American Ambassadors

American Ambassadors
Author: Dennis C. Jett
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 468
Release: 2021-11-25
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 3030837696

If you ever wondered who becomes an American ambassador and why, this is the book for you. It describes how Foreign Service officers become ambassadors by rising up through the ranks, and why they typically make up about 70 percent of the total number of ambassadors. It also covers where the other 30 percent come from—the political appointees who get the job because they helped elect the president by supporting him as a campaign contributor, a political ally, or a personal friend. It explains why, despite being illegal and a threat to national security, selling the title of ambassador remains a common practice that is also unique to the United States. It considers why some suggestions for reform are misguided, what might be done, and why who the president is matters so much in determining how well the United States will be represented abroad. This updated and revised edition of Jett's classic book not only provides a timely overview of American ambassadorship for Foreign Service Officers, aspiring diplomats, and interested citizens, but also calls for much-needed reform, describing the dire implications of failing to change our ambassadorial appointments process for the future of American diplomatic practice and foreign policy.

Manuscript and Print in the Islamic Tradition

Manuscript and Print in the Islamic Tradition
Author: Scott Reese
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
Total Pages: 382
Release: 2022-09-05
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 3110776480

This volume explores and calls into question certain commonly held assumptions about writing and technological advancement in the Islamic tradition. In particular, it challenges the idea that mechanical print naturally and inevitably displaces handwritten texts as well as the notion that the so-called transition from manuscript to print is unidirectional. Indeed, rather than distinct technologies that emerge in a progressive series (one naturally following the other), they frequently co-exist in complex and complementary relationships – relationships we are only now starting to recognize and explore. The book brings together essays by internationally recognized scholars from an array of disciplines (including philology, linguistics, religious studies, history, anthropology, and typography) whose work focuses on the written word – channeled through various media – as a social and cultural phenomenon within the Islamic tradition. These essays promote systematic approaches to the study of Islamic writing cultures writ large, in an effort to further our understanding of the social, cultural and intellectual relationships between manuscripts, printed texts and the people who use and create them.

Routledge Encyclopedia of Translation Studies

Routledge Encyclopedia of Translation Studies
Author: Mona Baker
Publisher: Psychology Press
Total Pages: 654
Release: 1998-01
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 9780415093804

The Routledge Encyclopedia of Translation Studies has been the standard reference in the field since it first appeared in 1998. The second, extensively revised and extended edition brings this unique resource up to date and offers a thorough, critical and authoritative account of one of the fastest growing disciplines in the humanities. The Encyclopedia is divided into two parts and alphabetically ordered for ease of reference: Part I (General) covers the conceptual framework and core concerns of the discipline. Categories of entries include: * central issues in translation theory (e.g. equivalence, translatability, unit of translation) * key concepts (e.g. culture, norms, ethics, ideology, shifts, quality) * approaches to translation and interpreting (e.g. sociological, linguistic, functionalist) * types of translation (e.g. literary, audiovisual, scientific and technical) * types of interpreting (e.g. signed language, dialogue, court) New additions in this section include entries on globalisation, mobility, localization, gender and sexuality, censorship, comics, advertising and retranslation, among many others. Part II (History and Traditions) covers the history of translation in major linguistic and cultural communities. It is arranged alphabetically by linguistic region. There are entries on a wide range of languages which include Russian, French, Arabic, Japanese, Chinese and Finnish, and regions including Brazil, Canada and India. Many of the entries in this section are based on hitherto unpublished research. This section includes one new entry: Southeast Asian tradition. Drawing on the expertise of over ninety contributors from thirty countries and an international panel of consultant editors, this volume offers a comprehensive overview of translation studies as an academic discipline and anticipates new directions in the field.