Category: Cultural Studies

Yogyakarta, with its cultural elements, has been recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, emphasizing its global cultural significance. The purpose of this research is to examine the government and community strategies in maintaining the existence of Yogyakarta Cosmological Axis as a World Cultural Heritage. This qualitative research employed interviews and documentation as collection …

This paper focuses on the standup comedian Ali Wong and her three Netflix specials, Baby Cobra, Hard Knock Wife, and Don Wong. Taking a corporeal feminist approach, this paper sets out to analyze pregnancy, the central topic in Wong’s comedy, and its relation to her subjectivity. It is argued that pregnancy, as an authentic female …

This paper explores the role of the Dorje Shugden worship community in Mongolia’s national consciousness revival, exploring how religious practices intersect with the quest for cultural identity and autonomy in the post-socialist landscape. It argues that the engagement with Dorje Shugden, amidst controversies and global Tibetan Buddhist intersections, illuminates broader dynamics of religious revival and …

Herbert George Ponting (1870-1935) was born in Britain and became active as a photographer in Britain and the United States. Not only does he take pictures, he writes illustrated articles to magazines. He is famous for his works taken at the Terra Nova Expedition’s Antarctic winter camp in 1911 because of his cinematography and the …

In India, South India film industries outperform Bollywood in recent years. For Indian audiences, they experience historically different choices for film appreciation and entertaining styles. This study uses textual analysis to interpret public and social meanings for two kinds of most popular Indian movies: Top 10 movies in India movie markets, and Top 10 most …

The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of Taiwanese souvenir packaging design on Japanese tourist purchases with a perspective of how cultural values perceived by Japanese tourists in Taiwanese packaging design. Taiwan has long been one of the most popular tourist destinations among Japanese tourists. The target audience of the research is …

Cultural and immigration policies and public attitudes toward migrants often contribute to the practices of multiculturalism. Under the extremely monocultural conditions in Taiwan, African migrants in particular are a severely underrepresented minority group. As a result, they face constraints and obstacles that affect their ability to adapt, integrate, and cultivate their sense of belonging. Therefore, …

The purpose of this research project is to gain an in-depth understanding of the musical experience of young people from multicultural backgrounds and to explore any effects of music therapy on their well-being. It ultimately focuses on giving voices to young people from multicultural backgrounds and sharing experiences through music. A mixed methodology has been …

Worshiping trees in Malaysia is not a wonder at strange sights in Malaysia. Malaysians believe in animism. The objective of this research project is to present some preliminary thoughts of tree animism and analyze the animism practices and beliefs in Malaysia so that a better understanding of animism can be established as the vast research …

Often learnt and mastered over generations, craftsmen and women still use their traditional knowledge systems, customs and practices in the production of regional handicrafts. The Kashmiri naqash is responsible for design development and is an essential bearer of the craft and cultural heritage produced in the Kashmir valley. Kashmir produces distinct floor coverings, one of …

Folk songs reflect the identity of a culture. Genre of Sri Lankan folk songs is significant in passing down culture to generations through oral tradition. The composer was uninhibited and frank. The spontaneous verses were stand-alone works bearing structural variations and were instructional. Those songs varied from work to recreation while adding rhythm to manual …

At the beginning of the Chinese People, Huangdi, Yandi, and Chiyou led three tribes respectively and fought against each other fiercely at Zhuolu. Yandi allied with Huangdi defeated Jiuli tribe. Ancestor Chiyou was slandered and his tribal descendants dispersed. Under the reincarnation of birth and death, ignorant enmity causes endless wars in Chinese successive dynasties …

The Chinese people is a people with long and profound history. It can be dated to Kunlun civilization in ancient times, Fuxishi, Nuwa and Chinese Three Ancestors, Huangdi, Yandi, and Chiyou. I Ching lays a solid foundation for the philosophy of thought in Chinese ethnic culture. What were Chinese religious beliefs before Buddhism reached China? …

Today politics is only successful if it is successfully communicated. A political trend that has recently achieved great election success in many European countries and beyond is the so-called right-wing populism. In order to understand and respond appropriately to these achievements and changes in the political culture, it is necessary to look more closely at …

The paper shows that media labourers are likely to form multiple selves throughout their career path, and their perception and experiences towards creative autonomy is strongly related to their multi-dimensional identities. This paper argues that there is a need to establish a balanced concept of creative autonomy that embraces the various facets of creative labourers’ …

This paper studies the identity formation of Third Culture Kids (TCKs)—who have spent a considerable amount of their childhood and early adulthood living in a host country, and consequently realizing that they have a different worldview (and sense of identity) with their countrymen from their passport country. In this age of migration, not only of …

