Cultural Transformations In The English Speaking World

In a context where cultural transformations have become a basic feature of modern life as people and nations are brought closer together, this book tackles transformations occurring within and across cultures of the English-speaking world in the fields of literature, painting, architecture, photography and film. It helps readers decipher these dynamic phenomena and situate them in a historical perspective. The articles move within and across cultures and mirror the broad range of approaches to cultural practices that have appeared in the past few decades. They provide readers with tools to work out the transformations these practices undergo and the new life and meaning this process infuses into cultures of the English-speaking world. This book will be useful to graduate and doctoral students as well as post-doctoral researchers working in film studies, cultural studies, art history, literature and creative writing. Its clear language and pedagogical approaches will also make it accessible to the general public.

The importance of integrating the teaching and learning of language and culture has been widely recognised and emphasized. However, how to teach English as an International Language (EIL) and cultures in an integrative way in non-native English speaking countries remains problematic and has largely failed to enable language learners to meet local and global communication demands. Developing students’ intercultural competence is one of the key missions of teaching cultures. This book examines a range of well-established models and paradigms from both English-speaking and non-English speaking countries. Exploring questions of why, what, and how to best teach cultures, the authors propose an integrated model to suit non-native English contexts in the Asia Pacific. The chapters deal with other critical issues such as the relationship between language and power, the importance of power relations in communication, the relationship between teaching cultures and national interests, and balancing tradition and change in the era of globalisation. The book will be valuable to academics and students of foreign language education, particularly those teaching English as an international language in non-native English countries.

Whispers I hear the whispers of my ancestors; what are they saying? This continuous beat of memories not known, hammering to be let out of my head. The far away rumble of noise, disquieting in its persistent clang, as if a battle is being staged for my benefit, a battle of words and ideas. Hear me! Hear me! it says, I have much to say. Listen! Listen! there is much to learn of your past.

Change is the most significant factor of contemporary society and humanity s past. This book represents the first substantial attempt since the 1970s to synthesize and critique sociocultural change theories in anthropology and relate them to trends in the social and physical sciences. It emphasizes the most recent contributions especially complexity and emergence theory, social movements, network analysis, and globalization. Ervin presents a rich legacy of theories and case studies accessible to both the established scholar and the beginning student. He considers how theories and insights can inform policy as humanity faces crises of globalization.Key Features of the Text Designed for scholars and students seeking a comprehensive analysis of the relation between anthropological theory and practice. Assesses big questions facing the social sciences: Do cultures and societies change or is it really individuals, families, and social networks? Are there prime movers of change environment, technology, economics, ideas, powerful leaders, or cultural contacts? Are there structures embedded within changes and changes built into structures? Original contribution of the book is the integration of sociological and anthropological theories, including networks, social movements, complexity, world systems, etc. Online appendices include resources for students on applied and practice anthropology."

Leading researchers shed new light on the history of the standardisation of English.

This book is a detailed examination of social connections to language evaluation with a specific focus on the values associated with both prescriptivism and descriptivism. The chapters, written by authors from many different linguistic and national backgrounds, use a variety of approaches and methods to discuss values in linguistic prescriptivism. In particular, the chapters break down the traditional binary approaches that characterize prescriptive discourse to create a view of the complex phenomena associated with prescriptivism and the values of those who practice it. Most importantly, this volume continues serious academic conversations about prescriptivism and lays the foundation for continued exploration.

Shortlisted for the ESSE 2022 Book Awards Shortlisted for the 2022 SAES / AFEA Research Prize Building on an upsurge of interest in the Americanisation of British novels triggered by the Harry Potter series, this book explores the various ways that British novels, from children's fiction to travelogues and Book Prize winners, have been adapted and rewritten for the US market. Drawing on a vast corpus of over 80 works and integrating the latest research in multimodality and stylistics, Linda Pillière analyses the modifications introduced to make British English texts more culturally acceptable and accessible to the American English reader. From paratextual differences in cover, illustrations, typeface and footnotes to dialectal changes to lexis, tense, syntax and punctuation, Pillière explores the sociocultural and ideological pressures involved in intralingual translation and shows how the stylistic effects of such changes – including loss of meaning, voice, rhythm and word play – often result in a more muted American edition. In doing so, she reveals how homing in on numerous small adjustments can provide fascinating insights into the American publishing process and readership.

This book reconsiders standard narratives regarding Austrian émigrés and exiles to Britain by addressing the seminal role of Sigmund Freud and his writings, and the critical part played by his contemporaries, in the construction of a method promoting humanized relations between individual and society and subjectivity and culture. This anthology presents groundbreaking examples of the manners in which well-known personalities including psychoanalysts Anna Freud and Ernst Kris, sociologist Marie Jahoda, authors Stefan Zweig and Hilde Spiel, film director Berthold Viertel, architect Ernst Freud, and artist Oskar Kokoschka, achieved a greater impact, and contributed to the broadening of British and global cultures, through constructing a psychologically effective language and activating their émigré networks. They advanced a visionary Viennese tradition through political and social engagements and through promoting humanistic perspectives in their scientific, educational and artistic works.