Manar Elsharq Journal for Literature and Language Studies

Naturalism in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening: A Reconsideration

Instr. Dr. Jalal Majeed Hussein — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This paper revolves around a significant subject matter that created controversial representations among critics and readers of the Victorian era because it was not in line with their conservative attitudes and aspirations. It is the subject matter of a young wife who has slapped the door behind social conventions and traditions now considered outdated, whose violation by Edna, the protagonist of the novel The Awakening (1899) was considered by others a social trauma and by the protagonist and the author, Kate Chopin, an awakening conducive to free life. Hence, a great deal of controversy has resulted in pros and cons, for some have been shocked by Edna’s immoral behavior exposed obviously and openly which was regarded as a kind of transgression of the Victorian mores—negative, offensive and shocking—and some have admired the novel for its stunning style and have, at the same time, excused Edna and considered her obliged to take the course she has chosen. The reconsideration of the topic of this study has been triggered by the fact that this study is based on the naturalistic approach of the novel that is designed by the French novelist and critic Émile Zola, the founder of Naturalism in literature and the author of the naturalistic novel Therese Raquin in which he elaborates on the influence of environment, social conditions, hereditary factors and sexual impulses on character and action. Interestingly enough, sexual impulses and practices are part and parcel of the human character. They are not commented upon when they are hidden, but they are scandalous when they become blatant. In a word, the main theme of The Awakening is related to the concept of disillusionment embedded in the theme of the awakening of the protagonist.

A Comparative Pragmatic Study of Threatening Speech Acts in Trump's and Araghchi's Posts during the U.S.–Israel–Iran War

Asst. Lect. Zahraa Kareem Ghannam — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The study deals with a pragmatic analysis for threatening in the social media posts of both Donald Trump and Abass Araghchi that are related to the U.S.–Israel–Iran War in 2026 by using an eclectic model of Searle’s (1969, 1976) and Brown and Levinson’s (1987). The study deals with analyzing speech act theory and politeness theory. The study aims at: Identifying the meaning of speech act of threat. Showing the way the politicians use of politeness theory and its strategies. Recognizing the effect of using speech act and politeness theory on the delivered message. The study hypothesized that: Both of Trump and Araghchi use indirect speech act rather than direct speech act for the sack of diplomacy. Bald-on record is the highly used by Araghchi rather than Trump. Collectively, the findings validate the study’s hypotheses; Trump uses indirect speech act (71%) and Araghchi (87%) while the direct (28%) for Trump and (12.5%) for Araghchi. The second hypothesis is valid too since Tramp uses bald-on strategy (33%) and Araghchi (50%) this is related to the fact that Araghchi uses a direct and unmitigated judgment, his sues strong words and communicate in straightforward manner, leaving little ambiguity.

Ideology in the Epic of Gilgamesh's Poems

Asst. Lect. Noora Sadeq Habeeb — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Epic of Gilgamesh — the oldest epic in the history of Ancient East and rare literary gem not just for its colors characters but also for its adventure-filled events.. Like other epics, the structure of Gilgamesh was formed from a series of basic units, elevating to a high level a number of events. It developed through a series of engagements that ultimately helped set its thematic and artistic structure. This research is based on the main foundational ideologies that were embodied in, and give power to this work through conflict or conflicts; i.e. extraordinary vs. normal. It became entangled in the pursuit of something mythical and, as a result, it acquired an approach that (in return) provided more meanings and enriched the quest for another set of ideas oriented to the reality of existence, life-death cycles, rebirths, immortality. The results indicate that ideologies underlying the Epic of Gilgamesh are mainly shaped by older Sumerian narratives, social change embedded in Mesopotamian myth-religious practice and kingship ideology over established semantic frameworks.

The Pragmatic Functions of Apologies and Requests in Mobile-Based Role Play Scenarios

Dr. Ismaeel Talib Ismaeel — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Pragmatics defines language as the practice of language in social, cultural and contextual contexts. Speech acts—apologies (corrective, face-repairing acts) and requests (face-threatening acts)—are important for social harmony. While traditional pragmatic research has focused on face-to-face (FtF) interactions using static Discourse Completion Tasks (DCTs), the popularity of computer-mediated communication (CMC) has led to the transition of humans to digitally mediated and gamified situations like mobile role-play situations. It is still not sure, however, how mobile platform affordances (e.g., fewer social cues, permanence of text and semi-authentic role-play identities) impact the performance, perception and strategic mitigation of apologies and requests. The study addresses this gap by using a mixed-methods approach with the quasi-experimental research design. In addition to traditional DCTs, the study investigates the pragmatic strategies used by participants in a mobile-based, dynamic role-play setting and the contextual factors such as social power (P), social distance (D) and absolute ranking (R) of imposition or infraction. It shows that although Brown and Levinson’s Politeness Theory is still applicable (participants still evaluate (P, D and R) about face-threatening acts (FTAs) in the mobile setting, the strategies themselves are re-mediated to a mobile context. The social variables are still relevant but the study filters their effects by text and the various constraints and affordances of text-based communication. The mobile setting, on the other hand, promotes hyper-mitigation for high-stakes FTAs, bringing extra complexity to the human-computer interaction in interpersonal communication.