School of Historical and Philosophical Studies - Theses
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ItemExplaining PICTA, PACER and Cotonou : trade policy in the Pacific 1996-2006(University of Melbourne, 2009)
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ItemNo Preview AvailableUniversal visions : neuroscience and recurrent chrrcteristics of world palaeoart(University of Melbourne, 2009)Palaeoart includes a diverse range of art-like manifestations, predominantly comprising rock art and portable art objects, datingfrom the Pleistocene right through to the Holocene. A fascinating aspect of palaeoart is that striking commonalities or parallels may be observed world-wide. These parallels include a range of recurrent abstract-geometric motifs and patterns, figurative subjects and themes. Similarities in the ways in which this content is executed may also be found. Despite various attempts, these commonalities have not yet been adequately explained. Positioned within a structuralist framework, this thesis considers recent breakthroughs in neuroscience as a means of understanding them. Specifically, it examines the role of human perceptual-neurophysiological universals in governing palaeoart production, and argues for a basis of artistic parallels in aspects of the evolved neurobiology shared by all normal humans. The rock art of hunter-gatherer societies constitutes more than 90 per cent of known prehistoric art, and the scope of the study is limited to palaeoart attributed to pre-European contact, pre-literate hunter- gatherer societies. The temporal scope of the study varies with the evidence discussed. The approach taken is partly informed by recent studies that have used neuroimaging techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to reveal brain activation patterns associated with the perception of different types of visual stimuli. It is further informed by a wide range of additional neuroscientific and perceptual experimentation data relevant to palaeoart imagery. The value of considering human universals as a means of answering the questions how and why the same forms recur in palaeoart around the world is addressed. The approach provides a sound alternative to simplistic interpretations such as cultural diffusion based solely on visual resemblances between the arts of widely separated regions. The examination of palaeoart in light of neuroscientific data has major implications, ultimately revealing underlying reasons for the production of certain types of imagery. Abstract-geometric motifs and patterns, animals and parts of animals, and the human body and its parts are all shown to have special roles in visual information processing. It is found that shared aspects of the human nervous system influence conscious and unconscious preferences and decisions made in the process of creating graphic imagery, and that this has given rise to cross-cultural similarities in palaeoart. Recurrent forms in palaeoart are shown to be precisely those visual stimuli that are particularly powerful triggers of neural activity and correspond with prominent areas of the visual brain. These forms of visual imagery stimulate inherent neural mechanisms that have developed during human evolution specifically for the analysis of biologically significant aspects of the visual world. Palaeoart can thus be regarded as a kind ofneuro- perceptual mirror demonstrating attributes and principles characteristic of human beings.
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ItemThis is how we live now : the lifestylization of home(University of Melbourne, 2008)
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ItemWho's playing our song ? : the development of the Australian musical 1900-2000(University of Melbourne, 2007)
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ItemInternal crusading in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries : case studies of the Albigensian Crusade and the Italian Crusades of Pope John XXII(University of Melbourne, 2007)This thesis examines the significance of papal participation in several crusades in western Europe in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. Paying particular attention to the Albigensian Crusade and the Italian Crusades of John XXII, it argues that, from the thirteenth century, emerging claims of papal sovereignty coupled with a large collection of hierocratic treatises contributed to a juridical redefinition of the crusade that emphasised papal authority as the essential element of a crusade. This thesis argues that this juridical redefinition in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries was attributable to the Holy War origins of the crusade. Specifically, Christian Holy War, as conceived by St Augustine of Hippo, was orientated around the need to eradicate spiritual �fifth columns� amongst the faithful. This internal orientation left Christendom unprepared and lacking the necessary conceptual tools to formulate a coherent theory of Holy War against external pagan aggression. Consequently, at its inception late in the eleventh century, the crusade was a legal and ideological aberration, which remained a topic of debate for more than a century after the First Crusade. This thesis also suggests that in terms of both practical and legal considerations, the crusade received greater form and definition when it was employed in matters more reminiscent of Augustine�s preoccupation with heretics and schismatics. During the Albigensian war, the theory of the crusade was refined to emphasise its role as a function of papal authority. As the nature of this authority was re-examined and augmented in the years following the Albigensian Crusade, so too was the crusade itself redefined. The thesis concludes by demonstrating that, with the Church conditioned to associate heresy with physical and political attacks upon ecclesiastics by the Hohenstaufen and Italian Ghibellines, the Pope�s fullness of power gradually ceased to be the means of crusading practices, and became instead the crusade s ultimate end. As the crusade moved closer to Rome, so its motives came closer to the papal cause.
