IMPACT : International Journal of Research in Humanities, Arts and Literature

01-10

Authors: ARPIT JAIN, SNIGDHA BHANDARI & ALOK KUSHWAH

This paper carries out an in depth analysis of the severe hyperinflation crisis in Zimbabwe: reasons for the onset of the crisis, present state of affairs in the country and finally, the road ahead. The major political and economic reasons leading to hyperinflation have been discussed: gradually growing fiscal deficit ascribed mainly to unbudgeted government expenditure, political unrest, participation in wars, and heedless land redistribution reforms. Further, we have examined the effect of hyperinflation on Zimbabwe’s economic institutions and markets, conceived as a rapid increase in price levels of commodities and depreciation of local currency. As a result of hyperinflation, the society has encountered growing unemployment, increased emigration and decreased life expectancy. We hence analyze various policy and structural changes that have been made by the government and the merits and demerits of the latter. Considering the lackadaisical attitude of Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe and the ever growing black market, a complete change in the monetary system for Zimbabwe has been suggested. The benefits of dollarization and how it has enriched the economy, bringing about a large improvement in GDP and growing stability in prices has been discussed in detail. However, long term improvement can only be addressed by stringent policy changes directed at tackling flaws in the political and economic system like lack of infrastructure, corruption, black markets and much more.

21-2

Authors: SUREKHA KSHEERASAGAR & FIRDOUS JAHAN

Education is a decisive determinant of economic and social expansion, and also household livelihoods and food security status. Empirical studies also demonstrated that investment in elementary education amplifies the productivity in all the sectors of the economy much more than other levels of education, and that economic returns to investment in primary education are greater than those arising from other levels of schooling The development of education depends on large number of factors including the infrastructure resources available to a school. School infrastructure, such as the site, buildings, furniture and equipments contribute to a learning environment. This study highlights the primary and high schools’ infrastructure facilities in Hyderabad Karnataka region. This region is labeled as backward district socioeconomically and educationally. Hence it is essential to study the status of schools with reference to infrastructure, which is a basic aspect impacting on student’s enrolment, retention, and academic achievement

35-40

Authors: MANJUSHA DEKA & LANU DEVI

This research study is an effort to draw attention to the fact that Emotional Intelligence can be taught to adolescents. This has been proved by conducting a Emotional Education Training Programme among 50 adolescents in a Government school in Kamrup Metropolitan District of Assam. Several studies have been done in the west to prove the beneficial effects of Emotional Education. In India such studies are few and in the North East it is almost unheard of. The researcher through this approach would like to emphasize the need to make Emotional Education compulsory in the school curriculum. Incorporating Emotional Education in the academic syllabus would go a long way in channelizing our youth towards a sound emotional and mental wellbeing which is required for life success. Culture specific Emotional Education curriculum needs to be developed and parents and teachers should also be included in the process.

47-58

Authors: OMARI HASSAN KINYUA & ABRAHAM WAILA WAMBUA

Economics, in the framework of the Shariah, provides for independent functioning of market forces, but does not give absolute freedom to individuals (Keynes 1936) Islamic economics conforms to Islamic law and is grounded in Quran and Hadith in addition to explanation arrived at after the consensus of the Muslim scholars while conventional economics follow the teachings set by the fathers of conventional economics. Islamic economic advocate for interest-free Islamic banking system, grounded in Shariah while the conventional economics see interest as the driver of economy. According to Saeed, A. (1996) Islamic economics emphasize on uplifting of the deprived masses, a major role for the state in matters such as circulation and equitable distribution of wealth, and a reward to participants in the marketplace for being exposed to risk and/or liability. Islamic economic system is neither Socialist nor capitalist but it is unique due its reference to Qur’an and Hadith Other salient features of Islamic economics include obliging zakat from the rich to the poor and other seven groups stipulated in Qur’an in Surat Tawbah. In Islamic economics gharar which is the interdiction of chance is Haram. The reason for forbidding gharar is the presence of the element of uncertainty in the contract. Moreover riba is totally haram in Islamic economics however its form. Islamic economics give every individuals the right to do business irrespective of gender, tribe or religion. In Islamic economics as reported by Ibn Abbas from prophet Muhammad: "All Muslims are partners in three things--in water, herbage and fire." (Narrated in Abu Daud, & Ibn Majah) While in conventional economics anything can be privatilised and monopolized. In Islamic economics monopoly is discouraged while in conventional economics it is not even regarded as unethical. This paper aims at discussing the Islamic finance and economics in 21st century while highlighting some challenges and solutions. It borrows a lot from Qur’an and Sunnah

