Comparative Literature Studies Research Articles

Shaping the Digital Dissertation - Book Review

A photograph of a blue drop splashing on a dark background. On the top, the title is set in white serif type forming a loose composition and the generic, uninteresting cover of Shaping the Digital Dissertation (Open Book Publishers, 2021), edited by Virginia Kuhn, Professor of Cinema at the University of Southern California and Anke Finger, Professor of German and Media Studies and Comparative Literary and Cultural Studies at the University of Connecticut.

Attitudes Towards Translanguaging Practices: A Comparative Study of Literature and Food Engineering Classes

Summary With an increase in the number of colleges and universities offering courses in English in the education market globally, higher education institutions face serious challenges. In non-native settings where English is favoured as a prestigious choice for the medium of instruction, learners struggle with the huge barrier between demanding course contents and necessary language proficiency levels, which encourages them to use translanguaging and alternative strategies extensively in and out of classrooms. In this light, this study aims to look at an under-researched topic by questioning how university students’ and lecturers’ views on translanguaging practices show parallels and differences in literature and engineering courses from a comparative perspective. The data of the study were collected at English Language and Literature (ELL) and Food Science (FS) programmes of Gaziantep University (GAUN) in Turkey through face-to-face interviews and class observations. The classrooms were visited and observed for 21 lesson hours. 15 students and 6 lecturers from each department volunteered to participate in the study. The recorded and transcribed data were analysed then by using content analysis. The results show that while the lecturers from the FS programme stress that L2 use is vital for students to develop content knowledge and linguistic skills, the lecturers from the ELL programme claim it to be a context-sensitive practice, so some courses might necessitate more frequent use of L1 or translanguaging during the delivery, analysis or comprehension of the specific content or in formal or informal exchanges. The study has thus revealed how lecturers’ and students’ views in different departments change substantially based on the requirements of/expectations from the courses and how translanguaging functions as an effective and essential learning/teaching tool in the content-based courses. Accordingly, the findings should encourage teachers, lecturers and policy-makers in countries such as Turkey to reconsider the nature of bilingual teaching and learning in different areas of tertiary level education.

Contributors

Marek Bernacki is an associate professor in the Department of Polish Philology at the University of Bielsko-Biała. He is the author of Tropienie Miłosza: Hermeneutyczna “bio-grafia” Poety [Quest for Miłosz: A hermeneutical “bio-graphy” of the poet, 2019] and editor of Peryferie Miłosza: Nieznane konteksty, glosy, nowe rozpoznania [Miłosz's peripheries: Unknown contexts, glosses, new explorations, 2020].Tadeusz Bujnicki is a professor emeritus of Polish literature at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków and an associate in the Artes Liberales Department at Warsaw University. His research interests focus on the works of Henryk Sienkiewicz and other Polish authors of the Positivist era as well as literature and history of the northeastern borderlands of Poland, Belarus, and Lithuania in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. He is the author of sixteen books and over 300 articles.Jacek Czarnecki is an assistant professor of history at the City University of New York, Kingsborough Community College, where he teaches a wide range of courses in European, American, and Middle Eastern histories. He also serves on the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the Józef Piłsudski Institute of America. He received his Ph.D. in modern world history from St. John's University in 2014.Piotr Hapanowicz is a historian and a certified curator at the Historical Museum of the City of Kraków. His research focuses on the history of Kraków, Polish parliamentarism, and biography. He is the author of numerous scholarly publications, including Senatorowie województwa krakowskiego w latach 1922–1939 (2007).James S. Pula is a professor emeritus of history at Purdue University. He is the author or editor of more than thirty books, was the editor of the scholarly journal Polish American Studies for some thirty-three years, and served as editor-in-chief of the award-winning The Polish American Encyclopedia.Marta Skwara is a professor of Polish and comparative literature at the University of Szczecin and, since 2005, the head of its program in comparative literary studies. In addition, she serves as editor-in-chief of Rocznik Komparatystyczny/Komparatistisches Jahrbuch. Her research interests include comparative literature, particularly reception and translation studies, and intertextuality.

