Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Black elites'

The number of women entering professional and managerial jobs globally has increased over the past thirty years. However, only a small percentage of texts within feminist and organisational theory specifically address the lives and experiences of professional and managerial Black African women within the workplace and family life. As such, many organisational and social research questions in this area remain unanswered. This thesis examines the work and family lives of professional and managerial Black African women living and working in Johannesburg and London. It explores how such women with relatively similar colonial histories, cultures, career and professional backgrounds handle their complex social positioning. This complexity, as discussed in the thesis, is created mainly through the way in which identity characteristics such as gender, race/ethnicity and class intersect and impact on these women when working in an environment where they are in a minority and viewed in some instances as ‘space invaders’. The impact that these complex social categories, combined with the influences of culture and history, have on their identities as career women, mothers, wives, partners and daughters is also examined. As Black African women with careers in major cities on opposite sides of the globe, these emerging and transnational elite Black African women remain a rarity and hidden gem to most – making them unique both in the workplace and in communities. In London, they are not only minorities within the UK population but minorities in their role as professional and managerial women within the corporate private sector. In Johannesburg, although part of the majority population in the country, they still remain minorities within the professional and managerial circles of that country’s corporate private sector. The method I use to gather data is the Life History approach which allows me, the researcher, to reveal my participants’ individual views and interpretation of their own work and family life experiences. I do this by conducting semi-structured interviews as a means of collecting their ‘life stories’. These stories told by Black African professional and managerial women reflect their views of reality. Through a form of Life History analysis, this mode of enquiry further reveals the importance of acknowledging difference when implementing government and organisational policies that combat barriers brought about by corporate practices and cultural attitudes within the workplace and society as a whole.

Esta tese analisa a presença dos negros na alta burocracia brasileira que exerciam no período entre 2003-2010, cargos de Direção e Assessoramento Superior (DAS) nos mais variados ministérios e, principalmente, na Secretaria de Políticas de Promoção da Igualdade Racial (SEPPIR) e na Fundação Cultural Palmares. A hipótese central aqui defendida é a de que os mesmos podem ser considerados elites burocráticas nos moldes daquilo que Wright Mills denominou como “método posicional”. O estudo focalizou num grupo de 104 negros que ocupavam cargos de confiança na administração federal em Brasília por ser essa cidade considerada o centro do poder. A partir daí, por intermédio da prosopografia se analisou os dados relativos à trajetória social e políticas destes negros que compõem a alta burocracia brasileira, bem como a sua relação com os movimentos sociais, partidos políticos, sindicatos e sociedade. Além disso, conhecer a sua formação acadêmica, formas de recrutamento, experiência profissional, relevância do cargo ocupado e então, traçar uma radiografia destes negros que ocupam ou ocuparam cargos no governo federal e verificar se existe um caminho para as posições de poder semelhante a outros grupos de elite no Brasil.
This thesis analyzes the presence of blacks in Brazilian high bureaucracy exercised in the period between 2003-2010, Director of positions and Superior Consulting (DAS) in various ministries and especially the Secretariat for the Promotion of Racial Equality (SEPPIR) and the Palmares Cultural Foundation. The central hypothesis defended here is that they can be considered bureaucratic elites along the lines of what Wright Mills termed as "Positional method". The study focused on a group of 104 black held positions of trust in the federal government in Brasilia to be this city considered the center of power. From there, through the prosopography analyzed data on the social and political trajectory of these blacks who make up the Brazilian high bureaucracy, as well as their relationship with the social movements, political parties, trade unions and society. Also, know your academic background, forms of recruitment, work experience, relevance of the position held and then draw a radiograph of those blacks who hold or have held positions in the federal government and whether there is a way for the similar positions of power to other elite groups in Brazil.

From 1880-1920 the United States struggled to incorporate former slaves into the citizenship of the nation. Constitutional amendments legislated freedom for African Americans, but custom dictated otherwise. White people equated power and wealth with whiteness. Conversely, blackness suggested poverty and lack of opportunity. Straddling the Color Line is a multi-city examination of influential and prominent African Americans who lived with one foot in each world, black and white, but who in reality belonged to neither. These influential men lived lives that mirrored Victorian white gentlemen. In many cases they enjoyed all the same privileges as their white counterparts. At other times they were forced into uncomfortable alliances with less affluent African Americans who looked to them for support, protection and guidance, but with whom they had no commonalities except perhaps the color of their skin.

This dissertation argues two main points. One is that members of the black elite had far more social and political power than previously understood. Some members of the black elite did not depend on white patronage or paternalism to achieve success. Some influential white men developed symbiotic relationships across the color line with these elite African American men and they treated each other with mutual affection and respect.