Many past studies of gender interaction discussed differences in masculine and feminine conversational styles. In particular, collaborative talk is regarded as a feminine conversational style. For example, Holmes (2006) makes a summary that most gender studies found that women tend to collaborative while men tend to be challenging in everyday communication. However the author of …

Since the 1960s, Tibetan self-government has been established in autonomous areas; there, Tibetans live in compact communities under the unified leadership of the Chinese central government. A number of Chinese artists and scholars have come to work and live in Tibetan cities, in Lhasa in particular. Against this background, this paper is about contemporary paintings …

In the past, almost the whole university student population in Malaysia comprised three major ethnic groups, namely Malays, Chinese and Indians, as well as other minorities. The make-up of the student population has evolved dramatically and it is common to see students of other cultures in private campuses throughout the country. These students have significant …

From carving up empires to enclosing the commons, the history of maps has long been caught up in creating, legitimising and representing borders. As a product of these historical processes, Google Maps now claim to have one billion users per month. Given this unprecedented audience, how the multinational corporation represents the world is very significant, …

This autoethnography recounts the process of developing my own agency out of a borderland lifeworld formed in multiple geographic sites. I use self-reflection and research to make explicit a functional inbetween space where I belong. Through Gloria Anzaldúa’s work, literature from border and cultural studies, identity formation and my own qualitative research, I analyze the …

Globally not yours … The master discourse of transcultural mediation Intercultural encounters, particularly between civilizationally and power-unequally related cultures, demonstrate the complexity inherent in the process of interlingual communication across cultures. This complexity stems from the carrying-over of specific cultural products (as texts) to and recuperated by receivers that have at their disposal an established …

By the rapid flow of internet and media, McDonaldization has somehow mixed with local cultures everywhere. Culture represents our whole life, and nowadays people express their traditional culture by using modern tools and images. We have created a new style called “Hybridity”, which was introduced by Homi K. Bhabha, especially in refernce to the global …

Post-Modernity, Globalization, Neo-Liberalism, many words come to mind to describe the contemporary world, but there is one type of discourse that seems to be gaining hegemonic position regardless of how we describe the present era: Multiculturalism. Particularly in Japan, a country that has since long constructed its identity under the idea of homogeneity, the adoption …

The Second World War caused unprecedented hardship, but it also accelerated change. A massive European immigration reached Australia’s shores, giving rise to a sort of ideal multi-ethnic society. Between history and myth, diverse ethnic groups interacted without coalescing and by maintaining distinctive, national or group cultural identities. Indeed Melbourne rose as one of the world’s …

Japan, like many developed countries, has seen its population decrease and reached the lowest low fertility rate of 1.41 in 2012. This tendency was first associated with the lower number of children born to married couples. But since the 1970s, the main cause identified is the postponement of marriage, and so childbirth, by women. Following …

The paper is based on qualitative, ethnographic research with Bhutanese refugees who resettled to the UK via the Gateway Protection Programme. In this context, borderland is not a physical space, but a state of mind, in which stateless refugees attempt to negotiate between different identities: whilst seeking to ‘integrate’ in the British host society, they …

Indonesia is a multicultural country that consists of hundreds of distinct native ethnic, racial, and religist groups. Historically, the Nation was built because of the unitary spirit of its components, which was firmly united and integrated to make up the victory of the Nation. The plurality become advantageous when it reach harmony as reflected in …

Colonialism fundamentally changed the traditional pattern of Asian migration and opened new avenues for trade and investment for migrant merchant communities and occupational opportunities as indentured labour for agrarian classes. The Indian communities who migrated to Sri Lanka during British rule played vital and diverse roles in the colony’s economic transformation. When Sri Lanka transformed …

Today there still exist many borders which hamper transit and crossings for many others. Case in point is the border between Sarawak and Kalimantan, a border whose crossing requires documentation for many a potential traveller. In this regard it is helpful to remember that most national borders are different from natural borders. National borders are …

Economists to academics have noted the simultaneous tendency towards globalization and localization in recent decades. At times, the increasingly globalized economy and advances in communications technology seem to bring us together only closely enough to recognize our fundamental differences. Internal divides along cultural, linguistic, political and economic lines become as sharp and clear as geographic …

Letter from an Unknown Woman (1922), one of the Stephan Zweig’s monuments, shows the contradiction between self and others in the context of Love, in which, self insists on his (her) own identity while it is required to keep in touch with others by the nature of “I Love you”, that is to say, self …

