Showing papers in "International Journal of Applied Linguistics and English Literature in 2013"

The Actuality, Inefficiency, and Needs of EFL Teacher-Preparation Programs in Saudi Arabia

Abstract: Designing an effective English-teacher-preparation program and the provision of providing ongoing support and professional development opportunities are key compounding factors in preparing knowledgeable and competent English teachers linguistically and pedagogically as well as in facilitating their professional growth throughout their mammoth teaching journeys. This paper presents an in-depth discussion of the current training available to Saudi English teachers and reviews the changes that English-teacher-preparation programs have undergone over the years. Then, a pre-service and in-service teacher-preparation program will be proposed in addition to a continuing professional development program for Saudi EFL teachers. Finally, a number of key issues will be highlighted to ensure the effectiveness of the proposed training program.

Teachers’ Perceptions of Using Technology in Teaching EFL

Abstract: No longer are students’ experiences with new languages limited to their textbooks or immediate environment. With the pervasiveness of the internet and the increased awareness of the importance of having technology in a classroom, both teachers and students all over the world are being provided with technological tools that will further accelerate their ability to acquire or teach a second or foreign language. Technology integration in the classroom has become an important aspect of successful teaching. It has triggered many researchers to investigate different aspects of such integration. In addition, it could be an effective teaching tool when used to engage all students in the learning process. The results of the study show that teachers have positive attitudes toward the use of technology, particularly computer. The focal point of the project was to promote students’ communicative competence and autonomy via the implementation of technological tools. This study aimed at investigating the perceptions of EFL teachers about the use of technology in their classes and factors affecting technology implementation in Iranian Language Institutes. Descriptive statistics and sample t-test were used to analyze the questionnaire data. Results obtained from both the quantitative and qualitative data revealed teachers’ perceptions about integrating technology in their classes, incentives for teachers who use technology, types of technology used, facilitating and inhibiting factors affecting technology implementation, and the different attitudes of male and female teachers toward using technology. According to the results, teachers had positive attitudes regarding the use of technology, in particular computer, in their classrooms.

Does Writing Self-efficacy Correlate with and Predict Writing Performance?

Abstract: Self-efficacy has been broadly studied in recent decades and it has been attested an essential contributor to success in English language learning. However, to date, there have been few studies looking into self-efficacy in EFL writing, and into the students’ self-efficacy at a micro-skill level. This paper aims to investigate whether there is a relationship between writing self-efficacy and writing performance and to explore whether students’ overall writing self-efficacy predicts their overall writing performance. By means of a questionnaire for writing self-efficacy and a paragraph writing test, paragraph writing scores of 51 third-year English majors were collected. Then the data were computed using Pearson Correlation Coefficient and the Simple Linear Regression. The results reveal that there is a significant positive relationship between writing self-efficacy and writing performance both at the paragraph level and at the sub-skill level. Furthermore, the overall writing self-efficacy predicts the overall writing performance. In the last part, the importance of self-efficacy is discussed and implications for EFL/ESL education are offered.

The impact of Technology (BBM and WhatsApp Applications) on English Linguistics in Kuwait

Abstract: This paper sheds light on the impact of the widespread of improvements happened in the fields of communication technology on English language use. This impact is described on the basis of interviews conducted with participants. The sample of the study consists of (211) participants. The sample is divided into two age levels groups; the first group is the intermediate school students (118 participants their ages range from 11 to 15 years old) and the second is the secondary school students (93 participants their ages range from 16 to 18 years old). Data are discussed in relation to other studies. Also, the researcher has discussed the implication of the findings of the study.

