Maria Plaza
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199281114
- eISBN:
- 9780191712739
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199281114.001.0001
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Literary Studies: Classical, Early, and Medieval
Our image of Roman satire has developed from that of a static, moralizing genre to a deliberately complex form, but our approach to the humour intrinsic to satire has not developed accordingly. This ...
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Our image of Roman satire has developed from that of a static, moralizing genre to a deliberately complex form, but our approach to the humour intrinsic to satire has not developed accordingly. This book offers a comprehensive new analysis of humour in the writings of Horace, Persius, and Juvenal, with an excursus to Lucilius. The main thesis is that far from being an external means of sweetening the moral lesson, humour lies at the heart of Roman satire and shapes its paradoxical essence. The book argues that while the satirist needs humour for the aesthetic merit of his work, his ideological message inevitably suffers from the ambivalence that humour carries. By analyzing object-oriented humour, humour directed at the speaker (including self-irony), and humour directed at neither object nor subject, the book shows how the Roman satirists work round this double mission of morals and merriment. As a result, they present the reader with a much more sprawling and ‘open’ literary product than they promise in their programmatic self-presentations. The argument is rounded off by a contemplation of the end of Roman satire, and its descendants — not only modern satire but also the novel, in which satire’s humorous orchestration of epic questions was later taken up and richly elaborated.Less
Our image of Roman satire has developed from that of a static, moralizing genre to a deliberately complex form, but our approach to the humour intrinsic to satire has not developed accordingly. This book offers a comprehensive new analysis of humour in the writings of Horace, Persius, and Juvenal, with an excursus to Lucilius. The main thesis is that far from being an external means of sweetening the moral lesson, humour lies at the heart of Roman satire and shapes its paradoxical essence. The book argues that while the satirist needs humour for the aesthetic merit of his work, his ideological message inevitably suffers from the ambivalence that humour carries. By analyzing object-oriented humour, humour directed at the speaker (including self-irony), and humour directed at neither object nor subject, the book shows how the Roman satirists work round this double mission of morals and merriment. As a result, they present the reader with a much more sprawling and ‘open’ literary product than they promise in their programmatic self-presentations. The argument is rounded off by a contemplation of the end of Roman satire, and its descendants — not only modern satire but also the novel, in which satire’s humorous orchestration of epic questions was later taken up and richly elaborated.
Jagdish Bhagwati and Arvind Panagariya (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199915187
- eISBN:
- 9780199933495
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199915187.001.0001
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, South and East Asia
While there is now consensus that liberalizing reforms have been behind the acceleration of growth in India to the current 8 to 9 percent level, critics continue to argue that opening the economy to ...
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While there is now consensus that liberalizing reforms have been behind the acceleration of growth in India to the current 8 to 9 percent level, critics continue to argue that opening the economy to trade has hurt the poor, that rapid growth is leaving the socially disadvantaged groups behind, and that the reforms have led to increased inequality. They also argue that people themselves do not feel that their fortunes are improving. Five original essays in this volume, topped by a substantial introductory essay summarizing their findings, meet these challenges to the reforms head-on. They use large-scale sample surveys and other data to systematically address each of these arguments. They show that trade openness has indeed helped reduce poverty not just in general but also among the socially disadvantaged groups. The contributors to the volume find no evidence whatsoever to support the claim of a negative impact of trade openness on poverty in any social group. The essays also show that inequality exhibits no definite trend since the liberalizing reforms and that it is unrelated to trade openness. People’s responses have also now turned decidedly in favor of reforms. Thus, when asked how they feel about the change in their fortunes in the recent past, an overwhelmingly large proportion of individuals from every conceivable group report improvements. Moreover, systematic analysis of the 2009 parliamentary elections show that people now reward the chief ministers in states in which they deliver superior growth outcomes and punish those that do not.Less
While there is now consensus that liberalizing reforms have been behind the acceleration of growth in India to the current 8 to 9 percent level, critics continue to argue that opening the economy to trade has hurt the poor, that rapid growth is leaving the socially disadvantaged groups behind, and that the reforms have led to increased inequality. They also argue that people themselves do not feel that their fortunes are improving. Five original essays in this volume, topped by a substantial introductory essay summarizing their findings, meet these challenges to the reforms head-on. They use large-scale sample surveys and other data to systematically address each of these arguments. They show that trade openness has indeed helped reduce poverty not just in general but also among the socially disadvantaged groups. The contributors to the volume find no evidence whatsoever to support the claim of a negative impact of trade openness on poverty in any social group. The essays also show that inequality exhibits no definite trend since the liberalizing reforms and that it is unrelated to trade openness. People’s responses have also now turned decidedly in favor of reforms. Thus, when asked how they feel about the change in their fortunes in the recent past, an overwhelmingly large proportion of individuals from every conceivable group report improvements. Moreover, systematic analysis of the 2009 parliamentary elections show that people now reward the chief ministers in states in which they deliver superior growth outcomes and punish those that do not.