The second point is that the nadir in race relations occurred at different times in different cities. In the three cities studied, the nadir appeared first in Charleston, then New Orleans and finally in Cleveland. Although there were setbacks in progress toward equality, many blacks initially saw the setbacks as temporary regressions. Most members of the elite were unwilling to concede that racism was endemic before the onset of the Twentieth Century. In Cleveland, the appearance of significant racial oppression was not evident until after the World War I and resulted from the Great Migration. Immigrants from the Deep South migrated to the North seeking opportunity and freedom. They discovered that in recreating the communities of their homeland, they also created conditions that allowed racism to flourish.

The purpose of this case study is to conduct a descriptive analysis of the election of Black males to public office and the role they played in improving the quality of Black life in the city of Atlanta, Georgia. The study has analyzed and examined the impact that education, housing, income, and health care demographic factors have contributed to the election of these males to various committees, boards and commissions in the city of Atlanta and Fulton County Georgia. The study has also examined the political activity of college fraternities, urban voluntary associations, and community based organizations that played a role in the city council race of 1992 in electing a Black as mayor and member of the city council. To measure how effective these males were in improving the quality of Black life the following indicators will be utilized in this study, namely: (a) the improvement of the neighborhoods in Atlanta's Black community, (b) the distribution of goods and services to the Black community, (c) the sponsorship of bills and neighborhood economic development related projects through its candidates, in an attempt to exercise political influence, within the state legislature and the city council in Atlanta, Georgia, (d) the improvement of the quality of health care, housing, income, and(e) education. The principal method of analysis employed for explaining Black male political activity in the city of Atlanta, Georgia has been through the use of a research study conducted by the Clark Atlanta University Political Science Department in Atlanta, Georgia. The study was conducted by undergraduate and graduate students and several members of the faculty. The survey comprises telephone interviews with 100 respondents in the city of Atlanta, Georgia. The data are a unique resource that now makes possible an in-depth investigation of the urban issues, attitudes, and political beliefs and activity of a representative local sample of adult Black Atlanta residents. Each respondent was of voting age, but was not necessarily registered to vote. The sample for the Atlanta survey was drawn using a random-digit-dial design that selected participants disproportionately from different geographic areas within the city of Atlanta representing varying densities of Black population. The survey was inclusive of only those residents living within the (404) area code listing. The racial composition of the household was determined by including a direct question about race in the screening instrument. Members of eligible households found in the screening were eligible for the study if they were Black Americans and were at least 18 years of age.

Beginning in 1998, selective colleges began adopting no-loan admissions policies to increase socioeconomic diversity. These colleges, however, get their new diversity from old sources. I show how half of lower-income black undergraduates at elite colleges graduate from boarding, day, and preparatory schools like Exeter and Andover, those whom I call the Privileged Poor, while their peers enter from local, typically troubled public schools—those whom I call the Doubly Disadvantaged (Jack 2014, 2015a). This dissertation draws on in-depth interviews with 103 black, Latino, and white undergraduates and two years of ethnographic observation at pseudonymous Renowned University to explore what sociologists Stevens, Armstrong, and Arum (2008) call, “the experiential core of college life,” the often-overlooked moments between college entry and exit when undergraduates employ different cultural competencies to navigate college and how university policies facilitate this process. Each chapter examines moments of social contact: (1) micro-interactions between peers, (2) engagement between undergraduates and college officials, and (3) undergraduates’ experiences navigating university policies. There are instances where lower social class status is oppressive, but also there are times when cultural resources serve as social buffer to class marginalization. Equally important, I document not only how university practices can exacerbate preexisting inequalities, but also how their effects are unequally distributed. Where the Privileged Poor and Doubly Disadvantaged’s experiences differ, disparate cultural endowments play a larger role in shaping undergraduates’ well-being. Where their experiences align, shared economic disadvantage is more salient. Examining the experiences of those who travel different trajectories to college extends theories of social reproduction and deepens our understanding of both the reproduction of inequality in college and how university policies facilitate these processes.
Sociology

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of economically disadvantaged, Black students attending predominantly White, elite private boarding schools. Data were collected utilizing semi-structured interviews with 9 participants, with each interview lasting approximately 90 minutes. The recursive method of data collection and analysis was informed by six steps outlined by Creswell (1998), as well as Consensual Qualitative Research (CQR) methods (Hill, Thompson, & Williams, 1997). Findings revealed 9 themes associated with participants' experiences: classroom experiences, value of Black peer networks, caught between two worlds, racial perceptions, desire to connect with people of all races, socioeconomic challenges, living away from home challenges, impact of peers on level of success, and significance of relationships with Black faculty. Practice and research implications for Black students attending private school, as well as for private school faculty and administrators, are discussed.

