3L: Language, Linguistics, Literature® The Southeast Asian Journal of English Language Studies
3L: Language, Linguistics, Literature® The Southeast Asian Journal of English Language Studies is an ESCI (ISI, WoS) and Scopus indexed peer reviewed international journal published by UKM Press. The journal is committed to exploring and highlighting insights into key issues dealing with English Language Studies in multilingual contexts within the fields of Language, Linguistics and Literature. While the ultimate objective of the journal is to create critical awareness of global concerns with all areas of English language Studies, it especially welcomes perspectives from marginalized communities in Southeast Asia and across the globe. 3L publishes issues in March, June, September, and December. We also publish special sections alongside regular issues.
If the article is accepted for publication, copyright of this article will be vested to UKM Press, National University of Malaysia (UKM). All articles published in this journal are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license, unless otherwise stated.
Speaking Like a Man: Linguistic Convergence of Female Dota 2 Gamers
Language practices adapt to the domain and culture of their users. This mixed-method research aims to investigate the role of language in a MOBA game called Dota 2, examining the speech convergence of female gamers towards male linguistic features. Three theories are used; Men's Language Framework by Mulac and Mehl and Pennebaker to categorise the male linguistic features; Women’s Language Framework by Lakoff to draw distinctions; Communication Accommodation Theory (CAT) by Giles to analyse motives of convergence. 2 questionnaires were given out to 10 female and 10 male participants to investigate their opinion on convergence and perception towards it respectively. Findings revealed that female players do converge towards male linguistic features, noting their positive and negative implications. Data also shows that male players perceive the convergence with a mix of familiarity and acceptance. Results suggest that convergence occurs even within the gaming community, and its culture plays a big role in dictating the language practices and perceptions. This sheds light on how sociolinguistics theories can extend into digital platforms even when the social status or hierarchy is virtual. Keywords: linguistic convergence; male linguistic features; gendered language; female gamers; gaming community
Copyright (c) 2025 3L: Language, Linguistics, Literature® The Southeast Asian Journal of English Language Studies
Psycholinguistic Functions in War Poetry: A Comparative Study of the Battles of Uhud and Maldon
War poetry functions not only as an aesthetic form but also as a psychological medium that processes trauma, reinforces identity, and motivates communities. Yet, research on classical Arabic and Old English war poetry has focused primarily on historical and rhetorical aspects, with limited attention to psycholinguistic dimensions. This gap restricts a deeper understanding of how poetic language operates as a psychological instrument for coping with war trauma across cultural traditions. This study aims (i) to analyse the emotional, cognitive, and therapeutic dimensions of Kaʿb ibn Mālik's poetry on the Battle of Uhud (625 CE) and the anonymous Old English poem The Battle of Maldon (991 CE); (ii) to compare their linguistic strategies; and (iii) to evaluate how poetic discourse shapes collective identity and resilience. A qualitative comparative textual analysis was employed. The findings reveal five dominant themes: trauma and grief, heroism and courage, loyalty and solidarity, collective motivation, and spiritual or feudal honour. Despite differing cultural contexts, both texts transform defeat into resilience through repetition, metaphor, rhythm, and parallelism. Ultimately, this research illuminates how poetic language—ancient or modern—functions as linguistic therapy for communities facing conflict, reaffirming its enduring relevance to both cultural and psychological resilience. Keywords: Psycholinguistics; War poetry; Comparative literature; The Battle of Uhud; The Battle of Maldon
Mnemonic Intersections: Renegotiating Turkey’s Contested Past through Familial Memory in Fethiye Çetin’s My Grandmother
The Turkish state's denialist framework, which enforces national homogeneity under the veil of Turkification, sustains a dichotomy that positions Armenians as external threats and Turks as the rightful inheritors of the nation. Within this mnemonic binarities, Fethiye Çetin's My Grandmother disrupts the fixed categories of victim and perpetrator through exposing the entanglement of history and memory. The revelation of the grandmother's concealed Armenian identity fractures the epistemic structures of state-sanctioned narratives, exposing how assimilated subjects within the construct of Turkishness bear the traces of their repressed past. Rejecting the zero-sum paradigm of competitive memory, the memoir illustrates the entanglement of belonging, where national identity is not static but rather shaped by erasure and enforced oblivion. By documenting the lived experiences of those who occupy a liminal space between survivor and assimilated subject, the memoir resists the hegemonic mnemonic order, refracting Turkish history through familial memory. Turkish society is marked by its social polarisation, and Çetin's memoir advocates a mode of working through difficult pasts that fosters a dialogic space where histories do not emerge as mutually exclusive but as entangled narratives in perpetual negotiation. The study adheres to a qualitative mode of inquiry, drawing on Michael Rothberg's 'Multidirectional Memory' and Astrid Erll’s 'Locating Family in Cultural Memory'. It reveals how My Grandmother reconfigures memory as a relational entity, advancing a reconciliatory framework that reimagines transitional justice within Turkey's historical consciousness. This inquiry contributes to Turkish scholarship by conceptualising familial memory as a site of negotiation, where institutional interventions remain insufficient. Keywords: entangled histories; family narrative; intergenerational memory; oblivion; reconciliation