Torben Iversen
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198297567
- eISBN:
- 9780191600104
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198297564.003.0003
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
This is the second of three chapters on the sources of pressure on contemporary national welfare states, all of which seek to show how examining the sources of strain carries implications for ...
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This is the second of three chapters on the sources of pressure on contemporary national welfare states, all of which seek to show how examining the sources of strain carries implications for identifying who is likely to fight with whom over what; the authors of the three chapters are not of one mind on this issue. Iversen's analysis seeks to show that de‐industrialization—caused by the dramatic increases in productivity in the manufacturing sector rather than by globalization—is the crucial motor of social change. He directly challenges a variant of the globalization thesis that has been popular among scholars: the idea that exposure to the heightened labour market risks of an open economy fuelled the expansion of the welfare state as a form of compensation. Instead, he marshals considerable evidence for the view that it is the shrinkage of the manufacturing sector, and not economic (trade) openness, that fuelled the growth of compensatory social policy. He finds little evidence in favour of the view that the various dimensions of globalization constitute a source of real threat to the contemporary welfare state.Less
This is the second of three chapters on the sources of pressure on contemporary national welfare states, all of which seek to show how examining the sources of strain carries implications for identifying who is likely to fight with whom over what; the authors of the three chapters are not of one mind on this issue. Iversen's analysis seeks to show that de‐industrialization—caused by the dramatic increases in productivity in the manufacturing sector rather than by globalization—is the crucial motor of social change. He directly challenges a variant of the globalization thesis that has been popular among scholars: the idea that exposure to the heightened labour market risks of an open economy fuelled the expansion of the welfare state as a form of compensation. Instead, he marshals considerable evidence for the view that it is the shrinkage of the manufacturing sector, and not economic (trade) openness, that fuelled the growth of compensatory social policy. He finds little evidence in favour of the view that the various dimensions of globalization constitute a source of real threat to the contemporary welfare state.
Vaclav Smil
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780195168754
- eISBN:
- 9780199783601
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195168755.003.0007
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Economic History
While the accomplishments of (and the existing problems with) 20th century ingenuity are clear, their implications for the future are highly contested as techno-optimists clash with critics of ...
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While the accomplishments of (and the existing problems with) 20th century ingenuity are clear, their implications for the future are highly contested as techno-optimists clash with critics of technical advances. In this context, it is useful to remember that even the most destructive technical advances were not responsible for most of the man-made deaths during the 20th century. There is nothing inevitable about the long-term survival of civilization based on technical ingenuity and high energy consumption: openness and uncertainty best describe our prospects.Less
While the accomplishments of (and the existing problems with) 20th century ingenuity are clear, their implications for the future are highly contested as techno-optimists clash with critics of technical advances. In this context, it is useful to remember that even the most destructive technical advances were not responsible for most of the man-made deaths during the 20th century. There is nothing inevitable about the long-term survival of civilization based on technical ingenuity and high energy consumption: openness and uncertainty best describe our prospects.
Christopher Hood, Henry Rothstein, and Robert Baldwin
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780199243631
- eISBN:
- 9780191599507
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199243638.003.0009
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
Moves away from explaining the comparative statics of risk regulation regimes and explores what happens when regimes are under pressure to change, and, in particular, when they are under presure for ...
