Multicultural Literature Research Articles

Мультикультурний компонент та його мовне вираження в творчості Ленгстона Г’юза

Nowadays, the problem of the representation of multiculturalism in modern poetry needs special consideration. Our research is devoted to the investigation of the specific features of the multicultural component in the poetry of Langston Hughes. The main tasks of the paper are to investigate such notions, as «multiculturalism», «realia», «national identity» and «blues»; and to analyze the linguistic and cultural specificity of Hughes’ poetry. Multiculturalism is a term that came into usage after the idea of a “melting pot». Such scholars as Glazer, Hollinger, and Taylor have been investigating this term. Multicultutralism is the way in which different authors maintain their identity through their work while educating others on their cultural ideas. Multicultural literature is oriented around issues of race, ethnicity, gender, etc. Multicultural American literature of the 20th century resonates with the hopes and fears of the whole of American history and reflects the rich complexity and variety of the American experience. James Mercer Langston Hughes, an American writer who was an important figure in the Harlem Renaissance and made the African American experience the subject of his works. His writings ranged from poetry and plays to novels and newspaper columns. We would like to pay special attention to Langston Hughes’ poetry. «The Negro Speaks of Rivers» was the first poem published in Langston Hughes’s long writing career. The poem first appeared in the magazine Crisis in June of 1921 and was subsequently published in Hughes’s first volume of poetry, The Weary Blues, in 1926, written when he was only 19. «The Negro Speaks of Rivers» as well as the rest of his works treats themes Hughes explored all his life: the experiences of African Americans in history, black identity and pride. Multiculturalism is connected with the notion of realia. It is a linguistic phenomenon, which refers to the culture-specific vocabulary. The works of such well-known scientists, as S. Vlahov, S. Florin, I. Kashkin, A. Fedorov have been central in the study of this issue. The key factor in defining any phenomenon as realia is national referring to the object of a certain country, nation, or social community. National identity is not an inborn trait. It is essentially socially constructed. A person's national identity results from the presence of elements from the «common points» in people's daily lives: national symbols, colors, nation's history, blood ties, and so on. We can find all these aspects (geographical realia, proper names, and many others) in the work of Langston Hughes. While analysing the poems of Langston Hughes we discover that his language is closely connected with the culture. Thus, the idea of multicultural writing is that racial and ethnic minority voices are a crucial element in United States literary history and culture

Integrating Multicultural Literature in EFL Teacher Training Curriculum

The paper addresses the need and importance of including literature of indigenous people and immigrants and their descendants in teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) worldwide, mainly in teacher training colleges. The aim is to qualify competent English teachers linguistically, cross-culturally, and morally who will be aware of social injustices, which would extend their roles as language teachers to become agents for change.

Disentangling the American Christian Right: An Interview with Dr. Christopher Douglas | Decifrando a direita cristã norte-americana: uma entrevista com o Prof. Dr. Christopher Douglas

Christopher Douglas is one of the most prominent scholars who has studied the rise of the conservative Christian Right in the American political arena and the links of this complex movement to American culture. Prof. Douglas taught at the University of Toronto and, for five years, at Furman University, South Carolina before transferring to University of Victoria in 2004. He teaches American literature, particularly contemporary American fiction, religion and literature, multicultural American literature, postmodernism, and the Bible as Literature. In the interview below, Prof. Douglas talks about his research and the idea behind his book “If God Meant to Interfere”, published in 2016; the explanatory concepts of Christian Multiculturalism and Christian Postmodernism; the spread of fake news, conspiracy theories, and alternative facts among Christian fundamentalists; the American political context. Prof. Douglas also offers interesting comments on the current Brazilian situation. His critical insights provide interesting and new perspectives that give fresh vitality to the debates about Christian fundamentalism. Prof. Douglas is committed to “public-scholar engagement” that is, research-based critical writings for non-academic audiences.Links to his public academic activity are inserted throughout the interview.

“What is Your Good Name?”: on Translating Multicultural Literature

The article discusses distinguishing features of speech etiquette in Indian English and certain aspects of its translation into Russian. The relevance of this research topic is determined by the current spread of English as an international language and by the emergence of the World Englishes paradigm. In India there are a lot of cultural conventions that do not have English equivalents and, thus, cannot be expressed adequatelyby means of the English language. As a result of the language contact, Indian English has got an impact on its linguistic setting from Hindi and other regional languages. This linguistic transfer from Indian languages can be seen at various levels, including the use of politeness formulas. In this article the focus is made on the politeness formula “What is your good name?”, which is a polite way of asking someone’s name. This etiquette question is one of the most common Indian English politeness patterns, generalized all over India. The article analyzes the etymology of this expression and explains why it is frequently encountered in the speech of Indian English users, as well as to show the important role of such an analysis in overcoming translation difficulties.