Studies on Arabic Literature by Chinese Scholars: From Edge of China to the Center of Arab

Abstract Chinese scholars just began to study Arabic literature since Reform and Opening-up of China in 1979, though Arabic language began to be taught in Peking University since 1951. Chinese scholars’ studies on Arabic literature studies at that time were at the edge of studies of world literature. Articles on Arabic literature just issued on Arab World. It was still difficult for professors of Arabic literature to issue their articles at the journals such as Foreign Literature Review, Literature Abroad, Foreign Literature Studies, Foreign Literature and Contemporary Foreign Literature in 1980s. These journals preferred to issue papers on western literature and Russian literature during that period. In recent years, studies on Arabic literature developed rapidly in China. The Chinese intellectuals do not study on ancient Arabic literature only, but study on modern and contemporary Arabic literature also. They published books on Arabic literature such as On Arabian Nights: Mythology and Reality,Singing for Love: A Study on Kuwait Poetess Souad al-Sabah,Sufism in Modern Arabic Literature, Modern Arabic Literature During the Cultural Changes,Arabic Poetry in the Context of Globalization: A Study on Egyptian Poet Farouk Guweidah, and Comparative Study of Chinese and Arabic Literature. They also wrote histories of Arabic literature, for example, History of Arabic Literature, History of Modern Arabic Literature and General History of Arabic Literature are available in Chinese book market in these years. Professor Zhong Jikun won Appreciation Award of Egypt Ministry of Higher Education in 2005, won Sheikh Zayed Book Award’s Cultural Personality of the Year in 2011 and in the same year won King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Translation. These prizes and awards show us that studies on Arabic literature have moved from the edge of China to the center of Arab world.

Literary Translation as One of the Main Tools of Artistic Reception: On the Example of Kazakh-Russian Literary Interaction

The literary interactions are the result of intercultural communication based on the ancient history of mankind, which marked the beginning of the globalization process. The article explores the historical foundations of the Kazakh-Russian literary interactions and the peculiarities of their development. The literary translation becomes the main tool of artistic reception of the Russian writers’ creative work in Kazakh culture. This is the subject of the research of the article. The study of the interactions between Kazakh and Russian literatures is important in the context of comparative literary studies, which shows the common history of the two peoples. The article uses chronological and typological methods to identify the stages of establishment and development of cultural relations between the two nations. The cultural-historical method was used to identify the origins of the tradition of literary translation between two cultures, the national characteristics, the historical factors that served as the basis for the intercultural integration.

The World’s Literatures

Abstract Erich Auerbach (1892–1957), best known as the author of Mimesis: Dargestellte Wirklichkeit in der abendländischen Literatur (1946; Mimesis: The Representation of Reality in Western Literature, 1953), wrote about the eighteenth-century philologist and philosopher of history Giambattista Vico (1668–1744) fifteen times over the course of his life. The translations offered here are among the earliest of these writings. These early essays on Vico refine the picture both of Auerbach himself and of the significance of his work for comparative literary studies today in important ways. First, they allow a reconsideration of the progressivist literary historical secularization thesis often claimed for Auerbach’s oeuvre writ large. Second, they display Auerbach’s early aspiration to reach “ein allgemeineres Publikum” (a more general public) through his work as a “Schriftsteller” (writer). Finally, they open a window onto the Vichian calculus upon which his assessment of the texts discussed in Mimesis may have been based. The modes of representation (Darstellung) Auerbach favored may thus be understood not as part of a restrictive canon but rather as examples of the human “Schauspiel” (drama) and fateful “Lage . . . der Menschen” (human condition) in a world whose literatures reach far beyond the European archive enshrined in Mimesis.

