Faculty Of Languages Research Paper

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Agency in Search of a Narrative: Reconstructing Egyptian Identity via Facebook
(Cairo University, 2019) Alakhdar, Ghada Mohamad Ali Hassan
The production of meaning and organizing human experience to construct an identity yields a complexification when deployed on Facebook. Narrative Identity theory, with its three stages of prefiguration, configuration and refiguration, as proposed by Ricoeur provide a framework for unpacking the process of identity construction for social media users. Agency, both as promised potential by the literature on social media and its structure as well as by the imaginative experience entailed in narrativisation, lead to the ambiguities of empowerment and fragmentation. This study draws on digital anthropology and narrative identity theory in order to analyze a selection of posts from three widely visited Facebook pages with historical content. The construction of meaning through user engagement with text takes on wider significance imposed by the post- modern structure of the Facebook itself with implications on user construction of identity.
The analysis and quality assessment of translation strategies in subtitling culturally specific references: Feathers
(Elsevier BV, 2023-08) Alaa, Ahmed M; Al Sawi, Islam
Subtitling poses significant challenges, particularly when dealing with culturally specific/bound source texts (STs). This research paper aims to identify and assess the strategies employed by professional translators in rendering culturally specific references from Egyptian Arabic into English in the award-winning Egyptian movie, Feathers. In this study, Pedersen’s (2011) typology of translation strategies was utilized to identify the strategies employed, while Pedersen’s (2017) functional equivalence, acceptability, and readability (FAR) model was employed to assess the quality of the subtitles. The findings revealed the utilization of Pedersen’s suggested strategies, excluding the use of official equivalents, with a prevalent adoption of target-text-oriented (TT- oriented) strategies, such as substitution, generalization, and omission. Additionally, the results indicated that formality represents an additional translation strategy that coexists with other strategies, rather than being a media-specific constraint. Moreover, the quality assessment demonstrated that the majority of the subtitles exhibited high quality, with only a few minor errors observed, primarily related to functionality.
Analyzing the Feminist Stylistic Features of Reem Bassiouney’s Novel Professor Hanaa: A Feminist Translational Study
(2020-04) Abdel, Rania; Allam, Baky; Allam, Rania Abdelbaky
The study aims at analyzing the translation of Reem Bassiouney’s novel Professor Hanaa (2008) translated by Laila Helmy (2011). The study expounds the feminine stylistic constructions in the Arabic source text (ST), by employing the model of Sara Mills’ (1995) feminist stylistics. It probes the adoption of a feminist translational attitude by the translator in the English target text (TT), by using the model of Luis von Flotow’s (1991) feminist translation theory. The ST analysis on word, phrase and discourse levels proves that, the author adopts a feminine predisposition setting forth the feminine experience. The TT is womnhandled by prefacing and footnoting, supplementing and hijacking to fit certain feminine politics by 7.2%, 75.3% and 17.5% lexically and semantically to exalt the main female figure and to demean the male figures. It is proved that; the TT does not convey the author’s feminine perspective faithfully through the translation process.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE BIAS AND NEURAL MACHINE TRANSLATION: TRANSLATING HEAVILY_LOADED IDEOLOGICAL ENGLISH→ARABIC MESSAGES
(CDELT,Ain Shams University, 2022-10) Ahmed, Safa'a A
Bias, "an inclination, prejudice, preference or tendency towards or against a person, group, thing, idea or belief" (Murphy 2021), raises ethical questions whether in human or machine communication and it can have detrimental impacts on individuals and societies, e.g. criminal judgments. The deployment of AI systems in real-world settings has exposed various kinds of bias against certain social groups. The big number of research on bias in AI applications generally and the few studies on bias in neural machine translation (NMT) particularly have given the present study the momentum to further investigate the issue. It aims to examine bias in NMT through exploring the translation of some heavily-loaded ideological messages from English into Arabic. A multidisciplinary perspective deriving its tenets from translation studies, political sciences and computer science is utilized to explore bias in the translation of ideology by Google Translate API. It employs a qualitative approach using analysis, comparison and deduction as tools of research. It has reached some interesting findings, which came contrary to my initial expectations.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN SIMULTANEOUS INTERPRETING TRAINING: AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF SPEECH-TO-TEXT TECHNOLOGY
(CDELT,Ain Shams University, 2022-07) Ahmed, Safa'a A
As the world is rushing relentlessly to incorporate technology and artificial intelligence into various walks of life under allegations like 'development', researchers should investigate the potential impacts of such a movement from different perspectives. Simultaneous interpreting (SI) is no exception per se. The present study aimed to explore how useful the technological advances achieved in artificial intelligence can be in SI training (process and performance) through an experimental study of a speech-to-text technology. It adopted both qualitative and quantitative methodological approaches using analysis, comparison, assessment, questionnaire and experiment as research tools. In this human-machine interaction, sample original English speeches (in Language B) were interpreted simultaneously into Arabic (Language A) by participants/trainees representing fourth year university students, with the help of a speech-to-text model. The significance of the study lies mainly in its potential implications for the industry, training and education, and research. It found out that STT in its current form is a failure and that the suggested model proved some success although the results were quite modest.