67-74

Authors: R.VADIVELU & L.t.A. AMIRTHAVALLI

Periyar Ramasamy was known as the Voltaire of South India. He was atheist, social reformer, rationalist, prolific writer, effective speaker and an original thinker. He worked for downtrodden people. He started self-respect movement, Anti-Hindi agitation. He opposed the caste system of India. Thandai Periyar was a crusader for social justice. He was born in an affluent family on 17th September 1879 at Erode in Tamil Nadu State. His father was Venkatappa (Naicker) a rich popular merchant and his mother was Chinathayammal. His school career ended within five years. He entered his father's trade. His parents were deeply religions and they frequently arranged religion discourses with great devotion, even in his early teens Ramasamy displayed a keen rationalistic tendency and ridiculed the pundits who gave the talks by pointing out the contradiction in their statements and also their incredible exaggerating. He married Nagammai, aged 13 he reformed his orthodox wife and sowed rationalistic views in her mind. He became the father of a female child, who expired within five months and thereafter had no children. He undertook “renunciation” of family because of the harsh reprimand of his father. He went first to Vijayawada in Andhra State. Then he proceeded to Hyderabad and Kolkatta.

83-86

Authors: SUSMITHA SHYAMSUNDAR

Pronunciation is an integral part of language learning since it directly affects learners' communicative competence as well as performance. There are various factors that affect the teaching and learning process of pronunciation. As a part of the study on the factors affecting pronunciation acquisition, it was noted that gender too seemed to play a role in the variation of the sounds. Hence this study was attempted to bring out the variations in the sounds found when learning English as second language

93-98

Authors: CATHERINE W. NDUNG’U, MED & AGNES W. KIBUI

This article discusses the pragmatic approaches teachers use, to assist pre-school children as they learn English in Nairobi County. It adopted a descriptive survey design and employed qualitative approaches. Questionnaires and observational schedule were used to collect data from 22 pre-school teachers and 300 pre-school children. Data were analyzed using percentages, mean and frequencies and were presented through narratives, tables and graphs. The findings of the study revealed that teachers who have good pragmatism skills and are flexible achieved that level of reinforcement that lead children to good performance in English. The study also established that a of the English language should be willing to try a variety of strategies to see what works best with the pre-school children and should have effective classroom management technique so that proper learning can take place. The study concludes that flexibility is important and that teachers who work with children should be patient, enthusiastic and friendly to the children. It recommends that pre-school teachers should learn more concepts of educational psychology in order to understand that children learn differently and that they need flexible learning space and a variety of learning resources

109-116

Authors: MUDASSAR H. SHAH & SAIMA KOUSAR

Rites and rituals are the essence of Confucius and Islamic corporate practices where responsibilities of corporations (i.e. economic, ethical legal and social) towards society translated into virtue when it is narrated in cultural aspects. Both societies have two distinct approaches of their CSR that are based on material and non-material dimensions. In general CSR practices, business organizations overlook non-material approaches in which it may cover sensitive social and ethical issues of the society. In both closely knitted societies compliance for non-material dimensions can observe as relational CSR that has theological inspirations. These approaches can accelerate economic activity and safeguard the material interests of the corporations in the host Confucius and Islamic Societies. It is predicted that extrinsic cost of public relations (i.e. monitoring, surveillance and performance measures) can be minimize through non-material initiatives. Presented article argue on the cultural aspects of CSR that can incorporate with non-material dimension of CSR and presented in the form of model for both societies. These models develop an understanding of CSR in natural social setting of the Islamic and Confucius societies.

133-150

Authors: JANJA M. GUNDA, NOR HAYATI ALWI, FADZILAH ABD RAHMAN, STEVEN ERIC KRAUSS (ABDUL LATEEF) & HJ. AZIMI HAMZAH

The component of knowledge of learner and of self is central in debated meaning of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) among researchers. Most studies have focused on transformative and integrative arrangements of other components of PCK with agreed soul-body conflict view of learner, particularly in conventional contexts. This phenomenological study was conducted with two objectives in place: First, to address the prerequisites in conceptualisation of learner and of self. Second, it focused to unveil meaning of holistic knowledge of learner and of self. The sample of this study involved five Muslim educators in Tanzania. Face to face interviews were used and later transcribed verbatim. The results reveal two main themes. The first theme is faith and spirituality with Divine Unity of Allah and unity of double dimension of human life as its subthemes. The second theme is foundational holistic knowledge of learner and of self. Its subthemes include mission and grand purpose of life, unified theory and practice, ingrained concept of amānah (Trust) and enthusiastic acceptance of being role model appeared as subthemes. Based on the research findings, it can be concluded that Muslim educators need Islamic epistemological view and ideological skills of integrating belief in Allah and Hereafter as the constructive framework in rethinking for the foundational holistic knowledge of learner and of self in PCK.

