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Evil We Desire: Akrasia and the Ethics of Conspiracy Rhetoric
Get PDFMy dissertation reimagines the work of four prominent rhetorical theorists—Aristotle, Plato, Augustine of Hippo, and Kenneth Burke—through the lens of psychoanalysis to develop a theory of rhetorical ethics that accounts for the subject’s relationship to libidinal satisfaction, or jouissance. In each chapter, I will examine a useful example of conspiracist rhetoric, which will double as both a case study and a point of departure for a Lacanian reimaging of a prominent rhetorical theory or concept. In the first chapter, I examine the “Stop the Steal” conspiracy and the January 6th insurrection to argue that Aristotle’s description of akrasia, or moral incontinence, should be supplemented with Sigmund Freud’s theory of the death drive to explain the persistence and appeal of white grievance politics. In the second chapter, I discuss the conspiracy theorist Alex Jones to explain why Plato’s theory of mimesis should be interpreted as a theory of persuasion that centers what Lacan calls the “split subject” and serves as the foundation for a psychoanalytic theory of rhetorical ethics. This sets the stage for the third chapter, which examines Augustine of Hippo’s doctrine of original sin alongside Freud’s discovery of the unconscious to explain how the subject’s pursuit of libidinal satisfaction can undermine even the most selfless acts of altruism. In the fourth chapter, I turn to the controversial subreddit r/HermanCainAward, which gives posthumous awards to antivax conspiracy theorists who die of Covid-19, ostensibly for the purpose of convincing other people to get vaccinated. I argue r/HermanCainAward is an example of what Burke calls “pure persuasion,” a term he uses to define any rhetoric that undermines its own goals or strategic considerations in pursuit of jouissance. Taken together, these chapters offer a broad outline of how a psychoanalytic approach to rhetorical ethics can help us respond to the challenges, opportunities, and dilemmas of contemporary discourse
Women\u27s Wings in Rebel Groups
Get PDFThe proceeding dissertation is a collection of three articles exploring the phenomenon of women’s wings in rebel groups. The articles ask different questions and utilize diverse methodological tools. The three abstracts are below. Paper 1 exposes the patterns of women’s wings in rebel groups through a large-N analysis of 372 rebel groups existing between 1946 and 2015. Scholarship in rebel governance has begun to identify trends of how women organize and participate in rebel groups. Patterns of women’s participation in conflict vary widely in scope, purpose, and form between, within, and after conflict. This paper focuses on patterns of women’s wings in armed rebellion. I establish variation in women’s participation between women’s integrated participation throughout rebellion and participation organized through women’s wings. I ask: Why do rebel groups have women’s wings? I argue that having some form of women’s wing is a governance strategy that rebels interested in state building employ, as evidenced by territorial control and rebel provision of social services. Women’s wings are important spaces for women to develop a gendered political consciousness which has downstream effects on gender coordination in rebel governance. I employ a large-n quantitative approach using the Women’s Activities in Armed Rebellion (WAAR) dataset and added variables coded to measure the degree of institutionalization of gender orders, rebel control of territory, and social service provisions. I demonstrate that rebel groups that control territory or provide social services are more likely to have some form of women’s wing than other rebel groups. I conclude with a discussion of how different types of women’s wings and different gender orders assist in rebel strategy through two case vignettes. Paper 2 pivots to looking at the formation and strategic utility of women’s wings. The ways that rebel groups regulate women’s participation has warranted much attention in studies of rebel governance, yet few have explored rebel control in the regulation of the private lives of women. Attention to the household, particularly a feminist interrogation of marriage as an institution and as a lived experience, can begin to explain militarizing dynamics in rebellion. How can attention to the household explain control in insurgencies? In what ways do rebels control the conjugal orders, and to what ends? I introduce a new theoretical framework to explain the ways that rebels control conjugal orders, and what their intended consequences are of these sets of orders. Through the Variance in Conjugal Order (VCO) framework, I argue that rebels control conjugal orders to achieve internal cohesion, broader social reproduction of the narratives of rebellion, and biological reproduction of the rebel base through their positioning of women. Women’s social positions of wife, mother, woman-soldier, or masculinized-soldier demonstrate how gender operates relationally in rebel control in support of their state making aims. This article operationalizes marriage as a structure with social and political incentives. Since marriage is the primary way that the state (and rebels) can regulate the interactions between men and women, policies regarding marriage allow rebel groups to structure the conjugal orders. In doing so, rebels position women based on which identity they seek to invoke in order to produce what the rebellion needs. I trace the distinct ways