CHAPTER FOUR ENGLISH LITERATURE OR LITERATURE IN ENGLISH: APPROPRIATING THE LANGUAGE OF THE COLONIZER
(Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2004) ELSHERIF, IKRAM A
CHAPTER FOUR ENGLISH LITERATURE OR LITERATURE IN ENGLISH: APPROPRIATING THE LANGUAGE OF THE COLONIZER المؤلفون IKRAM A ELSHERIF تاريخ النشر 2014/10/16 مجلة Adventuring in the Englishes: Language and Literature in a Postcolonial Globalized World الصفحات 40 الناشر Cambridge Scholars Publishing الوصف In the early seventies, just before I entered my early teens, I received my first independently issued Egyptian passport. Before that time, I was appended to my mother’s passport as a minor. Proudly turning the pages of the passport, a document representing for me at the time a formal acknowledgement of my independence, I wanted to study every word in it. However, I was greatly surprised and somewhat annoyed that the textual part of the passport was written in Arabic and French. I was annoyed because my knowledge of French at the time was next to nil; and was surprised because I knew for a fact that almost all the Egyptian people I knew used English as their second language and that English was more widely used in Egypt than French. Contenting myself with the fact that at least I had the passport, I became resigned but was not really happy until a few years later I was able to read every word written in it. What stayed with me over the years, however, was my surprise and inability to understand why French and not English was used. The question was not momentous enough to be always on the surface of my conscious thoughts, but I came to realize that it was lurking in the back of my mind when in the early eighties I stumbled on and eagerly read an article in an Egyptian newspaper discussing the issue. The writer (the name of whom I cannot recall, just as I cannot vouch for the absolute validity of his argument) claimed that the revolutionary forces in Egypt, which had overthrown King Farouk and terminated British control over the country in the 1952 Revolution, sought to abolish everything related to British control and imperialism, not least …
CHAPTER THREE HEROES AND GODDESSES WITH A THOUSAND FACES: 1 DEMYSTIFICATION OF CULTURAL DIFFERENCE AND INSTRUCTIONAL APPREHENSIONS
(Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 6/22/2016) AHMED ELSHERIF, IKRAM
CHAPTER THREE HEROES AND GODDESSES WITH A THOUSAND FACES: 1 DEMYSTIFICATION OF CULTURAL DIFFERENCE AND INSTRUCTIONAL APPREHENSIONS المؤلفون IKRAM AHMED ELSHERIF تاريخ النشر 2016/6/22 مجلة Challenges and Channels: English Language and Literature at a Crossroads of Cultures الصفحات 77 الناشر Cambridge Scholars Publishing الوصف The study and teaching of literature can be a journey of adventure, a pleasant experience of exploration of meaning and value in which both teacher and student explore not only what the literary text and its writer may have to say, but also explore the different ways of seeing and understanding they themselves may bring into the reading of the text. These different ways of reading and seeing can be enriching for both the text and reader. Yet, every journey of exploration has its challenges; and the challenges of teaching English language and literatures in the Middle East and the Gulf countries are many. Teachers of English language and literature in this part of the world may have to contend with many obstacles. Students, especially those who are educated at government (public) schools, generally lack background knowledge and are mostly educated in an exam-oriented environment which does not often promote literary tastes and/or critical and analytical thinking. Significantly, too, the English language and its literature often stand suspect in the minds of many because of its association with colonialism and imperialism. This, however, is somewhat confusing and may appear to be, as Darius Krishnarajputs it,“blatant hypocrisy” because “one can see the pervasive consumption of British and American culture throughout… society”(53) 2.