167-190

Authors: NASSER ABID ALLAH DOASH & AFAF KHADIM MSHJL ALNOMANI

This study built on what Abin Abie AlRbeea has composed it in his scientific and culture life, which is his interpretation for Holy Quran, which consider rich in scientific theme, especially the grammatical of it, so we will study one of his themes which is (the followers), the nature of this research required divide it on four topics which are : the first topic (the adjective or description) we deal in it (the adjective with noun sentence, verb sentence, semi sentence), (delete the described and put the adjective instead of it), as for the second topic (the affirmation) we study in it (affirm the connection pronoun with the separate nominative pronoun, and the coming of the affirmation for what the pronunciation require it and to rise probably trope in it), the third topic about (the apposition) which is (the study of the appositionof a clearly known from indefinite noun and conversely and delete the connect pronoun from something apposition and inclusiveness apposition, the apposition come as replacement of what is apposition from it) as for the fourth theme (conjunction) we study in it (the conjunction on the connect nominative pronoun and tacit pronoun and agree in the meaning or without it when the sentence conjunct and conjunct the thing on itself because the difference of the pronunciation and delete conjunction with the conjunction letter)

1059-108

Authors: SHREEJA NARAYANAN

There exist healthy debates of what success love marriages have over the arranged marriages. What happens when the male and the female decide to live a life of their own and what happens when the family makes a man and a woman “commit” marriage. This is a subject of so called significance ever since the origin of such a social set up. There had been many studies in the psychological and the social realm, of what happens to the duo later on in their lives. Can a person really fall in love with another one (be it male or female) about whom he/she has just a blurry idea? Society in its long run has already proved that love and sex are different. Being indulged in sex after all doesn’t mean to be in love. After marriage what happens if that person finds a better half that the person was in search of? As all social rules are being made as a trap, the rattraps have higher tendencies to fall upon “women”. And so, my paper analyses what happens to two women of different geographical area and economic conditions, when they fortunately or unfortunately fell in love with men of their interests. The study takes Edna Pontellier of the novel awakening by Kate Chopin and Deepthi of a Malayalam movie Ore Kadal by Shyama Prasad, as its source.

1-16

Authors: MESFIN ABERRA

The main objective of this study was to investigate the level of interference of local languages in English medium classes in four schools in Sidama Zone. The study was designed in conformity with the principles of mixed approach, that is, largely qualitative and to some degrees quantitative. The major research tools used to collect data were classroom observation and interview conducted with students of Grade Nine. Correspondingly, the results indicated that in the selected schools, in Grade Nine, using local language (most frequently Amharic) in English-medium classes was a common scenario. Among all sentences the teachers used while they were conducting classes, 51.4% of them were in the English Language and the rest 48.6% were in Amharic and rarely in Sidama Language. This data take us to the conclusion that the level of local language use in the above selected schools was more than the required amount. The study further indicated that sentence level interference was the most frequently observed linguistic feature. The factors responsible for using local languages in the English-medium classes were: to make the lessons more clear, low level of students’ English Language skills, to create a friendly classroom environment, to manage classes more successfully, pedagogical limitations and to save time for various class activities. With regard to local language use in their English medium classes, 14respondents (87.5%) had the attitude that when their teachers used local language, the lessons became clearer to them than the explanations they received in English Language. The other 2 (12.5%) of the respondents, nevertheless, contended that since the medium selected to transmit education is the English Language, mixing local language was of no advantage save confusion. Regarding different subject teachers’ English Language ability, most of the respondents (87.5%) were of the attitude that their teachers did not have deficiency in explaining lessons in English Language. The other 2 (12.5%), however, had the attitude that some of their teachers had problem in expressing themselves in clear English