Changes in the new media environment are radically shifting the ways audiences consume media products like foreign language TV dramas. The rapid expansion of broadband internet and the development of mobile technology in Asia are changing how Asian fans of these media products interact with each other. The purpose of this study is to examine …

Japanese media cultures have become diversified in Malaysia, providing opportunities for local audiences to gain access to media products from varied sources and participate in its consumption. This triggers an increase in recognition for audiences as producers of rich cultural readings resulting from cross-border media consumption. This study examines the interpretations of Japanese television dramas …

In 2003 the Actroid range of robotic androids was launched in Japan. Its creators and vendors imagine that the ‘bots will integrate into society, taking on companionship, entertainment and hostessing duties. Actroids are modelled after young females, with the exception of (near) exact copies of two male Professors from Japan and Denmark, and a ‘brother’ …

Kusama Yayoi is a world famous Japanese artist who has worked in a wide variety of media. Since the 90’s we can observe growing fascination with Kusama’s works, as well as its recognition and rediscovering. The phenomenon is better known as “The Kusama Renaissance”. As a still living and creating artist, she constantly tries to …

The Japanese in Canada have a complex cultural identity relating to their sense of (not) belonging in Canada, their imaginings of Japan as homeland, and the growth of Nikkei identifying themselves transnationally. This paper compares representations of Canadian Nikkei families in the post-Redress (1988) and post-Canadian Multiculturalism Act (1988) period by Canadian Nikkei authors. It …

A cultural landscape, which encompasses various elements in a specific area, represents the combined works of nature and man. An organically evolved cultural landscape may represent a specific production process for a place, and may consolidate the identification for local people through conservation process of cultural landscape. With this concept, traditional economical model with special …

Relocation by crossing borders can be a risky endeavor, regardless of the amount of resources and support one receives. While many immigrants experience stress by functioning in a foreign language and culture, aging in a foreign environment can lead to an additional burden among older people. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated that the number of …

Various epistemological changes – such as the linguistic, narrative, and cultural turns that have influenced humanistic and social scientific studies since the 1980s – have had an impact on the increased academic interests in politics, discourses, processes, and practices of belonging. During the recent decades, the idea of belonging or non-belonging have been discussed and …

Critiques of the Industrial Revolution pair it respectively with the twin evils of alienation and the advent of the anthropocene. Such arguments suggest that mechanical and digital technologies alienate individuals from each other and undermine their responsibility towards the future vitality of the places they inhabit. While many environmentalists have proposed a re-emphasis upon the …

During the last decades, India has become a popular destination for fertility tourism and a growing number of Indian fertility clinics offer treatments and surrogacy services to both Indian and Western customers at prices very competitive to a Western marked. Also artists, theater- and film producers have taken interest in the complex phenomena. This paper …

This presentation deals with contemporary performing art productions as transnational cultural practices realized between artists from Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa and Germany in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut. Therefore the introduction of my presentation is characterized by reflections on the multi-dimensional concept of `culture´ with emphasis on designs of `international cultural relations´ shaped by  theories of …

  This article is derived from the accumulation of data attained from a field study, content analysis of signs and symbols, culture and historiography. Subsequent to the use of the three methods, all the data are put together, decoded, and interpreted with care. And the Study of the data leads to the conclusion that the …

Although Japanese art influenced many Australian artists in 1960s, Rosalie Gascoigne (1917 – 1999) is regarded as one of a few artists for whom Japanese art was “the gateway” to her own art. Gascoigne studied ikebana from 1962 to 1972 but became frustrated with its limitations, and started making assemblage.   This study looks into …

U.S. cable television network Showtime’s Weeds became an instant hit when it debuted in 2005, earning high ratings during its eight seasons. The show is a dark American comedy that centers on a housewife whose husband suddenly died, forcing her to find a new source of income. But instead of finding a “real” job with …

After WWII, the Chinese civil war had caused over six hundred thousand military soldiers and their dependents to immigrate to Taiwan, led by the Kuomintang (KMT) government. In order to settle those Chinese soldiers and dependents, the KMT established 886 military communities around the Taiwan island and other off-shore islands. These military communities had become …

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Over the past two decades, electronic dance music (EDM) has shifted away from being primarily a vinyl-based culture due to the adoption of new technologies for production and performance. Whilst enabling new creative possibilities for musicians, these technologies have also disrupted existing norms within EDM culture. Audiences reacted with unease to the initial use of …

Sikkim bears numerous names which reflects the copiousness of ethnic tribes that inhibits it. Lepcha or Mu-tanchi-Rong kup (God’s favorite chosen children) are believed to be the original inhabitant of Mayel Lyang (Sikkim). They have a strong community life, unique culture and distinct identity. The tribesmen were originally animist for whom the holy were their …