Crosslinguistic influence on EFL students’ writing: A contrastive analysis study of interlanguage errors
(Asian Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language, 2020) Gibriel, Mariam
One of the basic tenets in language learning is native language interference. Every language has its unique structure; which is usually brought on while learning a new language. This notion has been unequivocally recognized and accepted, for example, individuals can easily distinguish a French speaker of English from a native speaker. However, it was not until the 1960s that this notion began to be driven towards a more scientific analysis. Corder was the pioneer in error analysis; he developed a new vision in dealing with errors. Corder (1982) ascribed most of the errors committed by non native learners of languages to language interference. He explained in detail how learners of other languages avoid language errors by conveying messages successfully. Learners tend to use two procedures; the first is message adjustment; where learners tailor their messages to fit the resources they already acquire. This procedure also entails “topic avoidance”; which is a refusal to deliver or convey any message due to linguistic inadequacy. Some learners may attempt to hover around the question and give a rather different but relevant response. Corder defines this procedure as “semantic avoidance”. The second type of strategy is resource expansion strategies; where learners attempt to increase their resources to deliver meaningful messages. This idea is supported by Kavaliauskiene (2009) who explained that lack of resources may lead to error transfer; in which a learner may resort to native language structure to keep a conversation going. There are two types of language transfer: positive (facilitation) and negative transfer (interference). The former occurs when the native language (NL) and the target language (TL) have parallel structures while the latter. negative transfer (interference), occurs when the NL and the TL have diverse structures (Wilkins, 1972). Selinker (1972) was the first to coin the term interlanguage. To Selinker, interlanguage refers to the language produced when the learner attempts to articulate sentences of a target language; this type of utterance is different from the target language structure; the variation of structure is attributed to the learners’ native language; hence, the language produced in this situation is called “interlanguage”; which serves as a mediator between the learner’s native language and the target language. The learner in the interlanguage mode tends to keep some of the native language rules and uses them in the target language. Selinker (1972) referred to this process as “fossilization”, which is not bound to a certain age or a specific linguistic competence. Interlanguage errors can be attributed to misconceptions or insufficient knowledge of the target language (Ridha, 2012). It occurs when the learner attempts to build up his/her understanding of the target language; due to their limited experience and lack of sufficient knowledge of the nature of the target language, learners tend to lean to their native language structure (Edrogan, 2005).
An Ecocritical Reading of Water Symbolism in a Selection of Two Female Native American Poets
(Ain Shams University, 2019) Alakhdar, Ghada Mohamad Ali Hassan
This paper offers an ecocritical and narrative reading of a selection of poems from both Harjo and Hogan. It explores native American legacy and their sense of hope and revival expressed in their poetry. The selection of poems discussed in this paper expands our understanding of narrative, with its plot, time and perspective as basic constituents and how it gives way to multi-focality, timelessness and blurring of main and marginal in the plot covering both anthropocentric and biocentric perspectives without overlooking issues of representation, human cognition and multiple levels of agency. Adopting ecocritical and narrative approaches relocates nature and spirituality, with focus on water symbols, in the centre of artistic expression not overlooking stylistic and textual properties at the representation of human consciousness. Forms of artistic expression offer to expand the oral-tradition and legacy of Native Americans yet in ―English‖ and poetic form.
Exploring challenges in audiovisual translation: A comparative analysis of human- and AI-generated Arabic subtitles in Birdman
(PLOS ONE, 2024-10-21) Islam Al Saw; Rania Allam
Movies often use allusions to add depth, create connections, and enrich the storytelling. However, translators may face challenges when subtitling movie allusions, as they must render both meaning and culture accurately despite existing language and cultural barriers. These challenges could be further complicated by the use of available AI tools attempting to subtitle movie allusions, while probably unaware of existing cultural complexities. This research investigates these challenges using qualitative and descriptive quantitative approaches by analyzing the movie Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), comprising13.014 words, to identify the types of allusions used and compare the human- vs. AI (ChatGPT)-generated Arabic subtitles in terms of the subtitling strategies, their frequency, and quality. The results revealed that the movie used 52 Noun Phrase (NP) allusions, where the writer intertextually employed a proper name to convey meaning, and 8 Key-Phrase (KP) allusions, where the writer used phrases that convey implicit meaning easily perceived by members of the source culture (by referring to religious, literary, or entertainment texts). For NP allusions, both the human translator and AI opted for retentive strategies; however, the human translator’s preference to add guidance/parentheses to mark NP allusions was distinct. Additionally, it was observed that AI used neologism to render technology-related allusions, which could be a suggested strategy for NP subtitling into Arabic. For KP allusions, while the human translator seemed to be cognizant of the idea that KP allusions typically require a change in wording, AI fell short. Specifically, the human translator employed reduction in 5 out of 8 KPs, opting for minimum change/literal translation only three times. Conversely, AI utilized literal translation in all 8 examples, despite its awareness of the allusion and its intricate meaning/reference. As for the FAR assessment, for NP allusions, it revealed minor semantic errors in AI’s subtitles that did not affect the plot. Regarding KP allusions, AI’s subtitles were penalized in 5 out of its 8 Arabic renditions, in contrast to the human translator. Most of the errors were serious semantic errors that likely disrupted the flow of reading the subtitles due to conveying irrelevant meanings in the movie’s/scene’s context. Despite its functionality, this study suggests adding an extra parameter to the FAR model: consistency, as it plays a role in enhancing audience involvement and understanding. Its absence, as observed in some AI instances, can be misleading.