23-38

Authors: GOVINDA CHANDRA PENTHOI

Kui (ISO639-3 Code ‘Kxu’) is a language spoken by Kondh or Kondha (/Kɔndhɔ/) tribe. Majority of the Kuispeaking Kondhs live in the hilly and forested areas of South and central Odisha especially in the undivided districts of Kondhamal, Koraput and Kalahandi. The other language spoken by Kondhs is Kuvi which is very similar to Kui. Kondh people being an underdeveloped tribal people, study of their language, society and culture draws a lot of attention of academics, administration and other philanthropic agencies. The objective of this study is to present the consonant sound and phonology of Kui language. The approach is data oriented and uses in general. The structuralist methodology has been followed for the analysis of the data in the present work. Data was collected from the native speakers through field visit to various Kui speaking areas

37-46

Authors: KIM HYO-SIL

The irony in A Farewell to Arms has been analyzed through the prism of ambiguity or paradox emphasizing a nihilistic interpretation. Unlike the existing approach, this study is to elucidate irony as a role to pursue a new vision of life, noting that the hero in this novel recognizes an absurd world and purifies his soul beyond unbearable limits. Søren Kierkegaard (1992) says that human beings can be spiritually matured by recognizing irony. [1, p504] This quote helps readers understand how the protagonist, Frederic Henry, is able to maintain an existential life without losing stoicism under the absurd circumstances that he should not be able to endure. This study will also observe how the emotion of fear when people are faced with death, is sublimated into irony, which transcends the suffering, and how Hemingway makes readers, who can never be free from unfair situations, aware of what true life is by realizing irony. By suggesting the direction of the existential life with irony, A Farewell to Arms is worth discussing through a new perspective for its educational value by those who are in countries in which the possibility of war still exists, such as Korea.

1-4

Authors: CHARITY G. RONAMO

This study focused on the documentation of the existing sports and socio-cultural related collections in every home of the Filipino ethnic groups of the selected municipalities in the province of North Cotabato, Philippines. The collection of photos and the determination of the extent of influence on ethnographic technologies and beliefs and practices from generation to generation focused only on implements, dance and musical instruments, arts and crafts, rituals and practices, socialization, sports and socio-cultural activities including courtship and marriage

15-18

Authors: DINESH KUMAR

"Look Back in Anger" by John Osborn Shocked the audience by its content. The play deals with many themes but basically it deals with perverse marriage. The playwright explores how marriage becomes a burden on those who cannot understand its sanctity and look at it as a sacred bond."A Happy Marriage is heaven on earth, a paradise that even the gods yearn to enter" Says a poet. But what goes wrong in marriage? Why does it fail? These are some of the questions that Osborn indirectly deals in the play. Marriage as a bond needs to be understood culturally as its meaning is different in different contents.

25-32

Authors: J.A. ODUKOYA, A.O. IGBINOBA, O. ADEKEYE & A. AFOLABI

What is not inspected should hardly be expected. It can be argued that it is regular inspection, constructive feedback and diligent correction that lead to growth and development. These statements give credence to the power of regular assessment and evaluation. Assessment is the umbrella term for all processes used to collect information from a person, thing or event for interpretative purposes. Tests and examinations are amongst the popular assessment tools. Item analysis is an integral tool for enhancing the content validity of multiple-choice objective examinations. Teachers and Students worldwide often dance to the tune of tests and examinations. Consequently, assessments are powerful tools for catalyzing the achievement of educational goals, especially if done rightly. It is the realization of the significance of rightly conducting assessment and evaluation to get the right results that the need to conduct the item analyses of the unitary multiple-choice objective semester examinations for university-wide courses conducted in a Nigerian private university was conducted. Consequently, the ex-post facto design was adopted for this project. Two core item analysis indices – item difficulty index and distractive index - were computed. Based on the findings from this study, particularly in the light of best practices in the art of psychometrics, recommendations were made to expedite the achievement of the ‘laudable vision’ of the investigated private university – to be one of the best ten universities in the world by 2022.

43-54

Authors: S.PRAMILA, K.KUMAR, & ANUPAM KARMAKAR

The steel sector is one of the most significant and pivotal sectors in the prominence and growth of a nation. It has been considered as the spine of civilization in the universe. The level of per capita consumption of steel is an important determinant of the socio-economic growth of a nation. This research Study focuses growth and development of Steel industries in India. The Steel industry in India is growing in a rapid speed with demand increment and opportunity creation and attraction to the international players.