Motivation and Learning Strategies in a

Abstract: Motivation is a fundamental factor to fructify any functional and effective classroom setting with interest, hope and expressive fruitful teaching experience. Motivating foreign language learners to advance successfully in learning the target language (English) is a domain that has been discussed widely in many language learning studies. In fact, there is still much argumentation on to what extent motivation influence language learning as there is not clear evidence of how motivation manipulates the success or failure of the target language. It is noticeable that language learners, in this case Saudi university students, do not invest as much time in learning English as they do in learning their specialist subjects. This paper tends to look at the meaning of motivation and how far does it go to affect language learning. It also attempts to investigate factors that frustrate learners by conducting different research tools such as interviews and questionnaires for both English students and instructors. Research results present that many students dislike English classes and wish not to participate or attend them. Additionally, teachers comment that despite the efforts to promote language learning, the outcome of their students is considered to be unsatisfactory. Teachers believe that this can be contributed to the fact that they are pressed to complete fixed curriculum in a limited period of time and abide by strict instruction to evaluate their students with no room left for them to personalize their own learning experience. Therefore, teachers need to be given opportunities to broaden their pedagogical repertoires and make English learning more engaging and more meaningful. The study implications shed the light on some useful hints to be applied in EFL classes.

Process-Product Approach to Writing: the Effect of Model Essays on EFL Learners’ Writing Accuracy

Abstract: Writing is one the most important skills in learning a foreign language. The significance of being able to write in a second or foreign language has become clearer nowadays. Accordingly, different approaches to writing such as product approach, process approach and more recently process-product approach came into existence and they have been the concern of SL/FL researchers. The aim of this study is to answer the question that whether the use of an incomplete model text in process-product approach to writing and asking the learners to complete the text rather than copying it can have a positive impact on EFL learners’ accuracy in writing. After training a number of EFL learners on using process approach, we held a two-session writing class. In the first session students wrote in the process approach, and in the second one they were given a model text to continue in the process-product approach. The writing performance of the students in these two sessions was compared in term of accuracy. Based on the students’ writing performance, we came to the conclusion that completing the model text in process-product writing can have a rather positive influence in some aspects of their writing accuracy such as punctuation, capitalization, spelling, subject-verb agreement, tense, the use of connectors, using correct pronouns and possessives. Also the results of the paired t-test indicate that using a model text to continue increased students’ writing accuracy.

Can Automated Writing Evaluation Programs Help Students Improve Their English Writing

Abstract: This study explores the effect of the automated writing evaluation (AWE) on Taiwanese students writing, and whether student improvement and their perception of the program are related. Instruments included a questionnaire, 735 essays analyzed in Criterion, and a pre/post essay. Two classes of 53 college students participated in the study. Descriptive statistics, paired-samples t-tests, Pearson correlation, effect size, and regression were used to analyze the data. Results showed that students improved significantly in terms of the length of the essay and the scores awarded by the machine and the human raters. However, among the five essays, the first essay is the only one showing a significant level of consistency between student improvement and student attitude, and the correlation declined dramatically after the first essay. To conclude, this study may be of importance in confirming the usefulness of the AWE functions such as recursive revising and instant scoring, as well as in providing teachers with a better understanding of how student beliefs about the Criterion program might relate to their writing performance.

The Impact of Vocabulary Knowledge Level on EFL Reading Comprehension

Abstract: The present study examined the impact of vocabulary knowledge level on reading comprehension performance among EFL language learners The ultimate intention was to determine the association between levels of vocabulary knowledge and to clarify the relationship among vocabulary knowledge on reading comprehension performance of EFL Iranian students on subtest of VLT and IELTS Quantitative data were collected from 220 EFL Iranian adult students at the beginning of second semester of 2011 in private English language institute (BAHAR), Shiraz, Iran The Vocabulary Levels Test (VLT) and Reading Comprehension Test (IELTS) were performed in one session as research instruments The findings indicated that there were positive relationships among different levels of vocabulary test and also test scores on vocabulary size/breadth of vocabulary knowledge, and reading comprehension

The Iranian EFL Students’ and Teachers’ Perception of Using Persian in General English Classes

Abstract: This paper examined the perception of Iranian EFL learners and teachers towards employing Persian in EFL classes. The present study was a case study which investigated teachers’ and students’ perception toward effective use of L1 and L2 in General English classes at university level. The participants were 345students and 25 teachers at the University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran. Two research tools were used for gathering data: questionnaires and interviews. Analysis of the qualitative study and comparing the mean scores of two groups via Mann-whitny revealed that the perceptions of the teachers and the students differ from each other. Iranian EFL learners were willing to use their mother tongue. While, Iranian EFL teachers had a positive tendency to use more English than Persian in the General English classes. Teachers have to consider that the major medium of instruction must be English. They should use L1 judiciously in FL classrooms whenever possible and beneficial to relieve anxious, nervous, frightened, and reluctant students as well as learners with low self-esteem.

