Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: In 1999/2000 the Greeland Commission on Self Governance chose a logo representing a well known myth about a mistreated orphan boy who gained strength through help from magical powers. In the 21st century modern legal principles and ideals of democracy, autonomy and equality are being ascribed almost mythological qualities in order to support their persuasive power. The paper intends to discuss the normative aspects of mythology and the mythological aspects of modern law and reflect upon consequences of their interaction.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Sayyid Qutb’s radical mature work, Milestones along the Road, begins with a grim diagnosis. “Mankind is on the brink of a precipice,” he says, “not because of the danger of complete annihilation hanging over its head – this being just a symptom and not the real disease – but because humanity is devoid of those vital values which are necessary for its healthy development but also its real progress” The physical existential threat posed by the assured mutual destruction in the nuclear age is but a footnote to the greater threat directed at the spiritual and moral dimensions of man in the modern era. Whilst the West may have an advantage in technological and practical matters the spiritual wisdom found in the Islamic world has a comparative advantage in the world marketplace for the “cure” of this ubiquitous degeneration.
His work offers guidance along the path to the dawning of a new world, and above all, the élan vital necessary for prodding humanity into action. Replacing man’s fallible sovereignty, institutionalized in modern political organizations, with divine sovereignty, Qutb argues, will harmonize man with divine cosmic laws, birthing a new world and a new man where all social ends are reconciled – justice, equality, wealth. Our collective misery arises from this failure to recognize God’s sovereignty in all things, corrupting and degenerating human nature. Qutb urges all “true Muslims” to spearhead a revolt against the prevailing corrupt order to usher in an era of peace and contentment – paradise regained on the earthly realm.
While he excavates the cultural memory of Islam to provide the legitimating backdrop for his program, religion alone is not responsible for Qutb’s novel interpretation. He marries distinctly political concerns with the substance of Islam to argue for a decidedly this-worldly salvation that can only be realized through engagement and opposition in the political and social world. Understanding the interaction of religion and politics within Qutb’s theory demands an investigation encompassing the components of regenerative myth permeating his thought.
George Sorel’s piercing analysis of the role of myth and action provides such an opportunity. Within his theory, three critical characteristics conjoin to foster myths capable of securing the “epic state of mind” essential for the revolutionary action needed to struggle against endemic societal degeneration. Distinguishing utopia from myth, reform from revolution, Sorel examines how that distinction provides a barrier against critical refutation, translating into “effective political action.” Qutb makes extensive use of political myth in his attempt to inspire and motivate men to the revolutionary action necessary for communal rebirth. Sustaining this mythic fire requires its adherents to demonize reason and the Other, fueling the perpetual action and struggle replacing reason as the avenue to experiencing truth. The death of politics and the individual are the disturbing results.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: The Myth About Methods in Chicago Sociology
Several sociological historians of the Chicago School have suggested that it is wrong for
sociological historians and commentators to associate a qualitative and non-statistical
epistemological-methodological stance to Chicago sociology as this has led to a denial or
denigration of that department’s quantitative and statistical approaches. Martin Bulmer is
probably the locus classicus of this in his important book The Chicago School of
Sociology(1984). He refers to “the neglect of this quantitative tradition in Chicago social science
in the 1920s and 1930s” by sociological historians and to “the predominant identification of
Chicago social science with ‘soft’ ethnographic methods in the 1920s and 1930s”(1984:151). Lee
Harvey reiterates this perspective in his Myths of the Chicago School with statements such as
“The ‘Chicago School’ is rarely associated with the development or even use of quantitative
techniques....the myth is that Chicago was the home of ethnographic research.” He refers to the
description of Chicago’s attitude to quantification produced by sociological historians and commentators as one of “antipathy”(1987:74). Taking his cue from Harvey, Martyn Hammersley
also accepts such a view, “The idea that the Chicagoans were committed to qualitative sociology is probably even more misleading”(1990:90).

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: The Model Minority Myth is a popular theme in studies of Asian Americans. We critique this theme on several grounds. First, key methodological aspects of the Model Minority Myth are based on faulty statistical reasoning. Second, the empirical status of the hypotheses derived from the Model Minority Myth appears to be largely false. Third, the political arguments usually associated with the Model Minority Myth are overly simplistic and based on faulty logic. We argue that the Model Minority Myth persists because it promotes the socioeconomic self-interests of the professors who currently control the Asian American Studies establishment that in turn provides political legitimacy for the universities that employ them.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Faith-related agencies have gained a considerable amount of attention in academic and popular literature. This broad group of organisations is often promoted as a new way of effectively reaching marginalised populations and efficiently providing needed services. Much of the current debate has focused on either operationally defining these groups or on how religion itself can benefit target populations. Little research has taken a step back to question why these special interest groups appear so effective. This paper uses faith-related agencies in Latin America as a context for questioning whether it is faith itself or just the organisational legitimacy afforded by their relation to faith that supports these claims. Theoretical arguments in educational sociology suggest that religion itself may provide some benefit, particularly in the construction of social capital. Using Meyer and Rowan’s (1977) seminal article on institutionalised organisations, this article suggests that it may not be religious affiliations per se that provide the benefit, but rather the myths and ceremonies associated with religious structures.