Political transition and structural politicisation : The long shadow of Taiwan's one-party legacy

V��it��skirjatutkimuksessa tarkastellaan Taiwanin politiikkaa ensimm��isen vaalien kautta tapahtuneen vallanvaihdon j��lkeen (2000) yhteiskunnan rakenteellisen politisoitumisen n��k��kulmasta. Koska Taiwanilla siirryttiin verett��m��sti autoritaarisesta yksipuoluej��rjestelm��st�� monipuoluej��rjestelm����n sit�� on pidetty poliittisen muodonmuutoksen mallioppilaana. Aiempi optimismi Taiwanin demokratisoitumisen suhteen on sittemmin vaihtunut pessimismiin, pitk��lti yhteiskunnan voimakkaasta politisoitumisesta johtuen. Tutkimuksessa haetaan selityst�� t��lle politisoitumiselle. Yhteiskunnan rakenteellisella politisoitumisella tarkoitetaan tilannetta, jossa ���poliittisen��� alue kasvaa varsinaisia poliittisia instituutioita laajemmaksi. Rakenteellinen politisoituminen muuttuu helposti yhteiskunnalliseksi ongelmaksi, koska siit�� usein seuraa normaalin poliittisen toiminnan (esim. lains����d��nn��n) j��hmettyminen, yhteiskunnan jyrkk�� jakautuminen, alhainen kynnys poliittisille konflikteille ja yleisen yhteiskunnallisen luottamuksen alentuminen. Toisin kuin esimerkiksi It��-Euroopassa, Taiwanissa entinen valtapuolue ei romahtanut poliittisen avautumisen my��t�� vaan s��ilytti vahvan rakenteellisen asemansa. Kun valta vaihtui ensimm��isen kerran vaalien kautta, vanha valtapuolue ei ollut valmis luovuttamaan poliittisen j��rjestelm��n ohjaksia k��sist����n. Alkoi vuosia kest��nyt taistelu j��rjestelm��n hallinnasta vanhan ja uuden valtapuolueen v��lill��, jossa yhteiskunta politisoitui voimakkaasti. Tutkimuksessa Taiwanin yhteiskunnan politisoituminen selitet����n useiden rakenteellisten piirteiden yhteisvaikutuksen tuloksena. T��llaisia politisoitumista edist��vi�� rakentellisia piirteit�� ovat hidas poliittinen muutos, joka s��ilytti vanhat poliittiset jakolinjat ja niihin liittyv��t vahvat edut ja intressit; sopimaton perustuslaki; Taiwanin ep��selv�� kansainv��linen asema ja jakautunut identiteetti; sek�� sosiaalinen rakenne, joka helpottaa ihmisten nopeaa mobilisointia poliittiisiin mielenilmauksiin. Tutkimuksessa kiinnitet����n huomiota toistaiseksi v��h��n tutkittuun poliittiseen ilmi����n, joidenkin demokratisoituvien yhteiskuntien voimakkaaseen rakenteelliseen politisoitumiseen. Tutkimuksen p����asiallinen havainto on, ett�� yksipuoluej��rjestelm��n demokratisoituminen kantaa sis��ll����n rakenteellisen politisoitumisen siemenen, jos entinen valtapuolue ei romahda demokratisoitumisen my��t��.

Esteettinen kokemus kulttuurisiltana : Soile Yli-M��yryn taide kiinalaisen, japanilaisen ja suomalaisen yleis��n kokemana

AESTHETIC EXPERIENCE AS A BRIDGE ACROSS CULTURES Soile Yli-M��yry s art as experienced by Chinese, Japanese and Finnish audiences This study focuses on surveying and analysing experiences of Soile Yli-M��yry s art in eleven different countries. Questionnaires were translated into nine different languages. In addition, interviews were conducted on the experiences of Chinese, Japanese and Finnish art audiences concerning a painting called Sun Wind . The study was mainly inspired by John Dewey s ideas of art as an interactive communication where the artist, the piece and those who experience it make up an interactive process. In this process experience is a meeting point with both individual and communal characteristics. The data was collected in conjunction with exhibitions in 1997���2005. The survey was carried out in eleven countries (Finland, United States, Brazil, China, Taiwan, Japan, India, Israel, Argentina, Germany and Switzerland). The survey data was made up of 2,563 returned questionnaires. The interviews in China, Japan and Finland were about the same painting Sun Wind , which was transported from Finland to Japan (Tokyo) and China. A total of 89 people were interviewed in Shanghai Art Museum, 30 people in Port-Ginza Gallery, Tokyo and 45 people in Soile Yli-M��yry s Gallery in Finland. Three hypotheses that were turned into research questions directed the study: 1. Are there differences/ similarities between culturally different communities in the meanings attributed to experiences, e.g. according to emotional dimensions, or do experiences focus more on reflecting on one s own life or meanings attributed to the world around us? What kinds of experiential dimensions are there in different countries? Do similar, analogous experiences that transcend cultural barriers emerge in culturally different countries such as China, Japan and Finland? 2. Does the data display different types of experiencing subjects which are typical to a subject s own country or are they experiences that can be compared to those generated by an ideal landscape , where the art touches the subconscious and collective selfhood, being thus transnational and timeless? Closer analysis focuses on audience experiences in China, Japan and Finland (interviews, textual survey data). 3. Are the experiences and interpretations of experts similar/different to those of larger audiences? The survey data has been analysed with the help of cross-tabulation. After content analysis of the interviews and textual survey data, different ways of experiencing subjects were sketched by country (China, Japan, Finland). The types were both similar and dissimilar. The most important types were social/ecological (China), therapeutic/reserved (Japan) and narrative/projecting (Finland). There were differences in how experiences were emphasised: the Chinese public approached their experiences from the viewpoint of pragmatism and utility, where they could obtain new ideas for their own work or experiencing the exhibition gave courage to approach their own lives from a new perspective. In turn, the Japanese public experienced the art from a therapeutic angle and from a very reserved perspective, which Dylan Evans (2001, 13���17) has described as typical to Japanese culture. The experiences of the Finnish audience were strongly therapeutic and narrative. The people projected their emotions onto the piece and in a concrete manner forged them into a story. The partly similar results of this study in China, Japan and Finland demonstrate that the art displayed in the exhibitions contain images of the beginning or elements connected to the beginning of life, which touch the subconscious in the way an ideal landscape would. Experiencing the meaningfulness of one s own life through art is a common thread and a bridge across cultures that unites the experiences of the audiences of this study, be they Taoists, Confucians, Buddhists or Maoists in China, Shinto followers, Zen Buddhists in Japan or Evangelist-Lutherans in Finland. Keywords: experience, reception, bridge across cultures, types of experiencing subjects, experiential process, ideal landscape, elementality