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Moves away from explaining the comparative statics of risk regulation regimes and explores what happens when regimes are under pressure to change, and, in particular, when they are under presure for greater openness and transparency. The chapter develops a style‐phase model of staged organizational responses to external pressure for change and compares its predictive value against two competing hypotheses. Examination of the nine case‐study risk regulation regimes reveals that, contrary to the common belief that such pressures are all pervasive, less than half were exposed to substantial pressures of this type. Responses of organizations in the ‘high‐pressure’ regimes were varied, but the overall pattern was consistent with a mixture of an autopoietic and staged‐response hypothesis stressing blame prevention. The chapter presents a hybrid ‘Catherine‐wheel’ model of the observed pattern and concludes by discussing the implications for policy outcomes.Less
Moves away from explaining the comparative statics of risk regulation regimes and explores what happens when regimes are under pressure to change, and, in particular, when they are under presure for greater openness and transparency. The chapter develops a style‐phase model of staged organizational responses to external pressure for change and compares its predictive value against two competing hypotheses. Examination of the nine case‐study risk regulation regimes reveals that, contrary to the common belief that such pressures are all pervasive, less than half were exposed to substantial pressures of this type. Responses of organizations in the ‘high‐pressure’ regimes were varied, but the overall pattern was consistent with a mixture of an autopoietic and staged‐response hypothesis stressing blame prevention. The chapter presents a hybrid ‘Catherine‐wheel’ model of the observed pattern and concludes by discussing the implications for policy outcomes.
Stephen Macedo
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780199253661
- eISBN:
- 9780191601972
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199253668.003.0016
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
The essays in Part III of the book, on liberal constraints and traditionalist education, argue for a more regulatory conception of liberal education and emphasize the need for some controls over ...
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The essays in Part III of the book, on liberal constraints and traditionalist education, argue for a more regulatory conception of liberal education and emphasize the need for some controls over cultural and religious educational authority. In the last chapter, on liberalism and group rights, according to Stephen Macedo, while the commitment of liberalism to individual freedom and equality is far more easily reconciled with group-based remedies for group-based inequalities than the critics of liberalism allow, the liberal commitment to freedom of association imposes limits on group recognition by insisting on intragroup openness and diversity. The chapter has two main parts. Section 15.1, Liberalism, Education, and Group Identities, rebuts the charge that a liberal public philosophy embraces a narrow individualism that is incompatible with tackling group-based forms of inequality, and surveys some of the myriad liberal reforms of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s that promoted more equal respect for differing group identities, especially in schools. Section 15.2, Special Exemptions and the Rights of Traditional Communities, focuses on the difficulties raised by “traditionalistic” groups that seek special accommodations in part because they reject liberal values of equal freedom for all, and makes the point that a liberal regime should not seek to be equally hospitable or accommodating to groups that accept and those that reject educational policies designed to promote the equal freedom of all persons; various examples are presented and discussed.Less
The essays in Part III of the book, on liberal constraints and traditionalist education, argue for a more regulatory conception of liberal education and emphasize the need for some controls over cultural and religious educational authority. In the last chapter, on liberalism and group rights, according to Stephen Macedo, while the commitment of liberalism to individual freedom and equality is far more easily reconciled with group-based remedies for group-based inequalities than the critics of liberalism allow, the liberal commitment to freedom of association imposes limits on group recognition by insisting on intragroup openness and diversity. The chapter has two main parts. Section 15.1, Liberalism, Education, and Group Identities, rebuts the charge that a liberal public philosophy embraces a narrow individualism that is incompatible with tackling group-based forms of inequality, and surveys some of the myriad liberal reforms of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s that promoted more equal respect for differing group identities, especially in schools. Section 15.2, Special Exemptions and the Rights of Traditional Communities, focuses on the difficulties raised by “traditionalistic” groups that seek special accommodations in part because they reject liberal values of equal freedom for all, and makes the point that a liberal regime should not seek to be equally hospitable or accommodating to groups that accept and those that reject educational policies designed to promote the equal freedom of all persons; various examples are presented and discussed.
Stacilee Ford
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9789888083114
- eISBN:
- 9789882207639
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Hong Kong University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5790/hongkong/9789888083114.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, Asian History
American women have lived in Hong Kong, and in neighboring Macao, for nearly two centuries. Many were changed by their encounter with Chinese life and British colonialism. Their openness to new ...