1-4

Authors: P. V. RAVI KUMAR

I was walking along the lonely beaches With my beloved one evening The beating sound of the waves ricocheted Through the core of my ear to and fro; As time passed by the moon rose high above With its pristine beauty; My beloved exclaimed that I am just The holy angel on earth she was looking for; As a compliment I gave a kiss on her lips With each kiss I gave her the moon brightened its face; We cozily stayed there on the beach for the night Stepping into a different world altogether; When the morning sun pierced down my back I woke up with a start only to realize It was a strange distant dream

13-20

Authors: MARYAM GHORBANI, FATEME NOORI SARUKOLAEE & AKBAR MOMENIRAD

Multimedia has a critical role in learning and learning development in students. In this regard, current study is going to investigate the effect of researcher made multimedia on the high level of mentally retarded educable third grad students' learning in elementary students in Hamedan. Statistical society includes the whole male mentally retarded third grade students in the elementary schools in Hamedan. 28 people have been selected randomly among these retarded mentally educable students. Research method was Quasi-experimental using pre-post-test with control group. Experimental group has been taught by means of training researcher made media for two months. But, control group has been taught traditionally without using multimedia. Primarily, in order to investigate the expected changes, a pre-test has been conducted for both groups. After performing pre-test, experimental group was exposed to independent variable and then a post test was performed on both groups. After 9 weeks, the second post-test has been conducted to evaluate the level of retention. Data was analyzed in descriptive level with mean and standard deviation and in inferential level with statistical analysis covariance. Findings showed that experimental group had progressed significantly by use of researcher made multimedia compare with control group. According to findings, it can be concluded that teaching and learning by means of multimedia will be much more effective for educable students.

25-30

Authors: LAISHRI MAHILARY

Bodo is one of the most famous languages and major tribes of North-Eastern region of India. Linguistically the Bodo language belongs to the great Sino-Tibetan language family. In this paper a microscopic discussion has been done based on scripts as used by the Christian Missionaries in writing the Bodo language during the missionary period in the history of Bodo literature. To discuss the topic some of the peculiar scripts have been taken into account in this paper

41-46

Authors: INDIRA BORO

The hand-woven textile has occupied an important place in the culture and civilization of India since very ancient times. Bodo people living in the side of North-East India (Brahmaputra plain of Assam) were influenced in their textile production by the elements of physical environment as well as by their folk song, rituals, myths, legends, ceremonies festivals, social organizations and cultural norms. The indigenous inhabitants of most of this largely hill region are Bodo. There is an immensely rich assembly of tribal culture in this region. The beautiful hand woven product of the Bodos of this region not only reflects the skills of individual weavers but the creative capacity and deep perception of beauty in variety color and design of the Bodo people as a whole. The very socio-cultural life of the Bodo communities is revealed significantly in their clothes. Silk culture is a traditional cottage industry rooted in the life and culture of Bodos. Sericulture of Bodos comprises mulberry (pat) and non-mulberry silkworm culture. The later includes endi, muga and oak-tasar, Endi and muga skills are considered to be of indigenous origin and found only in foot hills of Himalaya. Largely, the Kachari Bodo tribes practice this culture during their leisure time, but ithelps to improve their economic condition a lot especially of women.

55-66

Authors: ANJU VERMA

In recent years India has seen a tremendous growth in the number and types of institutions providing higher education. In order for organizations and individuals to remain competitive in a rapidly changing environment, demand for education and training has become more critical than before. To respond to this demand, new institutions have continued to emerge. At present, India has about 304 Universities, including 62 Deemed Universities, 11 open Universities, and 15,000 colleges, incorporating approximately 10 million students and 0.5 million teachers. The performance of higher education institutions is a growing concern. The pressure for quality assurance poses a major challenge for higher education as in case of many developing countries including India. With increasing interaction of commerce, trade and education across national borders, needs for measures of the quality of education in a given country or region are growing each year. NAAC is an autonomous institution, established by the UGC in 1994. The primary objective of NAAC is to assess and accredit institutions of higher learning with an objective of helping them to work continuously to improve the quality of education. The aim is to provide universities with the best evidence for informing their focus and models for quality improvement. According to the Ministry of Human Resource Development, India, only about 10-11% of the population in the relevant age-group is enrolled in higher education, and a mere 5% graduate with degrees. Quality assurance refers to the policies, attitudes, actions and procedures necessary to ensure that quality is being maintained and enhanced. Accreditation refers to an evaluation of whether an institution qualifies for a certificate status. The purpose of this paper is to determine the state of research in a review of quality assurance in higher education institutions based on a review of the academic literature