Environmental Preservation in D. Zawawi Imron’s Poetry: Critical Discourse Analysis through Madurese Sufi Perspectives
This study specifically aims to examine the ecocritical values of green environmental preservation in the poems of D. Zawawi Imron through the theoretical framework of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA). The research data are obtained through an analysis of selected D. Zawawi Imron's poems, including "Gray Musings," "Learning from Fish," and "Land." The findings reveal that D. Zawawi Imron’s poetry mirrors an ecological awareness interwoven with local wisdom, specifically in accentuating religious and cultural values of the Madurese community. At the textual level, the use of metaphors such as "mute," "eternal," "sin," and "blood" in "Gray Musings" first expresses criticisms against environmental destruction and loss of ecological balance. Second, in “Learning from fish,” D. Zawawi Imron’s work conveys a Sufi perspective that views nature as humanity’s spiritual counterpart and fellow creations of God, thereby emphasising the centrality of a harmonious relationship among all beings. Third, “Land” functions as a symbolic medium of resistance against the ideologies of capitalism and anthropocentrism that exploit nature. This study demonstrates the notion that literary works, particularly poetry, play a strategic role in the exaltation of ecological campaigns and ethical reflections in modern societies. Moral and spiritual consciousness, therefore, permeates these poems, seemingly restoring the stabilisation of human-environment relationships. Keywords: critical discourse analysis; green environment; D. Zawawi Imron; literary ecocriticism
Four Travelogues on the Politics of River: Water Conflict, Climate Change, and Ecocide
This article critiques the biopolitical and ecocritical aspects of water insecurity and hydro-hegemony, centring river narratives through River Dog, Himalaya, Tales from the River Brahmaputra, and The Braided River. Besides, it examines how environmental negligence, climate change, and geopolitical conflict, especially between India and China, threaten riverine ecologies and vulnerable downstream populations. The Brahmaputra River becomes a contested space where dam-building races, colonial legacies, and ecological violence intersect. Rivers' multifarious roles in the lives of people, especially in the Indian state of Assam, showcase their unprecedented impact on culture, livelihood, ecology, society, religion, identity, and economy. Simultaneously, increasing climate variability pushes the same civilisation to the brink of extinction, as seen in travel narratives related to Dibrugarh town and Majuli river island through erosion, flooding in Assam and Bangladesh, and illegal immigration, which exacerbate land insecurity, identity crises, and political conflict. The fear of Chinese dams in Tibet is linked to small-scale fishermen's precarious livelihoods in Goalpara, Assam, as well as fears of potential weaponisation of dam water downstream. Illegal logging, disappearing river dolphins, death and suffering of animals in Kaziranga National Park, isolated river island communities, and tragedies in river boat transportation highlight the river's role in civilisation survival, water conflict, climate change impacts, and the necessity of ecological and legal remedies in politics. The analyses of travel narratives expose marginalisation through firsthand observations amid global power struggles and argue that recognising ecocide as an international crime could help mitigate rising environmental dangers and ensure trans-boundary ecological justice. Keywords: Water insecurity; dam; ecocide; travel narratives; climate change; riverine ecologies
Care and Vulnerability in Liminal Spaces: A Study of The Blind Matriarch
In this article, we address the nuanced treatises on care in light of Namita Gokhale’s The Blind Matriarch (2021). With the aim of liberating care from its archaic association with feminine attributes and unidirectional dependency, we politicise and situate it alongside universal and continuous vulnerability (Butler, 2009), affecting and assorting human precariousness. Our understanding of care as a discourse entails an investigation of human and non-human relationality in a myriad of spaces. As demonstrated in the aforementioned text, the pandemic evinces the shredding of unvarying lives of the residents of house no. C100- with extended lockdowns and uncertainties hanging in the air, everybody starts noticing the puny. Tapping into these mundane aspects, the characters of the novel can be understood as assemblages interacting with care, all the while exposing the 'universal, inevitable condition of humanity' (Fineman, 2010), i.e., vulnerability at multiple fronts. By employing the concept of ‘care’ and ‘vulnerability studies’, this article examines the pandemic as a finite ‘event’ in both temporal and spatial scope, yet one that encompasses diverse entities. The findings situate Gokhale’s The Blind Matriarch as a seminal text for understanding the precarious human condition during the pandemic and further advocate for a new episteme that prioritises care and vulnerability as integral to literary analysis. Keywords: Care; liminal; materialities of care; pandemic; vulnerability
Exploring Karachi’s Landscapes of Memory and Urban Ecology through Saeed’s The Year of Sound and Heat (2022)
