A Critique of the Representation of Violence in American Literature:

The purpose of this thesis was to draw new insights on Thomas Berger’s classic American novel, Little Big Man, and his representation of fictional violence that is a substantial aspect of any text on the Indian Wars and “Custer’s Last Stand”. History’s major world wars led to shifts in the political climate and a noted change in the way that violence was represented in the arts. Historical, fictional, and cinematic treatments of “Custer’s Last Stand” and violence were each considered in relation to the text. Berger's version of the famed story is a revision of history that shows the protagonist as a dual-member of two violent societies. The thesis concluded that Berger’s updated American legends and unique “white renegade” character led to a representation of violence that spoke to the current state of affairs in 1964 when the world was becoming much more hostile and chaotic place.

The False cognates in enology and gastronomy: a study in english and spanish

This paper will focus on some aspects of translation based on blending distinct linguistic domains such as the vocabulary of Hotel Industry, of Enology and Gastronomy in Spanish by tertiary level students (2nd year) of the course of Hotel Management. Portuguese students, most of the times, rely on a L1 (Portuguese) general language, namely using false cognates in the above mentioned areas in the Spanish and English classes in, at a first sight helpful but misleading way, hoping to succeed by using the word that seems correct to the context, when there isn’t, because: •they choose a word suitable to the context in L2, but the choice of that word is often misleading, by relying in a false L1 reality that is going to adulterate reality in the L2 domain, •but it seems that the opposite is also true, and takes place too; The difficulty in making such type of distinctions is due to: •the lack of linguistic and lexical knowledge; • the need to study the cause of these chromaticisms, by: • being in touch with specific literature; . working, not only with their peers, but also with their language teacher to develop strategies to diminish and, if possible, to eradicate this type of linguistic and, mainly translation problem, that causes so many learning constraints.

Using children’s literature in ELT: A story-based approach

There has been a growing interest in the role of children’s literature in language teaching since the 80s, when the communicative approach made it possible to bring stories into the classroom (Garvie, 1990). It is undeniable that storytelling has many benefits. Not only are children naturally drawn to stories, but they are also an effective and enjoyable way to teach and learn. This article presents the findings of a MA project on using stories with children. It shows the importance of stories on language acquisition and concludes with some practical suggestions based on my teaching experience with young learners.

'Are We Now Equal?' Recent experiences and perceptions of South American migrants in Argentina under MERCOSUR

De manière générale, ma thèse examine les mécanismes des processus sociaux, économiques et politiques ayant contribué, souvent de manière contradictoire, à la (re)définition des critères d’adhésion au sein de la nation et de l’Etat. Elle le fait par le dialogue au sein de deux grands corps de littérature intimement liés, la citoyenneté et le transnationalisme, qui se sont penchés sur les questions d’appartenance, d’exclusion, de mobilité et d’accès aux droits chez les migrants transnationaux tout en soulignant la capacité accrue de l’Etat à réguler à la fois les déplacements de personnes et l’accès des migrants aux droits. Cette thèse remet en question trois principes qui influencent la recherche et les programmes d’action publique ayant trait au transnationalisme et à la citoyenneté des migrants, et remet en cause les approches analytiques hégémoniques et méthodologiques qui les sous-tendent. L’étude a été menée à deux niveaux distincts d’analyse empirique et analytique. D’une part, nous examinons les « technologies de la citoyenneté » (Ong 2003, Fujiwara 2008) qui ont été développées par le gouvernement pour transformer l’Argentine en une nation latino-américaine diverse et inclusive pendant la dernière décennie, en nous intéressant particulièrement à la création, par le Kirchnerisme, d’une « nouvelle légalité » pour les Paraguayens, les Boliviens et les Péruviens résidant dans le pays. D’autre part, nous analysons la « dimension horizontale des processus de citoyenneté » (Neveu 2005, Pickus and Skerry 2007, Gagné and Neveu 2009) chez ces migrants dans des aires urbaines, périphériques et rurales du partido de La Plata. Plus spécifiquement, nous examinons dans quelle mesure les conditions socioéconomiques des migrants ont changé suite à leur nouveau statut légal (en tant que ressortissants du MERCOSUR en Argentine, dont les droits sont égaux à ceux des citoyens) et aux politiques de « citoyenneté inclusive » déployées par le gouvernement. Cette thèse se penche particulièrement sur les fondations et l’incarnation (« embodiment ») des droits en examinant comment le nouveau statut légal des migrants se manifeste au quotidien en fonction de a) où ils vivent et travaillent, et b) leur statut social perçu par les autres migrants et non-migrants. D’une part, nous examinons les aires urbaines, périphériques et rurales de La Plata en tant que « zones de souveraineté graduée » (Ong 1999), où des régimes de gouvernementalité locaux spécifiques se sont développés en lien avec l’installation de groupes ethniques souvent distincts, et dont les droits et devoirs diffèrent de ceux d’autres zones. D’autre part, nous étudions la façon dont le statut social est produit à travers les interactions sociales quotidiennes en transposant des distinctions construites socialement telles que race, classe, genre et origine nationale, en systèmes d’exclusion formels (Gregory 2007). Notre analyse ethnographique de ce que nous appelons les « expériences de légalité » des migrants démontre que leur égalité formelle vis-à-vis des Argentins, loin d’être simplement donnée comme un nouveau statut légal uniformément garanti pour tous, est à la fois inégalement vécue par les divers migrants, et différemment respectée dans les zones géographiques dirigées par divers régimes de gouvernementalité (Foucault 1978).