Globalisation vs. Islamic Universality and the Politics of Translation
(Ain Shams University, Center for Developing English Language Teaching, 2024-04) Ahmed, Safa'a A
The world has been recently going through vast, overwhelming changes whose implications for different fields and disciplines are beyond understanding and interpretation at times. Many concepts, like 'Globalistaion', have been presented as the magic wand for countries and individuals alike to attain their aspirations, but peoples have attained more problems, wars, conflicts, ignorance, deterioration and sometimes even destruction. The Western perspective of Globalisation has failed to offer an acceptably successful model for a 'prosperous', 'free', 'democratic', happy globe. Since the relationship between language, politics and translation is steadfast, this study aims to challenge the inevitability of the Western models of Globalisation, to explore 'Islamic Universality' as a valuable global model, and to investigate the politics of translation in this regard. It is not my intention to compare between Globalisation as an ideology on the one hand and Islamic Universality as a religion on the other. It is rather a comparison between an idea and another. Its theoretical underpinnings delve into translation studies, especially Ahmed (2014; 2020) and political sciences, particularly Fukuyama's 'The End of History' (1989). It compares between the two concepts, revisiting and reinterpreting some events in history and making new relationships. Methodological tools include description, analysis, comparison and interpretation in a qualitative research design, using one of G.W. Bush's addresses and comparing it to a letter by Prophet Mohammed, may peace be upon him, as sample data representing the two discourses respectively. It concludes, for example, that it is either the 'end of history' for Globalisation or time for history to end as such; Time has come for the 'beginning of history' of an alternative universalist model. Thus the 'end of history' can be interpreted differently from Fukuyama's. Also, the domination ideology is deep-rooted in history, whose events cannot be logically interpreted without a theory of conspiracy, a theory harshly and unethically attacked to maintain Mankind's coma and stupefaction. Meanwhile, it uncovers the politics and the potential role of translation.
Ideological Translation and Mass Communication: A Modernization or a Conflict Enterprise? A Case Study of Al-Jazeera and Al Arabiya
(2014-12) Ahmed, Safa'a A
This study aims to investigate the functional and dysfunctional roles of ideological translation and mass media in the Arab World and challenges naïve concepts of translation, like 'faithfulness' and 'loyalty' to the text writer, and of mass media like 'modernization', 'democratization', etc. It hypothesizes that both translation and mass communication can play a functional role promoting modernization and development or a dysfunctional one promoting chaos and conflict and that both have recently played a dysfunctional role in the Arab world. The importance of the study is twofold. At the topic level: a)-Ideological translation has critical consequences on shaping the Arab societies; b)-If the ideology of translation and the translation of ideology are linked directly to mass media, then we can imagine the tremendous effects on message receivers, especially if we are talking about an age of globalization where the international public opinion is shaped and reshaped by the dominant global media. At the theoretical level: a)-It attempts to fill in the gap in the literature on translation and mass communication in the Arab World; b)- It discusses this issue from a multidisciplinary perspective: translation studies and ideology, pragmatics, theory of power, theory of conflict in international relations and communication theories; let alone the English/Arabic duality which is quite rare in the literature. The analysis of samples collected from Al-Jazeera English (AJE) and Arabic (AJA) and Al-Arabiya channels reveals many interesting results. Ideological translation has recently played a dysfunctional role in the Arab societies creating conflict areas. The internationally-dominated mass media, like Al- Jazeera, have been dysfunctional and promoted a neocolonial enterprise of chaos, conflicts and wars instead of modernization, development and peace. Such a role leads to grave distortions in message-content receivers' value and information system globally. Al Arabiya, on the other hand, as an example for confrontation media has a long way to go in order to be functional. There is a gap in translation and mass communication models accounting for their involvement in modernization or conflicts in the Arab societies. Consequences of dysfunctionality include, but not restricted to, an increase in terrorism. The U.S. and the West diligent attempts to convince the international public opinion of modernization are absolutely deceptive.