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ItemColonising Yolngu defence : Arnhem Land in the Second World War and transnational uses of indigenous people in the Second World War(University of Melbourne, 2008)The thesis examines the involvement in World War II of the Yolngu people of Arnhem Land, in the context of colonialism in the Northern Territory, and with comparative attention to the war experiences of the indigenous people of Papua New Guinea. and the Native American Navajo. Yolngu participated in the war through various avenues, including the provision of labour for white Australian war initiatives. Most notably Yolngu served as auxiliaries to non-indigenous military units such as the North Australia Observer Unit, and they also participated in the Northern Territory Special Reconnaissance Unit, which was exclusively Aboriginal apart from its leadership. Rather than representing widespread white Australian appreciation of Yolngu skills or recognition of Yolngu equality, the military employment of Yolngu continued structures of ideas and practices inherent in settler colonialism in the north. The military authorities, with government endorsement, organised Yolngu to utilise their skills in defence of the colonial project that was of itself simultaneously robbing Yolngu of their land and rights. Yolngu had their own motivations to work alongside white military, and for the most part participated willingly. Analysis of oral testimony points to their courageous efforts and, unlike the non-indigenous documents, positions Yolngu as central actors in Arnhem Land during the war. Comparative analysis of other colonised indigenous peoples' involvement in World War ll�Pacific Islanders in similar units in Papua and New Guinea, and Navajo Codetalkers in the United States�highlights the existence of common colonial practices that existed transnationally, alongside indigenous peoples' own sense of agency. This study re-centres indigenous people in war narratives while demonstrating at the same time how governments' reliance on indigenous skills and labour in times of crisis did not represent a fundamental change in relations, although for white authorities there were, eventually, unanticipated outcomes from the war for indigenous peoples.
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ItemThe digital surrogate for an 18th century manuscript: a method of preservation and access( 2009)The dissemination of information through technological formats is in a constant state of flux. The constant and rapid evolution of technological tools used to provide access to cultural collections is continuous. The following thesis research explores the concept of a digital surrogate as a means of preserving the physical fabric of a Middle Eastern Manuscript from the University of Melbourne's Special Collections. The utility of a digital platform to enable dialogue between the international community and local caretaker communities of collections, as well as providing an alternative to physical access of a fragile item is the crux of the following thesis research. This thesis research will be divided in to project outcomes and future possibilities. This author explores the logistics of the digitisation process and its use in producing a digital surrogate for a unique volume selected form the Middle Eastern Manuscript collection, MUL 134. This author will then proceed with a discussion surrounding the digital repository of the University of Melbourne. Research surrounding other institutional repositories and their use as a scholarly tool will be compared with the model currently used by the University of Melbourne. Questions of access, management of content and practicality surrounding the digital repository as a platform for digitised collections will also formulate the following research. As a result, an alternative online platform will be proposed as an appropriate channel of access for digitised surrogates of MUL 134, and other volumes from the collection, which may be digitised in the future.
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ItemAn investigation into the effects of dry cleaning sponge treatments on textile fibres( 2008)This thesis investigates the possibility of using dry cleaning sponges to remove soiling from textile artefacts. A literature review outlines the ethics of cleaning, current textile cleaning techniques, dry cleaning techniques from other conservation disciplines and the uses and composition of dry cleaning sponge. The experimentation is documented and the results of the SEM and EDS analysis discussed. It is concluded that dry cleaning sponge is a viable technique for cleaning textile fibres.