rebels deploy conjugal orders through a variety of rebel movements focusing on commonalities in rebel strategy. Paper 3 positions women’s wings in the post-conflict period. A wealth of empirical data exists about the diverse ways that women participate in and sustain conflict in rebellion. Despite their participation, combatant women are often systematically excluded from the processes of redress in post-conflict periods. In this article I ask: What can attention to combat women’s wings unveil about women’s contribution to post-conflict processes? I argue that armed-women’s wings shape rebel’s governance priorities through the post-conflict period and facilitate the development of a gender political consciousness. This politicization helps ex-combatant women foster collective demands and secure roles in governance structures post-conflict. I derive this argument from the experiences of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NCSN-IM) women combatants including those involved in the all-women tactical wing, the Ladies Unit. I employ a process-tracing methodological approach where I follow the formation of the Ladies Unit and track its persistence through post-conflict processes. Through the analytic focus on women’s organizations – or women’s wings – I set a research agenda highlighting the diverse ways the state and rebel groups employ gender regulations in structuring post-conflict processes. Rebel governance literature has begun to shed light on combatant women’s exclusion from post-conflict spaces despite the broad set agreement that women’s participation at any stage of the peace process produces better, more durable outcomes. I conclude by encouraging future scholars to consider combatant women as having engaged in violence as opposed to being solely arbiters of peace
The effects of perceived support, cultural humility, and self-compassion on psychological well-being mediated by ethnic identity among Asian international students in counseling programs
No full textThe present study used a path analysis to examine the direct and indirect effects of perceived support, cultural humility, and self-compassion as acculturation conditional variables on Asian international counseling students’ psychological well-being and how the relationships mediated by ethnic identity. The study was based on Acculturation Theory which captured the relationships between acculturation conditions, orientations, and outcomes by Arends-Tóth and Van de Vijver (2007) from a protective and strength-based perspective. The final sample, following criteria and snowball sampling, included 83 Asian international students enrolled in counseling programs. The study employed validated and reliable instruments to measure the different levels of acculturation condition and outcome: The Index of Sojourner Social Support (ISSS; Ong and Ward, 2005), The Multidimensional Cultural Humility Scale (MCHS; Gonzalez et al., 2021), Self-Compassion Scale-Short Form (SCS-SF; Raes et al., 2011), The Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure-Revised (MEIM-R; Phinney & Ong, 2007), and Psychological Wellbeing Scale (Ryff & Keyes, 1995). Results revealed that perceived support and self-compassion had direct effects on Asian international counseling students’ psychological well-being, and perceived support and cultural humility both had significant indirect effects on the students’ psychological well-being through ethnic identity mediation. Two mediation models were further tested, considering potential multicollinearity between cultural humility and self-compassion. In the separate mediation models, cultural humility showed direct and indirect effects on psychological well-being through ethnic identity, whereas self-compassion did not show indirect effects on psychological well-being through ethnic identity. I discussed limitations, methodological highlights, and contributions, along with implications for future research and counselor education
Under The Lychee Tree: A Journey to Resurrect, Reanimate, and Reflect One’s History
Get PDFIn this paper, Under The Lychee Tree: A Journey to Resurrect, Reflect, and Reanimate One’s History, I discuss the history of my relationship with my mother in regard to my artistic practice. This paper is divided into chapters that discuss my influences and the work I’ve made about myself and my mother in relation to the themes of resurrection, reanimation, reflection, care, and memory. I use photography, video, installation, and our family archive to articulate these ideas
The Spaces Between: A Study of the Split Natures of Clay
Get PDFThis paper will delve into the dichotomies of clay across multiple landscapes; historical vs. contemporary, natural vs. industrial, mass produced vs. individualistic, and art vs. craft; and how those directly translate into my experience, feelings, and vision as an Alaskan-born ceramic artist working in America today
Finding A Spiritual Home: Cultural Context and Literary Interpretation