Experienced male marathon runners, 9 black and 10 white, with marathon times of 2 hours 45 minutes or faster, acted as subjects for the study, the purpose of which was to determine whether black runners are better suited to marathon running than whites. Body composition was determined by anthropometry. Maximal oxygen uptake (VO₂ max) and other physiological variables were measured during a continuous, speed-incremented treadmill protocol using a computer-aided data acquisition system. Subjects also ran a simulated marathon at 92.5% of the running speed at which the ventilatory threshold (VT) occurred. Physiological, gait and RPE variables were measured at 10 minute intervals during the marathon. Major findings are detailed below:- The VO₂, max averaged 60.4 ∓ 6.5 and 63.2 ∓ 2.9 mI. kg⁻¹.min⁻¹ in the black and white runners respectively and was highly correlated with best marathon race time (r = 0.86 and 0.85 respectively) and VT (r = 0.84 and 0.60 respectively) (p < 0.05). No significant differences existed between the groups in submaximal oxygen uptake (VO₂,) or % VO₂ max utilised at 16 km.hr⁻¹, but the estimated % VO₂ max utilised during a marathon race was higher in the black (89.0 ∓ 5.5%) than the white runners (81. 5 ∓ 3.1%) {p .( 0.05). The % VO₂ max utilised at 16 km.hr⁻¹ (84.8 ∓ 9.1 and 78.6 ∓ 5.8% in the black and white runners respectively) was significantly correlated with the % VO₂, max utilised while racing in the white (81.5 ∓ 3.1%) (r = 0.70) (p < 0.05), but not the black runners (89.0 ∓ 5.5%). The VT occurred at 82.7 ∓ 7.7 and 75.6 :∓ 6.2% VO₂; max in the black and white groups respectively (p < 0.05). Post-marathon blood lactic acid levels were lower in the black (1.30 ∓ 0.26 mmo1.l⁻¹) than the white runners (1.59 ∓ 0.20 mmol.l⁻¹). The respiratory exchange ratio (R) was higher in the blacks than whites when running at 16 km.hr ⁻¹ (1.03 ∓ 0.07 and 0.98 ∓ 0.03 respectively) and during the marathon (p < 0.05). There was no significant difference in pulmonary minute ventilation (Vı) between the groups, but breathing frequency (f) was higher in the black (59 ∓ 12 breaths.min⁻¹) than the white runners (45 ∓ 8 breaths. min⁻¹ ) and tidal volume (V⊤) lower in the black ( 1.33 ∓ 0.16 l.breath⁻¹) than the white runners (1.75 ∓ 0.36 I.breath⁻¹) during submaximal running at 16 km. hr⁻¹ (p < 0.05). The same trend was observed during the marathon run. During the time-course of the marathon f increased and V⊤ decreased In both groups (p < 0.05). Stroke volume decreased and heart rate increased In both groups during the time-course of the marathon (p< 0.05). Cardiac output was therefore maintained. Thermal responses were similar in the two groups. A significant increase in rectal temperature coincided with a decrease in skin temperature and may have been related to an increase in f (r = 0.86 and 0.67 in the blacks and whites respectively), H/R (r = 0.70 and 0.67 respectively) and "local" (leg) RPE (r = 0.84 and 0.82 respectively). It was concluded that black runners were able to run marathon races at a higher % VO₂ more than whites due to the blacks having lower blood lactic acid levels when running at a similar % VO₂ max. Given similar maximal oxygen uptakes, this would enable blacks to run faster. Cardiopulmonary adjustments occur during the time-course of a marathon which maintains Q and Vı

Minha tese de doutorado, intitulada Elite Política Negra no Brasil, analisa a relação entre movimento negro, partidos políticos e Estado, entre os anos de 1978 a 2002. Minha abordagem teórica é a combinação da sociologia das relações raciais com a teoria do confronto politico, além de correntes analíticas sobre os movimentos sociais. Para o desenvolvimento desta pesquisa, trabalhei com materiais documentais, entrevistas; especialmente documentos escritos por ativistas negros, além da imprensa alternativa e nacional, documentos partidários e governamentais.
This doctoral dissertation, named Political Black Elite in Brazil, investigates the relationship between Black Movement, Political Parties and State, from 1978 until 2002. The theoretical approach used was based both in the Sociology of Racial Relations and Political Process Theory. I also have made use of Social Movements analytical frameworks. Over the course of this research I worked with documental sources and interviews. I focused especially in articles and other documents written by Black activists. I also used articles that circulated in alternative and mainstream medias, and other documents publicized by Political Parties, and Governments.