Looking Through the Multicultural Glass: Re-Examination of Syrian Refugee Children Education in Turkey

Turkey presents a unique picture as the host of the highest number of Syrian refugees after the outbreak of civil war in Syria in 2011. According to United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (2018), Turkey has more than 3.5 million Syrian refugees half of whom are school-aged children. These children have limited access to their basic human right: receiving quality education. Fewer than half of approximately one million school aged (ages 5 to 18) Syrian refugee children could receive regular education services in Turkey (Directorate General of Immigration Affairs, 2016). Turkey welcomed a large number of Syrian refugees without taking necessary steps in its education system. Embracing cultural diversity via multiculturalism, and multilingual education, one needs to direct the attention of the audience to the long-term struggle of refugee children in Turkish education system and draw a conceptual framework for quality education and excellence in teacher education. The present paper is an attempt to highlight the role of multicultural education; more specifically through the lens of multicultural literacy practices. Highlighting the contributions of various genres of different ethnic and racial backgrounds such as songs, poetry, fiction, (auto)biographies, multicultural literacy could increase cultural awareness and understanding of pupils, teachers, administrators and the communities, and could help establish enriching learning experiences for Turkish and Syrian children. Multicultural literature provides a meaningful platform affirming differences and showing cultural connections, revealing social issues, necessitating action against injustice, and embracing diverse cultures. When implemented with care, multicultural literacy could increase academic achievement of ethnic minority and at-risk students, heighten cultural awareness and understanding of all students, and provide meaningful learning opportunities for all. The present paper aims to delve into the relationship among English as a lingua franca, Syrian refugee children education, and the theoretical underpinning of multicultural and multi-ethnic education in relation to English language instruction in Turkey.

An Investigation of Middle School Classroom Libraries

Given that much of the research on classroom libraries focus on elementary school classrooms, this study sought to examine classroom libraries at the middle school level. Access to books is especially important for middle school students given the persistent decline in reading engagement at this level. The research questions guiding this investigation focused on the nature of the libraries, the physical features of the libraries, the contributions made by the libraries to the literacy environment of the classrooms, the contents of the libraries, and teacher perceptions of their own classroom libraries. Findings indicate that teachers value classroom libraries for promoting literacy engagement and understand how these libraries provide students with immediate and easy access to books. The contents of the libraries that were examined varied in terms of genre, multicultural literature, and social justice issues.

Enhancing Intercultural Competence Using Multi-Cultural Literature in Culture Classes for Pre-service English Teachers

This article discussed the need for culture education for pre-service English teachers in an ever increasingly globalized and consequently multi-cultural world. Instruction on culture should be expanded from the gaining knowledge to the formation of attitudes and acquisition of intercultural competence. This classroom-based study aims to propose a new direction to which pre-service English teacher education should advance in terms of the intercultural communicative competence. Intercultural communicative competence has to be integrated into the curriculum for the prospective teachers. Based on Rodriguez (2013), this paper makes recommendations for the effective use of muli-cultural literature in enhancing intercultural communicative competence of pre-service English teachers. This classroom-based action research was conducted with English education major students registered for the American and British culture course in 2018. This study suggested that a culture class should rectify its direction in the cultural awareness education and proposed a teaching procedure which integrates reading multi-cultural literary texts into the intercultural communicative competence, following the sequence of decoding, text information building, and reader-model construction (Koda, 2010). In the three cycles, the students have shown that they gained knowledge about the culture, formulated the attitude, and acquired the skills. The multi-cultural literature was a good starting point to a new direction although any generalization should be made with caution.

다문화동화로 출간된 베트남 옛이야기 연구

다문화동화로 출간된 베트남 옛이야기 연구

Experiences of gender among Arab American women: A qualitative study.

Even within counseling psychology's multicultural literature, attention to persons of Arab descent remains limited. Despite counseling psychologists' goal of becoming more multiculturally proficient, the dearth of systematic empirical research on the counseling of Arab Americans is glaring. This exploratory consensual qualitative research (CQR) investigation analyzed interview data from 11 Arab American women to explore their experiences at the intersections of ethnic identity and gender. In addition to describing a need to be hyperaware and responsive to societal and familial expectations, participants reported believing that they did not fit American society's view of Arab American women. They also conveyed feelings of invisibility and invalidation due to racial ambiguity, and lack of census recognition. The findings affirm the need to increase psychological focus on Arab American women to facilitate the multiculturally competent practice of counseling psychologists working with this population. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Exploring multicultural books through predictions and social interactions: A case study with kindergarteners in the United States

