A homework assignment for Amethystos (heh heh heh)

Here is your new homework assignment, Amethystos:

Write a "book-report" on this PhD thesis:

https://roehampton.openrepository.com/roehampton/bitstream/10142/324378/1/YIANNATHESIS.pdf

and post it here no later than Friday 23 Jan. Points WILL be taken off for lateness (heh heh heh)

The reason why it is your responsibility to review this thesis (heh heh heh) is because the thesis cites this passage from Nettl:

"At the root of the concept of uniting nation and musical style is the idea that a nation’s folk music must somehow reflect the inner characteristics of that nation’s culture, the essential aspects of its emotional life - its very self."

And I believe this quote is very similar to something you have said here yourself ...

Since the lady who wrote this thesis is still alive you can always contact her and ask for some synopsis...

Sorry my friend but I see no reason to read some 300 pages written by someone I really don't know.

My goodness, Amethystos ... don't you know I was joking?????? (That's why I put in the "heh heh heh's) ... but I did think you might the quote interesting ... that's why I mentioned it ...

When it comes to an "organized" mental effort, like the creation of a thesis, forgive me but I can not consider any quote as joke.

People like the one who wrote this, are responsible for humanity's progress...

Note: I have edited this post. In particular, I have changed it from the original because University of Surrey is British, not Greek. But the point remains the same, regardless.

Amethystos -

I am glad to see that in your opinion, the quality of British academic institutions has remained sufficiently high that one can trust a British PhD thesis NOT to be sub-standard, rather than assume that it IS sub-standard.

There are many reasons why one must make the LATTER assumption about US PhD theses, i.e. why one must in general assume that a US PhD thesis is sub-standard. (This is true even in the hard sciences, and of course, it is 10 times worse in the social sciences, liberal arts, and education.)

But I won't bore you by going into these reasons here. It should be enough to tell you that for 10 years from 1972-1982 I was Director of the Office of Graduate Studies of the School of Education of New York University, including "Music Education, "Dance Education", "Art Education", etc., so I know from first-hand experience what I am talking about here ... also, note that I was NOT "Director of Graduate Studies" - I was merely an administrative director of the "Office of Graduate Studies", but I was in charge of making sure that the PhD process ran smoothly from first course taken to oral defense of thesis.

So, I have to say that I am jealous of the fact that apparently, nothing has forced YOU to give up your idealism about academic research. at least not British academic research. I once shared this idealism until my OWN culture made ME cynical.

And that cynicism is, of course, the reason why it is the most natural thing in the world for me to joke about PhD theses.

But as you rightly point out - I incorrectly generalized from the situation in the US to the situation in general, e.g. in Britain. Based on your response, I am now certain that the young woman wrote an entirely admirable dissertation, because I trust your sense of how things are in British culture.