American Research Journal of English and Literature

Dr. Osman Alteyp

This research paper attempts to identify the following: first, the nature and circumstances under which the nasal sound /n/ changes to the lateral sound when /n/ is between /ɒ/ and /l/ in the word ‘online’ /ɒnlain/; second, why /ɒ/ is assimilated by /n/ in ‘only’ /ɒnli:/ and ‘online’ /ɒnlain/; third, what reasons lead to the delateralization of the sound /l/ after the sounds /ɔ:/ and /ɑː/ in the words ‘talk’ /tɔ:k/ and ‘calm’ /kɑːm/; and lastly, the proper definition of the process under which the sound /n/ and /l/ lose their distinctive features. The most important results are the following: the sound /n/ and /l/ lose their lateral and nasal features after the back vowel /ɒ/ in ‘online’ /ɒnlain/. Moreover, the English sound /l/ loses its feature after the sounds /ɔ:/ and /ɑː/ in the words ‘talk’ /tɔ:k/ and ‘calm’ /kɑːm/. Denasalization is a phonological process under which the sound /l/ loses its lateral feature.

Dr. Hongqin Zhao

Story as an idea and instrument is prevailing in qualitative research. It is meanwhile the most problematic and challenged apparatus due to its unsystematic accountability to validate research outcomes. It is often perceived to be more subjective than objective in academic executions. This paper connects the instrument of story with its unseeingly related concept of measure to build a theoretical perspective on the methodological considerations and applications. The method of biographical narrative is used to illustrate the quality of data through a framework to decern the characteristics, e.g. the temporary dimension for analyzing the process of changes and explanations of meanings; while the narrative of the lived experience is perceived to be authentic when vigorously collected. Using such elements to measure story for research sees the objective prominence and the quality of real records that produce both truthful and meaningful outcomes.

EA Gamini Fonseka, BA, MA, PhD, FRSA

This paper attempts to investigate semantically and metaphorically the cat-woman identity dilemma projected in the short story from a comparison of the plight of the cat and the American wife in their respective roles. The American wife’s husband remains glued to his book while the cat’s owners are busy with cleanliness issues during rain. Hemingway creatively demonstrates how their frustration as a pet and a guest in the hotel respectively, merges them into a unique psychological oneness. The rainy weather rouses in both a sensation desperately seeking care and caress with nobody around to respond to it. They both miss what they need in their physical and psychological constitutions although the chilly atmosphere is conducive for many sensational adventures. Hemingway’s creativity in representing their pathetic condition precipitated by the conflicts within them is tremendously powerful. While identifying the metaphors he has used in presenting this portrait of psychological loneliness, an attempt is made here to assess their semantic and symbolic impact. As the paper is designed for study purposes, Hemingway’s trajectory is followed by systematically analysing the achievements he makes at every juncture in his narration. Accordingly, the discussion under the twelve themes: 1) cat-woman metaphors; 2) the cat and the American wife; 3) The Hotel Riviera, Rapallo, Italy; 4) setting; 5) cat rescue mission; 6) the hotelier’s courtesies; 7) cat search; 8) disappointment; 9) self-realization; 10) self-search; 11) cat solution to frustration; and 12) godsend of a cat, aims at a coherent and thorough understanding of the short story.

Lin Wang1

The Hugo Award for The Three-Body Problem has greatly contributed to the influence of China’s science fiction, attracting a large number of potential readers. Compared to serious literature, science fiction places greater emphasis on the scenario-based experience of readers. The introduction of reception aesthetics into translation demonstrates the transformation from translators-centered approach to readers-centered approach. Thus, readers are constantly aligning themselves with their own experience, emotion and interest rather than mechanically reading the text, showing a dynamic relationship between the work and readers. In this sense, the translation studies of science fiction can be combined with reception aesthetics. This paper, based on reception aesthetics, explores translation strategies of Flowers for Algernon through a comparison of three concepts of horizon of expectations, appealing structure and implied readers and suggests methods for better expectations by readers.

Liu Yaxin

Halliday claims that foregrounding refers to the highlighting of linguistic features that contribute to the overall meaning intended by the writer in a text. According to Mukarovsky and Leech, foregrounding can be achieved through deviation and parallelism. To date, there have been a few stylistic studies on foregrounding in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. Nevertheless, these studies have primarily focused on the thematic and aesthetic effects created by foregrounding. By analyzing The Great Gatsby from a foregrounding perspective, it is demonstrated that foregrounding is an effective tool for revealing the protagonist’s inner world. This study aims to prove that Gatsby’s anxiety, which is exposed through deviation and parallelism patterns, is not just status anxiety but cultural anxiety that has been overlooked by previous critics who have primarily focused on the psychological aspects of the protagonist. Furthermore, Gatsby’s inability to alleviate his cultural anxiety highlights the plight of all urban residents resulting from the interplay between intellectual relationships and a money economy. It is argued that applying Bhabha’s mimicry theory to understanding the essence of Gatsby’s anxiety revealed by the foregrounding patterns, and exploring the reasons for his inability to escape his anxiety through Simmel’s theory of the metropolis and mental life, is of great significance for revealing the inner world of American people in the 20th century.