The Relationship between Learner Autonomy and Willingness to Communicate (WTC) in Iranian EFL Learners

Abstract: WTC is very important for English learners. Without WTC it is impossible to use the target language. On the other hand, developing learner autonomy as the independence in one’s own learning is considered a crucial goal of education. More important than that learner autonomy in WTC is a necessity that has to be considered in language education. In this study, the researcher investigated whether there is any statistically significant relationship between learner autonomy and WTC in Iranian EFL learners. To this end, 77 English learners were homogenized out of 100 advanced learners. A learner autonomy questionnaire and a WTC scale, for measuring trait-like WTC, was given to them; and they were observed, for measuring situational WTC, for 6 sessions. The quantitative data gathered through these instruments were analyzed to determine the degree of correlation between these two constructs. The results demonstrated a significant and strong relationship between learner autonomy and trait-like WTC in Iranian EFL learners and a significant but weak correlation between learner autonomy and situational WTC in Iranian EFL learners. So it can be concluded that a significant relationship between learner autonomy and WTC can be seen in Iranian EFL learners. The regression analysis provided further support for this result.

The Relationship between Learner Autonomy and Vocabulary Learning Strategies in Iranian EFL Learners with Different Language Proficiency Level

Abstract: Vocabulary learning is incredibly noteworthy to English language acquisition. It is unfeasible for a learner to communicate without the required vocabulary. In high education levels, learners are habitually forced to become autonomous and make conscious effort to learn vocabulary outside of the classroom. Consequently, the autonomy of the learners plays an important role in developing and enhancing their vocabulary. Learner autonomy is a huge assistance for learners in vocabulary learning since it provides the learners with numerous diverse privileges such as independency from teacher. The researcher investigated whether there is any statistically significant relationship between learner autonomy and vocabulary learning strategies use in Iranian EFL learners with different language proficiency levels. To meet the above purpose, a total number of 190 male and female EFL learners participated in this study. The methodology underlying this study was quantitative (thorough the administration of two questionnaires and two language proficiency test – TOEFL for advanced group, and Nelson for intermediate level). The quantitative data was analyzed using a set of correlational analysis revealing a significant positive correlation between learner autonomy and vocabulary learning strategies use in high proficient group, and a significant positive relationship between these two constructs in low proficient group, however not as strong as in the advanced group.

Minimizing Cyber-Plagiarism through Turnitin: Faculty’s & Students’ Perspectives

Abstract: This is an attempt to investigate and evaluate students’ and faculty’s experiences and understanding to the strengths and limitations of anti-plagiarism software, specifically, Turnitin and how it could be used to promote academic integrity among engineering students. 50 engineering students and 20 professors were surveyed and interviewed. The paper argues that although Turnitin is widely used these days to tackle and minimize plagiarism practices, however cyber-plagiarism is increasing and the software might be inadequate in fighting such practice. The paper also questions the effectiveness and limitations of the software in relation to current practices. The findings revealed that most of the respondents perceive Turnitin positively; limitations of the software are not many and they believed that the software is effective in detecting and minimizing plagiarism incidents among their students’ papers. The study puts forward some recommendations which might help practitioners in minimizing plagiarism practices.

EFL Learners’ Beliefs about Language Learning along Gender, Further Education in Language Institutes & Different Proficiency Levels

Abstract: The aim of the present study was to understand the beliefs of Iranian EFL learners’ about language learning. This study was an attempt to understand if there was any relationship between gender, proficiency level and further education in language institutes on beliefs about language learning. Accordingly, 369 EFL engineering students studying in Azad University of Tabriz, Iran were selected based on random sampling. Data were collected using two questionnaires: a demographical questionnaire, and the Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory (BALLI). Data were analyzed using ANOVA, LSD & t-test. The results of the study showed that the highest mean average among the five components of beliefs about language learning was nature of language learning (M=3.91), followed by Foreign Language Aptitude (M=3.85), Difficulty of Language Learning (M=3.42), Learning and Communication Strategies (M=3.35) and Motivation and Expectations (M=3.25). The findings showed that there was a significant difference between learners’ beliefs, gender and further education in language institutes. However, there was not any significant difference between learners’ beliefs and their proficiency level. The study concluded with some pedagogical implications.

