The effectiveness of culture on EFL learners during COVID-19 (Published)
This article aims to investigate the relationships between culture and Language. The motivation for this article is driven from the need to understand how culture plays an effective role in learning EFL through suitable specific instructional strategies. One of the educators ‘ attempts is to take the advantage of the technology to invest the culture to get effective learning of the English Language through E-tools. And this serves and support education in the age of COVID-19.Language is the backbone of communication. It is more than vocabularies and grammar, it comprises cultural, social, and communicative settings that were considered the fruitful environment to learn the language. Teaching cultural content via E-tools is a unique method of teaching the English Language in the crisis to bridge the educational gaps in the students’ learning in the E- space of learning. There are cultural issues that are deserved to be learned and adopting them in the educational system for widening the pupils ‘minds toward learning English as a second language. Those issues could be implemented by suitable teaching strategies to let students learn professionally as well as to overcome the cultural challenges in light of COVID-19.
Keywords: COVID-19, Culture, Language, Second Language
The Role of Language in Achieving the World’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) (Published)
Globalization in recent times has impacted positively on various aspects of life and advanced new opportunities for international co-operation, yet it has led to multifaceted social, economic, political and environmental challenges across the globe. Several developmental trajectories have been advanced towards addressing the dynamism of the developmental needs of countries by world leaders -from the 21st century Millennium Developmental Goals (MDGs)to the Education for all Goals (EFA)and more recently, the Sustainable development goals(SDGs) in their declaration of the anticipated future for global transformation ,come 2030.The United Nations identified seventeen (17)sustainable developmental goals that will help world transformation ,if achieved; but little attention was given to the societal organs/medium that will assist the realization of these goal such as language. This work therefore tries to fill this gap, using a qualitative research based on Sapir-Whorfian theory of language, with Leech’s five characteristics of language- informative, expressive, directive, aesthetic and phatic. The study seeks to assess the role of language in the attainment of the Sustainable development goals ,bearing in mind that the world is peopled with nations of diversified languages whose aims are to achieve collaborative partnership for world’s transformation ,by the year 2030.It was discovered that language plays a significant role in the achievement of virtually all the Sustainable development goals (SDGs)- from quality education to healthy living, promotion of peace and inclusive societies, industrialization and innovations ,implementation and revitalization of global partnership and others for the purpose of world transformation.
Keywords: Development, Goals, Language, Sustainable
Language in the Portrayal of the Protagonists of Achebe’s Novels (Published)
This paper analyses the language used in the portrayal of the characters of Chinua Achebe’s novels. This is the language used by the characters in discourse, and the narrators in the novels. The study reveals that the protagonists start off as heroes and eventually end up as antiheroes on account of high-handedness, dishonesty, corruption, violence, sexual promiscuity, ill temperament, vindictiveness, and murder. The study applies the theory of deconstruction in the assessment of the characters and reveals that the protagonists are antiheroes rather than heroes: Okonkwo in Things Fall Apart (1958), Obi Okonkwo in No Longer at Ease (1960), Ezeulu in Arrow of God (1964), Odili Samalu in A Man of the People (1966), and Sam in Anthills of the Savannah (1988). In deconstructing the protagonists, the five primary texts are read the first time and they reveal the protagonists as heroes. This first reading forms the basis for the second deconstructive “critical reading” which unveils the heroes as antiheroes. The publications and the themes of the novels of Achebe span over pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial Nigeria. Subsequently, the paper concludes that as antiheroes, the protagonists are barbaric and are not good exemplary African leaders. The characters therefore present the novels they appear in as colonialist, rather than anti-colonialist literature. This paper therefore recommends that Achebe’s novels should be seen as colonialist literature.
