Argument: Political Opportunities and Muslim Strategies

This chapter lays out my argument. Firstly, I define and problematize the contentious categories used in the book: ulama, liberals, and conservatives. Subsequently, I delve into the agent-structure debate that pervades much of political science, and postulate a way of thinking of the problem, and then apply it to Muslim activists in Singapore. This is done through an application of the concept of political opportunities. The argument is explicated in detail.

The Human Factor: Accounting for Texts and Contexts in the Analysis of Foreign Policy and International Relations

Acknowledging the role of discourses as the entry door to social reality, the article highlights the value that discourse analysis (DA) can add to the cognate fields of foreign policy analysis (FPA) and international relations (IR). It argues that DA offers researchers an analytical platform to focus in parallel on the interaction between levels of analysis traditionally considered as separate (domestic/international, agent/structure, text/context). The first section of the article discusses the framing, generative, performative, and coordinative functions of discourse and highlights how DA helps disciplinary cross-fertilization. The second section reviews the way in which various perspectives on DA have approached the cognate fields of FPA and IR and makes the case for moving across theoretical and disciplinary boundaries. The third section critically reviews the methods of analysis that allow scrutinizing the connections between texts and context and the performative power of a word. Resumen Este artículo señala que el análisis del discurso (AD) puede agregar mucho valor a los campos afines del análisis de la política exterior (APE) y las relaciones internacionales (RI). Al reconocer el papel de los discursos como puerta de entrada a la realidad social, el artículo sostiene que el AD ofrece a los investigadores una plataforma analítica para centrarse al mismo tiempo en la interacción entre los niveles de análisis tradicionalmente considerados por separado (nacional/internacional, agente/estructura, texto/contexto). El artículo continúa de la siguiente manera. En la primera sección se analiza las funciones de estructuración, generativas, performativas y de coordinación del discurso, y hace hincapié en cómo el análisis del discurso ayuda a la fertilización cruzada disciplinaria. En la segunda sección se examina cómo las diversas perspectivas sobre el DA se han enfocado en los campos afines del APE y las RI, y se demuestra la necesidad de traspasar los límites teóricos y disciplinarios. En la tercera sección se examina de manera crítica los métodos de análisis que permiten investigar las conexiones entre los textos y el contexto, y el poder performativo de la palabra. Extrait Cet article souligne le fait que l'Analyse des discours peut ajouter beaucoup de valeur aux domaines apparentés à l'Analyse des politiques étrangères et aux Relations internationales. Il admet le rôle des discours comme porte d'entrée vers la réalité sociale et soutient que l'Analyse des discours dote les chercheurs d'une plateforme analytique pour se concentrer en parallèle sur l'interaction entre les niveaux d'analyse traditionnellement considérés comme distincts (intérieur/international, agent/structure, texte/contexte). Cet article traite cette question de la manière suivante: La première section aborde les fonctions génératives, performatives, coordinatives et de cadrage du discours et souligne la manière dont l'Analyse des discours contribue à l'enrichissement croisé des disciplines. La deuxième section évalue la manière dont les diverses perspectives de l'Analyse des discours ont approché les domaines apparentés à l'Analyse de la politique étrangère et aux relations internationales et plaidé en faveur d'un dépassement des limites liées aux théories et disciplines. La troisième section évalue d'un œil critique les méthodes d'analyse qui permettent d'examiner minutieusement les liens entre textes et contexte et le pouvoir performatif des mots.

Externalism about Moral Responsibility: Modification of A. Mele’s Thought Experiment

The author modifies A. Mele’s thought experiment for externalism about moral res­ponsibility, which suggests that the agent’s history partially determines whether the agent is morally responsible for particular actions, or the consequences of actions. The original thought experiment constructs a situation in which the individual is not morally responsible for the killing because of manipulation, that is, for a reason external to the agent. A. Mele’s theory was criticized by A.V. Mertsalov, D.B. Volkov, and V.V. Vasiliev at the seminar orga­nized by the Moscow Center for Consciousness. The arguments against A. Mele's theory had the following structure: A.A. Mele does not show that the historical explanation is the best explanation, because there are competing explanations, no less convincing, which are in­compatible with A. Mele’s externalism. The author explicates and analyzes the expla­nations offered by philosophers from the Moscow Center for Consciousness: the explanation from identity, the explanation from self-identification, the explanation from the condition of knowledge, the explanation from future states. Although these explanations apply to Mele’s original thought experiment, they cannot explain the absence of moral responsibility in the modified thought experiment proposed by the author: the explanations from identity and self-identification are excluded by the gradual change in the agent structure of personality; the explanation of knowledge conditions is refuted by including knowledge of manipulation in the conditions of the thought experiment; the explanation of future states is excluded by removing relevant future states from the thought experiment.

Study on Preparation of Novel Dicyclopentadiene Phenol Epoxy Resin Materials Based on Different Degrees of Polymerization

This paper briefly describes the relevant properties of epoxy resin materials, and introduces the domestic and international progress of dicyclopentadiene (DCPD) phenolic epoxy resin. The process conditions of dicyclopentadiene phenol resin and epoxy resin were studied. Dicyclopentadiene phenol epoxy resin with different degrees of polymerization was prepared. The reaction heat was measured and the curing temperature, time and curing were analysed. The influence of factors such as the agent structure on the gel time and curing degree of DCPD phenol epoxy resin; the effects of temperature and time on the curing reaction of DCPD phenol epoxy resin were discussed.

Struggling for legitimate meaning: Agent–structure dynamics in German filmmaking

Given the state sponsorship of film production in Germany, this article examines general mechanisms in the formation of meaning in German filmmaking. With reference to Schimank’s framework of agent–structure dynamics and based on a constructivist understanding of the world, the results of 97 expert interviews with screenwriters, directors, producers, distributors, cinema theatre operators, funding representatives and public television editors, as well as document analyses, show that the medium’s construction of reality is anything but unconditioned. On the contrary, due to the fundamental role of film funding and public television in the agent constellations intertwined with social structures that shape the film production process in Germany, the medium’s key communicators are confronted with expectations that go far beyond economic parameters. More precisely, the article reveals that German filmmaking reflects a political dimension, and expresses hierarchies and constraints that prompt struggles for legitimate meaning and challenge any autonomous practice in the field.