This dissertation examined the experiences of Black middle school girls who attend predominantly white, elite, independent schools in the Greater Los Angeles area. Using Critical Race Theory, Black Identity Theory, and Black Feminism Theory as a conceptual framework, this qualitative research explored the role of race, class, gender, and parental support as contributing factors to the development of participants’ racial consciousness. Utilizing timeline interviews and critical narratives to explore the lived histories of each student and parent participant, data analysis included content coding based on themes that emerged throughout the narrative examination. An analysis of the narratives of student participants revealed the absence of a Black faculty advocate, the burden of microaggressions, and the tension to define what it meant to be Black as important factors in the development of a racial consciousness. Additional findings based on data from the participants’ mothers revealed their reasons for choosing independent schools for their daughters and an emphasis on nurturing Black identity and friendships to help guide them through critical racial experiences. Findings led to important recommendations to improve the educational experiences of Black girls in predominantly white, elite independent schools. These findings also indicated a need for further study of the experiences of the Black girl middle school experience in predominantly white, elite, independent schools.

How great potential effect does the Black carbon emitted from the boreal forest fire region of Alaska have on the retreating glaciers of the St. Elias Mountains? In this study climate and forest fire history data of Alaska was run in the HYSPLIT wind trajectory model to generate trajectories originated from large occurring fires in Alaska from 2005 to 2014. Results show a small percentage of trajectories passing the St. Elias Mountains and an expected pattern of a correlation between passing trajectories and density of amount forest fires. Interdisciplinary climate research is indicating an increase in global temperatures with consequences such as an upswing of forest fires in the Northern Hemisphere. Inner Alaska is fire prone due to a combination of prevailing droughts during the summer season and frequent lightning ignition as a result from homogeneous vegetation and topography. Downwind from Alaska’s forest fire region is the ice field of the St. Elias Mountains, these glaciers are one of the fastest retreating due to increasing global temperatures and possible deposition of soot from Alaskan forest fires. Forest fire emits black carbon, which when deposited on snow or ice surfaces will decrease the albedo and accelerate the melting rate. Previous studies on ice cores from the St. Elias have investigated traces of combustion products from biomass burning. This indicates a possible record of historic forest fires in ice cores. The small percentage of passing trajectories in this study suggests that most large forest fires in Alaska might not be registered in the St. Elias ice cores.

Dans cette thèse, nous étudions la question du traducteur du corpus de Jean Damascène en arabe. Deux noms sont proposés : Antoine, higoumène du Monastère Saint-Siméon-le-jeune (10e siècle) et ‘Abdallah ibn al-Faḍl (11e siècle). La découverte d’un traité supplémentaire, le Contre les Nestoriens 1, ignoré de nos prédécesseurs s’est avérée être la clef pour résoudre cette question. C’est pourquoi nous nous sommes résolus de faire une édition critique de ce traité et du deuxième traité Contre les Nestoriens 2, tous deux traduits par le même traducteur et portant sur le même sujet. Dans l’introduction qui précède l’édition, nous consacrons une première partie au contexte historique de cette traduction, c’est-à-dire aux circonstances du passage d’Antioche du grec à l’arabe. Dans la deuxième partie, nous faisons un état de la recherche sur la traduction de Jean Damascène en arabe. Puis, nous fournirons une nouvelle description des manuscrits qui contiennent au moins un des deux traités Contre les Nestoriens et soulignerons leur apport à la solution de la question posée. Après avoir identifié le traducteur et les œuvres qu’il a traduites, nous essayerons de recueillir quelques informations biographiques sur notre traducteur à partir des colophons. Nous étudierons également la postérité du texte avant de laisser place à l’édition critique. L’ensemble est complété par plusieurs index
In this thesis, I would like to study the question about the translator of John Damascene’s corpus Greek into Arabic. Two names were suggested by scholars: Antony, Abbot of the Monastery Saint-Symon-the-Young (10th century) and ‘Abdallah ibn al-Faḍl (11th century). The discovery of a second Against the Nestorians was the key to solve this question. For this reason, I decided to make a critical edition of the two Against the Nestorians because the translator and the subject are the same, willing to publish the whole translation in the future. In the introduction that precedes the edition, I talked about the historical context and the events that leaded to the translation activity in Antioch (10th /11th century). In the second chapter, I resumed scholars’ conclusions on the Arabic translation of John Damascene’s works. Then, I gave a new description of the manuscripts that have at least one of the two Against the Nestorians and explain how that helped me identifying the translator. After identifying the translator and the works he translated, I collected some new bibliographical information about him from the colophons. I also studied the posterity of the translation. In the third chapter, I tried to find a Greek manuscript similar in content to the Arabic translation. I presented also the way the translator translates from Greek into Arabic. Then, I divided the different manuscripts into groups and draw the stemma. Those introductory elements are followed by the edition, and the whole work is completed by some index containing mostly references to theological and philosophical vocabulary in the edition

