English Language and Literature Studies, Issue: Vol.16, No.1

Undergraduate EFL Learners’ Attitudes Towards AI Tools in ESP Courses

Mon, 26 Jan 2026 09:33:47 +0000

This study examines the perceptions and uses of AI tools by undergraduate EFL students to learn English for Specific Purposes (ESP) at an Arab University in the Gulf region. The study employed a quantitative-dominant mixed-method design and collected data using a structured questionnaire with Likert items and open-ended questions from 162 undergraduate students. The questionnaire analyzed patterns of AI usage, attitudinal constructs (perceived usefulness, ease of use, motivation, perceived risks, and behavioural intention), and open-ended reflections.

The results demonstrate that the level of awareness of AI tools is moderate, whereas the level of their use in ESP-related activities is average. The most commonly used AI tools that students reported using included chatbots, translation tools, and writing assistants to understand specialized writing, decipher technical words, and write faster. Attitudinal outcomes showed relatively positive interpretations of AI on all measured dimensions, with a significant amount of worries associated with inaccurate deliverables, overdependence, and obscure or unduly complex clarifications. The qualitative responses also emphasized the necessity of training, pedagogical instructions, and specific institutional regulations for the use of AI. This paper highlights the significance of the critical and facilitated incorporation of AI tools in ESP education to improve the learning process and reduce the associated risks.

Mirror Writing Among Saudi Elementary Students in English and Arabic: A Cross-Linguistic Perspective

Thu, 12 Feb 2026 05:14:28 +0000

This study investigates the phenomenon of mirror writing among Saudi elementary students when writing their names in both English and Arabic. It aims to explore how interference from the Arabic right-to-left writing direction influences English name-writing performance and letter orientation. The research sample consisted of thirteen students (ten in Grade 2 and three in Grade 3) from a national elementary school in Saudi Arabia. A descriptive qualitative approach was employed to analyze handwriting samples collected from each participant. The findings revealed systematic reversals in both Arabic and English name writing, indicating unstable directional control and strong cross-linguistic interference. Many students reversed entire names or specific right-facing English letters, reflecting the dominant influence of Arabic’s right-to-left orientation. The results highlight how early bilingual writers transfer directionality patterns between scripts, leading to mirror-writing behaviors. This study contributes to understanding cross-linguistic interference in early literacy development and offers pedagogical recommendations for strengthening spatial and directional awareness among bilingual learners.

On the Deconstruction of Racism in Ted Chiang’s Science Fiction Novel Liking What You See: A Documentary

Thu, 12 Feb 2026 08:41:28 +0000

The science fiction novel Liking What You See: A Documentary by renowned author Ted Chiang portrays a technologically advanced future in which a neural modification technology known as “Calli” is developed to combat lookism. The deployment of this technology profoundly impacts the lives of numerous individuals. Through an interpretive lens grounded in the theory of ethical literary criticism pioneered by Chinese scholar Nie Zhenzhao, this paper argues that the work serves as a critical allegory for racism. First, by examining the ethical environment depicted in the text, it becomes evident that the pervasive lookism in the novel mirrors the historical and social conditions of racial discrimination in the United States. Second, through an analysis of the characters’ ethical identities—particularly in light of shifts in their social status—the novel’s critique of real-world racism and its speculation on future race relations come into sharper focus. Ultimately, Ted Chiang’s narrative deconstruction of lookism functions as a meaningful intervention against the enduring constraints of racism.

From Deliberateness to Adaptation: A Diachronic Analysis of Deliberate Metaphors in Trump’s Inaugural Addresses Through an Integrated DMT-AT Framework

Fri, 13 Feb 2026 10:47:37 +0000

This study conducts a diachronic analysis of the strategic use of deliberate metaphors in President Donald J. Trump’s 2017 and 2025 inaugural addresses. While political oratory frequently employs metaphors to convey policy intentions and ideological stances, existing frameworks such as Deliberate Metaphor Theory (DMT)—which distinguishes between deliberate and non-deliberate metaphor use—have been critiqued for lacking a concrete methodological approach to contextual analysis. To address this gap, this study integrates Jef Verschueren’s Adaptation Theory (AT), which conceptualizes language use as a dynamic process of contextual adaptation. By applying this integrated DMT-AT analytical model to Trump’s two inaugural speeches, delivered at vastly different moments in his political career and in the nation’s history, this research investigates how and why specific metaphorical frames are deliberately recalibrated to achieve evolving communicative goals. The analysis reveals a systematic shift from metaphors of integrative, future-oriented nation-building in 2017 to metaphors of polarized conflict, existential threat, and historical restoration in 2025. These findings not only elucidate the pragmatic motivations behind strategic metaphorical choices in a consequential mode of political rhetoric but also demonstrate the explanatory potential of combining DMT with AT, thereby contributing to both metaphor theory and the analysis of contemporary political discourse.

The Trivial as Theory: Postcolonial Aesthetics, Social Media Micro-Narratives, and the Future of Minor Critique

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 09:39:11 +0000

This article rethinks “triviality” as a serious analytical lens within postcolonial critique. Drawing on philosophical lineages from Aristotle’s ideas on the “banal” to Lefebvre’s theory of everyday life, it argues that the marginal, the minor, and the apparently banal have long been centers of resistance in postcolonial contexts. The review traces how key theorists—including Spivak, Bhabha, Mbembe, and Glissant—implicitly attend to the everyday and subaltern “little things,” and how recent debates in affect and minor theory, such as Ngai’s “ugly feelings”, Berlant’s “cruel optimism”, Tsing’s “arts of noticing”, have renewed scholarly attention to ordinary life. In the digital age, cultural micro-forms—memes, TikTok reels, fanfiction, and webcomics—have emerged as significant sites through which postcolonial subjects articulate dissent and negotiate identity. Such trivial cultural forms blend global pop references with local commentary. Synthesizing these threads, the article proposes a “postcolonial triviality” framework, highlighting how everyday aesthetics and viral ephemera challenge dominant power by enabling micro-resistance. However, these banal forms can be co-opted or dismissed. The article calls for future work in vernacular digital humanities and transnational micro-cultural analysis. Altogether, the trivial lens expands postcolonial critique to include mundane, digital, and vernacular voices, arguing that studying minor, everyday forms is essential for decolonial scholarship.

Reviewer Acknowledgements for English Language and Literature Studies, Vol. 16, No. 1

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 09:51:36 +0000

Reviewer Acknowledgements for English Language and Literature Studies, Vol. 16, No. 1, 2026.