structures. Taking western drama as a tool to reform Chinese drama, he made use of Chinese and Japanese aesthetics to negotiate western theory in his political agenda of anticolonialism. Li Shutong’s adaptation of La Dame aux Camélias, The Black Slave’s Cry to Heaven (Uncle Tom’s Cabin) and other western canonical works on the stage was an aesthetical activity as well as a political move to fight against the mainstream theatrical conventions in China. Meanwhile, he succeeded in providing an alternative to undermine western hegemonic power by his fusion of oriental elements into the western canons.

RETICENCE AS A STRATEGY OF THE WOMEN’S AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL TEXT OF SOVIET TIMES

The subject of the study is the system of reticence techniques in the women’s autobiography of O.Ivanenko, the Ukrainian writer of the 20th century. Western theorists of women’s autobiography (M.Mason, E.Jelinek) considered relativity, fragmentation, nonlinearity as qualities that define it. However, the concept of L. Gilmore, who considers autobiography as a writing strategy that constructs its object, allows us to raise the question of the potential functions of constructive techniques in this text. These and many other studies analyze the autobiographies of women in the Western world, leaving aside the writings of Eastern Europeans, however, the works of those who had to live in Soviet conditions are of particular interest for various reasons. The aim of the proposed study is to show the peculiarities of the creation and functioning of the women’s autobiographics in ideological societies on the example of Oksana Ivanenko’s memoirs Always in Life. The research methodology is based on women’s studies and discursive analysis. As a result of the study, it was found that in Ivanenko’s memoirs the theme of creative self-realization and literature as a whole pushes aside the narrative that Western theorists consider to be the main one for women's biography: comprehending their own female experience (first of all, love, marriage, motherhood). The relativity, embodied in the genre of the essay, allowed the author to talk about oneself, when she wanted it, and at the right moment to return to the pseudo-object. The non-linearity of the narrative helps to emphasize advantageous moments and to avoid forced chronology. But fragmentation and heterogeneity allow the woman writer not to build a holistic narrative about oneself, but to offer «flickering» content to readers. Thus, feeling ideological pressure, the author escaped memories not only of the difficult period in Ukrainian history, but also of important events in her life, ignoring her true experience. This means that an autobiographical work may be called upon not to record a true experience but to create a socially acceptable version of the writer.