Reading Stephen’s Speech as a Counter-Cultural Discourse on Migration and Dislocation

The speech of Stephen in Acts 7:2–53 contains a wealth of references to biblical migration narratives, but their significance for understanding the message of Luke–Acts has been understudied. This is partly due to a recurrent focus on either accusations against Stephen (Acts 6:8–15) or the polemical conclusion of the speech (Acts 7:47–50.51–53). It also partly relates to a teleological interest in early Christian mission narrative. This article reads Stephen’s speech as a counter-cultural discourse on migration and dislocation. It provides a close reading of its biblical story-telling in conjunction with its polemical upshot, and further compares Lucan narrative choices with early Jewish and Jewish Hellenistic literary cycles about patriarchal and Mosaic discourse. It applies a critical lens to the use of ancient narratives of migration and dislocation in discussions about identity, ethnicity, and “othering;” this is of further importance for contemporary identity politics around migration. Through comparing the speech with intra-Jewish dimensions and Graeco-Roman contexts, Stephen emerges as a counter-cultural speaker whose discourse appeals to human–divine intersectionality, specifically regarding the cause of justice for the ill-treated stranger; at the same time, it avoids cultural stereotyping through categories of Hebrews vs Hellenists, Jews vs Christians, Graeco-Roman elite standards vs supposedly “non-European” profiles.

Impact of Multicultural Diversity on the Gender Stereotyping in Bapsi Sidhwa’s The Pakistani Bride through the Deconstructive Perspective

The article analyzes the impact of multicultural fictional representation of the two female characters on the gender stereotyping in Bapsi Sidhwa’s The Pakistani Bride (1990) by applying Judith Butler’s gender approach. The novelist (1938) is a distinguishing Anglophone, post-colonial and diaspora writer in South Asia (Suleri, 2001) who is known to be the pioneer of Pakistani novel in English. Sidhwa’s portrayal of different cultural milieu in the novel under study is to highlight the impact on gender identification through the analysis of the performativity of the two brides, Zaitoon and Carol. The first lady, one of the key characters, confronts and challenges the tribal gender norms of a Pakistani society and the second bride mirroring of an American culture projecting of a diverse identification. The multicultural contextual background of the novel leads the debate to analyze how different gender roles are performed by each of the brides to support the research contention that gender is wrought not by sexual categorization but by socio-cultural stereotyping. Therefore, the cultural differences in the book necessarily require fluid shades of gender identification accordingly. It is the targeted objective of the research framework applied by the study that gender is an action, it is a fluid and instable feature as has been manifested through the performance of the focused characters in the novel.

‘Pakis from Outer Space’: Oriental postmodernity in Leigh Bowery’s performative costuming

With his extraordinary self-styled personas, the late London-based costume designer, nightclub extravaganza and subcultural icon Leigh Bowery constantly unsettled clear divisions between fashion, performance and visual art. His performative costuming reflects in a prolific manner his hybrid aesthetic and his ability to fuse a wide range of visual elements stemming from high fashion, art, mainstream culture and underground practices that en masse render his bizarre presence highly enigmatic. Inspired primarily by the aesthetics and the representations of South Asian culture, and noticeably deviating both from the subcultural style of the early New Romantics and mainstream fashion trends, Bowery’s allegedly first performative look, the ‘Pakis from Outer Space’, integrates an array of clashing symbols and motifs in a distinctively postmodernist fashion. As fetishization of South Asian iconography, Bowery’s enactment provides a platform for deeper analysis in regard to the problems that postmodernist cultural appropriation poses for the politics of representation of the ‘exotic’, non-western other. Drawing on the discourses of postmodernism and orientalism, this article examines the visual codes of the controversial look and unfolds the ways in which by constructing a distorted and eccentric image of an inclusive South Asian identity, Bowery slips in cultural stereotyping and ethnic generalization. Although his postmodernist parodic ethos could potentially be read as an attempt to create a critical – but politically problematic – dialectical space regarding orientalist clichés, it does not only fail to deconstruct monolithic representations but, conversely, reinforces oriental banality.

