Showing papers on "Westernization published in 1992"

Writing, Shamanism and Identity or Voices from Abya-Yala

Abstract: In the debate over the range of possible meanings that can be attributed to the quincentenary of the European invasion of the Indies, Carmen Bernand-Mufioz has recently argued that a 'serene' historiography should not take sides on behalf of either protagonist. Could a modern Frenchman, she asks, sensibly choose to lament the Roman invasion of Gaul?' Sixteenth-century Spain was after all the vanguard of European modernity: she invented new techniques for policing the body and controlling sexuality; she promoted ecological transformation through the trans-Atlantic 'exchange' of domesticated plants and animals; and she introduced 'rational' methods of urbanization. It could be added that she also laid the foundations for the development of the modern discipline of anthropology. In this scenario, the 'indian' is the product of an irreversible process of Westernization. lThe 'scholarly task', therefore, is not to emit anachronistic judgements on the rights and wrongs of the invasion, but to examine the circumstances and conditions of the 'cultural and biological mestizaje' set in train from the first moments of the Spanish arrival in the New World. Only in this way will 'Latin America' be able to revindicate its distinctive identity in relation to its powerful northern neighbour and the other 'Anglo-Saxon countries'. Apart from its insistence on old imperial rivalries between European nations in the Americas, there is something to recommend Bernand-Mufioz' view. If the idea of 'Latin America' was originally the result of French in(ter)vention in Mexico during the 1860s, it has nevertheless provoked one of the most successful examples of ethnogenesis in modern times. Today it provides a patria grande for many Americans who suffer from the clumsy racism and military-economic heavy-handedness issuing from the US Government. To seek the 'roots' of a nineteenth-century creation in the sixteenth century may smack of the very anachronism that Bernand-Mufioz

The Chinese Family in Transition: Implications for Education and Society in Modern Taiwan.

Abstract: This paper investigates the challenges fac:ng the modern Chinese family in Taiwan. An understanding of how culture and family life interact in other cultures may be useful in helping to understand such interactions in one's own society. Confucianism and family stability have been two enduring features of the protracted civilizations of China. In recent years, Taiwan has been influenced by dramatic cultural, economic, social, and political changes, all of which have threatened the traditional Chinese family configurations and relational patterns. Industrialization, urbanization, and Westernization have led to numerous changes in the fabric of Chinese family life in Taiwan. The role of women, education, divorce, recreation, religion, childrearing, pollution, aging, military service, filial piety, consumerism, and family interaction are discussed and analyzed. A bibliography of 64 references is included. (Author/DB) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************i.*************************

National development and political protest: islamists in the maghreb countries

Abstract: This paper examines the factors that have contributed to the rise and development of Islamist movements of popular protest in the Maghreb. The study suggests that a strong correlation exists between the economic crisis of the 1980s (subsequent to the demise of national development strategies), and the growth of popular protest under the banner of Islam. Also, the degree of westernization and secularization of politics and society in each of the Maghreb countries influenced the overt activism of the Islamists. This analysis makes no theoretical claim, but questions some of the propositions of the developmentalist and political modernization schools regarding political change and the role of religion in the Arab world.

A Postmodern Reaction to Dependent Modernization: The Social and Historical Roots of Islamic Radicalism

Abstract: The recent rise of Islamic Radicalism in the Middle East is generally associated with anti-Western sentiment and interpreted as a continuation of the traditional conflict between Christian and Islamic civilizations. It is thought to reflect a traditionalist opposition to the modernization process which originated in the West and then was introduced to the Islamic countries (for an example of this literature, see Youssef, 1985). But this view cannot explain the historical timing and specificity of the current Islamic political revival. In this paper I suggest that Islamic radicalism is not a traditionalist plea to return to a pre-modern era. Quite the contrary, it is a product of the contradictions of Third World modernization and represents a post-modern reaction to the specific form of modernization experienced by the Islamic Third World. In the Islamic countries, where modernization has been synonymous with westernization, the response to the contradictions of modernization has taken the form of a “politics of identity.”

Social psychology of modern Japan

Abstract: Part 1: The History of Feeling in Modern Japan 1. Popular Songs as Social Psychological Data 2. The History of Anger 3. The History of Tears 4. The History of Joy 5. The History of Love 6. The History of Chivalry 7. The History of Lingering Attachment 8. The History of Jest 9. The History of Loneliness 10.The History of Nostalgia and Yearning 11. The History of Feelings of Transience Appendix to Part One: A Dictionary of Modern Japanese Emotional Symbols Part 2: The Social Psychology of Modernizing Japan 12. Archetypes of Social Response during the Meiji Restoration 13. Archetypes of Social Response during Meiji Westernization 14.Value and Belief Systems in Pre-war Textbooks 15. Sucessism as the Driving Spirit of Modernization 16. A History of Modern Japan in Image Part 3: The Social Psychology of Modernized Japan 17. The History of Bestsellers 18. Revolution of Nostalgia 19.Typology of Unhappiness 20. White-Collar Spirit 21.Desires and Uneasiness of the Marginal Elite 22. Hell of Eyes - A Case Study of an Alienated Youth Part 4: The Changing Mentality of Contemporary Japan 23.Generational Composition of Contemporary Society 24. The Changing Mentality of the Young 25. Reality, Dream and Fiction - Japan, 1945-90.

Idolatrias e milenarismos: a resistência indígena nas Américas

Abstract: The article examines indigenous idolatry in the Americas as a phenomenon of cultural resistance and outlines a classification, distinguishing the adjusted idolatries from the insurgent ones. The latter are discussed with relation to the millenarism movements of the American Indian peoples. To archieve this there are reflections on the Westernization process which can be seen in the defence of traditions practised by diverse movements in Mexico, Peru, Brazil, Paraguay and other countries between the 16 th and 18 th centuries.

Science and the japanese empire 1868-1945: an overview

Abstract: Japan is sometimes considered to be a miracle of history with regards to its success in westernization or modernization, especially in comparison with other Asian countries. This success is due at least partly to its energetic introduction of modern western science and technology. Recent historians frequently shed light only on the brighter side of this success story. While acknowledging this side, however, we should not forget that before Japan’s surrender in World War II, it had darker aspects as well.

Vietnam's Social and Political Development as Seen through the Modern Novel

Abstract: Contents: The Vietnamese modern novel from 1925 to 1967 reflected the socio-political realities of the period. It showed Westernization, the sufferings and struggles, the wars and its consequences.

The economic woman in Africa.

Abstract: A common theme in traditional African cultures is that God made women the custodians of fire water and earth (the elements). Modern African cultures are still based on this belief. African women are responsible for firewood collection water fetching and food production. However there are 2 distinct types of African women that are beginning to evolve as the influences of Western culture begin to set in. Westernized African women are those women who have completed at least 2 years of post secondary school training in a Western educational setting. When these women return to their native cultures rather than taking positions of power and influence like their male colleagues they end up working as clerks telephone operators and teachers. These Westernized African women rarely return to rural areas to take on the role of custodian of the elements. In cases where modernization does reach the rural areas women are commonly excluded. Tractors are driven by men dams and water systems are designed and built by men trees are cut down by men trees are cut down by men and men make the furniture. Technology is having a marginalization effect upon the women of Africa similar to the Westernization of African women. This is not to say that Western education is something to be avoided; however policies must be put in place to tap this great resource instead of holding it back. Rural women need to gain access to the technology that will help ease their burdens and they must be allowed into planning and decision making process since after all they are the custodians of the elements.