The Interdisciplinarity of Post-colonialism and Environmentalism in Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart and Abdel Rahman Munif's Cities of Salt
(CAIRO UNIVERSITY, 2019) Sayed Abdel Azim, Doaa
Some literary works which have discussed the impact of colonialism upon natives could stress how colonialism has negatively affected the environment of colonies. This study briefly introduces the history of the growing interests in environmental issues and how the concept of environmental sustainability contradicts the main premises of capitalism which is considered the cornerstone of colonialism. The study focuses upon the fusion of post-colonialism and environmentalism in Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart and Abdel Rahman Munif's Cities of Salt refuting the point that post-colonial criticism and environmental/eco-criticism have divergent perspectives. As the battle between the colonizers and colonized nations has been over the land, the study sheds light on the settings of both works to demonstrate the relationship between natives and environment before and after the arrival of colonizers. The peaceful co-existence between natives and environment has been disrupted by colonialism that aims to exploit the natural and human resources of colonies. The study reveals the negative impact of colonialism upon environment and the relationship between capitalism, colonialism, and imperialism on one hand and the questions of environmentalism on the other hand.
Investigating writing strategies, writing anxiety and their effects on writing achievement: A mixed method design
(Asian Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language, 2019) Gibriel M.; Faculty of Languages; October University for Modern Science and Arts (MSA); Cairo; Egypt
The structure of any language relies profoundly on writing; writing is a productive skill that is usually left intact till the other skills are introduced. The reason behind this is that writing is a complex skill that needs special techniques and abilities. This process becomes even more challenging when it comes to writing in another language. Foreign/Second language writing requires thinking strategies in addition to a sufficient level of linguistic competence. Hence, producing a well-structured written task for EFL/ESL students is considered to be a notable achievement (Celce-Murcia, 1991). Accordingly, anxiety levels might increase when students are requested to do a writing task (Erkan & Saban, 2011). Psychologists classified anxiety into three types; 1) trait anxiety as a personality characteristic, 2) state anxiety as a response to a particular anxiety, such as important tests, and 3) situation-specific anxiety as anxiety aroused in particular situations (Horwitz, 2001). Language anxiety can be bound to the third type of anxiety “situation–specific anxiety” (Rezaeia & Jafarib, 2014). Hassan (2001) defines writing anxiety as a procedure which an individual tends to avoid because it requires writing followed by an evaluation process. Abdel Latif (2007) provided a similar definition “Writing anxiety can refer to the feeling of uneasiness writers experience while performing the task” (p. 58). He further added that writing anxiety is an individual’s general tendency which affects the student’s writing performance. Researchers have been investigating writing anxiety and its effect on the quality of writing. Some researchers have found that high anxious students produced better essays than low anxious students (Bloom, 1980; Powers, Cook, & Meyers, 1979). Another study by Fowler and Kroll (1980) reported no significant differences between writing anxiety and writing performance whereas, the majority of studies revealed that writing anxiety correlates negatively with students’ writing performance (Abdel Latif, 2007; Al Asmari, 2013; Daly, 1978; Erkan & Saban, 2011; Gibriel, 2017; Hassan, 2001). One of the early studies was carried out by Book (1976) who examined students’ apprehension and its effect on writing performance. Results showed that low apprehensive students wrote three times more words than their high apprehensive counterparts. Moreover, their quality of writing excelled over that of the high apprehensive students. Daly (1978) reported that students with high anxiety rates tended to produce lower quality compositions with shorter and simpler structures. Hassan (2001) researched writing anxiety and its effect on writing competence and self-esteem; the findings show that low anxious students produced better writing compositions and had higher self-esteem rates. Cheng (2002) concluded that students with high anxiety rates had a tendency towards skipping courses that entailed writing tasks; Abdel Latif (2007)
Literary Autobiography and Subject Formation: A Comparative Study of Mona Enamouri’s A Chat upon Thames and Elif Shafak’s Black Milk
(Cairo University, 2020-03) Alakhdar, Ghada Mohamad Ali
The two novels, Mona Enamouri’s A Chat Upon Thames (2014) and Elif Shafak’s Black Milk (2007), are autobiographical writings that depict the process of self-representation revealing a postmodern feminist interest in subject formation. Enamouri, on one hand, reflects on the self between places and voices revealing a construction of awareness and self-definition in reaction to external experiences. Shafak, on the other, interweaves a number of questions on female body and identity within the contextual struggle of patriarchical society and intrinsic emotional-personality struggles. Pregnancy and post-partum depression are discussed in line with questions of what it means to have a family, construct a book and determine self-worth. Negotiating a range of feminist thematic preoccupations with voice, spaces, and body the two novels unravel the critical function of feminist autobiographies in constructing the self from “discordant” voices through a dynamic process of self-representation through creation.