Although previous studies have underlined the importance of social interactions, multicultural education, prediction/imagination, and bilingual/bi-literacy learning, the intersection of all these four areas is yet to be explored. This qualitative case study explored how young bilingual readers create meanings and develop literary responses through prediction, imagination, and social interaction while reading multicultural literature. As part of a larger longitudinal study, this study focused on kindergarten-age Korean-English bilingual children at a Korean Language School in a Midwestern city in the United States. The data were collected over five months using audio/video recordings, open-ended interviews, and children’s artifacts. The findings suggest that creative participation and social interactions using two languages help young bilingual readers to engage deeply with the reading and encourage multiple perspectives.

A Look Back in Doubt “Confessions of a Heretic”: Multicultural Literature in Australia.

It is argued that the emergence of ‘multiculturalism’ in Australia during the Nineteen-eighties was almost entirely determined by political considerations. An application of the concept to literary culture was not anticipated. Nor was there a discourse of migrant or ethnic literature before post-war immigration.As part of the Australia Council’s decision to sponsor a literary culture of ‘New Australians’ it encouraged the creation of a journal for multicultural literature, Outrider. This article is an attempt to characterise a group of perceived ‚multicultural writers’ by raising doubt about their real or assumed status. It is true they employ highly individual creative imagination and variations of literary style by questioning the nature of migration (often without being migrants themselves). However, such writing is hardly unique to inherent characteristics of ‚multicultural aesthetics’. Formally and thematically these authors’ language frequently employs a wide range of elective affinities, alienation techniques or correlative analogies. They can hardly be considered ‚minority writers’ of limited literary genius. In truth they are creators of sophisticated poetry and prose by overcoming (or ‘integrating’) foreign language restriction. To them migration is not merely a subject or theme: it is a consciousness manifesting itself in literary form and style. The best ‘migrant writing’ invokes dimensions of alienation shared by a readership whose cultural dislocation is not confined to refugees, asylum-seekers or social outcasts. In the contemporary global end game, migration has become a shared state of mind.A brilliant and complex linguistic approach to ‘multicultural writing’ has been argued by Australian sociolinguist Paul Carter. He rejects the negative view of immigration as a form of displacement. Applying his well-balanced analysis of “migrant aesthetic” dialogue promises not only “a new kind of history”. In the end it means refining a new, distinctively migrant poetics.

МУЛЬТИКУЛЬТУРНІСТЬ КОНРАДА-ЕМІГРАНТА

The article is devoted to the problem of the multiculturalism by Joseph Conrad, the English writer and the world classic of the 20th century, who, due to the preservation of his Polish national-cultural identity, and by estrangement from this identity in his artistic consciousness, was able to influence the intellectual and artistic atmosphere in England of his times. In this way, the Polish identity became a background for Conrad’s artistic creativity, and at the same time, universal values and criteria were the key to the successful acculturation in English society in its one of the most effective strategies – the integration strategy. In this case Conrad acquired another national-cultural identity, English, – while retaining his native, Polish. Undoubtedly, one of the most important issues touched by almost all researchers is his arrival in English literature, a Pole in origin, who only arrived in England in the twenty-first year, actually emigrating, and for a very short time becaming a venerable writer. It should be noted that, taking into account the peculiarities of English mentality, the task was rather uneasy. All this undoubtedly led to the development of a variety of approaches to understanding the creative personality and rich heritage of Joseph Conrad. Foreign literary and critical academic circles, which introduced the concept of «new English literature» (meaning the post-colonial period), do not take into account such figures of the English literary process as Joseph Conrad, whose work falls out of its chronological framework, and indicates that multicultural literature appeared on the approaches to the twentieth century. However, only nowadays it was possible that such an approach was based on the principles of multiculturalism, that is, the phenomenon justified in the 90s of the XX century, although, as the majority of scholars testify, it existed for a long time in cultural studies, literary criticism, art history and philosophy. We have chosen this approach. The research is devoted to the study of the problems of national-cultural identity by Joseph Conrad, as well as the mechanism of his acculturation in the conditions of emigration.