Negotiating Liminal Identities in Mohja Kahf’s The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf

Abstract: This paper challenges the thought that the term ‘Muslim woman’ connotes submissive or backward and is in need of rescue by the West through a literary analysis of the work by Mohja Kahf (b.1967), a leading contemporary Arab-American Muslim woman writer. In her novel, The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf (2006), Kahf focuses on the oppressive and discriminatory practices Muslim women encounter when wearing the hijab or veil where the main character and narrator experiences a type of identity split, or fragmentation, when assimilating into mainstream American culture. As a tool for analysis, the notion of liminality by Victor Turner (1920-1983), a British cultural anthropologist, is used to analyze the narrator’s choice of being ‘betwixt and between’ the state of things, or being ‘neither here nor there’. The resolution of social and personal conflicts portrayed is mapped to the stages of liminality.

The Effect of Peer Assessment on Oral Presentation in an EFL Context

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of peer assessment on oral presentation of Iranian English non-major students. To this end, 52 students of Azad and State universities of Tabriz were selected as participants. Their ages ranged from 25 to 38. The peer assessment was incorporated into the experimental group’s course to explore whether and to what extent their oral presentation skills may enhance. Data were obtained through a Likert scale questionnaire of peer assessment. Data were analyzed using SPSS Software. The results specified a statistically significant difference among the groups. The findings of the present study also suggest that, when assessment criteria are definitely established, peer assessment empowers students to evaluate the performance of their peers in a manner comparable to those of the teachers.

The Relationship between Personality Types and Self-Regulated Learning Strategies of Language Learners

Abstract: This study investigates the relationship between personality traits, as measured by the NEO Five Factor Inventory, and different learning strategies, measured by the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ), that foreign language student may employ to help them learn the language A sample of 231 undergraduate students of English in Iran was administered the Inventory and the MSLQ This study is the first to connect learners’ personality traits with general learning strategies, which can be specifically applied to foreign language learning Analyzing the data using multiple regressions, the authors found that personality type was able to predict the tendency to use different learning strategies Specifically, students who scored high on “conscientiousness” were more likely to use all strategies, particularly managing time and study environment Students high on extraversion were more likely to use peer learning and help seeking strategies The authors conclude that language teachers could benefit from assessing their students’ personalities and matching strategies to their students’ tendencies

The Effects of Embedding Information Technologies within ELT on EFL Learners' Motivation and Interest

Abstract: This article has been retracted: please see AIAC PTY.LTD. Policy on Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement.(http://www.aiac.org.au/journals/Subtemps/PEPMS.pdf) This article has been retracted based on the editorial decision upon conducting a thorough investigation. It came to our notice that the author has plagiarized this paper from Mr. Ahmed Lachheb, a graduate student at Indiana University. Mr. Lachheb’s thesis paper was published on an online platform in March 2013. It can be accessed using the following link: https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/theses/49/. After careful review, we realized that the offending paper is nearly identical to the paper published in our journal. The original paper is lengthier and more comprehensive, the piece published in IJALEL references many of the same sources throughout, uses the same quotations, and mirrors Mr. Lachheb’s structure and language.

The Effect of Writer’s Workshop Approach to Develop Functional Writing Skills of Primary Stage Pre-Service English Language Teachers in Egypt

Abstract: The present study aimed at investigating the effects of using a program based on the writing workshop approach on developing functional writing skills of pre-service teachers of English in Hurgada faculty of Education. For that purpose, the researcher constructed and validated a teaching program based on the writing workshop approach, checklist of the skills and subskills of functional writing skills, and pre-posttest of functional writing skills. The sample of the study was forty students in Hurgada faculty of Education, English Division (prospective teachers of English). They were randomly chosen and assigned to an experimental group. The experimental group students were taught writing using the writing workshop approach after they had functional writing skills pretest. Findings of the study indicated the writing workshop-based program had significant effects on improving the subjects' functional writing skills.