This study presents Karachi as a layered South Asian urban landscape where politics, memory, and ecology intersect, each shaping the city’s literary imagining, as depicted in Saeed’s novel The Year of Sound and Heat (Saeed, 2022). It studies the representation of Karachi’s urban landscape from the perspective of literary urban imaginaries. For this purpose, it explores landscapes of memory present within Karachi’s urban landscape from a political context, drawing on De Nardi and Drozdzewski’s (2019) integrated notions of the politics of place and landscapes of memory. Furthermore, it traces the interrelation between Karachi’s urban landscape and ecology through Cassar’s (2019) notion of landscape ecology. The findings reveal that Karachi’s political past is deeply intertwined with its existing urban landscape, which is portrayed in the novel through the narrator Jogi’s recollections. Jogi’s recollections of the past reveal a persistent cycle of violence in the city by evoking images of neglect, repression, and marginalization inscribed in Karachi’s urban landscape. Furthermore, the novel presents two prominent landscapes of memory situated within Karachi, i.e., the old coffee shop and Karachi’s graveyard, evoking the city’s decay. These landscapes of memory portray Jogi, Natasha, and Disco's memories associated with violence and urban insecurity in Karachi and its impact on the characters’ lives by mapping the politics of place. They also underscore the vulnerability of Karachi’s ecological systems due to unchecked urban expansion. It conveys how literature intertwines politics and memory with environmental degradation to depict Karachi’s shifting physical and symbolic landscape. Keywords: landscapes of memory; violence; environmental degradation; Karachi; South Asian urban literature
In The Shadows of Piety: Women and Religious Authority through Nawal El Saadawi’s ‘The Fall Of the Imam’ and Tehmina Durrani’s ‘Blasphemy’
This article focuses on two key religious figures: Imam (In Arabic, a leader) and Pir (a Mystic spiritual guide) as presented in the fictional narratives by Nawal El Saadawi and Tehmina Durrani. Imbued with unwavering devotion to traditional principles, Imams and Pirs play pivotal roles in shaping Islamic society. Scholars from diverse disciplines are currently scrutinising their roles in the contemporary context. This study examines the lives of prominent religious figures, exposing the dual nature of their existence, an outward image of enlightenment contrasted with private tendencies towards authoritarianism and envy through the analytical lens of Islamic feminist literary criticism. Saadawi and Tehmina fearlessly confront the inherent bias entrenched in the social, cultural, and legal system and expose the manipulation of religion to privilege men, vividly depicting women as the victims in a society steeped in male-dominated religious fervour. This study employs Islamic feminist literary criticism to examine how patriarchal ideologies are reinforced through selective interpretations of sacred texts from the Quran and Hadith. Its primary objective is to investigate the mechanisms by which male religious authorities maintain gendered hierarchies and perpetuate violence against women. Both novels under study illustrate male figures punishing women for transgressions in which the men themselves are complicit, exposing the hypocrisy and human cost of patriarchal power. The analysis addresses sensitive issues such as domestic abuse justified through scripture, the authority of Imams, the practice of stoning, and the cultural influence of Pirs, revealing the real-life consequences of these power dynamics. Findings underscore the persistence of entrenched patriarchal structures within Islamic discourse and highlight the urgent need to challenge and reinterpret these frameworks to foster more inclusive and just understandings of Islam. Keywords: Politics; Muslim; Women; religion; Marriages; Quran; Culture
Everyday Resistance in the Yin Space-Tracing Queer Heterotopias in Body2Body: A Malaysian Queer Anthology (2009)
Foucault’s concept of heterotopia refers to a space of resistance situated in the realm of in-betweenness, where alternative forms of existence become possible. In relation to the LGBTQ community, this notion has been recontextualised into queer heterotopia, a space that enables LGBTQ individuals to live without conforming to heteronormative standards. This study examines queer heterotopia in Malaysian queer literature through selected short stories in Body2Body: A Malaysian Queer Anthology (2009), while also incorporating the Chinese metaphysical concept of yin–yang. It argues that queer heterotopia cannot emerge independently; rather, it is preceded and sustained by a yin-inclined space associated with femininity, darkness, fluidity, and secrecy. For characters living on the margins, the yin space provides the conditions necessary to form resistance. Within the anthology, queer characters navigating hostile environments draw on yin energy to reach queer heterotopias, where they articulate their identities through performative, emotive, and sexual expressions as forms of everyday resistance. The findings suggest that resistance within queer heterotopia need not be overt or confrontational; even when subtle and nuanced, resistance rooted in the yin space remains empowering, prompting characters to assert meaningful agency in their existence. Keywords: Body 2 Body; everyday resistance; Malaysian queer literature; queer heterotopia; Yin space
Revisiting Andalusian History: Sociocultural Influences on the (Re)translation of Early Arab Narratives
This paper explores the Retranslation Hypothesis as a sociocultural activity. It investigates how the act of retranslation can be motivated by multiple sociocultural factors through analysing the two English translations of the Arabic historical chronicle Tarikh Iftitah al-Andalus by Ibn al-Qutiya from a sociocultural perspective. Using Martin and White’s Appraisal Theory (2005), the present study scrutinises the textual constituents of the two English translations to highlight how evaluative positions are rendered differently in the two English target texts, in addition to discerning the possible sociocultural factors influencing the retranslation process. The results reveal that the English retranslation (target text 2) has entailed several alterations on the textual level when dealing with representations of early Arab Muslims in the Iberian Peninsula through creating significant shifts in appraisal, which have resulted in either weakening or intensifying the original evaluative position in order to provide a representation that would align with the sociocultural expectations of the target audience. Keywords: Retranslation; Appraisal theory; Ibn al-Qutiya; al-Andalus; Sociocultural factors