Keywords: Language, Protagonists, antihero, deconstruction, hero
Stylistic Analysis of President Buhari’s Addresses of Nigerians in the Face of Covid-19 Pandemic (Published)
The role of language in any speech event cannot be overemphasized. Language is the vehicle through which political speeches are carried out. This study investigated two speeches of President Muhammadu Buhari during the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic to ascertain how he has employed language, the linguistic elements used and the stylistic and pragmatic imports. Using the theoretical framework of stylistics, the researcher found out that Buhari tactfully used words to address Nigerians on Covid-19 and stressed the measures to be taken to contain the spread of the virus. To achieve the pragmatic effect of his speeches, he used lexical devices such as transitional makers, repetition, alliteration, assonance, pronouns to project the theme/subject matter of the language discourse. It was found out that the speaker used coordination to denote relationship of grammatical units, show contrast and as a re-statement of what he said earlier. The speaker repeatedly used coordination in his speeches and this is commendable since in language, identical items may be conjoined in an indefinite number of times. The analysis revealed that president is committed in combating the coronavirus pandemic that is ravaging his nation.
Keywords: COVID-19, Epidemiology, Language, Stylistics, medical register, pandemic
Intelligibility and Reliability of the Language of Agricultural Inputs in Cameroon (Published)
This research set out to investigate the extent to which the language of agricultural inputs (chemicals) sold in Cameroon markets is intelligible and reliable to farmers, most especially the rural farmers. The South West, North West, West and Far North Regions were taken as case studies. Data was collected from inscriptions on inputs, farmers’ questionnaires, interviews with input sellers, agricultural experts and farmers, as well as personal observation of the researchers. The data was analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively following Swales (1990) and Bhatia’s (1993) approaches to genre analysis. The findings from questionnaires and interviews revealed that the language of agricultural input products use in Cameroon is less intelligible to rural farmers. This is because of the scientific nature, the formulae and abbreviations used which are difficult for a non- agricultural expert to understand and the fact that most rural farmers have low educational levels. Moreover, some chemicals sold in Cameroon markets do not have labeling and the language of withdrawal period. In addition, the result from questionnaires, interviews and personal experiences revealed that the language of most inputs like fungicide and herbicide are unreliable. Those who respect the application as prescribed on the chemicals fail in their farms and those who violate succeed. This unreliability and absence of instructional language have negative impacts on agricultural output and human health.
Keywords: Agricultural inputs, Cameroon, Intelligibility, Language, Reliability
Amitav Ghosh’s Experimentation with Languages and Dialects in Ibis Trilogy (Published)
Amitav Ghosh’s Ibis Trilogy at face value is a historical fictional work that recreates the murky opium trade between British India and China which culminates into a full blown war between England and China. However, the three novels Sea of Poppies, River of Smoke and Flood of Fire also explores political, social, commercial and linguistic intricacies of the early colonial period. This article examines how Amitav Ghosh throughout over-1600 pages of his much acclaimed trilogy experimented with at least 23 other languages and dialects, at the backdrop of the vast seascape of the Indian Ocean, from Cape Town to Hong Kong the Opium War between the British Empire and China in 1839.
Keywords: Amitav Ghosh, Ibis Trilogy, Indian Writing in English, Language
Language Use and Style, as a Depiction of African Literature: An Example of Niyi Osundare’s The State Visit (Published)
The continued domination of English language in the African world especially in literary field has caused various doubts on what could be termed the African Literature. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to examine, how African writers have used language and style of writing to depict their continental identity in works of art. Researchers have established that the some parts of Africa had their literatures (either oral and or written) long before some parts of Europe. Therefore, the advent of English language is not the genesis of literature in Africa. The research, having examined this paramount discourse from Niyi Osundare’s The State Visit has concluded that language use and style are very significant beacons of African Literature.