Biogenic Synthesis of Silver-Iron Oxide Nanoparticles Using Kulekhara Leaves Extract for Removing Crystal Violet and Malachite Green Dyes from Water

Crystal violet and malachite green, cationic dyes, are widely used in various industries. Water-containing dye molecules affect human health and aquatic life. Here, we synthesized silver-iron oxide nanoparticles using an aqueous extract of kulekhara leaves. The main advantage of this synthesis is that no iron salts were used to prepare Ag-iron oxide nanoparticles. Iron-rich Kulekhara leaves provide iron oxide during the in situ formation of silver nanoparticles. Synthesized Ag-Fe2O3 nanoparticles were characterized by UV-Vis, FTIR, XRD, and STEM-Cs. The dye-degradation studies were performed using synthesized nanoparticles in the presence of sodium borohydride. In the catalytic reaction, the color of crystal violet and malachite green disappeared (100%) within three minutes, and the same results were obtained in their mixtures (1:1 v/v). The presence of Fe2O3 in AgNPs may boost the rapid reduction in azo bonds due to the higher exposed surface area. The color changes were monitored using UV-Vis spectroscopy. Comparative literature studies showed that the performance of Ag-Fe2O3 is superior regarding the degradation of malachite green and crystal violet. These findings could entice researchers to design and develop various dye degradation using this eco-friendly process.

Trayectoria de la Literatura Comparada en la Argentina

This article describes the path followed by Comparative Literature studies in Argentina, from 1810, when the nation achieved its independence (1810) until the present. In this trajectory, we can identify four periods. After the “discipline’s pre-history” with an ingenuous comparatism, the “pre-institutionalization” and the “institutionalization” with the foundation of the Argentine Comparative Literature Association (1992), and the systematic organization of National Congresses, the last period, the actual “post-institutionalization” is characterized by the creation of new centres and areas of specialized research, the publication of diverse academic publications about the discipline, and the larger availability of graduate programmes of study in Comparative Literature.

Urban Heat Island High Water-Vapor Feedback Estimates and Heatwave Issues: A Temperature Difference Approach to Feedback Assessments

The goal of this paper is to provide an initial assessment of water-vapor feedback (WVF) in humid urban heat island (UHI) environments based on temperature difference data. To achieve this, a novel temperature difference WVF model was developed that can analyze global and UHI local temperature difference data. Specifically, the model was applied to a comparative temperature literature study of similar cities located in humid versus dry climates. The literature study found that the daytime UHI ΔT was observed to be 3.3 K higher in humid compared to dry climates when averaged over thirty-nine cities. Since the direct measurement of WVF in UHI areas could prove challenging due to variations in the temperature lapse rates from tall buildings, modeling provides an opportunity to make a preliminary assessment where measurements may be difficult. Thus, the results provide the first available UHI ΔT WVF model assessment. The preliminary results find local water-vapor feedback values for wet-biased cities of 3.1 Wm−2K−1, 3.4 Wm−2K−1, and 4 Wm−2K−1 for 5 °C, 15 °C, and 30 °C UHI average temperatures, respectively. The temperature difference model could also be used to reproduce literature values. This capability helps to validate the model and its findings. Heatwave assessments are also discussed, as they are strongly affected by UHI water-vapor feedback and support the observation that humid regions amplify heat higher than UHIs in dry regions, exacerbating heatwave problems. Furthermore, recent studies have found that urbanization contributions to global warming more than previously anticipated. Therefore, cities in humid environments are likely larger contributors to such warming trends compared to cities in dry environments. These preliminary modeling results show concern for a strong local UHI water-vapor feedback issue for cities in humid environments, with results possibly over a factor of two higher than the global average. This assessment also indicates that albedo management would likely be an effective way to reduce the resulting WVF temperature increase.

Beyond Babel: Translations of Blackness in Colonial Peru and New Granada

Beyond Babel: Translations of Blackness in Colonial Peru and New Granada

Wege in eine mediävistische Komparatistik

Pathways into Medieval Comparative Literary Studies. With a Methodological Outlook Based on Religious Plays The literary traditions of the Middle Ages were interconnected across territorial and linguistic borders. Although there is general agreement that for this reason a comparative perspective is inscribed in medieval studies by virtue of its subject matter, there is still no ›medieval comparative literary studies‹. The article identifies central reasons for this desideratum, the lack of theoretical and methodological foundations in particular, and proposes four methods from textual analysis that can be used for medieval comparative inquiries on the basis of a semiotic approach. It thus aims to show perspectives for the foundation of medieval comparative literary studies, which must be achieved in collective work by scholars from all medieval literary fields.

