KSCB191 Workshop: Doing Research in Humanities in Taiwan

Faculty of Arts
Autumn 2019
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: k (colloquium).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. Bc. Denisa Hilbertová, M.A. (lecturer)
Mgr. Bc. Magdaléna Rychetská, M.A., Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
Mgr. et Mgr. Dušan Vávra, Ph.D.
Department of Chinese Studies – Asia Studies Centre – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Mgr. Bc. Magdaléna Rychetská, M.A., Ph.D.
Supplier department: Department of Chinese Studies – Asia Studies Centre – Faculty of Arts
Prerequisites
KSCA001 Introduction to Chin. Studies
English
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 15 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/15, only registered: 0/15, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/15
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
Type of event: Workshop Key Themes: Migration, Indigenous People, Religion, History, Music Students will learn about obstacles and difficulties while doing an academic research in humanities in Taiwan. Five lectures with research focus on Taiwan will share their experience and tricks how to avoid difficult situations and get a research successfully done. Speakers: Lara Momesso, University of Central Lancashire Daniel Davies, National Sun-Yat Sen University Chen-Yu Lin, University of Liverpool Magdaléna Masláková, Masaryk University Denisa Hilbertova, Masaryk University Schedule: Morning – two hour lecture about respected topics of each presenter Afternoon – three hour workshop how to conduct research in each research area Workshop sections will include reading before the beginning of the workshop and research project to one chosen area. Project will be presented during the workshop seminars
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to navigate through obstacles an academic research brings in a foreign country learn about archives and libraries in Taiwan difficulties of working with different ethnic groups and non-Chinese native speakers avoid problems while using simplified and traditional Chinese at the same time how to work while conducting a research that covers Mainland China and Taiwan explore ways how to get respondents what be to aware of while conducting a research through online and social media
Syllabus
  • Day 1– Monday 2nd of Sep 2019 Time Topic Speaker 10.00-11.00 Registration and Welcome Remarks Denisa Hilbertova Dusan Vavra 11.00 – 13.00 How a newspaper article can change your life: doing research with marriage migrants in Taiwan Lara Momesso 13.00-14.30 Lunch 14.30-16.00 One language, two systems: on conducting ethnographic research across the Taiwan Strait Lara Momesso Day 2– Tuesday 3rd of Sep 2019 Time Topic Speaker 10.00 – 12.00 Articulating Indigeneity in Taiwan Minority and Indigenous Communities – A Struggle for Survival Daniel Davies 12.00-13.30 Lunch 13.30-15.00 Workshop Indigenous People in Taiwan – Doing a research with Indigenous Ethnic Groups Daniel Davies 15.00-15.30 Coffee Break 15.30-17.00 Student’s projects presentations Day 3– Wednesday 4th of Sep 2019 Time Topic Speaker 10.00 – 12.00 Christianity in Taiwan Magdaléna Masláková 12.00-13.30 Lunch 13.30-15.00 Social Networks and Online Media Magdaléna Masláková 15.00-15.30 Coffee Break 15.30-17.00 Student’s projects presentations Evening Program Film Screening Day 4– Thursday 5th of Sep 2019 Time Topic Speaker 10.00 – 12.00 Popular Music in Taiwan: Past, Present and Future of Taiyupop Chen-Yu Lin 12.00-13.30 Lunch 13.30-15.00 Workshop Ethnography and Popular Music Studies: The Case of Taiwan Chen-Yu Lin 15.00-15.30 Coffee Break 15.30-17.00 Student’s projects presentations Day 5– Friday 6th of Sep 2019 Time Topic Speaker 10.00 – 12.00 Taiwan’s Unique History Denisa Hilbertova 12.00-13.30 Lunch 13.30-15.00 Workshop Doing Historical Research in Taiwan Denisa Hilbertova 15.00-15.30 Coffee Break 15.30-17.00 Student’s projects presentations From 18.30 Dinner with Representatives of Economical and Cultural Office in Prague Closing Remarks
Teaching methods
Lectures and workshops This workshop aims to make an academic research in Taiwan for you easier and smoother. Have you ever struggled to find respondents for your questionnaires; find reliable contacts in a foreign country or find your way in archives and libraries? This workshop will help you with all of that and much more. We chose five young scholars who all had done an extensive research in Taiwan. They all were a decade or so ago in the same position as you are now, trying to find their way abroad with a goal of an academic research. Our lectures understand the struggles you are going through. Each lecturer will present their experience in Taiwan and ways how they solved their research obstacles in different areas in humanities. Although this workshop discusses some Taiwanese specifics, methodologically it is helpful for anyone doing a research in humanities. In order to individually help you, students can come up with their own research ideas or problems they might encounter. Each student will prepare a ten-minute research project presentation for the workshop, which will include his/her area of research and problems or questions they faced while preparing/doing this research. Those presentations will be discussed during students’ workshop session. In you are interested, you can send us a draft of the presentation before the workshop and our lectures will send you their feedback. A draft has to done by 30th of August and send to this email address: denisa.hilbertova@mail.muni.cz. Presentations will be then redistributed among the workshop's lectures accordingly by the area of research and the lectures will get back to the students with their recommendations by Monday the 2nd of September. During the workshop week, each student will present their research project, the lecturers will provide a feedbacks and guidelines how to deal with those specific problems and open a discussion during workshop sessions. If you are already further with your research, you can send us a full research project for a review. If you have a preferred date of presentation, let us know, we will try to accommodate your request. In case you have further questions regarding the presentations, do not hesitate to contact us on the same email address.
