Attitudes of Yemeni Students towards English Culture & Feminism د/ أنيس محمد أحمد النجار(1) أ/ محمد عبدالجليل ناجي المليكي
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Abstract
In the Yemeni context, English literature is believed to offer an opportunity for Yemeni students of English to be introduced to the culture English literature embodies. Yet Yemeni students may face some challenges when studying English literature as it holds sets of values and codes of morality different from their own. This study aimed at identifying Yemeni students’ attitudes towards English culture through the following: (1) identifying Yemeni students' perceptions of their own culture, (2) identifying Yemeni students' perceptions of the target culture, viz, the foreign culture embedded in the English literary works, and (3) identifying Yemeni students' perceptions of feminism as feminism is originally a western movement. The study adopts the descriptive approach with its survey and analytical methods. To enhance the study, a questionnaire is distributed to 30 students in the English department, Faculty of Arts, University of Ibb, Yemen during the academic year (2018-19). These 30 students were purposefully chosen as a sample for the study. They were selected based on the results of their academic achievement in the previous two years. The questionnaire consisted of 16 items. It is divided into three parts so that every part gets sufficient reflection and analysis. The study has reached a number of results, the most important of which is: the attitudes of Yemeni students towards English culture in general were positive. The response to the alternative (agree) was 78%, while the alternative (disagree) got 14.8%, and the alternative (neutral) was 7.2%. Despite the positive results, it is concluded with an emphasis that students of English should embrace open-mindedness when engaging with intercultural discussions in order to be able to appreciate the English literary texts and bestride the culture difference. It is also concluded that bridging the culture gap can be achieved through narrowing the distance between students and the text by revising the current syllabus and incorporating texts that suit students’ needs and meet the demands of the global world.
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References
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