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American women have lived in Hong Kong, and in neighboring Macao, for nearly two centuries. Many were changed by their encounter with Chinese life and British colonialism. Their openness to new experiences set them apart both individually and as a group. Equally, a certain “pedagogical impulse” gave them a reputation for outspokenness that sometimes troubled those around them. Drawing on memoirs, diaries, newspapers, film, and other texts, this book tells the stories of several American women and explores how, through dramatically changing times, they communicated their notions of national identity and gender. The book is a study of cross-cultural encounters, shedding light on the connections between the histories of Hong Kong and the US, on the impact of Americanization in Hong Kong, and on the ways in which Hong Kong people used stereotypes of American womanhood in popular culture.Less
American women have lived in Hong Kong, and in neighboring Macao, for nearly two centuries. Many were changed by their encounter with Chinese life and British colonialism. Their openness to new experiences set them apart both individually and as a group. Equally, a certain “pedagogical impulse” gave them a reputation for outspokenness that sometimes troubled those around them. Drawing on memoirs, diaries, newspapers, film, and other texts, this book tells the stories of several American women and explores how, through dramatically changing times, they communicated their notions of national identity and gender. The book is a study of cross-cultural encounters, shedding light on the connections between the histories of Hong Kong and the US, on the impact of Americanization in Hong Kong, and on the ways in which Hong Kong people used stereotypes of American womanhood in popular culture.
Ashish Arora and Alfonso Gambardella
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199275601
- eISBN:
- 9780191705823
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199275601.003.0010
- Subject:
- Business and Management, International Business
This chapter summarizes what is common and what is not in the experiences of the individual countries studied. It develops an interpretive framework for understanding the growth of the software ...
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This chapter summarizes what is common and what is not in the experiences of the individual countries studied. It develops an interpretive framework for understanding the growth of the software industry in these countries, and attempts to distill the lessons that others can learn. What stands out in this story is the role of human capital and human capital flows, and the role of those flows in opening these countries to the outside world. The least appreciated aspect of the growth of the software in the 3Is has been the role of entrepreneurship and the development of firm level capabilities.Less
This chapter summarizes what is common and what is not in the experiences of the individual countries studied. It develops an interpretive framework for understanding the growth of the software industry in these countries, and attempts to distill the lessons that others can learn. What stands out in this story is the role of human capital and human capital flows, and the role of those flows in opening these countries to the outside world. The least appreciated aspect of the growth of the software in the 3Is has been the role of entrepreneurship and the development of firm level capabilities.
Frank Dikotter
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9789622099203
- eISBN:
- 9789882206595
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Hong Kong University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5790/hongkong/9789622099203.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, Asian History
The era between empire and communism is routinely portrayed as a catastrophic interlude in China's modern history, but this book shows instead that the first half of ...
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The era between empire and communism is routinely portrayed as a catastrophic interlude in China's modern history, but this book shows instead that the first half of the twentieth century witnessed a qualitatively unprecedented trend towards openness. The book argues that the years from 1900 to 1949 were characterised at all levels of society by engagement with the world, and that the pursuit of openness was particularly evident in four areas: in governance and the advance of the rule of law and of newly acquired liberties; in freedom of movement in and out of the country; in open minds thriving on ideas from the humanities and sciences; and in open markets and sustained growth in the economy. Freedom of association, freedom to travel, freedom of religion, freedom to trade, and relative freedom of speech wrought profound changes in the texture of everyday life. While globalisation itself was a vector of cultural diversification, pre-existing constellations of ideas, practices and institutions did not simply vanish on contact with the rest of the world, but on the contrary expanded even further, just as much as local industries diversified thanks to their inclusion into a much larger global market. Arguably the country was at its most diverse in its entire history on the eve of World War II — in terms of politics, society, culture, and the economy.Less
The era between empire and communism is routinely portrayed as a catastrophic interlude in China's modern history, but this book shows instead that the first half of the twentieth century witnessed a qualitatively unprecedented trend towards openness. The book argues that the years from 1900 to 1949 were characterised at all levels of society by engagement with the world, and that the pursuit of openness was particularly evident in four areas: in governance and the advance of the rule of law and of newly acquired liberties; in freedom of movement in and out of the country; in open minds thriving on ideas from the humanities and sciences; and in open markets and sustained growth in the economy. Freedom of association, freedom to travel, freedom of religion, freedom to trade, and relative freedom of speech wrought profound changes in the texture of everyday life. While globalisation itself was a vector of cultural diversification, pre-existing constellations of ideas, practices and institutions did not simply vanish on contact with the rest of the world, but on the contrary expanded even further, just as much as local industries diversified thanks to their inclusion into a much larger global market. Arguably the country was at its most diverse in its entire history on the eve of World War II — in terms of politics, society, culture, and the economy.
Frank Dikötter
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9789622099203
- eISBN:
- 9789882206595
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Hong Kong University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5790/hongkong/9789622099203.003.0006
- Subject:
- History, Asian History
Glasnost in the Soviet Union, kaifang in China, or doi moi in Vietnam: “openness” in socialist states has become such an inflated term of political ...