The Role of Accent and Ethnicity in the Professional and Academic Context

Abstract: Language learning may be affected by a language instructor’s accent. Many studies have been carried out to investigate whether accent has an influence on learners’ perceptions toward their instructors or whether accent can affect employability. This overview links studies on accents through an empirical literature review on native and non-native accents, summarizing the most significant studies conducted to investigate learners’ attitude toward accents. The learners as participants are both non-native and native speakers of a language. The results of the review demonstrated that speakers who use the standard language are preferred for prestigious jobs, whereas the nonstandard accented speakers are preferred for low-status jobs. Moreover, British and American accents are the most preferred by learners of English. Thus, the learners tended to show positive attitudes toward American and British accents and also adopt these varieties as models of pronunciation for their learning of English. In this review, limitations of some studies are highlighted and some implications for future studies related to accents, language learning at tertiary level and employability are discussed.

The Importance of Culture in Translation: Should Culture be Translated?

Abstract: Recognizing the importance of culture in translation, this article presents a descriptive study of translation of literary texts from English into Arabic. Using the data taken from works of Shakespeare and others which were translated by eminent translators, it first describes the study background, research contexts and procedures and problems. It then addresses some research questions on: (1) Will the translation be accepted by the new community of readers; 2) Is the relation between culture and translation important? It is worth noting that this study is significant for translators and readers of the target language, which is Arabic in this case. This has been substantiated by surveying the interests in cultural aspects of translation as early as the 19th Century. Thus translations do not only include lexical content and syntax, but also ideologies, values and ways of life in a given culture, which form translating problems. Therefore, translators have to know the audience.

An Investigation of Syntactic Errors in Chinese Undergraduate EFL Learners' Compositions: A Cohort Study

Abstract: This paper reports on a study of syntactic errors in English essays composed by Chinese university students Thirty undergraduate non-English majors across disciplines produced 90 essays on three tasks during eight weeks, and answered a self-developed questionnaire at the end of the course Analyses of the data resulted in the following main findings: (1) Among the ten types of syntactic errors, errors in tense and voice were the most frequently occurring type of errors, (2) the errors generally tended to decrease across tasks, (3) the syntactic errors of various categories were generally inversely correlated with the students’ writing performance, and (4) the errors were caused by diverse reasons, of which carelessness and the differences between Chinese and English were considered the most crucial

A Study of the Relationship between Persian and English Writing Skills among Adult EFL Learners in Iran

Abstract: This research aims at investigating the relationship between writing skill and sub-skills of first language (Persian) and foreign language (English). Therefore, 50 upper-intermediate EFL learners in Iran who were majoring in the English language were asked to write on two different topics in Persian and English. Then, the compositions were evaluated based on ESL Composition Profile. Subsequently, using Pearson product-moment correlation, the correlation between the compositions overall scores in L1 and L2, as well as the correlations between each of five major components of writing, including content, organization, vocabulary, language use, and mechanics in the two languages were examined. The results displayed large correlations between the compositions overall scores as well as between the four writing sub-skills in L1 and L2. The highest correlations were observed between writing sub-skills of vocabulary, mechanics, language use, and content respectively. These findings entail some pedagogical implications for effective language learning in both L1 and L2, utilizing the enhancing effect of cross-linguistic transfer of writing.

Resistance, a Facet of Post-colonialism in Women Characters of Khaled Hosseini’s a Thousand Splendid Suns

Abstract: This article looks at female level of resistance though the viewpoint of post-colonialism and feminism based on Khaled Hosseini’s novel, Thousand Splendid Suns . The article concentrates on levels of resistance as a part of Afghan female's lifestyle against the gender oppression that are enforced on them through their lifestyle and culture, the objectives of their community and its standards. The novel is selected for the discussion of this problem as it shows the conflicts experienced by Afghan females in regards to their positions and roles in their community and to find a unique identification as an individual. Findings on the conflicts of females and the level of resistance factors are seen in the novel though the analysis of the two primary characters in the novel Maryam and Laila, as the reflection of the truth of Afghan female's lifestyle. The framework for the article is designed by using Stephen Selmon’s, Edward Said’s and Benita Parry’s theories of level of resistance in the perspective of post-colonial and feminist literary discussion. This paper shows the observations created in regards to beliefs, gender discrimination and level of resistance within the area of Afghan female's lifestyle.

