Pint of Science Germany e.V.
HOT-SHOT Schwabing/Brandstetter
Herzogstraße 29, 80803 München
WEDNESDAY 25th MAY 2016
DOORS OPEN 6PM, EVENT 6:30PM-10PM
World Politics
The Name is Bond, James Bond: 007 and World Politics
This presentation is based on a unique qualitative content analysis of the 24 official James Bond films, the unofficial film Never Say Never Again and the short film Happy and Glorious. The talk gives a short overview of the current state-of-the-art in James-Bond-studies in the social sciences. The talk then focuses on Bond from three empirical angles: Firstly, it looks at how ideas about global political order figure in James Bond movies. The talk highlights in particular the underlying ambivalence in 007’s relationship with global political order, e.g. British relations with the US or Bond’s personal relation with women as well as (male and female) friends and villains. The talk then looks at which images Bond movies evoke about the British self and the antagonistic other. With a view to a kill, upps, sorry with a view to the British self the talk identifies a geopolitical shift in threats to Great Britain. In relation to the antagonistic other it discusses the role of China, which has so far received little attention in James Bond studies.
The talks will be in English, Q&A in English and German
Where Football is Political: The Ultras and the Revolution in Egypt
„The Ultras have played a more significant role than any political group on the ground”. Based on this statement from the political activist and blogger Alaa Abd el-Fattah, this presentation will analyze the revolutionary events in Egypt that have taken place since January 2011. On the one hand, most often the political nature of football tends to get attention only in relation to corruption scandals of, for instance, the FIFA. On the other hand, Ultras themselves insist that their activities are apolitical.
In contrast to this, I will highlight that the nexus of football and politics is crucial in order to understand the developments that led to the toppling of the Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak. In particular, the stadium catastrophe in Port Said in February 2012 with 74 fatalities and the resulting unrests have highlighted that in Egypt football is profoundly political. From the perspective of the Ultras, this presentation will examine broader trends such as the root causes, political dynamics and implications of the uprisings in Egypt.