Manar Elsharq Journal for Literature and Language Studies

Shifting Meaning in Translations of John Donne's Poetry: A Comparative Study of Literary Translation in Arabic and English

Abdulrahman Nasser Abdulrazak — 2026-02-13

The study attempts to see how the meaning changes when John Donne's poetry is translated from English into Arabic, analyzing selective John Donne’s poems and critical interpretation. The study examines the psychological, theological, and linguistic barriers that influence the metaphysical themes in Donne's work when presented in Arabic culture. In this research, the difficulties of literary translation are demonstrated, especially when we try to travel through different poetical conventions, religious concepts, and linguistic structures. The study hypothesizes that (1) Translating John Donne's metaphysical poetry from English into Arabic can lead to significant changes in religious and philosophical themes (2) Cultural differences between English and Arabic-speaking readers, particularly when it comes to religion, are problematic in translating such poems in Arabic (3) Venuti’s translational model of domestication and foreignization can be adopted in translating John Donne’s poems into Arabic. The current study presents a theoretical explanation of literary translation and meaning shifts. Then, some famous Donne's poems have been selected to be analyzed depending on specific criteria and a proposed rendering has been provided by the researchers. The study concludes that (1) Translating John Donne's metaphysical poetry from English into Arabic leads to significant changes in religious and philosophical themes (2) Cultural differences between English and Arabic-speaking readers, particularly when it comes to religion, are problematic and mean that the metaphysical significance of original poems must be altered by adaptations for local stylistic reasons (3) Venuti’s translational model of domestication and foreignization is adopted in translating John Donne’s poems into Arabic.

The Effect of High-Variability Phonetic Training on /p/–/b/ Production and Speech Intelligibility

Adil Bashar Adil — 2026-02-13

This research aims to study the effect of high variability phonetic training (HVPT) on improving the capability to produce the two plosive sounds (/ p/ and/ b/) among learners of English as a foreign language, as well as measuring the effect of this enhancement on enhancing intelligibility among listeners. The study involved a total sample of 30 Arab EFL learners, divided into two equal groups (n = 15) and a control group (n = 15). The problem of distinguishing between these two sounds is common among Arabic- speaking learners, due to the absence of the/ p/ sound in the Arabic phonetic system. The target sounds (/ p/ and/ b/) were inspired in word- original, medium, and final positions to insure contextual representativeness. The research espoused an experimental approach with apre-post design with two groups an experimental group that entered highly varied training for four weeks, and a control group that entered traditional instruction. Data were collected through a pronunciation test, a phonetic perception test, and a task to assess comprehensibility by independent listeners. The results showed statistically significant differences in favor of the experimental group in production, perception, and intelligibility, which is harmonious with the results of recent studies (Uchihara & Strange, 2024; Nunes & Côrte, 2021; Mahdi, 2024). These results confirm the significance of incorporating auditory variability- grounded phonological training into pronunciation training classes to meliorate factual communication.

Doubts in William Shakespeare's Hamlet

Asst. Prof. Adnan Jabar Hamid — 2026-02-13

This research paper revolves around the theme of doubts in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, for doubts pervade through the entire play and are a significant yet witty beginning to trigger the action that results in the tragic end of the play. It is not only the doubts of the protagonist Hamlet, concerning the crimes of his uncle Claudius who had already usurped the throne after the death of King Hamlet, his brother, but also Claudius appears to be skeptical about Hamlet as to whether the latter doubts his crimes or not, not to mention the doubts of Polonius, the King’s Chamberlain, about Hamlet's behavior. To add, Polonius also doubts the behavior of Laertes, his son. Even a minor character such as the character Marcellus, one of the royal guards, doubts the political situation of Elsinore when he says to Horatio after seeing the Ghost of the late king Hamlet the following: “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark” (Hamlet, Act I, Scene iv), which shows the character’s belief that the appearance of the Ghost is ominous of something that had gone terribly wrong and that something would affect the moral and political situation of the state. Because of his doubts, Polonius has already employed spies to keep an eye on Hamlet and Laertes. This atmosphere blurred by doubts may point to Shakespeare's skill in handling one of the most important ingredients of the dramatic setting—the psychological and emotional setting. This does not only allow the dramatist to draw the main lines of his drama, but it also gives rise to the spectators’ curiosity to trace and expect whatsoever significant happenings to be contained in the entire action of the play. The presence of doubts means the presence of cloudy awareness of certain situations and the need to trigger the action of the play into a particular course of developments contributing to the dramatic purpose planned by the dramatist, for doubts in drama and otherwise requires verifications. More importantly, doubts significantly contribute to building the canvas of the structure of the play in that they function as linking elements to push the action a step after another towards the resolution designed by the dramatist to serve his purpose in producing a well-knit structure of the tragedy.