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Glasnost in the Soviet Union, kaifang in China, or doi moi in Vietnam: “openness” in socialist states has become such an inflated term of political propaganda that one tends to forget that prerevolutionary regimes were often marked by a much higher degree of cosmopolitanism. It has been argued that globalisation was a vector of cultural diversification, which, in turn, was best supported by increased globalisation. It is also indicated that increased interdependence with the rest of the world might eventually lead to participatory politics and the rule of law, while on the other hand the pessimistic view points at the use of a relative degree of economic openness to shore up the power of a privileged elite at the expense of the civil liberties of ordinary people. Whatever the case may be, the overlooked cosmopolitan experience of the republican era is of even greater relevance today, now that even in the People's Republic globalisation rather than revolution has become the guiding issue for the twenty-first century.Less
Glasnost in the Soviet Union, kaifang in China, or doi moi in Vietnam: “openness” in socialist states has become such an inflated term of political propaganda that one tends to forget that prerevolutionary regimes were often marked by a much higher degree of cosmopolitanism. It has been argued that globalisation was a vector of cultural diversification, which, in turn, was best supported by increased globalisation. It is also indicated that increased interdependence with the rest of the world might eventually lead to participatory politics and the rule of law, while on the other hand the pessimistic view points at the use of a relative degree of economic openness to shore up the power of a privileged elite at the expense of the civil liberties of ordinary people. Whatever the case may be, the overlooked cosmopolitan experience of the republican era is of even greater relevance today, now that even in the People's Republic globalisation rather than revolution has become the guiding issue for the twenty-first century.
Jude C. Hays
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- September 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195369335
- eISBN:
- 9780199871056
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195369335.003.0005
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Economy
This chapter examines the possibility of building a new bargain of embedded liberalism that can effectively maintain or even generate public support for policies of economic openness in majoritarian ...
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This chapter examines the possibility of building a new bargain of embedded liberalism that can effectively maintain or even generate public support for policies of economic openness in majoritarian democracies with competitive labor markets. This new bargain must be crafted with the economic constraints of 21st century globalization in mind, and it must be built on a set of policies that are robust and compatible with the incentives of office-seeking politicians, particularly those from the Left, since these politicians tend to be more sensitive than their counterparts on the Right to anti-trade political pressure.Less
This chapter examines the possibility of building a new bargain of embedded liberalism that can effectively maintain or even generate public support for policies of economic openness in majoritarian democracies with competitive labor markets. This new bargain must be crafted with the economic constraints of 21st century globalization in mind, and it must be built on a set of policies that are robust and compatible with the incentives of office-seeking politicians, particularly those from the Left, since these politicians tend to be more sensitive than their counterparts on the Right to anti-trade political pressure.
Robert C. Roberts and W. Jay Wood
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- May 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199283675
- eISBN:
- 9780191712661
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199283675.003.0007
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy
Humans have a natural conservative tendency to hold onto what appear to them to be already achieved epistemic goods. Yet such voluntary intellectual practices as reading, conversing, studying, ...
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Humans have a natural conservative tendency to hold onto what appear to them to be already achieved epistemic goods. Yet such voluntary intellectual practices as reading, conversing, studying, hypothesis testing, and soliciting testimony exert pressure toward epistemic change. These opposing tendencies admit two possible errors: on the one hand, holding so tightly to our achieved ways of thinking that we are rigid and dogmatic, and on the other, holding previous epistemic accomplishments so lightly that we never achieve any depth or knowledge, or become ironists or skeptics. The virtue of intellectual firmness is a kind of practical wisdom and proper intuition and proper flexibility about ‘hold’. Firmness is the cognitive analog of well-trained muscles (especially the gripping, hugging, biting ones) that nimbly adopt the strongest and lightest grips as varying circumstances demand.Less
Humans have a natural conservative tendency to hold onto what appear to them to be already achieved epistemic goods. Yet such voluntary intellectual practices as reading, conversing, studying, hypothesis testing, and soliciting testimony exert pressure toward epistemic change. These opposing tendencies admit two possible errors: on the one hand, holding so tightly to our achieved ways of thinking that we are rigid and dogmatic, and on the other, holding previous epistemic accomplishments so lightly that we never achieve any depth or knowledge, or become ironists or skeptics. The virtue of intellectual firmness is a kind of practical wisdom and proper intuition and proper flexibility about ‘hold’. Firmness is the cognitive analog of well-trained muscles (especially the gripping, hugging, biting ones) that nimbly adopt the strongest and lightest grips as varying circumstances demand.