A Study of Two Distinct Opinions Concerning the Quranic View on Peaceful Co-existence and Violence in a Pluralistic Society

We commonly encounter two opposing arguments: one that the peace verses of the Quran have been repealed by the war verses of the Quran, and the other that the peace verses have not been repealed and that the interpretation of Quranic verses of war should be made in light of the context and historical importance of the verses in question. To address the conflicting interpretations of Quranic passages on peace and war, an exhaustive comparative literature study of the two arguments was conducted in order to comprehend the rationale and context for each. A contextual and comparative study of Quranic verses reveals that the Muslim society was more akin to a simple and inclusive civilisation than an intolerant one. When taken in its totality, with the verses' revelation and historical context in mind, it promotes peaceful co-existence among diverse communities. The key conclusions of this study suggest that, while the Quran concedes different faiths, it maintains and upholds its monotheistic system of belief. The Quranic notion of peaceful co-existence does not connect with the conventional concept of secularism, where all faiths are perceived as true. However, it has been contended that the Quranic concept of peaceful co-existence accepts the diversity and existence of various communities with different faiths living in harmony. From the Quranic standpoint, it is conceivable to build a society in which individuals of different religions may coexist peacefully while retaining their unique religious identities

TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: EVALUATION OF SPATIAL PLANNING REGENCY/MUNICIPALITY IN WEST JAVA PROVINCE, INDONESIA

Spatial planning performance indicators are related to sustainability. This approach combines quantitative and qualitative data to see the sustainability of regional spatial planning based on land and policies. This study aims to: (1) Analysis of the sustainable development index (IPB) and (2) Analysis of causal conditions of spatial planning performance assessment per regencies/municipalities based on IPB. The approach used is IPB, geographic information system, multi-value qualitative comparative analysis and literature study. The highest score of IPB is Bandung Municipality. The income per capita, education and welfare of the Municipality of Bandung are higher than in other regions. Considering the distribution of IPB scores and their constituent variables, subsequent analysis shows the need to differentiate between regencies and municipalities. Regional sustainability in this regency offers high compatibility between spatial planning policies and forest area status policies have extensive vegetation cover and small land-use diversity. Whereas in urban areas, it shows the opposite. This article can answer the sustainability of spatial planning policies and differentiate between regencies and municipalities—the use of mvQCA is a new approach to spatial planning evaluation.

Mystical Symbols of Divine Love in the Poetry of Omar Tarin and William Blake: A Comparative Cognitive Analysis7

This study is a comparative cognitive analysis of the identical symbols of Divine Love in the poetry of the oriental Pakistani poet Omer Tarin and the occidental English poet William Blake. It adopts the Mental Spaces theory in Cognitive Poetics and the theory of Perennialism in Comparative Mysticism as the main theoretical frameworks. The study aims at demonstrating the mental operation of meaning construction of these symbols and help deliver meaningful mystical perceptions of the human soul’s ineffable experience in its union with the Divine. Exploring mystical symbols via these theories will offer an accurate interpretation of the meaning of the abstract concepts based on the concrete ones and stipulate deeper insight into the commonality of the ambiguous feelings of the soul in Divine Love. Answering the question of the existence of identical symbols with mystical connotations, the study focusses on the symbols of Pipe, Woman, and Bird and reveals that despite the religious and cultural disparities between Omer Tarin and William Blake, there is a keen affinity between them as related to their unitary poetic-mystical consciousness of the soul’s experience in its search for the Divine, for which both poets have ingeniously utilized identical symbolism not only as a tool for artistic ornamentation but as a tool for cognitive orientation. The study endorses further research on mystical language and poetry from comparative and cognitive perspectives to corroborate the tenets of cognitive theories in comparative literary studies through cross-cultural research.