Analyzing Translation Processes in AI-Generated Educational Videos: A Cognitive Load Human–AI Study of English–Arabic Content

Lect. Dr. Adhba Adnan Ahmed — 2026-02-13

The study looks at the methods which the translator and the Machines may use for the translation of AI (artificial intelligence) videos injected in education. The cognitive motivation behind our comparative study of human and AI English-to-Arabic translation processes. This research employs a process-oriented design. This study draws on knowledge from Cognitive Load Theory, Translation Process Research and Multimodal Learning Theory to investigate multimodal instruction’s cognitive effort distribution. The most commonly used indicators to assess cognitive load are (a) the NASA Task Load Index (b)translation time process indicators (c) revision frequency; and (d) reformulation density. According to the findings, human translators are highly cognitively loaded. It is interesting that the cognitive load with the task is more when it is multimodal and heavily contextualised by instruction. The human translator makes use of cognitive mediation. Additionally, in this case, using AI to translate something doesn't work quite well as the proper time to do the same does not happen and also it is not efficient. However, it certainly cannot respond to multimodal instruction. The study shows how translation is of a cognitively and pedagogically significant activity in education and AI. Consequently, this follows.

Empowering English Language Learning through Podcasting: A Case Study at Nile Valley University

Dr. Amel Zulfukar Hassan Adlan — 2026-02-13

This research explored how podcasting influences English language learning for undergraduate students at Nile Valley University, focusing on its effects on listening skills, vocabulary development, and student independence. Using a mixed-methods approach, sixty third-year intermediate learners from the Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Education participated in twelve podcast-related tasks over the span of six weeks. Quantitative findings revealed substantial improvements: listening comprehension scores increased from 60.2% to 75.4% (t(49) = 8.21, p < .001, d = 1.16), while vocabulary acquisition rose from 54.7% to 71.3% (t(49) = 7.45, p < .001, d = 1.05). Motivation also climbed from 3.1 to 4.0 on a 5-point scale (t(49) = 6.02, p < .001). Data derived from journals and focus group discussions revealed four prominent themes: genuine participation, heightened learner independence, improved cultural understanding, and increased confidence in addressing practical listening challenges. In general, participants credited their advancements to their experience with a range of subjects and international accents. Educational implications emphasize podcasting’s ability to promote learner independence, enhance listening skills, and develop intercultural understanding. Future studies should explore long-term effects in different educational settings

Study the Affecting of Factors Influence the Design of a Syllabus

Rusul Neima Kamal — 2026-02-13

The study included the factors influencing the design of the curriculum, and the study used a descriptive research design to collect the required data for quantitative and qualitative analysis. The elements impacting the creation of the curriculum were included in the study, which employed a descriptive research approach to gather the necessary information for both quantitative and qualitative analysis. New opportunities to enhance language learning have emerged with the introduction of cutting-edge technical tools and in conjunction with the transition from a teacher-centered to a student-centered approach to language teaching. According to pertinent literature, this innovative approach to teaching may have both advantages and disadvantages that may have an impact on teachers' and students' participation in the relatively recent phenomenon of flipped learning. In order to better understand how curriculum design influences learning, the current study set out to look into the relationship between these two types of influences. Course design is viewed as the foundation of the curriculum development process that contributes to shaping and guiding the subsequent stages of teaching and assessment. The study is a qualitative case study that aims to explore the factors that have influential effects on the efficiency of the process of course design from the perspectives of teachers who design their courses in a college context in Oman. It also aims to explore how these factors affect course design. The study draws on the philosophy and epistemology of the interpretive paradigm that shapes and guides its methodology, methods of data collection, and analysis of data. Findings of study show that there is a variety of factors that affect course design. These factors can be categorized into two major categories, Student and Institutional Factors. Based on the findings of data analysis, the study offers a number of implications that are of value for those who are involved in the process of course design, particularly in the current context.

The Attitudes of English Teachers towards the Use of Role-play and Pictures in Developing the Speaking Skill

Sarah Mohammad Ahmed Alhashimi — 2026-02-13

The present study aimed at describing the attitudes of the English teachers towards the use of role-play and pictures in developing the students’ speaking skill. This study attempted to answer the following question:

1-Do the use of role-play procedures and techniques develop the students speaking ability based on the English teachers’ point of view?

2-Do the use of pictures procedures and techniques develop the students speaking ability based on the English teachers’ point of view?

3-Which of the two techniques is better in helping of the development of the English speaking ability according to the English teachers’ point of view?

The participants of the study consisted of 14 English teachers, males and females, from Amman and Zarqa, private and governmental schools, who were students of masters’ degree in English teaching methodology in the Hashemite University during the second semester of the academic year 2009\2010. The researcher used two questionnaires, descriptive statistics and the paired sample t-test. After the study was conducted the results showed that using the role-play and pictures techniques help students’ development in speaking skill.

The Impact of Non-Arabic Dominant Training Data on Distorting Arabic–English AI Translation

Abdulmalek Marwan Ali — 2026-02-22

The purpose of this study is to investigate the distortions that non-Arabic dominant training data introduce Arabic to English AI translations. It claims that an uneven corpus of training data produces not just technical errors but also systematic errors in meaning, style, and usage. Pursuing a descriptive–analytical comparative methodology, the study explores the AI-generated translations of Arabic texts of various types and evaluates their comparison with human reference translations. an cause-and-effect relationship has been established between the dominance of non-Arabic data, and the repetitively diluted meanings, normalized styles, and misaligned pragmatics. The internalization of Anglophone language norms in AI models trained on non-Arabic data disproportionately creates these distortions. To ensure accuracy, cultural faithfulness, and fairness, the training and evaluation framework for Arabic–English AI translation must be linguistically fair, concludes the study.