Stories of becoming: implications of future‐oriented theories for a vital literacy education

AbstractDrawing on a multi‐year qualitative study of immigrant and non‐immigrant youth storytelling, I describe youth's imaginative labour as they constructed and moved into one another's worlds. I argue that although multicultural literature is vital for affirming and expanding youth perspectives on their own and others' worlds, the publishing industry lags behind the immediate needs of immigrant youth to be understood and heard as fully human. Storytelling, in the form of co‐narration, creates an imaginative space of uncertainty and playfulness for inviting possible futures into mutual awareness and interpretation. Using two storytelling episodes as illustrations and drawing on contemporary sociocultural and decolonizing theories, I outline four ways future‐oriented teaching and research may be realized: (1) rename the world, by considering ‘what if’, (2) reframe narratives of damage so that narratives of desire may be foregrounded, (3) contribute to a more just and equal world rather than merely participate in existing practices and (4) reclaim childhoods for freedom and exploration, especially in our relations with Black and Brown youth who are perceived in adult terms much earlier than their White peers. I argue, overall, that we must understand and develop a contemporary theory of imagination in order to meet the challenges of future‐oriented literacy teaching and research.

Лингвоимагологический подход к мультикультурной литературе (на примере романов “Habibi” Наоми Шихаб Най, “Where the Streets Had a Name” Ранды Абдель-Фаттах и “Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood” Ибтисам Баракат)

The article considers the phenomenon of multiculturalism in its connection with linguistic imagology. The author describes the differences between the liberal model of multiculturalism, recognized as utopian, and the polycentric model, rooted in postcolonial theory. The novelty of the research is seen in the fact that the ideas of multiculturalism are considered in comparison with the ideas of imagology, which also focuses on the issues of identity and otherness. Points of contact of two scientific directions are designated. The author shows that the phenomenon of multiculturalism is reflected in multicultural literature, the study of which has become particularly relevant with the acceleration of globalization. The article provides the views of both Russian and foreign scientists on the concept of multicultural literature, for the study of which a linguoimagological approach is proposed, implying linguo-stylistic analysis with an emphasis on the representation of the image of “others,” “strangers” in comparison with the image of “self”. Based on the material of English-language works devoted to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the author analyzes the methods of presenting the tragic events of confrontation through the eyes of the authors- bearers of Palestinian culture: the inclusion of deictic means, symbolic images, militaristic vocabulary, means of imitating broken English speech, etc. in the narration. The author concludes that the studied works provide an opportunity to look at one of the longest conflicts in modern history through the eyes of people constantly living in the conditions of a real military-political confrontation.

Cross-cultural image in Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel “The Remains of the Day”

The article deals with the analysis of the image of the protagonist, depicted in the novel “The Remains of the Day” written by Kazuo Ishiguro. Created at the crossroads of various cultural paradigms, the novel belongs to the space of multicultural literature, which increasingly attracts the attention of the present-day researchers. A mention also should be made that multicultural authors are defined as carriers of the unique vision of the world, since the so-called intercultural sensibility, that appears to be a result of cultural accumulation, brings about a qualitatively new type of creativity. It is to this generation of writers that the creativity of the modern English writer of Japanese origin, Kazuo Ishiguro, belongs to. The special position of a hybrid writer, who cannot be credited neither to the generation of Japanese nor to the generation of English writers, gives rise to a unique style of narration. This style of narration combines the most prominent features of both cultures. It should be stressed that the image of the protagonist of the analysed novel makes it possible to identify a number of ethno-cultural units that are common to both the Japanese and the English. In addition to this, the author creates a cross-cultural image. The English nature of writing is manifested in the references to the characteristic features of the typical Englishman, whose image originates from the time of the Victorian novel. First and foremost, such features as loyalty, diligence and dedication should be noted as an example. The eastern element of the image of the protagonist is manifested in the appeal to the Eastern philosophy of Buddhism and the implementation of the basic principles of the samurai code of honour. However, it is difficult to distinguish different national components in the novel, because both nations have a common set of attributes that form the so-called “interspace” of the novel. Due to the successful manoeuvring of these attributes, certain ethno-cultural stereotypes are being eroded. However, the juggling of the stereotypes is not an end in itself. They rather serve as an auxiliary means of disclosing the author's philosophy. The above-named problems are studied on the example of the works devoted to the concept of Englishness and Japanesseness and well as the treatises “Hagakure: Book of the Samurai” by Yamamoto Tsunetomo and “Bushido: The Soul of Japan” by Inazo Nitobe.

I Want to Read About Me: Engaging and Empowering Gifted Black Girls Using Multicultural Literature and Bibliotherapy

It is commonly accepted and expected that gifted students enjoy reading and other forms of creative modes of storytelling. A core principle from bibliotherapy is that students engage in reading when they identify with one or more characters, and challenges and interests like their own. The same principle applies to multicultural literature—when students of color see themselves mirrored in the book, they become more eager to read. This column focuses on the vital need for educators to use multicultural literature with gifted Black girls. Strategies and resources are provided for educators’ expansion of their pedagogical toolkit.