Get PDFCentered around the concept of “spiritual home” and the enduring human quest for it, this thesis explores how individuals seek a sense of belonging and meaning from the perspective of cultural evolution and literary expression. This thesis first examines the impact of social change from the Industrial Revolution to the present day on people’s sense of belonging, meaning, and identity, and discusses the factors that have influenced the stabilization of the spiritual home. Then, drawing on literature, this thesis investigates several typical ways in which people find their spiritual home, including in nature, the divine presence, love and relationship, and self-realization. In addition, this thesis documents the author’s creation of a picture book that expresses a personal quest for a spiritual home. This work not only reveals the various paths that individuals take to find spiritual belonging but also reflects the author’s introspection and self-discovery, emphasizing that the essence of life and meaning lies in the process of exploration and experience itself. In conclusion, this thesis asserts that the quest for a spiritual home transcends temporal, cultural, and geographical boundaries, affirming the enduring human desire for connection, meaning, and belonging. By offering various approaches to constructing a spiritual home, this thesis aims to empower readers in their own journeys of self-discovery and spiritual fulfillment
LOVE OR CONTROL? ANALYZING EMOTIONAL EXPRESSION WITHIN EAST ASIAN FAMILY THROUGH ARTWORKS
Get PDFThe author\u27s own spirited and unconventional childhood defied societal norms, challenging conventional expectations for a young girl. In the name of love, their parents endeavored to guide them towards a more reserved and compliant path. Drawing from these personal experiences, this research aims to unravel the intricate fabric of emotional expression within East Asian families and its profound impact on familial relationships and individual psychological well-being through the lens of artistic works. These themes of love and control frequently surface in the creations of East Asian artists, providing a unique perspective to deepen our understanding of the complex emotional dynamics within these families. This paper embarks on a comprehensive analysis of selected East Asian artistic works, delving into how these pieces illuminate the dynamics of love and control. The objective is to offer a deeper insight into emotional expression in East Asian families, casting light on its significant influence on familial relationships and individual psychological well-being
BURNING CALORIES, BURNING OCEAN: METABOLIC RATE IN BIVALVES AS A PREDICTOR OF EXTINCTION SELECTIVITY THROUGH TIME AND DURING RAPID GLOBAL WARMING
Get PDFOrganismal metabolic rate is linked to environmental temperature and oxygen consumption, and as such, may be a useful predictor of extinction risk during major climate- driven crises. However, metabolic attributes can be quantified in many ways, highlighting differing aspects of organisms’ ecology. Here, we estimate resting whole-body and mass-specific metabolic rates in post-Carboniferous bivalve taxa using body size and seawater paleotemperature to assess how metabolic rate determines survival both during and outside of intervals of rapid climate warming, or ‘hyperthermals’. Accounting for the effects of geographic range size, we find a pattern of preferential extinction of bivalves with lower total calorific needs, largely determined by smaller body size, consistent with the postulated ramping up of ecosystem energetics over the Meso-Cenozoic. Contrary to expectations, extinction selectivity based on total calorific needs and emphasizing body size does not differ between hyperthermals and other time intervals. However, a higher metabolic rate calculated per gram of tissue, which is more determined by environmental temperature than body size, consistently increases the probability of extinction during hyperthermals relative to baseline conditions, particularly within the paleotropics. In tandem with previously documented patterns of extinction selectivity based on relative activity levels, including motility and feeding style, these results enhance our understanding of the role of metabolic activity through time and during climate-driven extinctions. Standardized by mass, per-gram metabolic rate may represent a useful metric through which the effects of anthropogenic climate change on modern marine faunas can be predicted
NON-COMPRESSIBLE GRADE 4 HEMORRHAGIC LIVER INJURY MODEL FOR ASSESSMENT OF SHAPE MEMORY POLYMERS AS A HEMOSTATIC AGENT
Get PDFUncontrolled hemorrhage is a leading cause of trauma-related deaths, particularly in combat situations. The most administered treatment is gauze and tourniquets, which are shown to be ineffective for up to 80% of wounds, including non-compressible hemorrhage sites, such as those in the torso region. Shape memory polymer (SMP) foams have been shown to be an effective hemostatic dressing for traumatic wounds due to the tunability of their rapid clotting, mechanical properties, biocompatibility, biodegradability, and drug-loading abilities. The SMP foam design can be characterized with animal models, and a porcine liver injury is the current ‘gold standard’ animal model. To address the ethical concerns regarding the number of animals studies that may be required, an in vitro model was developed to mimic a non-compressible, grade 4 liver injury to optimize the formulation of the SMP foams. In multiple in vitro trials at 75 ml blood flow per minute, SMP foams outperformed the clinical control, QuikClot Combat Gauze, by retaining more blood with gentle compression on simulated wounds, resulting in reduced bleeding. Within the SMP foam formulations, shredded foams retained the most blood at this flow rate compared with cylindrical samples (dry or pre-wetted). With higher bleeding rates (100 ml/min), cylinders out-performed shredded foams. This model will enable characterization of the effects of delivery systems and foam architectures on hemorrhage control efficacy to ensure more efficient animal testing with the most promising candidates in future work