University of Pretoria allows cartoons in dissertations?

University of Pretoria allows cartoons in dissertations?

And this is an "accredited" school?

Tell me it isn't so.

Go to:

http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-03192004-135203/unrestricted/09chapter9.pdf

Scroll to the 2nd page.

Arminius

 

I don't know if you're qualified to judge the quality of a doctoral dissertation but if you've read through this entire document and the only criticism you've got is that it contains a cartoon then I'd say it's must be quite good.
Jack

 

Gosh, if cartoons are prohibited in dissertations, how will I ever be able to get a dissertation-only PhD in Political Science for writing a dissertation on "The Role of Comic Books and Cartoons in the Political Socialization of Children"? (One of those back-burner projects. Hee! Hee!)

 

Actually...

Comics have often had very strong political overtones. Take a look at Cpt. America during WW2. Could actually be a viable study topic.

 

Since the University of Pretoria is not a U.S. institution, it would not be accredited by one of the six U.S. regional accrediting agencies. However, Pretoria is definitely considered to be equivalent to a regionally accredited university by U.s. universities.

I am not so sure that I am prepared to judge a 526 page dissertation to be unworthy because one of the figures utilized is a cartoon. Having read many, many dissertations, I could point to several that could have benefitted from some nice cartoons.

After all, William H. Cosby Jr., Ed.D. did his dissertation about how to apply a cartoon series (Fat Albert & the Cosby Kids) into classroom instruction.

 

I'm just concerned that the image wasn't cited...I saw no footnote, endnote, or parenthetical reference in the text...

I hope that the author wasn't trying to pass that off as his own work, because it looked very familiar....

 

Re: Actually...

Yes, indeed. One of my undergraduate professors, Paul A. Lowdenslager (BA, Saint John's College; MA, University of Dallas; PhD, University of Illinois; Professor of Political Science, Western State College, 1978-1995) used to say that David Banner, that usually mild-mannered nuclear engineer who (when very angry) turns into the Incredible Hulk, was in actuality an allegory of America as the gentle giant who will nevertheless go to war to protect the sovereignty of little countries against larger aggressor nations.

Another thing that made me think of this was that Bears' Guide says that people who read nonfiction and watch PBS are more likely to be successful with nontraditional education than those who read comic books and watch cartoons (though, of course, in Dr. Bear's favor, he did allow for some exceptions).

 

Re: Actually...

Especially in early modern England and New England, cartoons aimed at children quite brazenly had overtones of political education. I remember this quite well from having tutored World History for some young man from Mercer Island High School when I was in Seattle.

Then, of course, there are the adult political cartoons. The nineteenth-century political cartoonist Thomas Nast (he who gave us the Democratic donkey - after that jackass President Jackson, may he rot in Hell for what he did to the Cherokees - and the Republican elephant and, no doubt, the word "nasty") would be a good dissertation topic for those interested in the history of adult political cartoons.

 

He cites all the cartoons in the front matter (and in bibliography -- under Larson, G.).

I see his advisor's name is Human. Maybe I should offer a prize to whomever can say how that's pronounced (South Africans excluded). There's a funeral company called Human and Pitt (Human en Pitt Begrafnisondernemers) but only the souties find that name amusing.

 

gaan aan...

I don't think anybody who shills for the inane ACI goofball "accreditor" and also for a couple of thoroughly non-anything siminerries has any business taking any kind of shot at the eminently distinguished University of Pretoria (where our esteemed colleague Muhammad Alhor is a DL student) or at any real dissertation that included a cartoon.

Consider the source. Shame.

 

Re: gaan aan...

Oh, come now Grandpa Janko. You are making an ass out of yourself, again. Do you ever stop? What ever happened to freedom of speech, Grandpa? I guess it doesn't exist in your pitiful little world. You are beginning to sound more and more like an angry Calvinist. Perhaps I could include a cartoon in my thesis on Calvinism. Calvinists are quite funny, you know.

Arminius

 

Hmm. So... like... if a picture is worth a thousand words, then would.... naaahh.

Hey. Arminius. Knock it off.

 

Re: Re: gaan aan...

So. I think it's telling that in response to all the comments made to Arminius' original posting, all he can do is offer an insult to Uncle. Doesn't this really say all that needs to be said? Arminius posts a totally weak criticism of a dissertation and when he's called out on it, he just slings mud. This guy is just a waste of time.
Jack

 

Re: Re: Re: gaan aan...

That's pretty much what I was thinking, too (not just based on this, but also on his other postings around here). I just hesitated to blurt it out because that seems to get me in trouble. Of course, I don't know why in godsname I'd let a silly thing like that deter me.

Anyway... agreed.

 

The inside cover of my PhD thesis will have a fantastic cartoon of a sheep (with sunglasses on!), peeling its coat of wool off to reveal a string of fake qualifcations. It was drawn by an artist contracted to the ODA, and he has kindly allowed me to use it.

Cheers,

George

 

Re: Re: Re: gaan aan...

Oh, another defender of the angry Uncle Janko...

I guess it's ok for Janko to sling mud, right? He slings mud at all the posts he doesn't like. But that's ok, right Jack? That's why I have renamed him Grandpa, because he's an angry old fart. Perhaps I should change your name to "Dick" Tracey.

Arminius

 

Re: RE: University of Pretoria allows cartoons in dissertations?

Knock what off? Defending myself? Not a chance....

Arminius

 

Re: Re: Re: Re: gaan aan...

Gee that's a good one. I never heard that one before. Did you think of it all by yourself?

Jack