Assessment methods
Each student is required to present a draft of their research project in a selected area with the lecture's help and supervision Attandance During student project focus workshop sections the lectures will help each student to overcome any specific problems faced. Students will prepare a short ten-minute research project presentation after which research problems will be addressed. In case students will be interested they can hand in a full research project for review. (Students can specify which day of the workshop they would like to present their projects, a lecturer will contact them and provide additional literature and advices if needed)
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught: in blocks.
Note related to how often the course is taught: Workshop proběhne v týdnu 2. - 6. 9. 2019.
Teacher's information
https://forms.gle/NUiBQHwmT7ZYCEbQA
Speakers’ Bio and topic abstracts: Lara Momesso, PhD., University of Central Lancashire Lara Momesso is a lecturer in Asia Pacific Studies at the University of Central Lancashire, Deputy Director of the Northern Institute of Taiwan Studies and Co-Deputy Director of the Centre of Migration Diaspora and Exile at the University of Central Lancashire. Lara’s research is shaped by more than ten years of engagement with migrant communities and civic organizations all around Taiwan, and, partly, in China. Morning session: How a newspaper article can change your life: doing research with marriage migrants in Taiwan By drawing from her long-term research interest on marriage migration, Lara will share how she got to know about this phenomenon in Taiwan and how it gradually turned into her main research interest that paved the way to her career as a young scholar in Taiwan Studies. During her presentation, Lara will also introduce the main trends and issues related to marriage migration in Taiwan. Finally, she will explore the role of Taiwanese spouses in the experiences of personal and collective resistance initiated by marriage migrants. Afternoon session: One language, two systems: on conducting ethnographic research across the Taiwan Strait Mandarin Chinese has been regarded as one of the most influential symbols of the cultural unity and cohesion of Chinese civilisation; however, a rather different picture unfolds when one is in China. By drawing from her research experience with marriage migrants between China and Taiwan, Lara will explore the challenges she faced when conducting ethnographic fieldwork in a country celebrated for its cultural and linguistic continuity, yet divided by the presence of subordinated groups which use language as a way to assert their political identities. To reach this objective tLara will look at language not as a mere coding system and manifestation of the culture of a nation but rather as a realm where power and politics intersect to serve the interests of a dominant group, and which may have an impact on the research process and outcomes. Daniel Davies, National Sun-Yat Sen University in Kaoishung, (PhD. candidate) Daniel Davies is a PhD candidate at the National Sun-Yat Sen University in Kaohsiung exploring the forms of representation and articulation of aboriginal identity in multicultural Taiwan. Based in Pingtung County, southern Taiwan, Daniel has also been active in community development, arts and educational programmes in collaboration with the Pingtung County Government and the Council of Indigenous Peoples. Inspired by his time at the University of Sussex, focusing on the ‘Taiwan Miracle’ and the social consequences of rapid economic development and political transformation, Daniel first travelled to Taiwan in 2009 to study at the National Taiwan University. Returning to participate in community development projects in 2010, he soon took a specific interest in the post-typhoon relocation of indigenous peoples of Pingtung County. As part of the Taiwan Studies MA programme, and now as a PhD candidate, Daniel has continued his research into the significance of the indigenous peoples of Taiwan in national party politics and the intersection of national and local communities in the spheres of political representation, national identity, electioneering and international relations. Morning session: Articulating Indigeneity in Taiwan Minority and Indigenous Communities – A Struggle for Survival Through the process of democratisation, and the localisation of the Republic of China on Taiwan, the particularities of local cultures was elevated to the forefront of the new political and social landscapes of Taiwanese nationhood. The imagery of indigenous groups has become central to the promotion of the new imagination of Taiwan as a diverse and multicultural liberal democracy. Since the early 2000’s, with the economic and political relocation of Taiwan into Southeast Asia the role of indigenous peoples, as a symbol of the new Taiwanese identity and its links to the South Pacific Austronesian community, was further propelled into national political discourse. As indigeneity has been merged with political strategy, in an attempt to legitimise political parties, define national identity and strengthen regional partnerships, the articulation of local cultures and social imagination has been divided. Using the case of the emergence of the ‘Austronesian Narrative’ in Taiwan’s diplomatic efforts, the means by which indigeneity has been co-opted as a political tool is exemplified. Through interviews with members of indigenous communities the results of this political maneuver on the identity and livelihoods of indigenous peoples is shared. Conceptually, it is shown that as the role of indigenous peoples in national politics changes the creation of political narratives of indigeneity essentialise and reduce community life, and pragmatically, the entanglement of local communities in politics, has dramatic effects on the funding, work and opportunities in indigenous regions. Afternoon session: Leading on from the talk, which uses the example of the ‘Austronesian Narrative’ to exemplify the means by which articulation of indigeneity by political actors at a national level has ramifications for local indigenous communities, the workshop will attempt to introduce the importance of control of articulation and representation. By using a multimedia