Interrogating the Lack of Diversity in Award-Winning LGBTQ-Inclusive Picturebooks

ABSTRACTThis article presents the results of a thorough content analysis of 28 LGBTQ award-winning picturebooks. As a queer teacher educator working with pre-service elementary teachers, I wanted to find out how the queer picturebooks available for use in my students’ classrooms were any good at helping them and their future students understand that ’diversity’ and multicultural literature include LGBTQ people. What I found was enlightening and disheartening – offering both affordances and constraints for the elementary classroom. Through my analyses, I uncovered several aspects regarding race, gender identity, specific sexual orientations, and LGBTQ-inclusive language either present or lacking in the study text set. This study identifies aspects of quality LGBTQ-inclusive collections without ignoring the limitations of the materials and messages currently available to teachers.

Pre-Service Teachers’ Changing Perspectives of Mexican Immigration following an Online Multicultural Literature Experience

Abstract Misconceptions, stereotypes, and deficit views of Mexican immigrants are pervasive in the current U.S. media. Such views are inconsistent with culturally responsive pedagogy, and teachers who hold them will be impeded in their abilities to teach Mexican immigrant children effectively (Nathenson-Mejia & Escamilla, 2003). Research supports the notion that many teachers become more culturally responsive as a result of reading multicultural children’s literature (Nieto, 2013). Few studies, however, have looked specifically at literature with Mexican immigration themes, and fewer still have been done specifically with undergraduate pre-service teachers or utilizing critical discourse methodology. In this study, four pre-service teachers read and discussed the children’s novel Return to Sender in an online discussion board over four weeks. Critical discourse analysis of changes in participants ways of representing, ways of interacting, and ways of being (Fairclough, 2003) over the four weeks indicated that some participants developed more empathetic views toward Mexican immigrants, while others did not. These differences seemed related to the stance (Rosenblatt, 1978) they adopted when approaching the text. These findings may inform teacher educators as they plan multicultural literature experiences that promote culturally responsive understandings of the experiences of Mexican immigrant and other children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

Pisarze postkolonialni. Próba identyfikacji twórczości Astrid Roemer

Teza. Astrid Roemer, pisarka pochodząca z Surinamu, mieszkająca przez wiele lat w Holandii, należy do tzw. pisarzy postkolonialnych. Badacze literatury wskazują na trudności z określeniem, kim są tacy twórcy. Problematyczna jest także kwestia przypisania Astrid Roemer do konkretnego pokolenia imigrantów. Pisarka adresuje swoje utwory do czarnych kobiet, pisze je jednak w języku niderlandzkim, który w Surinamie jest wyłącznie językiem urzędowym, co sprawia, iż jej powieści czytane są przez niewielki procent tej społeczności. W artykule autor stawia tezę, że twórczość Astrid Roemer należy zaliczyć do literatury wielokulturowej.
 Omówione koncepcje. Autor odwołuje się do koncepcji socjologicznej pierwszego i drugiego pokolenia imigrantów oraz studium historycznoliterackiego Urszuli Topolskiej (2009), poświęconego pisarzom o podwójnych korzeniach kulturowych, tworzących w języku niderlandzkim. Przywołuje także koncepcję transkulturowości Wolfganga Welscha (1994/1995) oraz tożsamości wielokulturowej Jerzego Nikitorowicza (1995).
 Wyniki i wnioski. Zarówno w biografii, jak i twórczości literackiej A. Roemer można odnaleźć znaki transkulturowości oraz hybrydyzacji kulturowej.
 Oryginalność/wartość poznawcza podejścia. A. Roemer jest laureatką P. C. Hooft Award, holenderskiej nagrody państwowej, uważanej za najważniejszą nagrodę literacką w Holandii. Pomimo tego jest autorką niszową. Jej nazwisko znalazło się w zaledwie jednym podręczniku do nauki literatury niderlandzkiej ( Topolska, 2009).

Multicultural Literature Education: A Story of Failure?

Multicultural educators believe that children absorb values from implicit messages in the stories they learn in school. To counteract the pernicious values communicated in traditional folk and fairy tales, they recommend teaching children stories that were deliberately designed to counteract traditional stereotypes (e.g., a princess rescues a prince) or communicate values that will supposedly help to establish a harmonious multicultural society (e.g., the beliefs of people of different backgrounds should be regarded as equally valid). The present paper reviews the methods of multicultural literature education. Although multiculturalists are calling for increasingly restrictive criteria on what stories can be taught in the classroom, there is little evidence that this kind of multicultural education has ever been effective in promoting social harmony.