75-84

Authors: DIANA AUDI & RIM GOUIA

Lecture notes provide a gauge for what is important in the textbook. However, taking notes for ELL (English Language Learners) students is not an easy task as ELL students are unable to communicate fluently or learn effectively in English. In this research, we attempt to analyze the effects of augmenting Mathematics Lectures with pre-written handouts on the note taking of ELL students and consequently on the academic performance of ELL students. The research was conducted over a period of four consecutive semesters on a Freshman Mathematics subject at the American University of Sharjah in UAE and a mixed qualitative and quantitative approach was employed. The introduction of the new teaching methodologies reflected positively on the students’ performance in subsequent exams and based on the conducted survey, the majority of the students indicated the positive impact of being exposed early in the lecture to written notes on their own note taking

91-104

Authors: SHEHLA MOHSIN ABDUL SAHIB

This study is an analysis of structure written by Iraqi first-, second-, third- and fourth-stage collage English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students. This study aims at identifying with restriction the types of errors they potential errors in the use of the indefinite article. Nine kinds of error were identified, and their recurrence calculated and then compared through the three levels. These errors are: (1) delete phrases represent the indefinite article, (2) writing within of the noun/adjective it is the following (3) Replaced by the indefinite for the definite article, (4) substituting of the definite for the indefinite article, (5) substituting of a for an,(6) using of the indefinite article with undifferentiated plurals, (7) use of the indefinite article with remarkable plurals, (8) use of the indefinite article with uncountable nouns, and (9) using of the 2indefinite..article..with..adjectives. The different earlier error analyses, native language converts and transfer was found to substitute which is at best minimal. The evaluation revealed that all errors, except one, are independent of the student' native language. The only kind of error which could be keep track back to the influence of Arabic, among other sources, was the deleting of the indefinite article. Developmental elements and popular learning strategies such as facilitation and over generalization were found to compute for the plurality of learners' errors. The using of these strategies was obvious among the EFL learners of the four stages who were found to do well on assured items and to have difficulty with others.

1-8

Authors: SNIGDHA NAGAR

Following on the footsteps of writers like Louis Carroll, Edward Lear, and Dr. Seuss, Roald Dahl’s nonsensical verses create a realm of semiotic confusion which negates formal diction and meaning. This temporary reshuffling of reality actually affirms that which it negates. In other words, as long as it is transitory the ‘nonsense’ serves to establish more firmly the authority of the ‘sense.’ My paper attempts to locate Roald Dahl’s verse in the field of literary nonsense in as much as it avows that which it appears to parody. Set at the brink of modernism these poems are a playful inditement of Victorian conventionality. The three collections of verses Rhyme Stew, Dirty Beasts, and Revolving Rhyme subvert social paradigms through their treatment of censorship and female sexuality. Meant primarily for children, these verses raise a series of uncomfortable questions by alienating the readers with what was once familiar territory.

13-18

Authors: SEIDIKENOVA A, ORYNBAYEVA U & ZHANTYLEUOVA G

The article describes the concept “own and alien” in Kazakh, French and English culture. We tried to analyze importance of concept “own and alien”. In addition, was made a comparative analysis of Kazakh, French and English proverbs relating to “own and alien”. The relevance of this study is determined by the following factors: The concept of “own and alien” refers to the most important landmarks of human behavior; it is one of the leading concepts of the psychology of interpersonal relationships; Identification of the national linguistic characteristics of proverbs and a comparison of this concept in Kazakh culture with the same characteristics of the same concept in French and English culture give a chance to present the system of value priorities more clearly.

27-30

Authors: M. ARTHI &.C. ARUL THERESA

In the contemporary society one of the latest burning issues is, various crisis in the family. Today both men and women adhere to free modern life style and so they hate to live under marital roof. Both are also conscious of their personal salvation and individuality, so to attain an independent status they shatter the marital norms and run to seek their roots. In this way, the main intention of this conceptual paper is to bring out how Anita Nair, an outstanding Indian literary writer has brought out the issue of today’s marriage, with particular reference to her novel Lessons in Forgetting.