Maarten A. Hajer, David Laws, and Wytske Versteeg
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199281671
- eISBN:
- 9780191713132
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199281671.003.0006
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
The British Food Standards Authority (FSA) was established in the aftermath of the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) crisis as a radical break with the old climate of secrecy in food safety ...
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The British Food Standards Authority (FSA) was established in the aftermath of the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) crisis as a radical break with the old climate of secrecy in food safety regulation. This chapter studies in detail how the new organization tries to reinvent openness in a highly technical field by combining different ways of knowing and actively reaching out towards the media and its different publics. The struggle of the FSA shows how seemingly self-evident goals of a deliberative governance, like openness and transparency, can be paradoxical and complicated in practice; similarly its motto of “putting ‘the’ consumer first” turns out to be more complex than it might seem. It provides a case study of how an organization tries to become authoritative giving meaning to democratic accountability and deliberation while complying with a commitment to expert knowledge. It also shows how emotional moments can be key to break through institutional routines and establish a shift in thinking and a joint commitment to a new way of working. It narrates one of the most interesting examples of a deliberative regulation known to date.Less
The British Food Standards Authority (FSA) was established in the aftermath of the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) crisis as a radical break with the old climate of secrecy in food safety regulation. This chapter studies in detail how the new organization tries to reinvent openness in a highly technical field by combining different ways of knowing and actively reaching out towards the media and its different publics. The struggle of the FSA shows how seemingly self-evident goals of a deliberative governance, like openness and transparency, can be paradoxical and complicated in practice; similarly its motto of “putting ‘the’ consumer first” turns out to be more complex than it might seem. It provides a case study of how an organization tries to become authoritative giving meaning to democratic accountability and deliberation while complying with a commitment to expert knowledge. It also shows how emotional moments can be key to break through institutional routines and establish a shift in thinking and a joint commitment to a new way of working. It narrates one of the most interesting examples of a deliberative regulation known to date.
Adele Goldberg
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199268511
- eISBN:
- 9780191708428
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199268511.003.0005
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Theoretical Linguistics
Children are not strictly conservative, producing only what they have heard, and yet they are not reliably corrected when they produce overgeneralizations. How can children retreat from or avoid ...
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Children are not strictly conservative, producing only what they have heard, and yet they are not reliably corrected when they produce overgeneralizations. How can children retreat from or avoid overgeneralizations? As many have noted, the most obvious possible explanations, including a reliance on overt corrections or corrective repetitions, are not viable. Two factors are argued to play a central role: statistical preemption or repeatedly witnessing a word in a competing pattern, and a pattern's degree of openness: the variability of the items that occur in a given pattern.Less
Children are not strictly conservative, producing only what they have heard, and yet they are not reliably corrected when they produce overgeneralizations. How can children retreat from or avoid overgeneralizations? As many have noted, the most obvious possible explanations, including a reliance on overt corrections or corrective repetitions, are not viable. Two factors are argued to play a central role: statistical preemption or repeatedly witnessing a word in a competing pattern, and a pattern's degree of openness: the variability of the items that occur in a given pattern.
David Heald
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197263839
- eISBN:
- 9780191734915
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197263839.003.0002
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
Although the purpose of this chapter is to construct an anatomy of transparency, it is essential to address the triangular relationship between transparency, openness, and surveillance. The first ...