Jialu Song

After the birth of cloned sheep Dolly in 1997, cloning technology, especially human cloning, has become a controversial topic since the end of the last century. It has brought infinite impact to both natural science and human science in the world. Although up to now, there has not been a successful attempt at human cloning, people have never stopped worrying about this issue. Drama and science fiction frequently address this subject. The most important contemporary British female dramatist, Caryl Churchill, tells of alternative father-son relationships in the age of cloning and exposes the identity crisis of human clones in her play A Number. In this paper, the identity paradox, value inquiry, and subjectivity of clones are interpreted separately to feel the identity crisis of clones and to experience Churchill’s thoughts on the technological advances on the identity of clones and the relationship between clones and human beings.

Jebun Ara Geeti, PhD

This paper aims to clarify whether the National Literature of America is cohesive or integrated in regard to the spontaneous presence of African-American culture. It is apparent that African presence in American literary studies is noticeably insignificant even though it has significantly helped shaping the policy, government, Constitution, and the entire history of American culture. In “Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination,” Toni Morrison presents a different perception of “Americanness” in connection to the standing of African literary studies in America. The author notes that the basic traits of American literature has evolved from an awareness of “Americanness” that consciously refuse to integrate the irresistible presence of the Black. It is important to note that the common characteristics of American Literature have never incorporated the Black presence which could have been perceived as a true image of an unsettled plight of African American people. Indeed, an artificial presence of Africanism is generated by the white authors and critics that has triggered as well as established an idea of “Americanness” which is meticulously termed by Morrison as “American Africanism”. That projected concept of “American Africanism” is actively engaged in defining the shadowy presence of the Black within American Literature. The framework of “American Africanism” is not only Eurocentric but also strongly supported by American scholars and the entire education system in order to suppress the issues of class, Afro-American scholarships, exercise of power, and social engagement. This paper aims to explore why national literature of America is never influenced by African-American presence and what are the noticeable influences that have remarkably slowed down the robust presence of Africanism in the mainstream literature of America.

EA Gamini Fonseka, BA, MA, PhD, FRSA

This is a psychological analysis of Jhumpa Lahiri’s short story “Interpreter of Maladies”. Jhumpa Lahiri, although born and bred in the West, writes her short stories with an Asian, especially Indian, touch. Her “Interpreter of Maladies” relates an experience a US-born Asian young woman assimilated to Western culture has with a mature English-speaking Asian man engaged in tourism. They both fail to perceive the chronic issues of family life as particular to each other. Mina and Mr Kapasi are both in the same plight as frustrated spouses in their respective arranged marriages. But they cannot be explicit to each other because of cultural barriers. So, their maladies remain unperceived by each other under the influence of their cultural orientations. Mina considers Mr Kapasi a prospective counsellor, but Mr Kapasi considers her a prospective mistress. Ultimately, their considerations prove baseless, when they are both supposed to work out a solution together for an ailing problem.

Abhyudita Gautam Singha

This Paper is an attempt to decode the tribal custom prevalent in Himachal Pradesh called Darosh which means forcible marriage where the boy kidnaps the girl of his choice without her consent and establishes a physical relationship with her during that night after which the relationship is formally accepted and recognised as a marriage. This has been depicted in the story called Darosh authored by SR Harnot. The story revolves around the sister of the victim of this ritual who also resists all attempts on her kidnapping. The story gives a glimpse into the custom, delving into the complexities and the hidden circuits of mutual cooperation among the families of the groom and bride and exposes the hypocrisy of society in accepting such marriages that directly encroach on the girl’s right to choose a life partner. It also depicts the strong resistance that the patriarchal system faces from the modern educated women of today.

Dr. James Nsoh Adogpa

Ghanaianisms play a critical role in managing linguistic taboos. These are marks of Ghanaian cultural and linguistic identities. The Ghanaian creative writer, as well as the journalist, who has to stylistically contextualize his/her work, ought to adjust, distort and enlarge the scope of the English and change its shape to suit the linguistic space and time. This space and time fulfills what Zvemoya (2011) says “Our ancestors recognised this and, as a way of control and to encourage creativity designated the times and places for obscene.” From the perspective of an emic researcher, data were gathered from creative works of Ghanaian creative writers and from the media (broadcast and print). It was found out that the culture of Ghana is unique, so Ghanaians use Ghanaianisms to play a critical role in managing linguistic taboos and to mark identity. Another finding was that the use of Ghanaianisms is as a result of the passion Ghanaians have attached to the reality of life instances when it comes to how Ghanaians see English as their own. It is suggested that Ghanaianisms are recognized and codified so as to ease the use of English in the Ghanaian context