39-54

Authors: JYOTI MISHRA

When people migrate from one land to another, they take with them their culture, their traditions and their religion, which demarcates them as the ‘other’ and at the same time is the marker of their identity. But what happens to the Gods in the foreign land? Do they transmute from spiritual and religious figures to cultural symbols and then finally merges into popular culture to their death and eventual ‘re-avatarization’? I use the term ‘re-avatarization’ to signify the reimagination of ancient accepted views of certain ideas, in this case, the idea of Gods with all its associated power and omniscience to something created out of human imagination more connected to current times. Neil Gaiman’s American Gods talks about the migration of these Gods with their people into the ‘new land’ America where they either became lost as their followers dwindled and lost belief, or became transmuted into other avatars due to their re-imagination by the people. Kevin Hearne’s Iron Druid series introduces many such Gods, Gods lost from memory and ones still remembered, from all over the world. Terry Pratchett in his Discworld series talks about the power of belief which sustains and gives power to certain entities to be Gods. What I am interested is in the re-imagination of Gods from powerful religious and symbolic figures to popular icons through their dissemination in literature, notably fantasy fiction. Gaiman and Hearne have taken Gods from various cultures and pantheons and in this article I would like to map their transmutation and re-imagination in popular culture. As an offshoot, I would also like to analyse this similar transformation with regard to the Hindu Gods from India. It seems to me that with Hinduism, the philosophical, the spiritual and the didactic aspect has been popular for some time with our global export of so called “Indian spirituality” at the hands of myriad spiritual gurus. But with regard to Hindu Gods, there are different politics at play. The portrayal of Hindu Gods in Gaiman and Hearne’s books for instance is fascinating as it gives off vibes of the ‘Exotic Orient’ from the point of view of the ‘West’. There are many subtle variations in their depiction which I would like to ponder over with all its resultant implications and politics. I believe that through this study we can get an idea of subtle cultural processes at work that assimilates elements of one culture into another while preserving its sense of the ‘other’ and the ‘exotic’ but sanitizing it to an acceptable level for the dominant host culture. It seems to me that it is important to maintain this duality to attract people to its exotic allure and at the same time to tone down its essential ‘alienness’ so as to not detract the audience. Because of the settings of both Gaiman and Hearne’s books, the US has become the fantastical grounds where I will be analysing this process of assimilation and re-avatarization of various Gods from around the world and from America itself, that is the Native American Gods. What does it all signify? Does it indicate the elevation of religious figures and the importance of religionor does it signify a kind of death by their transmutation into pop icons? These are few of the questions that I would like to use as my analytical framework as I seek to interrogate the process of cultural migration over time.

61-68

Authors: ZAHRA SONIA BARGHANI

This paper studies Decameron written by Italian writer Giovanni Boccaccio under Althusserian Theory. Louis Althusser’s neo-Marxist theory makes the notion that Ideological State Apparatuses (ISAs) exist in societies and unknowing rule the members of that society. For this study three stories of Decameron, which are told by the character Dioneno, are scrutinized and the ISAs present in the stories are recognized. These ISAs are then analyzed in relation to the historical, cultural and social setting of Boccaccio’s 14th century Italy. The study reaches the results that Boccaccio has employed Dioneo has a speaker for himself in the tales and uses the stories to shed light on the norms of his society and often, in disguise, stand up against them.

81-88

Authors: V. PURENDRA PRASAD & B. ANVITHA

Safety Management, Safety Climate, Safety Performance In the twentieth century, as technology grew by leaps and bounds; associated hazards also grew with it. This resulted in collective efforts and thinking in the direction of controlling work related hazards and accidents. Thus, safety management developed and became an important part of industrial management. While considerable research has been reported on the topic of safety management in industries from various parts of the world, there is scarcity of literature from India. It is logical to think that a clear understanding of the critical safety management practices and their relationships with accident rates and management system certifications would help in the development and implementation of safety management systems.

95-108

Authors: KHANSAA HASSAN HUSSAIN

The quality of teaching depends on the dedication and devotion of the teacher towards the subject of the knowledge. This study aims at identifying and classifying Iraqi teachers’ attitude toward using communicative approach as a teaching method for '' Iraq Opportunities Textbook ''. The study is restricted to the teachers (males and females) of the first, second, third, and fourth year secondary schools in Iraq during the academic year 2013-2014. In this study, 40 female teachers and 40 male teachers are included. Sixty teachers are chosen randomly to represent the main sample of the study. In order to collect the necessary data, a Checklist is applied as the instrument of this study. The Results indicate that there are statistically significant differences at
0.05 in the teachers’ attitude toward using CLT as a teaching method for '' Iraq Opportunities textbook''.