A Chronotopic Analysis of Transgenerational Trauma in Kamila Shamsie’s Kartography
The 1947 Indian partition caused significant trauma for Indian Subcontinent communities primarily because many individuals were forced to leave their families and properties as they made the transit from India to Pakistan. Initially seen as altruistic, these immigrants later developed a negative reputation as outsiders and undesired refugees. Utilising Mikhail Bakhtin’s theory of the chronotope, this study investigates the ways in which the complex inter-racial relationships in the city of Karachi need to be contextualised through spatiotemporal perspectives in Kamila Shamsie’s novel Kartography (2002). By deploying a Pakistani-specific modification of Bakhtin’s chronotopes, this article intersects temporal considerations with transgenerational memory as it is mapped on both the physical and imaginary geography of Karachi. This article interrogates Shamsie’s depiction of the racial and ethnic conflicts in a multi-ethnic Pakistan in the wake of the civil unrest of 1971, which led to the creation of Bangladesh, with after-effects that are inherited by the next generation. This article contends that estrangement in the novel exemplifies the ways in which immigrants of the second and third generations in Karachi experience transgenerational trauma owing to the legacy of colonial rule, which resulted in the 1947 Partition, through a research method derived from applying the modified chronotopic lens. The overlapping markers of race, class, ethnicity and the ensuing migration since the second and third generations were viewed as outsiders and “Others” in the host culture can therefore be connected to chronotopes from a spatio-temporal and post-memory perspective. Pursuant to this, this article explores the impact of identity axes such as gender, class, and ethnicity on experiences over time and the trauma of the Partition and civil war of 1971 across generations and the ways in which subjectivity is implicated in the different ways in which time and space are conceived. Keywords: Indian partition 1947; 1971 Civil war; maps; trans-generational trauma; Spatio-temporality
Developing Genre and Pragmatic Competence Through Service-Learning: A Discourse-Based Study in a Vietnamese Transnational Hospitality ESP Programme
This study examines how service-learning supports the development of genre awareness and pragmatic competence among Vietnamese hospitality students in an English for Specific Purposes programme. Conducted in the Vietnamese context as part of a transnational bachelor’s degree programme, the research adopts a qualitative multiple-case design, drawing on learner-produced texts, recorded service interactions, reflective journals, and stimulated recall interviews. Anchored in genre theory and interlanguage pragmatics, the study investigates how learners engage with professional tourism genres, enact speech acts in authentic communicative situations, and reflect on their language use. The findings reveal that service-learning facilitates uptake of genre-specific discourse structures, encourages the use of context-sensitive pragmatic strategies such as mitigation and repair, and fosters metapragmatic awareness through structured reflection. Nonetheless, challenges remain in sustaining register consistency, managing intercultural framing, and aligning performance with professional discourse norms. The study concludes that service-learning, when integrated with explicit linguistic scaffolding, constitutes a productive environment for applied language development in ESP. It advocates for further discourse-analytic inquiry into learner language use in situated, multilingual settings. Keywords: Service-learning; English for Specific Purposes; English for tourism; Genre pedagogy; Hospitality communication
Mapping Malaysian Rainforest Landscape in Children’s Fantasy Novel: Hamra and the Jungle of Memories by Hanna Alkaf
Forests have long served as sites of mystery and transformation in children’s fantasy literature, functioning not only as rich natural settings but also as symbolic landscapes of personal and cultural significance. This study analyses the spatial and geographical representation of Malaysia’s tropical rainforest in Hamra and the Jungle of Memories (Alkaf, 2023) by Hanna Alkaf, examining how the rainforest operates simultaneously as a physical terrain and a metaphorical space. Through close reading and textual analysis, this research explores how geographic movement through the rainforest becomes a narrative structure that reflects psychological transformation, cultural reorientation, and mythological engagement. Framed by Tally’s literary cartography, Heidegger’s notion of existential anxiety and Bakhtin’s concept of chronotope, this study argues that cartographic anxiety acts as a catalyst for the protagonist’s emotional growth and cultural rediscovery. Each rainforest zone acts as a chronotopic node, where time and space converge to illuminate Hamra’s shifting sense of self, her encounters with mythological beings from Malay folklore, and her deepening engagement with inherited cultural memory. This study demonstrates how literary cartography functions as a metaphorical device that not only maps narrative movement but also fosters a deeper understanding of self, place, and cultural belonging. In doing so, it offers new insight into the spatial imagination of contemporary Malaysian children’s literature, highlighting its role in preserving traditional culture and positioning space as an essential medium through which young protagonists and readers navigate identity, tradition, and transformation. Keywords: Geographical space; narration; literary cartography; anxiety; mythology
Unlocking Tourism Potential: Enhancing English through an E-book in Thailand's Remote Areas