approach, participants will be given access to a variety of sources which contribute to the articulation of indigeneity. Through speeches, videos and texts the varying conceptualisations of the indigenous peoples of the Paiwan people of Taiwan will be introduced. Using the sources, participants will be asked to create a basic introduction to the indigenous peoples of Taiwan through different explorative lenses. Through the final presentations participants will be expected to not only gain insights into the indigenous peoples of Taiwan, but also gain an understanding of the value of articulation and learn to critically engage with multimedia sources. Magdalena Masláková, Masaryk University, (Ph.D. Candidate) Magdaléna Masláková is a PhD candidate at the Department of Study of Religions at Masaryk University. She is an assistant at the China Studies Seminar at the same university. In her research, she focuses on the study of Christianity in Chinese societies, especially to church-state relations. Morning Session: Christianity in Taiwan Christian minority is making up about 5% of its population. Roughly half of Taiwan's Christians are Catholic, and half Protestant. Despite its minority status, Christianity has had a disproportionate influence on the island's culture and development. Afternoon Session: Doing Research on Social Networks In recent years, social networks and online media have significantly evolved and therefore created an essential source of data for research. Various Christian groups employ Facebook as well as websites to address especially younger generations. Through these means, Christians can construct their identity. Concerning the fact that they may use not only textual messages but also pictures, videos and audio elements, it is crucial to capture multi-layered complexities of modern websites and its potential for appealing to its audience. What are methodological challenges in analysing the online self-representations of a particular group from a social scientific perspective? Denisa Hilbertova, Masaryk University, (Ph.D. Candidate) Denisa Hilbertova is a PhD candidate at the Department of World History at Charles University in Prague and a Vice-head at the Department of China Studies Seminar at Masaryk University. Denisa focuses on modern Taiwanese history, she is especially keen on British Maritime Trade in Asia and the Social History of Taiwan and the Asia-Pacific Region. Morning Session: Taiwan’s Unique History Taiwan has a unique historical experience; even in comparison with the very turbulent region of Southeast Asia. Morning talk will focus on less know aspects of social and economical history of Taiwan in the 19th century and its monumental consequences for the future development of the island. Afternoon Session: Doing Historical Research in Taiwan Taiwanese archives and historical sources are spread all over Formosan island. Because of Taiwanese turbulence history, many important archival sources were moved to other countries, such as Great Britain, Japan, U.S.A, and Holland. etc. How to find what you are looking for? Who to ask and what in can found in Taiwan itself? In this section, two speakers will introduce the obstacles and advantages doing history and religious research in Taiwan, how to access archival sources in Taiwan, how archive generally work and how to work with Taiwanese library and archival databases. Chen-Yu Lin, PhD., Liverpool University Chen-Yu Lin is Honorary Research Fellow in the Institute of Popular Music (IPM), Department of Music at the University of Liverpool. She received her PhD on perceptions of Chineseness in China Wind pop music across Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, and the UK in 2018 and worked as Adjunct Lecturer and Research Associate in the same institute, She is also Assistant Editor of Taiwan Insight. Her research interests include Mandarin popular music, music censorship, music and place. She is also an award documentary producer who actively incorporates filmmaking and screening as research methods. Morning Session: Popular Music in Taiwan: Past, Present and Future of Taiyupop This lecture will cover a few topics in relation to the past, present and future of Taiwan’s popular music with a special focus on Taiyupop— popular music in Taiwanese-Hokkien. The topics will be addressed include the history and evolvement of the genre, development of Taiwan’s recording music industry, as well as how cultural and political history in Taiwan has influenced the genre. The first record company in Taiwan, Columbia Records, was established in the 1930s during Japanese colonialisation. The company produced and released songs mostly in Taiyu, the native tongue of the majority of population on the island at the time. However, under the martial law (1945-1987), the language policy restricts the development of any languages other than Mandarin Chinese. Due to this historical background, Taiyupop represented the subversive ideologies against the agenda of nation- building at the time. Even after democratisation, Taiyupop is still often appropriated during election campaign as a signifier of local identities and closeness to the people. This lecture will examine this by providing a case study on a song, Waves Wandering (2018) by the rock band Eggplantegg (茄子蛋). Afternoon Session: Ethnography and Popular Music Studies: The Case of Taiwan The term 'ethnography' commonly refers to data derived from direct observation of behaviour in a particular society. While studying popular music, ethnographic research treats popular music as social practice and process (Cohen, 1993) instead of a sounding object. Through ethnography, culture, perspectives and practices of the people in these settings are explored (Hammersley, 1995). This workshop session will, firstly, introduce ethnographic research methods and explain why they are useful for the study of popular music. Then, focusing on Taiwan’s popular music, this session will provide examples of two research projects the speaker has conducted. One project looks into the perception of Chineseness (Lin, 2018; Lin and Um, 2017) in a style of Mandarin pop music; the other one uses memory map as a research tool to investigate spatiality of popular music in Taipei.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/phil/autumn2019/KSCB191