Task-based Cycle in Reading Comprehension Classes

Abstract: This study has investigated the effect of task-based cycle on Iranian Elementary EFL learners' reading comprehension. In order to accomplish the research, two intact classes, including 84 engineering EFL learners (studying pre-university course) were chosen in Tabriz Azad University. An experimental method of research was employed. The experimental group was taught according to the elements of task-based cycle proposed by Willis & Willis, (2007). The control group didn’t receive such treatment. After eight sessions (3 months), a post-test was given. The analysis of the obtained data, carried out through t-test, revealed a significant difference between control and experimental group on the dependent variable, reading comprehension. However, gender didn’t affect reading comprehension significantly. The results of the present study may have pedagogical implications for instruction and curriculum development.

Gender-based Study of Metadiscourse in Research Articles’ Rhetorical Sections

Abstract: This study investigated whether or not male and female writers of academic research articles were different in the use of interpersonal resources in English. In order to carry out the study, 32 applied linguistics research articles with the standard macrostructure of empirical research articles (Introduction, Method, Results, and Discussion/Conclusion) were selected from amongst the highest ranked journals. The results of the current study indicated that, with respect to both interactive and interactional features, there were no significant gender-based differences in the overall distribution of interpersonal resources in the four sections of the articles (p-value> 0.05). It also confirmed the view that writing differences are not gender-specific, but rather section-specific. In this line, identification of male and female EFL learners’ use of metadiscourse elements will provide guidelines to EFL teachers to tailor their teaching methods and avoid mismatches between classroom practices and learners’ language use.

Verb-Noun Collocation Proficiency and Academic Years

Abstract: Generally vocabulary and collocations in particular have significant roles in language proficiency. A collocation includes two words that are frequently joined concurrently in the memory of native speakers. There have been many linguistic studies trying to define, to describe, and to categorise English collocations. It contains grammatical collocations and lexical collocations which include nouns, adjectives, verbs, and adverb. In the context of a foreign language environment such as Iran, collocational proficiency can be useful because it helps the students improve their language proficiency. This paper investigates the possible relationship between verb-noun collocation proficiency among students from one academic year to the next. To reach this goal, a test of verb-noun collocations was administered to Iranian learners. The participants in the study were 212 Iranian students in an Iranian university. They were selected from the second term of freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior years. The students’ age ranged from 18 to 35.The results of ANOVA showed there was variability in the verb-noun collocations proficiency within each academic year and between the four academic years. The results of a post hoc multiple comparison tests demonstrated that the means are significantly different between the first year and the third and fourth years, and between the third and the fourth academic year; however, students require at least two years to show significant development in verb-noun collocation proficiency. These findings provided a vital implication that lexical collocations are learnt and developed through four academic years of university, but requires at least two years showing significant development in the language proficiency.

An Investigation of Vocabulary Learning Strategies by Iranian EFL Students in Different Proficiency Levels

Abstract: This study aims to find out the various strategies used in learning vocabularies among Iranian EFL learners in three different proficiency levels (beginner, intermediate and advanced) in Zanjan province. The vocabulary learning strategies which have been used in this research include determination, social, memory, cognitive, and meta-cognitive which follow Schmitt’s taxonomy. 110 students were randomly selected from two language institutes in Zanjan. Schmitt’s (1997) Vocabulary Learning Strategies’ questionnaire was administered to the learners with three proficiency levels. Then, descriptive statistics and Anova were utilized to analyze the data. Descriptive statistics revealed that the participants of the study regardless of their proficiency levels were generally medium strategy users who used all these strategies moderately except for the determination strategies that were used in high level. In addition, basic learners used all different types of strategies more frequently than intermediate and advanced learners. By comparing two other proficiency levels, advanced learners used determination strategies and meta-cognitive strategies more frequently than intermediate learners, while social, memory and cognitive strategies were used more frequently by Intermediates. In order to perceive if the results were statistically significant, Anova for between group mean differences was conducted. It revealed the fact that there is no significant difference among learners with different proficiency levels in application of determination and meta-cognitive strategies while the learners with lower proficiency level used social, memory and cognitive strategies more frequently, that is, these three strategies were used more frequently by basic, intermediate and advanced learners respectively.