METAPHORS AND GESTURES IN PRAYERS IN ISLAM
(Taylor and Francis, 2024-01) El-Wahsh, Manar
The Routledge Handbook of Language and Religion is the first ever comprehensive collection of research on religion and language, with over 35 authors from 15 countries, presenting a range of linguistic and discourse analytic research on religion and belief in different discourse contexts. The contributions show the importance of studying language and religion and for bringing together work in this area across sub-disciplines, languages, cultures, and geographical boundaries. The Handbook focuses on three major topics: Religious and Sacred Language, Institutional Discourse, and Religious Identity and Community. Scholars from a variety of different disciplinary backgrounds investigate these topics using a range of linguistic perspectives including Cognitive Linguistics, Discourse Analysis, Sociolinguistics, Pragmatics, and Conversation Analysis. The data analysed in these chapters come from a variety of religious backgrounds and national contexts. Linguistic data from all the major world religions are included, with sacred texts, conversational data, and institutional texts included for analysis. The Handbook is intended to be useful for readers from different subdisciplines within linguistics, but also to researchers working in other disciplines including philosophy, theology, and sociology. Each chapter gives both a template for research approaches and suggestions for future research and will inspire readers at every stage of their career.
A multimodal analysis of the English-to-Arabic adaptation of Disney’s “The Bare Necessities”
(De Gruyter Mouton, 2024-05) Al Sawi, Islam
Due to the diverse roles that songs play in films and the growing need for movie distribution in various languages and cultures, the challenge of translating film songs from one language to another has become formidable. This research aims to apply the multimodal three-dimensional model proposed by Cui and Wang (2022. Film song translation: Verbal, vocal, and visual dimensions: On the Chinese translation of Amazing Grace in the film Forever Young. Babel 68(4). 565-585) to analyze the Arabic dubbed version of the 2016 film song "The Bare Necessities."The analysis revealed that, verbally, the Arabic dubbed version of the song maintained the gay emotional tone and length but made adaptations to the information, metaphors, and images used in the source. Vocally, similar to the English source song, the Arabic dubbed version did not adhere to 1 m and has a 4/4 time signature, aligning with the catchy melody and reinforcing the song's theme of embracing simplicity and savoring life's essentials effortlessly. Finally, visually, the analysis showed that the Arabic dubbed version matches the plot, characters and background pictures on the screen. The study contributed by incorporating a visual analysis of songs, adding camera elements, namely camera movement and shot size, to gain a better understanding of the scenes under analysis. The use of over-the-shoulder shots created a sense of conversation that complements the duet, and the pan right and left during dancing added a vividness that matches the verbal gay tone and vocal lightness of the song. This finding, considering visual camera elements, can be regarded as a suggested revision to the original multimodal framework introduced by Cui and Wang. Further implications are discussed.
