Forum for Linguistic Studies

Perception of Women as depicted in Setswana Proverbs and its Societal Impact

2025-09-22T09:21:34+08:00

This article presents a linguistic and cultural analysis of the representation of women in selected Setswana proverbs, utilizing Womanism as the theoretical lens. The study explores whether these proverbial expressions function to reinforce patriarchal ideologies or alternatively reflect empowering constructions of womanhood rooted in African cultural contexts. Grounded in the principles of Womanism—as articulated by Alice Walker—the framework situates African women lived experiences at the center of analysis, with emphasis on community perception, marriage and motherhood, and strength and leadership. Employing a qualitative content analysis methodology, the article undertakes a close linguistic examination of Setswana proverbs, paying attention to lexical choices, metaphorical constructions, and pragmatic functions. The analysis seeks to uncover how gendered meanings are encoded, transmitted, and maintained through proverbial discourse within Setswana speech communities. Findings indicate that while many proverbs reflect entrenched patriarchal ideologies and linguistic marginalization of women, others encode ambivalent or subversive meanings that gesture toward female agency and resilience. The study argues that Womanism provides a culturally grounded and linguistically sensitive framework for deconstructing gender ideologies embedded in African oral traditions. It further contributes to the broader discourse on the intersection of language, gender, and culture in African linguistic contexts.

Unlocking Language Potential: How Mother Tongue Shapes English Acquisition in Rural Grade 1 Classrooms of South Africa

2025-11-03T11:45:41+08:00

This study investigates the influence of learners’ mother tongues on the acquisition of English as a First Additional Language (EFAL) among Grade 1 learners in South Africa’s rural Klein Letaba Circuit, Limpopo Province. Guided by Cummins’ Interdependence Hypothesis and Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory, the study employs an interpretivist qualitative design involving eight purposefully selected Grade 1 teachers from multilingual classrooms. Semi-structured interviews were thematically analysed to identify patterns of phonological, grammatical, and lexical transfer, alongside teachers’ pedagogical responses. Findings reveal that learners frequently transfer L1 sound systems and grammatical structures into English, resulting in predictable decoding, pronunciation, and syntactic errors. Teachers report that strategic translanguaging—purposeful alternation between English and local languages such as Xitsonga, Tshivenda, and Sepedi—enhances comprehension, pronunciation, and learner engagement. Teachers’ narratives further highlight that bilingual scaffolding affirms cultural identity, reduces cognitive load, and strengthens early literacy development, despite persistent shortages of bilingual resources and limited professional development. The study concludes that mother-tongue-based bilingual instruction is not a remedial strategy but a foundational approach for promoting equitable literacy and cognitive growth in multilingual contexts. Its originality lies in situating translanguaging pedagogy within rural African classrooms and illustrating how teachers operationalise bilingualism under material and ideological constraints. By offering classroom-level insights, the study contributes to national conversations about South Africa’s 81% reading comprehension crisis, as reported in PIRLS 2021. Although based on a small, context-specific sample, the findings provide transferable implications for multilingual education policy and EFAL pedagogy across rural African settings.

The Role of Collaborative vs. Individual Learning of Pragmatics in Enhancing Iraqi EFL Learners' Pragmatic Competence and Pragmatic Motivation; The Predictive Power of Pragmatic Mindset

2025-09-28T10:20:23+08:00

Motivational factors play an important role in language learners’ learning and achievement. While a lot of research has been done on various motivational aspects of second language learning, less research has been done on motivation and mindsets specific to the pragmatics of second language learning. This study investigated the effect of collaborative learning, as compared with individualized instruction, on Iraqi EFL learners' pragmatic performance and pragmatic motivation and how learners' growth pragmatic mindset could predict their pragmatic performance. Following quasi-experimental and correlational designs, the study used a discourse completion test to collect data on learners' pragmatic competence and questionnaires to collect data on their pragmatic motivation and pragmatic mindsets. This study employed a quasi-experimental design with three groups (collaborative, individual, control) and a correlational analysis to examine mindset. The results of the study indicated that collaborative learning had significant positive effects on EFL learners' pragmatic performance and pragmatic motivation and that EFL learners' growth pragmatic mindset could significantly predict their pragmatic performance. Based on the findings, it is suggested that teachers adopt collaborative learning strategies in textbooks and classroom instruction to promote language learners' pragmatic competence and pragmatic motivation and assess learners' pragmatic mindsets at the beginning of instructional courses involving pragmatics.

Sensory Schema: From Sensation to Knowledge

2025-12-03T11:11:05+08:00

How do we know we used the right word in a sentence? The standard answer invokes grammatical rules, context, usage, and logic—but this article argues that the process of reasoning is guided by sensations. Human individuals experience sensations—not the molecular or neural mechanisms that produce them. Therefore, meaning arises from the sensations that words prompt, not from words themselves. Thinking operates through patterns of sensations, most below conscious awareness, while those that rise to consciousness guide the process by signaling alignment or conflict with patterns from past experiences. To explain this process, the article proposes the sensory schema framework, which investigates how sensations are organized at a more fundamental level than image schemas and conceptual metaphors in cognitive linguistics. Analysis across diverse domains—language, mathematics, science, art, and everyday behavior—reveals that sensory experience is inherently structured as products of intensity and extent, the core mechanism by which embodiment shapes conceptual knowledge. This cross-domain consistency demonstrates that patterns cognitive linguistics identifies within language reflect universal organizational principles of sensory experience. The article synthesizes core ideas from previously published works and demonstrates how the framework generates testable predictions for empirical research while offering applications in language acquisition, computational linguistics, and clinical assessment.

Taboo and Sensitive Language in Inclusive Subtitles: Gauging Tolerance Thresholds in a Maltese Context

2025-11-03T11:30:35+08:00

Malta’s localization practices largely rely on inclusive subtitles in English or Maltese, a combined translation–accessibility solution that delivers linguistic, cultural, and sensory access in line with a universalist approach. This article reports an in-depth reception study designed to gauge Maltese viewers’ tolerance thresholds for taboo and other categories of sensitive language in inclusive subtitles, with the aim of corroborating or refining local subtitling guidelines. Drawing on clips from US English TV shows streamed on Netflix, respondents compared paired subtitled versions that employed four distinct strategies—attenuation, equivalent impact, omission, and aggravation—across varied genres, contexts, characterizations, and functions of taboo language. The online survey combined immediate reactions with subsequent, more reflective responses; qualitative findings were analyzed alongside demographic variables (age, gender, education, locality). Contrary to expectations derived from earlier work suggesting general acceptance of vulgar expressions, results indicate a clear overall preference for attenuation strategies for expletives irrespective of taboo category or narrative context. Complete omission emerged as the favored approach specifically for blasphemous language. As for sensitive language concerning sexual orientation, race, and mental health, participants initially preferred the less derogatory renditions, though this preference was less pronounced than with other taboo categories. Notably, when respondents were prompted to focus on these sensitive topics and reflect, their responses shifted and became more contemplative, producing subtler and more varied stances. Responses also became more nuanced when participants considered a hypothetical policy on vulgar language in Maltese inclusive subtitles. These findings support targeted adjustments to local guidelines, emphasizing attenuation for expletives and omission for blasphemy, while recommending context-aware policies for other sensitive categories.