Aletta Norval (born 1960) is a South African born

political theorist A political theorist is someone who engages in constructing or evaluating political theory, including political philosophy. Theorists may be academics or independent scholars. Ancient * Aristotle * Chanakya * Cicero * Confucius * Mencius * ...

. she is Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Education) at

Anglia Ruskin University Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) is a public research university in the region of East Anglia, United Kingdom. Its origins date back to the Cambridge School of Art (CSA), founded by William John Beamont, a Fellow of Trinity College at the Unive ...

. A prominent member of the

Essex School of discourse analysis The Essex School of discourse analysis, or simply 'The Essex School', refers to a type of scholarship founded on the works of Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe. It focuses predominantly on the political discourses of late modernity utilising disco ...

, she is mainly known for her

deconstructionist In philosophy, deconstruction is a loosely-defined set of approaches to understand the relationship between Text (literary theory), text and Meaning (linguistics), meaning. The concept of deconstruction was introduced by the philosopher Jacques ...

analysis of

Apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

discourse, for her

methodological In its most common sense, methodology is the study of research methods. However, the term can also refer to the methods themselves or to the philosophical discussion of associated background assumptions. A method is a structured procedure for bri ...

contributions to

discourse analysis Discourse analysis (DA), or discourse studies, is an approach to the analysis of written, spoken, or sign language, including any significant semiotic event. The objects of discourse analysis (discourse, writing, conversation, communicative sy ...

and for her work on decentred, democratic and poststructuralist political theory. Her other research interests include feminist theory, South-African politics, ethnicity and the politics of race. More recently, she has worked on biometrics, focussing on issues of citizen consent to identity management techniques. Norval studied

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

at the

University of Johannesburg The University of Johannesburg, colloquially known as UJ, is a public university A public university, state university, or public college is a university or college that is State ownership, owned by the state or receives significant fundi ...

(South Africa) and discourse analysis at

Essex University The University of Essex is a public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, it is one of the original plate glass universities. The university comprises three campuses in the county, in Southend-on-Sea and ...

. She received a master's degree from the University of Johannesburg, and a MA and

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

from the Ideology and Discourse Analysis programme at the University of Essex. Her doctoral thesis, completed under the supervision of

Ernesto Laclau Ernesto Laclau (; 6 October 1935 – 13 April 2014) was an Argentine political theorist and philosopher. He is often described as an 'inventor' of post-Marxist political theory. He is well known for his collaborations with his long-term partner, ...

, was entitled ‘Accounting for Apartheid: Its Emergence, Logic and Crisis’. Following the completion of her doctoral studies, Norval started an academic career at the Department of Government at Essex University, where she is currently a Professor. She was Director of the PhD Programme in Ideology and Discourse Analysis and co-director of the Centre for Theoretical Studies in the Humanities and the Social Sciences, both founded by

. She was Dean of Postgraduate Research and Education (2012-2013) and was Pro-Vice-Chancellor Education at the University of Essex from 2013 to 2018. She was also a member of the Privacy Expert Group (PEG) of the Biometrics Institute, until 2019. Norval has authored and co-edited many

book A book is a structured presentation of recorded information, primarily verbal and graphical, through a medium. Originally physical, electronic books and audiobooks are now existent. Physical books are objects that contain printed material, ...

s and has published numerous articles in

journal A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to: *Bullet journal, a method of personal organization *Diary, a record of personal secretive thoughts and as open book to personal therapy or used to feel connected to onesel ...

s such as: 'American Political Science Review', 'Ethics & Global Politics', ''Journal of Political Ideologies''; ''Political Theory''; ''Diacritics''; ''Philosophy and Social Criticism''; ''Constellations''; ''Political Studies''; ''

Acta Philosophica ''Acta Philosophica'' is a biannual peer-reviewed academic journal that was established in 1992. The editor-in-chief is Rafael A. Martínez (Pontifical University of the Holy Cross). The journal publishes articles in Italian, English, Spanish, and ...

''; ''Critical Discourse Studies''; ''British Journal of Political Science''.

Selected bibliography

Books

* 'Practices of Freedom: Decentered Governance, Conflict and Democratic Participation', (Cambridge University Press, 2014) (co-edited with Steven Griggs and Hendrik Wagenaar) * ''Aversive Democracy: Inheritance and Originality in the Democratic Tradition'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007) * n Teoretiese Studie van die Metodologie van Kruiskulturele Houdingsmeting (A Theoretical Inquiry into the Methodology of Cross-Cultural Attitude Research)'' (Pretoria: Human Sciences Research Council, 1984; second edition 1993) * (co-edited with David Howarth and Yannis Stavrakakis) ''Discourse Theory and Political Analysis'' (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2000) * (co-edited with David Howarth) ''South Africa in Transition: New Theoretical Perspectives'' (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1998)

Papers

*
Pdf version.

References

* http://www.cambridge.org/us/academic/subjects/politics-international-relations/political-theory/practices-freedom-decentred-governance-conflict-and-democratic-participation?format=HB
Dr Aletta Norval – Department of Government, University of Essex

Dr Aletta Norval – Cambridge University Press

Short Biography - University of Tilburg

External links

Aletta Norval at the Australasian Summer School in Contemporary Critical Theories

‘Hegemony after Deconstruction’

‘Democratic Identification: A Wittgensteinian Approach’

‘Writing a name in the sky’: Critically Reading Rancière on Democracy - Paper presented to the University of Chicago Political Theory Workshop
{{DEFAULTSORT:Norval, Aletta Living people South African political scientists South African emigrants to the United Kingdom South African expatriates in England University of Johannesburg alumni South African political philosophers Alumni of the University of Essex Academics of the University of Essex Discourse analysts Women political scientists 1960 births