Literary Marketability in Fadia Faqir's My Name is Salma

This study addresses Fadia Faqir's novel My Name is Salma (2007) as promoting the marketability of the Arab woman writer who sells stereotypes and preconceived notions about the representations of Arab Muslim female subjects to the West. It specifically examines the ways in which Faqir uses a discourse that confirms cultural stereotypes, targets mainly a Western reader and enforces Western criticism of certain Islamic practices regarding polygamy, alcohol consumption, eating pork, Muslim women's veiling, and blind obedience to husbands, thus, producing a superficial, reductionist understanding of Islam. My Name is Salma is perceived as a culturally marketed literary work that reinforces a rigid Western discourse about Islam and the fragility of the position of Arab Muslim women, thus, positioning the novelist as mainly targeting Western audiences. Keywords: Arab women writers, cultural stereotyping, Fadia Faqir, marketability propaganda.

La imagen de España en el cine catalán posterior a 2012

An essential component in the study of peripheries, the epistemic construction of the notions of center and centrality can be approached from many different perspectives. This paper focuses on the intersection of two of them: the imagological paradigm and the theory of nation branding. In the intersectional space between them, concepts such as cultural stereotyping, soft power and commercial nationalism are mobilised in ways that differ when a peripherical mindset is favoured. These theoretical tools open up a reflection on the processes of resemantisation that the image of Spain undergoes in contemporary Catalan cinema, as exemplified in the later works by director Ventura Pons. A commentary of Miss Dalí (2018), in the broader context of Pons’ production and of recent Catalan cinema, leads to provisional conclusions about strategies such as erasure, rarefication, negativisation and othering.

Chinese International Students’ Experiences in a Canadian University

The study employed ethnographic inquiry to present the lived experiences of Chinese international students while attending the University of Regina, Canada. The findings displayed the transformative experiences of this group, including language acquisition, academic and social challenges, and the strategies by which the cultural group attempted to overcome the challenges with gender comparison. The study highlighted specific challenges affecting Chinese female students as they labor to overcome sexism and patriarchy on two continents. Cultural stereotyping and negative labeling were also evaluated in detail. Arguably, the findings might potentially impact education/social policies and university protocols as impinging vulnerable groups. Recommendations were made to alleviating difficulties for the group in facilitating a more supportive learning process within the university environment.

The Boone-Kabul Project

In this project, the in-depth discussion of artistic works by Afghan and American students working together to reduce cultural stereotyping and poor media image-making created a shared understanding and a deep connection as humans that transcended national, political, religious, and cultural boundaries. Students discussed various works of art dealing with topics such as leadership, women and education, heroism, and homeland/patriotism. Students then answered questions related to the works of art and share their responses with each other in a continuous dialogue. Students were able to determine how perceptions are shaped about other cultures, analyze how these perceptions change, and examine how art is multivalent and is particularly able to carry many nuanced messages that allow for in-depth discussion.

What happens in your country? Teacher constructions of adult EAL students’ cultural identities

In a multicultural and settler society such as Australia, perceptions of the cultures and identities of students in the adult EAL classroom may have a significant impact on their language learning experiences. This paper reports on a study investigating how teachers of adult English as an Additional Language (EAL) students in Victoria, Australia, understand their students’ cultural identities, how they speak about their students’ language learning and how they perceive the challenges and opportunities that their students face in the learning process. Recent literature highlights the complexity of culture and identity in the adult EAL classroom, and has identified normalisation of stereotyped characteristics of language learners. Semi-structured interviews with three experienced EAL teachers were conducted, and a phenomenological framework was applied for the qualitative data analysis. The themes that emerged suggest that the teachers had a limited and even superficial understanding of their students’ cultural identities. Cultural stereotyping was evident when describing their students’ language learning experiences, and also when describing the challenges and opportunities that students have in their learning. The implications of these for the students’ additional language development are discussed.

Democracy as Othering Within Finnish Education

The word democracy is frequently uttered by academics, politicians, and, generally within society. Phrases such as ‘democratic education', ‘democracy education' and ‘(student) participation' are often referred to within national curricula, policy briefings, and, teacher education/training and resources. Little critical attention has been given to the word within the context of Finnish education. In recent years the educational system of Finland has been described as a ‘miracle' and commentators have noted its ‘successes.' This article offers a deeper gaze within Finnish education by looking at the ways democracy discourses are uttered by practitioners. For the purposes of this article the author analyses two in-depth conversation extracts, one was from a youth participation conference in Helsinki in 2015, the other is a conversation from a conference held in February 2016. This article focuses on the uses and functions of discourse to uncover cultural stereotyping and othering in terms of how democracy is discussed and expressed within the context of Finland.