Browsing by Subject "Ideas"

Now showing 1 - 11 of 11

Confronting the moment : remaking politics through “Ku-Klux”
(2019-09-11) Sumrall, Allen; Tulis, Jeffrey
White supremacist rhetoric has long been part of the American political tradition. However, not all white supremacist movements have adopted the same rhetorical strategy. Though the Ku Klux Klan has traditionally been treated as a single movement that has undergone periods of resurgence, attuning to the distinct discursive practices and effects of each resurgent movement reveals how discourse can shape political development. This report argues that treating the Reconstruction-era Klan as a different movement than the Klan of the early-twentieth century offers an opportunity to study the “work” that Klan discourse can do. During Reconstruction, “Ku-Klux” did more than refer to the group that invoked it. It was also a synecdoche for white paternalism, mystery, domination, secrecy, Democratic party politics, and the proper role of the federal government. “Ku-Klux” discourse served as a vehicle to preserve antebellum ideas while simultaneously shepherding in reunification. By focusing on the “work” of particular discourses, we can better understand the role of rhetoric and ideas, including white-supremacism, on the direction of American political development
DimensionalTelephone : remix, iteration, and originality
(2021-05-11) Smith, Logan, M.F.A.; Bloodgood, William; Ortel, Sven
People are creative. We shape the world around us and then share that with others. While people are creative, I would posit that people are not original. I believe that what we call originality is, in fact, when we create new, novel ideas from old ideas. The term remix follows an equivalent definition, utilizing what came before to create something new. This is how we create; we remix. Though this seems straightforward, we as a society have a continuous link to Romanticism. The artistic movement from the 18th century emphasizes inspiration, subjectivity, and individuality. In other words, originality is divined upon an individual, not through outside influence. Modern copyright law is this link to romanticism in our common era. The law causes tension with creatives stating that one’s works and ideas are properties that are not to be shared. Though copyright law’s initial intention is to protect a creator's work so that the creator can profit for a period of time, copyright law has instead evolved to protect corporate assets, locking out works from the public domain well over the lifespan of the average person. However, there are guidelines and affordances embedded within copyright law called fair use. The fair use doctrine is a set of guidelines written in a revision of copyright law in 1978 for creators to claim originality in their work and defend themselves from litigation. Inspired by the work of filmmaker, writer, and speaker Kirby Ferguson, I wanted to see if there was a way to practically test his three-part philosophy of remix and arrive at the romantic ideal of originality while only utilizing the work of others. His philosophy states that every creative work is a remix following the steps of ‘copying, transforming, and combining old works and ideas into a new creation. The result of this inspiration became my thesis project dubbed DimensionalTelephone, where 15 artists and I created works of art in a sequence, each iterating from the previous work. I hope to show you through this process that originality can come from what came before, giving you a new perspective on the term remix and what it can mean for creativity going forward.
Ideal justice in Latin America : interests, ideas, and the political origins of judicial activism in Brazil and Colombia
(2010-08) Nunes, Rodrigo Marinho; Weyland, Kurt Gerhard; Brinks, Daniel; Elkins, Zachary; Hunter, Wendy; Jacobsohn, Gary
What are the causes and consequences of judicial empowerment? What motivates the political decision to delegate authority to independent judiciaries, and what explains the subsequent behavior of these institutions? Going against current trends in comparative judicial politics, this dissertation answers these questions by taking ideas seriously. Dominant accounts of judicial empowerment and behavior associate the emergence of rights protecting judiciaries with the actions of powerful political actors concerned with the protection and promotion of their political self-interests. In contrast, my analysis of Brazil and Colombia links the emergence of such institutions to the actions of groups and individuals who subscribe to the principled belief that courts should focus their efforts on the protection and promotion of constitutional guarantees. These ideational carriers use their resources to convince institutional designers of the suitability of their proposals, and exert powerful influence over the institutional outcome of constitutional transitions. These actors also influence the actions of newly empowered courts to the extent that they are able to entrench their ideational allies on the bench during the uncertainty of the transition. These findings contradict the arguments that judicial empowerment is designed to weaken electoral opponents or to insulate the political process from popular pressures, and that judges are rational-strategic actors whose main concern is to protect their institutional integrity.
Ideas — #MondayMemo: Are We Failing Our Vets?
(2018-11-12) Romanow, Nicholas
Ideas — #MondayMemo: Will Brexit Break Down?
(2018-11-26) Romanow; Romanow, Nicholas
Ideas — Everybody, Chill
(2018-11-13) Csoros, Mark
Ideas — Hen, Skennen’kó:wa
(2018-10-30) Learn, Morgan
Ideas — Monday Memo: Terrorism in the Post-9/11 World
(2018-10-29) Romanow, Nicholas
Ideas — The American Century
(2018-11-05) Oswal, Archit
Ideas — Wakenonhkwíseres
(2018-11-07) Learn, Morgan
UT History at the AHA Annual Meeting
(2012-01-19) Neuberger, Joan