Attitudes to reading in English primary schools

This article reports on a two-year research project investigating attitudes to reading held by teachers and pupils in a sample of English primary schools. The project draws on international and national surveys of reading engagement and the findings of previous research, but seeks to provide more detailed data relating to the attitudes of individual children and the strategies used by individual schools and teachers whose pupils demonstrate positive attitudes to reading. Written questionnaires for teachers and pupils and oral interviews with teachers are used, generating both quantitative and qualitative data. Results are related to previous research literature in this area which shows a link between reading motivation and attainment, and to motivational theory. In conclusion, it is argued that teaching strategies which promote positive attitudes to reading need to be used alongside the teaching of reading skills in any effort to raise attainment.

The role of undisclosed reserves in English open outcry auctions

This study considers the role that reserve prices may play in residential property auctions. In comparison to much of the previous empirical work, this study has access to undisclosed reserve prices from English auctions. Consistent with theoretical arguments in the auction literature, the results obtained illustrate that whilst higher reserve prices increase the revenue obtained for the seller, they also reduce the probability of sale. The findings also highlight the importance of auction participation, with the number of individual bidders and the number of bids significant in most specifications.

Learning to think in a second language: effects of proficiency and length of exposure in English learners of German

The aim of the current study is to investigate motion event cognition in second language learners in a higher education learning context. Based on recent findings showing that speakers of grammatical aspect languages like English attend less to the endpoint (goal) of events than speakers of non-aspect languages like Swedish in a nonverbal categorization task involving working memory (Athanasopoulos & Bylund, 2013; Bylund & Athanasopoulos, this issue), the current study asks whether native speakers of an aspect language start paying more attention to event endpoints when learning a non-aspect language. Native English and German (a non-aspect language) speakers, and English learners of L2 German, who were pursuing studies in German language and literature at an English university, were asked to match a target scene with intermediate degree of endpoint orientation with two alternate scenes with low and high degree of endpoint orientation, respectively. Results showed that, when compared to the native English speakers, the learners of German were more prone to base their similarity judgements on endpoint saliency, rather than ongoingness, primarily as a function of increasing L2 proficiency and year of university study. Further analyses revealed a non-linear relationship between length of L2 exposure and categorization patterns, subserved by a progressive strengthening of the relationship between L2 proficiency and categorization as length of exposure increased. These findings present evidence that cognitive restructuring may occur through increasing experience with an L2, but also suggest that this relationship may be complex, and unfold over a long period of time.

