A comparison of cultural representation and ideologies in the multimodal discourses of textbooks used in public and private Iranian contexts: a cross-textual study

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study is concerned with the evaluation of cultural contextualization of two widely used EFL textbooks in Iran, Prospect (2014) and Interchange (2012). Looking at these textbooks, it tries to investigate key issues such as culture, ideology, and otherness, which are imperative for creating learners’ third space (Kramsch, C. J. (1998). Language and Culture, 67–70, Oxford: Oxford University Press). Therefore, it investigates which types of cultures based on Cortazzi and Jin’s (1999. Cultural Mirrors: Materials and Methods in the EFL Classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press) classification of culture (source, target, and international target) are demonstrated in the textbooks’ discourses at both linguistic and visual levels. The study is based on a qualitative method of research and utilizes a social semiotic multimodal approach, developed by Souryana Yassine (2012. “Culture Ideology and Otherness in EFL Textbooks in Algeria: A Multimodal Approach” Ph.D. diss., Mouloudi Mammeri University of Tizi-Ouzou, Algeria) according to the maxims of social semiotics. The results indicate how the two textbooks represent culture dissimilarly. While the Interchange series approve the mainstream American target, neglecting source culture completely, the Iranian ELT textbooks contain more source cultural content. Moreover, the representation of Self and Other reflects the societies’ diverse underlying ideological positions in explicit and implicit ways.