Keywords: African literature, Depiction, Language, Niyi Osundare’s The State Visit
Archaisms In Legal Contracts- A Corpus-Based Analysis (Published)
Language is particularly significant in law because it is through it that law finds expression. From formulation to interpretation and enforcement, law exclusively depends on language. Legal contract is notorious for formalities and unchanging nature, especially with the use of archaic words and formulaic expressions is an important genre of legal English. Although the formalities afford lawyers opportunity to achieve “precision”, they constitute a serious challenge for the layman. This study examined the frequency, structure, and meaning of archaisms to argue that the elements are operational tools in legal contracts. The data for the study were derived from ten purposively sampled legal contracts (scanned and converted to electronic-version) of about 7116 words of the Akure Judicial Division of Ondo State Nigeria. With corpus linguistics methodologies, using register analysis within the purview of Systemic Functional Grammar, the study adopted the content analysis methodology to identify archaisms in the legal contracts, and to quantitatively and qualitatively analysis the data. The study found 20 archaisms of 4 categories occurring 187 times (2.6%) of the total number of words to justify the claim that archaisms, which are no more found in general English usage, are still very much in use in legal documents, especially contracts. This study concluded that archaisms which according to lawyers, are used to lend a touch of formality and precision to legal language, should give way to modern words which can serve both lawyers’ and non-lawyers’ needs.
Keywords: Archaisms, Content analysis, Corpus Linguistics, Language, Legal Contract, Register Analysis
Morphophonemics Analysis Of Kamayo “Kadi”Language In Surigao Del Sur , Philippines (Published)
The main focus of this study is to analyze the phonemic differences between allomorphs of the same morpheme in the adjectives and verbs of the Kamayo language .This study is qualitative and it uses key informants in gathering the needed data. The common phonemes used which signify the time when the event happened is attached to a root word. Often times, the phonemes : [tag], [ya], [yaka] [ki] [yang], [an] are commonly found in the past form of the verb; while, [yaga], [ga] [paga] and [yag] are phonemenes usually used in the present tense of the verb. The [mag], and [mang] in the beginning of the root word and [an], [on] and [i] are also attached in the end of the root word which are usually used in the future tense of the verb.The common phonemes used in the comparative degree in all categories of adjectives are the [ya],[ay] [ka] [ga] and [ma], where [ya], [ ka] and [ga] are phonemes commonly attached in the beginning of the root word, while [ay], and [ma] are usually found in the end of the rootword to signify the comparison. The phonemes [i], [ay], [hay],[hi] are usually found in the end of a superlative degree adjectives. The phoneme[ hi] is an allomorph of the vowel sound in the words “ guapuhi’, ‘guapahi’ and pubrehi’. On the other hand, the adjectives used to describe an amount has no specific distinction in meaning among the words “ few”, “some”, “multiple”,” plenty”, and “ several”, usually in the Kamayo Language it would only use one word “ hamuk-hamukay” for comparative degree and “ hamuki” and “hamukay” in the superlative degree.The result of the analysis revealed that kamayo language is distinct and it has its own characteristics. It is further revealed that because of its distinctness it is interesting to come up with teaching materials perfectly suited to the first language of the learners in the classroom for Mother Tongue Based-Education in the place of Surigao del Sur.
Keywords: Kamayo, Language, Morphemes, Philippines, morphophonemics analysis
Language as the Device for Psychological Manipulation in George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four: A Psycholinguistic Analysis (Published)
Language is the unique human talent that works amazingly in molding one’s thoughts and deeds. If grown unrestricted, it can help people widen their notions about things and issues in and around them. On the other hand, if shrunk and chained, it hinders the flourishing of ideas and information. The blossoming as well as the limiting power of language has been very perspicuously illustrated by George Orwell in his dystopian novel, 1984. How linguistic constituents hold the absolute ability to do and undo human thoughts has been portrayed in the novel in the most striking manner. Orwell has shown how language can manipulate psychological functions supreme-handedly. To lead popular thought to a certain target, language has to be engineered in the required mechanism. It does so, and attains complete control over people’s mind. This paper examines how language sets a demarcation line for human psychological processes. It attempts to dig deep into the linguistic treatment in 1984 and comes up with a vivid description of the dominance of language on people’s mental procedure. It investigates the manipulations of the ‘Newspeak’ and strives to grasp a psycholinguistic analysis of the novel.
Keywords: Language, Manipulation, Nineteen Eighty Four, Psychology, psycholinguistic