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Although the purpose of this chapter is to construct an anatomy of transparency, it is essential to address the triangular relationship between transparency, openness, and surveillance. The first question is whether a clear distinction can be drawn between transparency and openness. The second question concerns the relationship between transparency/openness and surveillance. This chapter examines transparency, focusing on directions and varieties of transparency and how they interact with their habitat and with each other. It distinguishes four directions of transparency and maps its varieties. The chapter also emphasizes the importance of examining the habitats within which transparency operates. Finally, it draws some brief conclusions, stressing the implications of the analysis for the measurement of transparency. The aim is to identify different directions and varieties of transparency in relatively neutral terms. Abstracting from the issue of direction, transparency can be analysed by means of a set of three dichotomies: event transparency versus process transparency; transparency in retrospect versus transparency in real time; and nominal transparency versus effective transparency.Less
Although the purpose of this chapter is to construct an anatomy of transparency, it is essential to address the triangular relationship between transparency, openness, and surveillance. The first question is whether a clear distinction can be drawn between transparency and openness. The second question concerns the relationship between transparency/openness and surveillance. This chapter examines transparency, focusing on directions and varieties of transparency and how they interact with their habitat and with each other. It distinguishes four directions of transparency and maps its varieties. The chapter also emphasizes the importance of examining the habitats within which transparency operates. Finally, it draws some brief conclusions, stressing the implications of the analysis for the measurement of transparency. The aim is to identify different directions and varieties of transparency in relatively neutral terms. Abstracting from the issue of direction, transparency can be analysed by means of a set of three dichotomies: event transparency versus process transparency; transparency in retrospect versus transparency in real time; and nominal transparency versus effective transparency.
Patrick Birkinshaw
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197263839
- eISBN:
- 9780191734915
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197263839.003.0003
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
‘Transparency’, ‘openness’, and access to government-held information are widely applauded as remedies for the deficiencies and operations of government where government claims to be democratic but ...
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‘Transparency’, ‘openness’, and access to government-held information are widely applauded as remedies for the deficiencies and operations of government where government claims to be democratic but falls short of its rhetoric. This chapter examines whether transparency is a human right, focusing on one of its specific features: access to government information, or freedom of information (FOI). It explains what is meant by FOI and argues that within the framework of internationally agreed concepts of human rights, FOI deserves to be listed with those rights. Not only is FOI instrumental in realizing other human rights such as freedom of speech and access to justice, or other desiderata such as accountability, it is intrinsically important: the right to know how government operates on our behalf. The chapter also discusses constitutionalism and the struggle for information in the United Kingdom.Less
‘Transparency’, ‘openness’, and access to government-held information are widely applauded as remedies for the deficiencies and operations of government where government claims to be democratic but falls short of its rhetoric. This chapter examines whether transparency is a human right, focusing on one of its specific features: access to government information, or freedom of information (FOI). It explains what is meant by FOI and argues that within the framework of internationally agreed concepts of human rights, FOI deserves to be listed with those rights. Not only is FOI instrumental in realizing other human rights such as freedom of speech and access to justice, or other desiderata such as accountability, it is intrinsically important: the right to know how government operates on our behalf. The chapter also discusses constitutionalism and the struggle for information in the United Kingdom.
Alasdair Roberts
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197263839
- eISBN:
- 9780191734915
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197263839.003.0007
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
In January 2005, the United Kingdom's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) came into force, providing British citizens with a limited but justiciable right to government information. The Blair ...
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In January 2005, the United Kingdom's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) came into force, providing British citizens with a limited but justiciable right to government information. The Blair government promised that the new law would make two important contributions to British political life. The first would be a fundamental change in the predispositions of officials regarding the release of government information. Lord Chancellor Charles Falconer predicted that the FOIA would lead to ‘a new culture of openness: a change in the way we are governed’. This fundamental ‘change in the way we are governed’ was expected to produce a follow-on effect: the restoration of public trust in government. The linkage between a ‘vigorous commitment to freedom of information’ and the ‘renewal of trust’ was often made in the months before implementation of the law. The critical point is that the FOIA does not reduce the political salience of complaints about governmental secrecy and lack of transparency in the public sector.Less
In January 2005, the United Kingdom's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) came into force, providing British citizens with a limited but justiciable right to government information. The Blair government promised that the new law would make two important contributions to British political life. The first would be a fundamental change in the predispositions of officials regarding the release of government information. Lord Chancellor Charles Falconer predicted that the FOIA would lead to ‘a new culture of openness: a change in the way we are governed’. This fundamental ‘change in the way we are governed’ was expected to produce a follow-on effect: the restoration of public trust in government. The linkage between a ‘vigorous commitment to freedom of information’ and the ‘renewal of trust’ was often made in the months before implementation of the law. The critical point is that the FOIA does not reduce the political salience of complaints about governmental secrecy and lack of transparency in the public sector.
Andrew McDonald
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197263839
- eISBN:
- 9780191734915
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197263839.003.0008
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
This chapter assesses freedom of information (FOI) in the United Kingdom. It discusses the terminology associated with FOI, namely, transparency and openness. FOI refers to access to non-personal ...