In 1904, a wealthy black lawyer described Boston as “the paradise of the Negro”. With the state legislature having enacted and reinforced civil rights laws several times after the Civil War, African Americans in Massachusetts (over a third of whom lived in Boston in 1900) could enjoy the same political, civil, and social rights as whites by the turn of the twentieth century. Nevertheless, the economic conditions of most black Bay Staters did not change much. They were confined as ever to menial jobs, and, unlike European immigrants, had little possibility for upward mobility. As one black porter in Boston said, blacks “are given…the work that white folks don't want”. Owing to the civil rights acts, they could “go most anywhere with the white man…and spend [their] dollar”, but they could not “go anywhere with the white man and earn it”. This study attempts to elucidate how African-American leaders in post-bellum Boston defined racial “equality”. It examines class-consciousness of black “elites” and points out their tendency to distance themselves from the masses. Having sincere faith in the doctrine of equal opportunity and laissez-faire, “elite” black Bostonians believed that the “fittest”, regardless of color, should survive in the world of competition. And in the process of uplifting themselves and identifying with the white elite and its values, these college-educated, light-skinned “aristocrats of color” came to view the lower classes of their own race as different and inferior. Proud of acquiring their present status by themselves, they only advocated equality before the law and did almost nothing else but urge the masses to work hard enough to uplift themselves just like they had done, dismissing those who could not as either idle or without ambition. The dissertation concludes that although intended as a weapon against racism color-blind meritocracy advocated by the black “elites” turned into an ideology for the status-quo. By demanding equal opportunity alone in an overtly discriminatory society, “elite” leaders not only failed to ease but in fact unwittingly fostered the ever-increasing oppression against African Americans in Boston after the Civil War.

This study uses Frantz Fanon‟s thoughts on race and blackness, the black elite and black public intellectuals as the theoretical framework and examines the positionality of Sipho Seepe, Xolela Mangcu and Andile Mngxitama as black public intellectuals in order to understand how they view the post-1994 political discourse. Seepe, Mangcu and Mngxitama‟s views are studied by analysing themes emerging from newspaper columns they have written. This study reveals that the three black public intellectuals examined have been radical and forthright, though they display different understandings of race and blackness, the black elite and black public intellectuals. However, the study reveals that only Mngxitama‟s postionality has been consistently radical, whereas Seepe and Mangcu‟s views have been fluid and are now considered moderate. This study concludes by highlighting the relevance of Fanon‟s thoughts in enabling a new reading of post-1994 South Africa. Of central importance is the creation of the „new being‟, who is informed by the process of liberation, which is the antithesis of the black condition.
Political Sciences
M. A. (Politics)

This study analyses the representations of the ‘new’ black elite’s conspicuous consumption using Kenny Kunene as an exemplary case study. It examines how the media represents the black elite; whether it condemns or celebrates their consumption. Using the qualitative methodology of Critical Discourse Analysis, the research unpacks the themes relating to the representations of Kenny Kunene’s conspicuous consumption patterns. The findings reveal that media representations present conflicted views on Kunene’s tastes. His consumption is represented as empowering on the one hand and alienating on the other. This research demonstrates how Kunene’s consumption patterns have fundamentally informed contested reflections, meanings and questions about life in post-apartheid South Africa. Questions of whether the accretion of wealth and display of conspicuous consumption is symbolic of the “arrival” of blacks after an era of deprivation and oppression. Whether the black elite’s conspicuous consumption patterns are representative of a morally perverted society or indicative of irresponsible and selfish disregard of the poor. The dissertation contributes to a body of literature on the black elite. It demonstrates how consumption of the black elite and in particular Kunene is fraught with ambivalence and is more complex than what the media discourse has illustrated. Through Kunene, the research shows how the black elite face a tall order between two polarities of being successful and being moral. In so doing, it contributes to an understanding of the ‘new’ class of the black elite and what the meanings attached to their consumption by the media are. It also contributes to an understanding that black elites’ consumption should not be reduced to simplistic binaries of empowerment or disempowerment. Rather it should be understood as involving both aspects of empowerment and disempowerment and not either-or.

碩士
國立體育大學
運動科學研究所
99
Purpose: Blocking plays an important role for defense in the volleyball competition. Player’s excellent skill of blocking prevents the attacks from the opposite team and gets scores as well. The purpose of this study is to investigate the blocking total response time (TRT) of volleyball players by a self-designed system which could give light signal randomly and compute their TRT. And examine the effects of six-week agility training in preseason on total response time (TRT) for blocking at position two, there and four. Method: Twelve elite volleyball players (male, 23.2 ± 4.3 year-old, 188.3 ± 8.6 cm, 77.75 ± 5.34 kg ) were recruited in this study. They were divided into the agility training group and the general training group, agility training group implemented the agility training by using step hurdle and their TRTs of blocking were recorded by using our self-designed system. One-way repeat measure ANOVA and Tukey HSD method were applied to statistically analyze the experimental results. Result: After six weeks both of them were advanced at position two, there and four in general training group 0.11s, 0.21s and 0.09 and agility training group 0.24, 0.26 and 0.16 respectively. We showed that there were significant differences between general training group and agility training group (p = .000). After analyze by Tukey HSD method, there were no significant differences among the 4 phases in general training group. We showed that there were significant differences among the blocking TRTs after six-week training program (p &lt; .05) in agility training group. Significant difference of the TRTs was first observed when the players underwent four-week training (p &lt; .05) and continued to the complement of the six-week training program. There was no difference among the TRTs of the last 2 phases. Conclusion: In conclusion, our study demonstrated that the agility training by using step hurdle in preseason can significantly improve the block TRT and should be applied on the regular volleyball practice.