Thai EFL learners in remote areas often face challenges due to limited resources and opportunities, which possibly result in low English proficiency. However, there has not been extensive research in these contexts. Enhancing their English skills may be boosted by a simple supplement, such as an e-book. This study examines the effectiveness of an e-book that draws on Krashen’s Input Hypothesis (i+1) and Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) principles, incorporating meaning-focused tasks. Meanwhile, Gardner’s socio-educational model provides a framework for learner motivation. Fifty participants were trained to use the e-book and divided into two groups: a regularly monitored group (Group A) and an independent study group (Group B). Pre-, Dur-, and Post-tests were statistically analysed at p < .05, complemented by post-stage interviews. Results revealed significant improvements in English proficiency and motivation. Group A outperformed Group B with mean scores of 78.32 versus 72.16 (p = .04, η² = .11). While instrumental motivation increased notably in Group A, Group B showed stronger integrative motivation. Interviews highlighted limitations of close monitoring in fostering autonomy. Moreover, the integration of tourism-related vocabulary expanded learners’ career perspectives. The potential of e-books enhances English learning in underserved areas by highlighting the role of self-directed learning and digital tools in reducing educational inequality, which aligns with Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4). These insights also offer implications for educators, policymakers, and the tourism sector, encouraging the development of English competencies and career opportunities in remote areas. Keywords: e-book; English proficiency; motivation; remote areas; SDG4
From Reading a Text to Becoming the Text: Towards Deeper Engagement in Philippine Literature through Reader Response–Subjective Interpretation in a Tertiary Context
Literature, as an academic resource, encourages reflection, cultural appreciation, and language awareness. In Philippine tertiary classrooms, it also deepens critical thinking and affirms identity by connecting with Filipino students’ lived realities. To facilitate such an experience, a streamlined, structured instructional approach is essential to promote a deeper and more engaging reading process. Without such an approach, responses may be constrained in depth and articulation. The present study contends that Bleich’s (2019) method of subjective interpretation, streamlined in this context as an instructional model, fosters an accessible and supportive learning experience. The study begins by assessing the quality of readers’ responses in the absence of a framework as they engage with Edilberto Tiempo’s Philippine short story “The Witch,” and then advances to refining these responses through the application of Bleich’s framework. Specifically, it is a qualitative inquiry analysing the students’ evaluation of their own subjective interpretation experience. The results gathered from a representative sample of Philippine Literature students from a Philippine State University in the Visayas region revealed that, compared to the freely written readers’ response, the subjective interpretation was more elaborate and expressive. The framework prompted students to think beyond mere emotional reactions, with many referencing their personal experiences and cultural practices while demonstrating an awareness of language. The study concludes that a structured reader response pedagogical framework empowers students to engage with Philippine literature more deeply by anchoring interpretation with collective identities and lived experiences through a collaborative learning community where their voices are as valued as the text itself. Keywords: Reader Response; Subjective Interpretation; Literary Criticism; Teaching Philippine Literature; Communal Interpretation
The Role of Chatbots, Google and Online Dictionaries in Meaning Comprehension and Retention
Today, language learners can turn to generative AI applications in situations of linguistic deficit, rather than search the web or consult dictionaries. The aim of the study is to find out if meaning comprehension and retention are affected by whether a chatbot, Google or a monolingual learners’ dictionary is consulted. Five online tools are investigated: ChatGPT-3.5, Microsoft Copilot, the Google English dictionary, the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (LDOCE) and the Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (COBUILD). In an online experiment, 128 upper-intermediate learners of English explained the meaning of 25 English words based on reference to the five tools. Meaning retention was tested in two post-tests: immediate and delayed. The results indicate that the tool significantly affects meaning comprehension as well as immediate and delayed retention. ChatGPT-3.5 and COBUILD, followed by Copilot, prove the most beneficial for decoding meaning and remembering it immediately afterwards. Google's English dictionary and LDOCE are the least helpful for these purposes. However, AI-generated explanations do not stick in memory for long. The best delayed retention results were obtained after reference to dedicated reference works: COBUILD and LDOCE, the latter being on a par with the Google dictionary. An analysis of the explanatory content offered by the tools suggests possible reasons for the observed regularities. The study implies that AI has not outshone dictionaries yet. While today bots successfully explain meaning and foster its immediate retention, they are not on a par with dictionaries as long-term learning aids. Keywords: online dictionaries; Google; generative artificial intelligence; meaning comprehension; retention
Copyright (c) 2025 3L: Language, Linguistics, Literature® The Southeast Asian Journal
Can ChatGPT Translate Like a Pro? A Pilot Benchmarking Study of English–Malay Translation Quality
Artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT have significantly advanced machine translation, yet their performance in low-resource language pairs, particularly English–Malay, lags behind. While existing studies have compared AI and human translation quality, most have relied on academic assessment frameworks, leaving a gap in evaluating AI translation through professional certification standards. From a professional standpoint, translation competence is most reliably assessed through formal certification frameworks that combine analytic rubrics, performance descriptors, and expert judgment. To determine whether AI systems can perform at a professional standard, they must be evaluated using the same criteria applied to human translators. This pilot study addresses that gap by benchmarking ChatGPT’s English–Malay translation performance against a novice and a professional translator using the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI) Certified Translator examination framework. Thirteen professional raters from the Malaysian Translators Association assessed the translations based on Meaning Transfer, Textual Norms and Conventions, and Language Proficiency. Findings revealed a clear performance hierarchy—Professional Translator > ChatGPT > Novice Translator—indicating that while ChatGPT achieved near-professional competence in fluency and meaning accuracy, it remained limited in idiomatic precision and cultural adaptation. The study highlights ChatGPT’s potential as an assistive tool for translation and training, while reaffirming the need for human oversight. It also validates the NAATI framework as a robust benchmark for evaluating AI translation quality. As AI models continue to evolve, future research involving larger translator samples and a wider range of language pairs is essential to evaluate ongoing progress and ensure the responsible integration of AI translation into professional practice. Keywords: AI translation; English–Malay translation; ChatGPT; NAATI; professional translator assessment
Best-Selling Youth Literature Titles: Cross-Cultural Translation from English to Thai Through Linguistic and Cognitive Perspectives
This study investigates the translation methods employed in best-selling youth literature titles translated from English to Thai. The study adopts a descriptive-qualitative approach. The analysis is based on 173 pairs of original and translated titles collected from Thai online bookstores. Using Newmark’s global translation approach, functional-typological grammar, cognitive semantics, and prototype theory as analytical frameworks, the findings suggest that communicative translation is the most prevalent method, followed by free and semantic translation. Other methods identified include faithful and idiomatic translation, with the latter being the least frequently observed. Additionally, certain methods go beyond Newmark's criteria, namely, transliteration and the retention of English components alongside Thai translation. By incorporating both linguistic and cognitive perspectives, this study presents findings on translation practices within the context of youth literature. These insights may be useful for translation pedagogy and for enhancing intercultural adaptation strategies. Keywords: Youth Literature Titles; Cross-Cultural Translation; English–Thai Translation; Linguistic and Cognitive Perspectives
Interpreting Social Media Memes: Exploring Variations in Understanding Gen Z Slang Across Gen X, Gen Y and Gen Z
This study examines meaning-making in memes, focusing on the meanings participants attribute to social media memes featuring Gen Z slang and the variations in generational interpretation. It employed a qualitative design, specifically, the photo-elicitation technique. The results revealed that participants interpret memes based on relationship dynamics, humour portrayal, and contextual relevance. The study identifies variations among the participants' interpretations in terms of semantic ambiguity, contextualization, semantic shift, and reconstruction. However, the study also revealed that Gen Y adapts well to Gen Z's language, while Gen X faces difficulties, highlighting the role of communication in bridging generational gaps. Keywords: semantics; communication; memetic language; intergenerational; memes
Cohesion Shifts and Strategies in Handling Elliptical Structures in English-Arabic Translation among Younger Scholars of Translation
Given the structural and grammatical differences between English and Arabic, translating cohesive devices such as ellipsis presents budding young translation scholars participating in the study with serious challenges. This study examines the performance of the participants in handling ellipsis in English-Arabic translation. Based on Halliday and Hassan’s cohesion framework, the study employed an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design that integrated quantitative analysis with qualitative insights. Seventeen participants were tasked with the Arabic translation of 18 English ellipsis-containing sentences, representing the nominal, verbal, and clausal ellipsis types. This was followed by a focus group discussion involving 10 participants to explore reflections and perceptions regarding the challenges of translating ellipsis. The analysis and categorisation of the participants’ output reveal that more than half of the ellipsis instances were inaccurately rendered, indicating significant cohesion shifts and revealing the range of translation strategies employed to compensate for ellipsis. The results also revealed that clausal ellipsis was less challenging than nominal ellipsis, highlighting a correlation between ellipsis type and the participants’ translation performance. The focus group insights further confirmed participants’ limited awareness of ellipsis and their limited ability to handle them. The study contributes to translation pedagogy by empirically illustrating the impact of ellipsis on translation accuracy and by pinpointing curricular deficiencies that impede cohesion awareness among budding young translation scholars. The study offers a mixed-methods link between ellipsis type, translation accuracy, and the participants’ metacognitive awareness, advancing evidence-based pedagogy for English-Arabic translation. Future research should test controlled pedagogical interventions on explicit ellipsis instruction (pre-/post-designs) and extend the analysis to professional translators and other language pairs to enhance generalisability across translation contexts. Keywords: Ellipsis; Cohesion; Translation Strategies; English–Arabic Translation; Younger Scholars of Translation