Animality in Contemporary Italian Philosophy

Animality in Contemporary Italian Philosophy

Turkish-Uzbek Enlightenment literature theoretical foundations

In this article the renewal movements in Turkey and Uzbekistan in the beginning of the ХХ th century, the works of its main representatives, Mehmed Akif Ersoy and Abdurauf Fitrat are comparatively studied. The theoretical foundations of Turkish-Uzbek enlightenment literature are determined based on the principles of comparative literary studies. There is given an overview of the Western factors that influenced this literature.

Bibliometric Analysis on Global Comparative Literature Research

This article aims to analyze the research trend and hotspots in the field of comparative literature by using the method of bibliometrics. The data is derived from the Web of Science Core Collection Database. The visualization software VOSViewer is utilized to draw keyword co-occurrence knowledge graph. R programming language is employed to analyze the quantity of publications, core journals, highly cited papers, the most contributing authors, and keyword word cloud. The results indicate that ever since 1975, this study field has entered a period of rapid development; top journals with most publications are mainly from France, the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada. Most of the highly cited articles have emerged in the recent two decades, and quite a few of them inherit the academic tradition of adopting a geographic perspective. The keyword word cloud and the keyword co-ocurrence knowledge mapping reveal that comparative literature study is shifting its focus from literary history and intertextuality to identity, culture, literary theory and world literature. The recent reserch hotspots in this field are mainly identity, culture, world literature, literary theory, Latin American literature, appropriation, genre, theatre, ethics and digital humanities, etc.

CROSS-CULTURAL PECULIARITIES OF PROVENCE DAILY ROUTINE IN THE NOVEL"A YEAR IN PROVENCE" BY PETER MAYLE

The article deals with the problem of cross-cultural analysis of the features of the Provence daily routine on the material of the novel "A Year in Provence" by P. Mayle. In modern literary discourse there is no clear and unambiguous definition of the concept of everyday life, so this problem is relevant to modern literary criticism. The peculiarities of perception of foreign everyday life are not only the sphere of intercultural communication, but also an interesting object of literary studies. The national comparative literature studies have shown the growing interest to the problem of investigating the features of literary interpretation of mentality and everyday practices in works of foreign literature, involving the methodology of cross-cultural analysis only in the last decade. In his novel "A Year in Provence", P. Mayle creates a unique combination of a travel novel and a description of the Provence life through the interpretation of an emigrant who came there from England. The peculiarities of the daily routine of the locals contrast sharply with the cultures of the tourists who visit it. The cultural differences that are revealed in the everyday things of the characters vividly demonstrate specific features of their mentality and their national worldview. An interesting depiction and constant commentary on traditional daily activities, food preferences, attitudes to time, work and people in comparison with the customs of other cultures allows the reader to form an unbiased attitude to the lifestyle of not only the French but also the English, Germans, Swiss and other nation representatives. The author draws attention to the strengths and weaknesses of the life of the Provence people. He also remains objective in presenting comparative characteristics of different spheres of life of the French and other cultures.

Introduction: The Cultures Of Global Post/Socialisms

ABSTRACT The introduction to this special issue outlines comparative approaches to cultural representations of post/socialism in order to move beyond the term’s association with the Soviet Union, the unevenly aligned or nonaligned nations in Central/Eastern Europe (CEE), and the period between 1917 and 1990. The histories and afterlives of state socialisms, and socialist globalization in Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas, are at the center of ongoing geopolitical realignments toward a multipolar world. The introduction explores the framing of these shifts as a “new Cold War” between the West and the nations of China and Russia, whose autocratic regimes are associated with remnants of totalitarian state socialism. Like the official rhetoric of many postsocialist nations, these discourses dismiss the far more diverse and progressive legacies of socialism. The introduction inserts cultural representations of Left Internationalism, the Non-Aligned Movement, socialist reformism, and committed art into the fields of comparative literature and media studies to contribute to theories of ongoing transformations and to provide alternative imaginaries for more equitable futures.

Phraseology and Style in Subgenres of the Novel: A Synthesis of Corpus and Literary Perspectives

Phraseology and Style in Subgenres of the Novel: A Synthesis of Corpus and Literary Perspectives