碩士
國立體育大學
競技與教練科學研究所
103
The International Swimming Federation has approved a starting block equipped with a back plate for use in swimming competitions from 2009. Due to the recent approval, swimmers are modifying their start techniques to be able to maximize performance from the new swimming start block. Most internal studies are focus on the old swimmimg start block, the new swimming start block has not been investigated. The purpose of this study was to analysis of elite swimmer using the new swimming start block in kinematics, and compare to the. A internal 50 meter freestyle record holder participated voluntarily in the study. Using digital video cameras to collect images of starts parameters simultaneously. Kwon 3D 3.1 Motion System was used to analyze data. The outcome of the kinematic was compared to Tor(2014). The results of this study were showen and discussed in four aspects. (1) For the block phase of kinematics parameters, there were no significant differences between these two studies in block time. But the horizontal velocity at take-off of Tor(2014) was significantly higher than this study. (2) For the flight phase of kinematics parameters, the flight time of this study was longer than Tor(2014), and the entry distance was farer too. But the entry velocity and angle of entry in this study were significantly lower than Tor(2014). (3) For the underwater phase of kinematics parameters, the time to 15 meter of this study was shorter than Tor(2014). (4) The block time and take-off velocity were the key parameters that contribute to overall start performance using the kick-start technique. Although the flight phase didn’t affect the start performance well, swimmers should focus on increasing both of the flight distance and entry velocity.

A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of requirements for the degree of Master of Science. Johannesburg, November 2015.
Globally, people are connected to multiple homes. This connection develops through ownership and place attachment. Second home tourism research explores the ownership and place attachment to multiple homes for the purpose of leisure. Whilst second home tourism research has been conducted extensively in the Global North, focusing mainly on leisure, the same cannot be said for the Global South. In South Africa, there is little research conducted on the local wealthy black population and the connection to ownership and place attachment to additional/second homes. The history of racial, socio-economic and spatial segregation in South Africa has facilitated the unique development of the connection to multiple homes for the black populations. Using the current second home tourism literature, together with the legislative history of South Africa, this research hopes to develop open and inclusive explanations of the second home phenomenon for the case of the influential black elite residents in South Africa. This dissertation explores the link that sixty-nine black elite residents of greater Johannesburg suburbs have with their additional homes that are located in Soweto and other regions in sub-Saharan Africa. To achieve this, a largely qualitative methodology set was implemented through the use of in-depth semi-structured interviews and thematic content analysis was utilised for the analysis. To conclude, the results of this dissertation dispute certain aspects of concepts used in current second home literature. It is also emphasized that it is important to rethink and re-conceptualize the international ideas of circulation, mobility and pluri-residentiality, when attempting to appropriately adapt these concepts South Africa.

This project is an examination of the novels O Mulato (Aluisio Azevedo, 1889) and Cecilia Valdes (Cirilo Villaverde, 1882) and their call for social reform and a re-examination of the place of blacks in the emerging republics of Brazil and Cuba. Both novels question and criticize social constructs of race while pressing for an improved treatment of both free and enslaved blacks This project provides an intellectual history of eighteenth and nineteenth century rac(ial)ist theories that exerted a pronounced influence on Azevedo and Villaverde. Specifically, this section examines physiognomy, phrenology, and craniometry in addition to sociological and anthropological approaches to racial hybridism, the evolutionary theories of Darwin and Spencer, and the geographical determinism of Buckle. Finally, the chapter provides a close reading of Comte's positivism and its reception by the intelligentsia in Cuba and Brazil Azevedo's O Mulato purports to discredit racial discrimination by white society and the destructive influence of the Catholic clergy in Brazil's northern province of Maranhao during the 1870s by deploying the metaphor of an unsuccessful, interracial relationship involving a wealthy and educated mulatto and his white, aristocratic cousin. Although Azevedo endeavored to illustrate the problematic nature of racial discrimination and the social compartmentalization of blacks in Brazil---both relics of Portuguese colonialism---he nevertheless succumbed to the racialist ideologies of the nineteenth century and imbued his protagonist with stereotypical characteristics. Although blacks were rising socially via education and the military, Azevedo nevertheless envisioned a future, positivistic republic necessarily led by a white elite In Cecilia Valdes, Villaverde deploys an unsuccessful, interracial relationship involving a poor but beautiful, nearly-white mulatta and her aristocratic, half-brother as agents of the policy of whitening. As in O Mulato, the metaphor of an unsuccessful, interracial relationship reveals the difficulty in crossing racial and social castes and thus uniting different socio-economic sectors of the imagined community. Only one intraracial romance involving whites proves to be successful in the novel. This relationship serves as a metaphor indicating that only enlightened whites are capable of leading Cuba out of colonialism and into independence
acase@tulane.edu