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This chapter assesses freedom of information (FOI) in the United Kingdom. It discusses the terminology associated with FOI, namely, transparency and openness. FOI refers to access to non-personal information; the regulation of personal information is typically governed by privacy or data-protection laws. Some jurisdictions take an integrated approach to both categories of information, but this chapter focuses on information that does not relate primarily to the individual. The family of information statutes – encompassing FOI, privacy, official secrecy and the like – are known collectively as Access to Information laws. Finally, open government is a term close to openness, since both are concerned with systems and delivery.Less
This chapter assesses freedom of information (FOI) in the United Kingdom. It discusses the terminology associated with FOI, namely, transparency and openness. FOI refers to access to non-personal information; the regulation of personal information is typically governed by privacy or data-protection laws. Some jurisdictions take an integrated approach to both categories of information, but this chapter focuses on information that does not relate primarily to the individual. The family of information statutes – encompassing FOI, privacy, official secrecy and the like – are known collectively as Access to Information laws. Finally, open government is a term close to openness, since both are concerned with systems and delivery.
L. Jean Camp
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197263839
- eISBN:
- 9780191734915
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197263839.003.0011
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
As governmental processes and judgments become increasingly digital, the transparency of digital systems that implement the processes of government becomes increasingly important. Open code is a ...
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As governmental processes and judgments become increasingly digital, the transparency of digital systems that implement the processes of government becomes increasingly important. Open code is a necessary but not sufficient prerequisite for maintaining transparency as democracy becomes digitized, and complete openness of process is not appropriate for every domain. This chapter explores some of the complexities in the relationship between openness of code and democratic government. Computer code controls and enables the actions of users, and for users to have true autonomy they must be able to examine, alter, and redistribute the code. A key issue for transparency is the degree to which this observation applies to the activities of government that are embedded in computer code. Free software creates a fundamentally different market structure than closed code. The philosophy of free software argues that the inability to view code that implements governance suggests totalitarian and Kafkaesque control, a constraining complex network of rules and regulations.Less
As governmental processes and judgments become increasingly digital, the transparency of digital systems that implement the processes of government becomes increasingly important. Open code is a necessary but not sufficient prerequisite for maintaining transparency as democracy becomes digitized, and complete openness of process is not appropriate for every domain. This chapter explores some of the complexities in the relationship between openness of code and democratic government. Computer code controls and enables the actions of users, and for users to have true autonomy they must be able to examine, alter, and redistribute the code. A key issue for transparency is the degree to which this observation applies to the activities of government that are embedded in computer code. Free software creates a fundamentally different market structure than closed code. The philosophy of free software argues that the inability to view code that implements governance suggests totalitarian and Kafkaesque control, a constraining complex network of rules and regulations.
Christopher Hood
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197263839
- eISBN:
- 9780191734915
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197263839.003.0013
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
This concluding chapter explores four issues. First, what have we learned about transparency and how has it changed? Second, what seems to affect transparency – what accounts for growth or decline in ...
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This concluding chapter explores four issues. First, what have we learned about transparency and how has it changed? Second, what seems to affect transparency – what accounts for growth or decline in the phenomenon? Third, what does transparency itself affect – what does it do to organizations or to society more generally? Last, what normative view should we take of transparency? Transparency differs from other closely related concepts, particularly openness and freedom of information. What might have been discussed or labelled as accountability, openness, or due process a generation ago may now be talked of as ‘transparency’, but that relabelling might have no deeper significance except to students of the rise and fall of fashionable words and phrases. If the optimistic view of the effects of transparency provisions is that government ministers and bureaucracies adopt a culture of openness, citizens end up knowing more, and trust in democratic government goes up, the data available for assessing such a view are patchy and hard to interpret.Less
This concluding chapter explores four issues. First, what have we learned about transparency and how has it changed? Second, what seems to affect transparency – what accounts for growth or decline in the phenomenon? Third, what does transparency itself affect – what does it do to organizations or to society more generally? Last, what normative view should we take of transparency? Transparency differs from other closely related concepts, particularly openness and freedom of information. What might have been discussed or labelled as accountability, openness, or due process a generation ago may now be talked of as ‘transparency’, but that relabelling might have no deeper significance except to students of the rise and fall of fashionable words and phrases. If the optimistic view of the effects of transparency provisions is that government ministers and bureaucracies adopt a culture of openness, citizens end up knowing more, and trust in democratic government goes up, the data available for assessing such a view are patchy and hard to interpret.