Persuasion through Metadiscourse: Examining the Textual Metadiscourse Used in the Malaysian Universities’ Digital Promotional Materials
Promotional booklets are central to how universities persuade prospective students. This study examines how textual metadiscourse realises persuasion in Malaysian universities’ digital promotional materials. We compiled two sub-corpora from official university websites: 10 booklets from Malaysian public universities and eight from Malaysian private universities. Textual content bearing persuasive intent (e.g., welcomes, institutional overview, “why choose us,” facilities, testimonials) was extracted and analysed in AntConc software. A functional, manual coding determined whether candidate items performed metadiscoursal work, and categories followed Hyland’s (2005) interpersonal model (interactive vs. interactional). Frequencies were normalised per 1,000 words. Across the combined corpus, interactive resources slightly outnumbered interactional resources. For the interactive resources, transitions were the most frequent interactive device, followed by code glosses and frame markers, reflecting the need to connect dense promotional information coherently. Within interactional resources, attitude markers and self-mentions were most common, signalling institutional stance and persona, with engagement markers also prominent. Private-university materials displayed a higher overall density of metadiscourse and a smaller gap between interactive and interactional resources than public-university materials, suggesting a more balanced “guide + engage” approach. These patterns indicate a persuasive blend of logos (via text-organising resources) with pathos/ethos (via stance and reader alignment). The study contributes corpus-assisted evidence on promotional discourse and offers practical implications for crafting persuasive, reader-friendly university marketing texts. Keywords: Corpus-assisted analysis; Malaysian universities; metadiscourse; persuasion; promotional materials
The Translator’s Voice and Visibility in Chinese Sci-tech Classics: A Case Study of the English Translation of Chajing
Increasing attention in translation studies has expanded the scope of research to focus on the translator, particularly emphasising the translator’s subjective role in translated texts. While much of this attention has been directed toward literary translators, those working on non-literary texts also play an active role. Situated within the context of non-literary translation, the study attempts to recognise the translator’s voice by identifying the translation techniques used for culture-specific items (CSIs) in one of the representative Chinese sci-tech classics, Chajing (the Classic of Tea). In this study, an integrated framework - comprising Aixelá’s translation techniques for CSIs, Venuti’s concepts of foreignisation and domestication, and Hermans’s notion of the translator’s voice - is applied to examine the tendencies of translation techniques towards foreignisation or domestication, which in turn highlight or suppress the translator’s voice, namely the translator’s visibility or invisibility. The findings reveal that the foreignising tendency is primarily realised through the technique of orthographic adaptation, which foregrounds the translator’s voice, while the domesticating tendency is largely achieved through absolute universalisation, which suppresses it. In addition, although the translator demonstrates a dominant tendency towards domestication, he also experiences a dilemma between foreignising and domesticating strategies. Based on these findings, the study emphasises that highlighting the issue of (in)visibility enables not only the observation of translator subjectivity but also a deeper understanding of the complexity of translation, particularly in non-literary contexts. Keywords: the translator’s voice and visibility; foreignisation and domestication; Chinese sci-tech classics; Chajing; CSIs
A Comparative Literary Study of the Prosodic Systems of English and Arabic Poetry
This study investigates the similarities and differences between the prosodic systems of English and Arabic poetry. It is qualitative research on the two systems, where the methods of representation are explained, compared, and contrasted, with examples of words and lines from both languages’ poetry. It supposes that music, as a common ground for the poetry of both languages, has given them the essential elements of having to do with the beat and rhythm, though these terms are slightly different in music. This is added to the fact that both are rhythmic languages, affected by the factor of rhythm as a common feature between them. Furthermore, the study attempts to prove that it is possible to have some examples of Arabic poetry represented through the English prosodic system and vice versa. This showed that there is much similarity between the two systems in the practical sense of depending on the vowels as fundamental to the existence and representation of syllables. The differences between the two prosodic systems were found in the significance of the level of the beats and the representation of consonants and long vowels. Keywords: Prosody; Rhythm; Beat; Syllable; Stress
Through the Looking Glass: A Psychoanalytic Exploration of Social Integration and Growth in Gail Honeyman’s Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine
Gail Honeyman’s debut novel, Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine (2017), challenges simplistic narratives of complex trauma by offering a nuanced exploration of the protagonist’s journey toward social connection and emotional healing. Through a psychoanalytical lens, this study argues that the novel critiques societal reliance on linear recovery narratives through Eleanor’s seemingly contradictory coping mechanisms. Her rigid routines and intellectualisation, while initially providing a sense of control, ultimately hinder her attempts at forming secure attachments. “Through the Looking Glass” metaphorically represents Eleanor’s unconscious mind, a realm where hidden traumas, distortions, and suppressed desires shape her altered perception of reality, intensifying her struggles with social integration and exposing her vulnerability. By re-examining her repeated social faux pas, often stemming from a childhood marked by neglect, this paper brings to the fore how the novel portrays the long-lasting effects of complex trauma on adult social integration and identity formation. Through an analysis of the novel’s engagement with contemporary mental health discourse, this study underscores the therapeutic potential of storytelling and emphasises empathy as an essential element in fostering both social inclusion and personal growth. Keywords: Complex trauma; social integration; Attachment theory; Defence mechanisms; Mental health narrative; Narrative therapy
Magical Doors and Digital Gateways: Exploring Global Connectivity and Alienation in Mohsin Hamid's Exit West
This paper analyses the metaphorical importance of magical doors in Mohsin Hamid's Exit West (2017) as a critique of digital technologies and their effects on global connectivity. The research adopts a comprehensive interdisciplinary approach, combining literary analysis with post-digital and globalisation theory, to reinterpret the magical doors as metaphors for digital tools such as social media and video communication platforms. Hamid reinterprets magical realism within a post-digital framework, examining the contradictions of hyperconnectivity. The magical doors offer the allure of immediate mobility and the breakdown of physical barriers, yet simultaneously reveal issues of emotional detachment, cultural disintegration, and instability. This study presents a noteworthy addition to the fields of literary studies and digital criticism, reinterpreting Exit West as an important reflection on the psychological and societal implications of technological globalisation. This research analyses the relationship between migration, identity, and belonging, offering fresh perspectives on the novel's critique of contemporary hyperconnectivity. The examination enhances interpretations of Hamid’s work and establishes it as an essential perspective for comprehending the wider human consequences of existing in a connected yet divided world. Keywords: Magical Realism; Digital Connectivity; Exit West; Displacement; Post-Digital Age
Metaphor Salience in Thai Higher Education: A Cognitive Linguistics Perspective
This study examines the prevalence of metaphors in Thai higher education discourse from a cognitive linguistic perspective. Despite numerous attempts for reform, Thailand's education system continues to face societal and structural challenges, including persistent reliance on rote learning and ineffective policy implementation. Utilising Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT), this research analyses the metaphorical language used in the philosophy, vision, mission, and goal statements of 164 Thai higher education institutions. The findings revealed a dominant use of "factory", "consumerism", and "construction" metaphors, reflecting perceptions of education as a mechanised process and commodified service. These metaphors influence educational practices and policies by emphasising efficiency and market-driven values over critical thinking and creativity. The study suggests that the metaphors employed in higher education should be reconsidered to promote a more student-focused approach. Keywords: Metaphor; Thai Higher Education; Conceptual Metaphor Theory; Cognitive Linguistics; Educational Policy
Multidimensional Perspectives on Language Vitality and Linguistic Landscapes in Indonesia
Indonesia is a multilingual country with over 700 local languages; however, 70 per cent of these languages are at risk of endangerment. The government regulation supports the use of Indonesian in public spaces, which contributes to the decline of local language vitality. By looking at the linguistic landscape of Malang and Kupang, this study aims to capture local language vitality in western and eastern Indonesia. The main data of the study includes 2510 photographs of public signs in both cities. Walk-in interviews with the passersby and focus group discussions with local communities were also conducted to investigate their perception of selected signs. Results of the study on language vitality show that despite the dominance of Indonesian and English, local languages still appear in public spaces. Local communities are familiar with multilingual signage and can interpret the different linguistic codes according to the spatial distribution and placement of the signs. However, it is also found that multilingual signs have multidimensional layers and can provide contextual insights into the country: Indonesian dominates public signage under the national language policy, while English is primarily employed for its economic and global appeal. Local languages—such as Javanese, Kupang Malay, and Uab Meto/Dawan—surface mainly in governmental, identity, and social-movement contexts, showing that language visibility is closely tied to sociopolitical and economic factors. This article has offered a new perspective on the connection between linguistic landscape studies, language vitality, and socio-economic realities. Keywords: multilingualism; linguistic vitality; linguistic landscapes; local language
Book Review: The Asian family in literature and film: Changing perceptions in a New Age-East Asia, Volume 1 (eds. Bernard Wilson & Sharifah Aishah Osman), Palgrave Macmillan, 2024