ERIC Number: EJ1110212
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2011
Pages: 8
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1358-684X
EISSN: N/A
The Religion of Learning English in "English": A Language Educator's Reading
Gao, Xuesong
Changing English: Studies in Culture and Education, v18 n4 p429-436 2011
This essay is my reading of "English," a novel based on author Wang Gang's experiences in Urumqi, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Northwest China during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). As a language educator, I was particularly interested in the way that Wang describes learning English in the novel. The essay focuses on three aspects of learning English in the novel: the representation of learning English as a spiritual experience, the appeal of English for Love Liu as an adolescent learner and the portrayal of Second Prize Wang as an English teacher. The novel depicts learning English as a spiritual adventure and a religious experience in which Liu regards English as gospel and Wang, the English teacher, as the Messiah, who will lead him out of the chaotic and dehumanising world. The novel indicates the need to explore how individual learners in particular contexts appropriate the English language to pursue locally meaningful objectives.
Descriptors: Novels, Language Teachers, English (Second Language), Second Language Learning, Spiritual Development, Religion, Literary Devices, Second Language Instruction, Figurative Language, Foreign Countries, Geographic Regions, History
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: China
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A