This study sets out to contribute to the expansive development of Systematic Theology and Black Theology, particularly in the struggle for economic justice in the democratic South Africa. The liberation of black people in South Africa and across the globe is the substantive reason for Black Theologies‘ existence and expression. The study‘s reflections on economic justice and Black Theology as sites of the intellectual focus and analysis is central to understanding the conditions of existence for the majority of South Africa‘s citizens, as well as understanding whether the fullness of life based on dignity and freedom as articulated in biblical witness, particularly John 10:10 is manifest for black people in South Africa. The study also seeks to identify, describe, analyse and understand the emancipatory theories and praxis, which entail a plethora of efforts they undertake to liberate themselves. Understanding and engendering the nexus of social practice and theological insights in the articulation of Black Theology as a particular expression of systematic theology, and drawing attention to the ethical foundations undergirding Black Theology, are important in demonstrating Black Theology‘s role and task as a multi-disciplinary discipline which encompass and engender dialogue within and between theory and praxis, and theology and ethics. This study thus suggests that since the locus of Black Theology and spirituality is embedded in the life, (ecclesial and missional) work (koinonia) and preaching (kerygma) of black churches, they have the requisite responsibility to engage in the efforts (spiritual and theological) in the struggle to finding solutions to the triple crises of unemployment, inequality and poverty which ravage the quality and dignity of life of the majority black people in post-apartheid South Africa. This study therefore concludes by asserting that, there are a variety of viable options and criteria relevant for facilitating economic justice in South Africa. These strategies include transformational distribution of land to the majority of South Africans, the implementation of heterodox economic policies which engender market and social justice values in the distribution of economic goods to all citizens. It also entails prioritization of the social justice agenda in economic planning and economic practice. In theological language, economic justice must involve the restoration of the dignity and the wellbeing of the majority of South Africans, who remain poor, marginalised and disillusioned. It also entails promoting justice as a central principle in correcting the remnants of apartheid injustices, which limit transformational justice which enables and facilitates equality, freedom and economic justice for all South African citizens.
Philosophy, Practical & Systematic Theology
M. Th. (Systematic Theology)