Positive Politeness & Social Harmony in Literary Discourse

Abstract: The strategies of politeness are not arbitrarily chosen by speakers in interaction Instead, the choice of a strategy is constrained by a number of contextual features (socio-cultural variables), such as the relative power of the speakers, the social distance of the speakers and what the speakers happen to be negotiating at the time of speaking This study focuses on the linguistic strategies of politeness, and more specifically on the positive politeness, as represented in fiction The novel chosen is that of Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables- a novel in which the main character Anne Shirley tries her best to establish common grounds with others until she achieves friendly and social harmonious relationships with nearly everybody To show the above point, Brown and Levinson’s (1987) theory of politeness is adopted to account for the linguistic strategies, in addition to some subsequent contribution provided by Spencer-Oatey (2002) to account for sociality rights and obligations This model is chosen to explore the relation between language use and the social relationship of the speakers A point of departure, and according to O’Driscoll (1996), Brown and Levinson’s hierarchy of politeness strategies allows attention to positive to cover more ground than that subsumed under positive politeness (super-strategy 2) That is why baldly on-record (super-strategy 1) is used to pay positive face The analysis shows that most of Anne’s directives in this speech event, which are linguistic realizations of both super-strategy 1 and 2, are meant to establish common grounds to achieve friendly and harmonious relationships with others

An Investigation into the Speech Act of Compliment Response in Persian

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to investigate the compliment responses in Persian language. Drawing on Herbert’s (1986), Mile (1994), Rose and Kwai-Fun (2001), and also the data of the current study, 18 types of compliment responses were identified. Based on different compliment topics [such as appearance, ability, possession and nationality], the researcher along with 12 others as assistants who were instructed how to give compliments got engaged in conversations with different people to compliment them. They complimented people from various professions, contexts, cities and educational levels. The majority [67.6%] of our corpus of 756 naturally occurring compliment responses fell into the main category of “agreement”. However, the absence of the compliment response “no-acknowledgement ”, the high rate of two or three part appreciation token along with a significant portion of “ making offer” attest to the culturally-specific Iranian features such as modesty and Ta’arof. Additionally, no significant differences were found between males and females in terms of compliment response types, or the degree of modesty or Ta’arof. Nonetheless, there existed significant differences with regard to topics of compliment in a sense that most of the compliments given on nationality (89%) were accepted while in the case of physical and mental domain, it was not that much high. Like other studies in pragmatic area, this study also indicates that compliment response is cross-naturally varied, different, and hence warrants more attention in instruction and material development.

Emotional Temperament in Food-Related Metaphors: A Cross-Cultural Account of the Conceptualizations of SADNESS

Abstract: What people in a society and culture eat or the way they consume their food may become a source domain for emotional temperament and therefore an implication for portrayal of their specific cultural models. Adopting the basic assumptions of the Lakoffian School on ‘experiential realism’ and ‘universal embodiment’ this study is an attempt to delve into the conceptual system of Persian in order to explore its specific socio-cultural motivations for the construction and semantic changes in the use of metaphorical concepts of sadness. The metaphorical uses of food-related concepts in Persian manifest that, in spite of some correspondences to those in English, sadness metaphorical concepts are distinctive in Persian. The conceptual metaphor variations reveal many vestiges of Hippocratic notions of humoral doctrine and Avicennian Traditional Medicine, suggesting that the cultural models of humoralism and dietetics have left their traces deeply in the Persians’ belief systems. The effects, therefore, have been extended into Persian metaphoric language.