Navigating the impact: a study of editors’ and proofreaders’ perceptions of AI tools in editing and proofreading
(Springer, 2024-03) Al Sawi, Islam; Alaa, Ahmed
Human editors and proofreaders now face a new, and possibly serious, challenge: the emergence of artifcial intelligence (AI) tools that some consider to be as efcient and precise as experts in editing/proofreading. This research aims to investigate editors’ and proofreaders’ perceptions of current AI tools. It examines whether editors/proofreaders view AI as an opportunity or a threat and considers their insights into the future of AI tools for them. The study collected qualitative data through email questionnaires from 17 professional editors and proofreaders purposively appointed from a society of professional editors and proofreaders in Egypt. The results revealed that the responses regarding AI for editors and proofreaders are generally mixed, with a range of both positive and negative perspectives. Some responses highlight the opportunities and benefts that AI tools can bring, such as increased efciency, time-saving, and improved productivity. Others express concerns about potential threats, such as the possibility of AI replacing humans, ethical considerations, and the need for continued human involvement in the editing/proofreading process. Overall, the attitudes toward AI tools for editing and proofreading refect a paradoxical view of the technology’s impact on the feld. The active engagement and participation of editors and proofreaders are essential for the successful implementation of AI technologies in editorial contexts.
Omission in Simultaneous Interpreting: A Multidisciplinary Perspective to U.S. Presidential Debates
(Ain Shams University - Centre for Developing English Language, 2019-07) Ahmed, Safa'a A
This paper attempts a new categorisation of omission in simultaneous interpreting through exploring and investigating omission in the simultaneous interpreting of U.S. presidential debates from English into Arabic in order to improve the interpreter's performance. This is not an attempt, however, to answer the question why the interpreter uses omission, intentionally or impromptu, because it is not a cognitive study of the reasons why this phenomenon occurs. Instead, it aims to evaluate omission in real, professional contexts to determine how far omissions convey the functions of presidential debates. The data is collected from the second 2016 U.S. presidential debate between the two candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. An interdisciplinary approach combining between interpreting studies (especially Pym's Risk Analysis 2008) and political sciences (basically Benoit's Functional Theory of Political Campaign Discourse 2017) is employed. The paper reaches the conclusion that there is a gap in understanding omission in interpreting a discourse type as such from English into Arabic and that interpreters used omission in their renditions, a matter which affected the three functions of presidential debates. Omission should be accounted for in the light of an interdisciplinary approach combining between a multi-layered linguistic and pragmatic analysis, interpreting studies and a functional theory of political campaign discourse. The product and its potential impact(s) for the aims of communication determine the level of functionality entailed in the interpretation: 'functional', 'nonfunctional, or 'semi-functional''. If the interpreter becomes aware of the functions of this discourse type and how it behaves, then his performance should presumably be improved; and at this particular point, further empirical, experimental research is recommended.
The Other in Subtitled Documentary Films and Making History: A Multidisciplinary Perspective to Arabic/English Translation. Occasional Papers in the Development of English Language Education,
(CDELT, 2016-12) Ahmed, Safa'a A
Original citation: Ahmed, Safa'a A. (2016). The Other in Subtitled Documentary Films and Making History: A Multidisciplinary Perspective to Arabic/English Translation. Occasional Papers in the Development of English Language Education, CDELT, 62 (December) 2016, pp.297-327. Updated: 12/4/2020 The Other in Subtitled Documentary Films and Making History: A Multidisciplinary Perspective to Arabic/English Translation Dr. Safa'a A. Ahmed, Assistant Professor Faculty of Languages, MSA University Abstract What is the relation between translation and history? A simple question as it may seem, but it gave the motive for this study to explore academically this relationship. The study aimed to investigate the role of subtitling translation of documentary films from Arabic into English and the use of supplementary visual images in making the history of the Other, the Arab Other generally and Egyptian Other particularly. It hypothesized that the West has constructed a deformed image of the Egyptian 'Other' and used translation and visual images as a tool to make the latter's history. To test the authenticity or the inauthenticity of the hypothesis, it set the following objectives: to analyze and compare English TTs to their original Arabic STs to infer the translator's strategy; to analyze visual images and discuss the image of the Other as delineated in both the TTs and STs; to present counter stories to reveal the other side of the story and who makes history; to explore how subtitling translation and visual images are utilized to help in making the Other's history; and to devise a future role for translators in this respect. The sample data was collected from the BBC documentary 'Egypt's Stolen Billions' (2012) and it consists of original Arabic utterances and their subtitling translation from Arabic into English, and some visual images. The study applied a qualitative, theoretical method of research using content analysis and comparison between TTs and STs as tools of analysis. An interdisciplinary approach deriving its key concepts from cultural translation studies and international relations theories was employed. The study found out that whatever the translator' modes of negotiating the Other are, translation can become an operative political decision to make the history of this Other and that subtitling translation and visual images can be used as political tools to achieve certain agendas.

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