À partir des années 90, parmi les transformations qu’entraine l’effondrement de l’Union soviétique à Cuba et au milieu des redéfinitions de la cubanité, apparaissent des œuvres narratives contre-discursives et actualisées sur la négritude, la race et le racisme. La représentation du Noir dans les romans de cette période prend toute sa signification du fait que se configure alors un champ de discussion dans lequel convergent différentes modalités et perceptions. Notre recherche explore le terrain discursif entourant les définitions de la cubanité et la négritude qui circulent à cette période à Cuba, pour ensuite voir de quelle manière elles se répercutent sur les auteurs et textes littéraires. À travers l’analyse des oeuvres des écrivains Eliseo Altuanga et Marta Rojas, cette thèse reconstruit leurs dialogues avec l’historiographie littéraire cubaine, l’Histoire de l’Ile et les discours plus actualisés quant au débat ethno-racial. Au moyen de visualisations opposées par rapport à l’histoire de Cuba, Altuanga et Rojas élaborent des œuvres et des personnages avec des différences idéoesthétiques marquées. Ainsi, le premier focalisera sur la recherche d’une rupture épistémologique quant à la conception du Noir dans l’imaginaire cubain, soulignant les événements de l’histoire nationale qui considèrent le Noir comme protagoniste, ce qui renforce l’idée d’une continuité dans son état de subalternisation. En ce qui concerne les protagonistes de Rojas, elle fait appel à des mulâtresses pour raconter le processus de transculturation par lequel, à son point de vue, s’est consolidée l’identité culturelle actuelle des Cubains. Suspendue dans un espace d’énonciation intermédiaire entre les premières décennies de la Révolution et la Période spéciale en Temps de Paix, Rojas construit une trilogie romanesque qui s’efforce à signaler la coupure entre les périodes pré- et postrévolutionnaires quant au traitement du Noir.
The collapse and disappearance of the Soviet Union implied many transformations in the Cuban society, which altered the traditional construction of identity within the frame of the nation-state. It is in that context where alternative new discourses on “race”, racism and negritude emerged. The representation of the afro-descendent in the novels of the 1990’s and 2000’s poses enormous interest since the literary text has been one of the spaces where identity markers have been renegotiated. This dissertation explores how social discourses on cubanidad and negritude have an effect on the writers Eliseo Altunaga and Marta Rojas and their literary production. Analyzing the works of Eliseo Altunaga y Marta Rojas, this thesis reconstructs their dialogues with Cuban literary historiography, the history of the island, and the discourses circulating around current ethno-racial debates. Altuanga and Rojas have opposed visualizations of Cuban history, and elaborate works and characters with marked ideo-aesthetic differences. Altuanga focuses on the search for an epistemological rupture in the conception of the Negro in the Cuban imaginary, emphasizing national historic events with black progratonists to reinforce the impression of continuity in their condition of subalternity. Rojas, on the other hand, turns to black and mulata protagonists to narrate the process of transculturation that has contributed, in her view, to the consolidation of contemporary Cuban cultural identity. From an intermediate space of enunciation between the first decades of the Revolution and the Special Period in Times of Peace, Rojas constructs a novelistic trilogy that signals the border separating pre- and post-revolutionary periods with respect to the treatment of the Negro.
A partir de los ’90, entre las transformaciones que se producen en Cuba por el colapso de la Unión Soviética, en medio de redefiniciones de la cubanidad, asoman renovadas y contradiscursivas narrativas sobre la negritud, las razas y el racismo. La representación del negro en las novelas de este período adquiere significancia en la medida en que se configura un campo de discusión en el que convergen diferentes modalidades y percepciones. Nuestra investigación explora el suelo discursivo en torno a las definiciones de cubanidad y negritud que se mueven en este período en Cuba, para luego ver de qué manera refractan en los autores y los textos literarios. A través del análisis de las obras de los escritores Eliseo Altunaga y Marta Rojas, la tesis reconstruye sus diálogos con la historiografía literaria cubana, con la Historia de la Isla y con los discursos más actualizados en cuanto al debate etno-racial. Por medio de opuestas visualizaciones en relación con la historia cubana, Altuanga y Rojas elaboran obras y personajes con marcadas diferencias ideoestéticas. Así, el primero se focalizará en la búsqueda de una ruptura epistemológica en cuanto a la concepción del negro en el imaginario cubano, destacando aquellos acontecimientos de la historia nacional que tuvo al negro como protagonista, con lo cual refuerza la idea de una continuidad en su estado de subalternización. Por su parte, Rojas recurrirá a la figuras protagónicas de mujeres negras y mulatas para narrar el proceso de transculturación por el cual, desde su perspectiva, se fue consolidando la actual identidad cultural cubana. Parada en un espacio de enunciación intermedio entre las primeras décadas de la Revolución y el Período Especial en Tiempos de Paz, Rojas construye una trilogía novelesca que se esfuerza en señalar la frontera que se establece entre los períodos pre y postrevolucionarios con respecto al tratamiento del negro.

This thesis analyzes the major theme of ‘postcolonial genealogy’ in portraying the African bending under the weight of colonial history in Le vieux nègre et la médaille, Une vie de boy of Ferdinand Oyono and Le Chercheur d’Afriques of Henri Lopes. Being a product of a colonial Genesis, the African character runs behind the colonizer’s mirror through his Civilizing Mission. René Girard’s ‘double bind’ theory explains how this cultural assimilation is, in Le vieux nègre et la médaille and Une vie de boy, a dead end because the colonizer needs a subordinate and not an equal. The cohabitation of a black housewife with the French Commander in Le Chercheur d’Afriques should be seen as simply an allegory of postcolonial Africa’s dependency on the West. The consequences of the feminization of the African continent are enormous in the post-colonial imaginary. While the colonizer had conquered Africa with his Herculean body, in Oyono’s novels, his Fall is obtained through the aesthetics of Bakhtinian ‘rabaissement’ which degrades his ‘grotesque body’ to that of the colonized. The colonizer and the colonized are neutralized and leveled in their perishable bodies, thus, making futile the Civilizing Mission that operated by ranking races. Power is never total. It is always imperfect, and can never destroy a subjectivity that resists it. In Oyono’s novels, the Fall of the colonial Father is also obtained through the inquisitive gaze that the colonized return back to the colonizer, and through their ‘subversive mimicry’ that parodies his codes. In Une vie de boy and Le Chercheur d’Afriques, the ‘son-Father’ relationship between the hero and the colonial Father, is also symbolic of the ‘Africa-West’ rapports. Living under the specter of the Father, the son has to negotiate his survival between weaning and parricide. The biological miscegenation in Le Chercheur d’Afriques is a metaphor of the ‘rhizome identity’ of the postcolonial African who renounces both the Fathers of Negritude and those of the Civilizing Mission.
Thesis (Ph.D, French) -- Queen's University, 2011-06-24 12:43:30.006