October - Volume 1, Number 1 (2023)
Overcoming Ethnic and Tribal Affiliations in African Narratives: A Discourse Analysis of Constructive Alterity
Théophile Munyangeyo
This article explores the issue of ethnic and tribal identities in Africa and their contribution to social tensions, political intolerance and violence. Using two African novelists, Eugène Nzamboung and Dominique M'Fouillou, as case studies, it argues that narratives construct identities as constructive "alterity" rather than negative sources of conflict. Through discourse analysis, the article examines the representation of key concepts such as identities, existence, being, becoming, and the representation of historical and social reality. The author concludes that dynamics in interpersonal and community relations can create a fruitful intersectionality of identities that ultimately triumph over contiguous conceptions of social differences....
Stepdaughters’ Oppression by Stepmothers and its Contribution to Gender Inequality in Ashanti, Ghana
Simon Kyei
This paper examines stepmothers’ violence against stepdaughters in the Ashanti region of Ghana and its contribution to gender inequality. The paper is based on a longitudinal study that began in 2005 and lasted until 2016, with observations of stepdaughters for at least three years. The study revealed that stepmothers in the region subjected their stepdaughters to various forms of psychological, emotional, and physical oppression, leading to a negative impact on the stepdaughters' academic performance. Such ill-treatment often resulted in many of the girls dropping out of school. The study concludes that the actions of stepmothers in the region are a...
Exploring Factors Contributing to Lower Female Literacy in Pakistan
Syeda Tajwar Hussnain, Zahara Batool, Fatima Sabbir, Salma Yousaf
Pakistan faces a daunting challenge in terms of female literacy, which remains low despite the country's efforts to promote education. The issue has several factors, including socioeconomic and religious concerns that continue to impede the progress of women education. Pakistani culture tends to view educating girls as a financial loss since parents expect them to marry and leave their families. Moreover, fathers are more inclined to educate their sons, leading to a gender gap in literacy. Consequently, the country has an alarmingly low literacy rate among women, which has significant consequences for social and economic development. Educated women are more...
Exploring the Morphological and Syntactic Features of Japanese Advertising Slogans: Implications for Copywriting
Wenchao Li
This study applies mathematical linguistics to explore the morphological and syntactic features of Japanese advertising slogans and their correlation with popularity. The sample data includes 1,000 advertising slogans from the Tokyo Copywriters Yearbook spanning from 2018 to 2021 in twelve genres. Mean dependency distance (MDD) and entropy (ENTR) were used to calculate syntactic diversity, while moving-average morphological richness (MAMR), moving-average mean size of paradigm (MAMSP), and mean word length (MWL) were employed to measure lexical diversity. The findings indicate that the simplest slogans in terms of syntax were of the imperative form, while the most complex were of the volitional...
Untold Stories of Rural Agricultural Estates in Northern Israel: Integrating Anthropology and Historical Geography in Historical Research
Gerald Sack
This article presents a mixed-methodology approach to historical research that combines oral history, anthropology, and historical geography in exploring the development of rural agricultural estates in Northern Israel during the late Ottoman and Mandate periods (1879-1948). The study uses GIS technologies, archival documents, and face-to-face interviews to identify and locate small and large rural estates previously ignored by historical researchers due to the lack of documentation. Through ethnographic material and oral histories, the article reconstructs the narrative of the rural peasantry and highlights the importance of mixed-methodology approaches in historical research. The study also addresses the potential biases and limitations...