  In 1909 (the 42nd year of Meiji), Taiwan governor’s office initiated an first immigration project in Central Hualien in Eastern Taiwan by building three government-run agricultural immigrant villages called Yoshino Mura, Toyota Mura and Hayashida Mura. This planning of villages influenced those villages in a great deal. Throughout the course of time, many colonial …

  Kazuo Ishiguro is often seen as an “international writer” of “world literature,” writing for a “global” audience. His novels address cosmopolitan themes of complex belonging in a globalized world, ethical responsibility beyond the ethnos, and universal human dignity. Such concerns loom large in Never Let Me Go (2005), which repeats the hostility to unreflective …

Art, has always been about reflecting and interpreting the world. It also appears that much of today’s output seems directed towards highly individual, so artists seem to demand an intimate, and personal engagement with their art. Drawing has become such perfect platform to accommodate the artists’ personal, intimate and direct experiences of belonging in transcultural …

The paper is going to focus on “Kaiser Wilhelm Fountain”, or the German Fountain in turkish, as an embodiment of the political landscape of the turn of the century Ottoman-German relations. It will try to understand the Fountain as a german monument in an Ottoman city, away from its origins.   Kaiser Wilhelm Fountain was …

   The purpose of my report is to develop theory to support a concept of an Empty space in Fashion design. The idea of the Empty space to serve for creative minds is not new and has been explored in the Far East culture since ancient times. The development and practical applications of the Empty …

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the European Union (EU) are two of the most studied regional integration processes in the world. For different reasons, they are often regarded as the two most successful too. Over the decades, they have however, chosen very different paths in order to achieve their unique visions of …

Kyai Besali is a great Islamic missionaries, in the 18th century. His cemetery is located in the village Tegalsari, next to the East River Keyang, Ponorogo, East Java, Indonesia. There are many housing and new boarding schools around the cemetery . In its development, the cemetery complex suffered severe physical degradation. In fact, almost eliminating some cultural heritage, particularly in the form of the building. Integrated conservation plan is needed to prevent “self-destruction of its own”, and “The destruction caused by New Creation”. Revitalization is needed to make the area not only as a religious place but also become an attractive tourist area. Finally, through a community action plan to raised public participation, so that the …

  Abstract: Today, the gay movement has put male homosexuality into the open. In the 1960s, nations like the Philippines had a gay subculture, but it was hidden. Moreover, studies indicate Filipino gays are relatively tolerated. The two colonizers were homophobic; hence the roots of such tolerance might be of pre-colonial origin, culturally carried over …

In this paper, the efficient use and the misuse of the thumb in piano playing have been investigated by examining appropriate and inappropriate positions of the thumb on the keyboard and analyzing the effects of the positions on the other digits, based on biomechanical aspects and physical dynamics of the piano technique. The appropriate position …

  This paper discusses the formation of Taiwanese subjectivity and its postcolonial predicaments through an analysis of Cape No. 7, a 2008 romantic comedy set in modern Taiwan with remnants of its colonial Japanese past. Many would agree that Cape No. 7 is something of a social phenomenon, due to not only its unexpected blockbuster …

The issues of refugees in Indonesia are considered serious and needed immediate response. These are not only because Indonesia has become the transit destination, but also the origin country of them. The definition of refugees based on Refugee Convention 1951 and Protocol 1967 is those who left their origin countries due to persecution caused by …

India has a long history of relations with Southeast Asia. As a result of 2000 years of cultural exchange, South Asian influences are evident in most parts of the region. In this paper, I am particularly interested in examining the different perceptions of Indian culture in a Thai context, a place that has experienced Indic …

Known as a principal member of the Sorge Spy Ring who introduced Ozaki Hotsumi, a Japanese journalist, to Richard Sorge, Agnes Smedley, an American journalist and writer, was typically regarded as a “traitor” to the American nation in the early Cold War period. After her untimely death in 1950, Smedley’s ashes were buried in China …

  This research was conducted in August 2012, using a survey questionnaire from a data sample of 15,000 Bangkok civilians, Thailand.  It aims to compare the level of quality of contact between community members and the police, which can be considered an important factor that could support the community policing concept.  The results was based …

In this paper, we discuss the Chinese Notebook, an account of a trip to China written in 1955 by Antonello Trombadori, a young partisan of the Italian Resistance and an accomplished expert in the fields of art, cinema, and literature. We wish to use his Chinese Notebook as a starting point for a wider discussion …