Abilities and Cultural Understanding through Literature in the EFL Classroom : - A Literature Review

The English language can be seen as a lingua franca of contemporary times. Its spread and use in the globalized world has affected most levels of society and it can be argued that, in current times, English is synonymous with communication. This need for communication has shaped the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) syllabus, which is evident in the Swedish national steering documents for the educational system. For the upper secondary school these documents show an emphasis on communication, on cultural understanding, and also on the use of literature within the EFL classroom. The need to possess communicative abilities and cultural understanding, in connection with the use of literature, has sparked an interest to investigate if and how literature itself can be used as a tool to develop and improve EFL students’ communicative skills and cultural understanding. This literature review thesis analyzes five international research articles from different geographical parts of the Globe. The findings are categorized, compared, synthesized, and finally discussed in order to answer the research questions asked, and also compared with the English subject syllabus for the Swedish upper secondary school. The findings indicate that the analyzed articles share a consensus, to a varied degree, regarding the positive aspects of literature use in the EFL setting. The arguments are that communicative skills and cultural understanding are intertwined - enabling each other to exist, develop, and improve. One cannot exist fully without the other, and literature is a good tool to use to develop and improve these abilities. Literature can help develop all skills needed to acquire and produce both written and spoken English, and it also enables cultural understanding and a broadening of the mind. Where the articles differ somewhat is in the ideas of why literature is a good tool, how to implement literature in the classrooms, and what some of the negative aspects might be. The thesis also brings the lack of Swedish studies within EFL to the readers’ attention, as well as the need to do more research focusing on the students’ perspectives towards literature use in the EFL setting.

An Empirical Study on Teachers’ Choice of Extensive Literature in the Swedish Upper Secondary EFL Classroom

The importance of extensive literature reading in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context has been given increasing attention in recent research. Literature reading is also a required part of the national syllabi of the (EFL) courses offered to both adolescents and adults at Upper Secondary level in Sweden. This thesis aims to investigate the teachers’ process of making literature choices for extensive reading in upper secondary EFL courses in Sweden. Eight teachers of three different student groups took part in the study, representing adolescent university preparatory programs and vocational programs, as well as programs for adult students. Questionnaires were used and the data was analyzed for patterns revealing three main factors affecting teachers’ literature choice: language proficiency, reading experience and contextual factors. These three factors were fitted into the theoretical framework of psycholinguistic and sociolinguistic reading models, with the addition of a perspective of motivational research. The results of this survey underline the importance of extensive reading, according to teachers, and that motivation for literature choice can be primarily related to factors associated with psycholinguistic reading models. The survey also points to the need for further investigating of teachers’ own experiences of literature reading, searching for deeper motivational factors which influence teaching choices. Another future field of research is the choice of reading activities assigned together with the chosen literature, which probably also influence teachers’ choices in the Swedish EFL classroom.

What Culture? : Cultural representations in English as a foreign language textbooks

Teaching the cultural aspect of foreign language education is a complex and sometimes difficult task, especially since English has become an international language used in different settings and contexts throughout the world. Building on the idea that the spread of the English language and its international status in the world has made English an important school subject to develop students’ cross-cultural and intercultural awareness, this paper has studied what research reveals about the influence this has had on cultural representations in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) textbooks. Findings from a systematic literature review that analyzed four different international studies on the topic are presented. The study showed that EFL textbooks often present stereotypical and overgeneralized representations of culture and that the cultural aspect of EFL education is not adequately addressed since focus tends to lean towards language proficiency. Results also indicated that though steps are made to include cultural representations from different international contexts, the target culture of countries where English is the first language remains dominant in EFL textbooks. The findings are discussed in correlation with the Swedish national curriculum and syllabus.

Children’s Literature and English Teaching – Swedish Teachers’ Methods and Attitudes

This study investigates how primary school teachers of grades F-3 pupils in a number of sample schools in Sweden use children’s literature and other methods to enhance their teaching of English. The study explores the attitudes of these teachers’ to using English children’s literature as a teaching tool to promote language development in their pupils, focusing on vocabulary. An empirical questionnaire study was carried out including a total of twenty-three respondents from seven schools in a Stockholm suburb. The respondents are all working teachers with experience of teaching English to young learners, particularly in grades F-3. This study contributes with new knowledge about the often-recommended use of children’s literature as a method for teaching English to young learners, connecting international research with empirical data from the Swedish context. While the results suggest that the majority of the respondents are positive to using children’s literature in their teaching and regularly do so, many of them feel that it is somewhat difficult to find relevant materials to plan, implement and evaluate lessons within the allocated time-frame. Based on these results, further research about how to create more effective ways of using children’s literature as a method for English vocabulary teaching in Swedish schools is recommended.