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Abstract: The SCP Foundation, an extensive collaborative creative writing project, is internationally recognized for its fictitious scientific articles about securing, containing, and protecting anomalies, also known as SCPs. Since it is an open-source wiki, anyone can submit articles, and the authors are anonymous. This paper focused on researching language and gender in SCP articles. Gender is socially constructed and does not necessarily coincide with biological sex. Gender stereotypes reflect expectations about social groups and their members. They can affect occupational choices and even the health-risk behaviors of men and women. In language, gender stereotypes can be reflected in sexism and slurs. Data for this paper are drawn from content analyses of 50 randomly selected SCP entries. Qualitative data was then summarized into quantitative data. Results indicate a neutral, impersonal, and descriptive language for anomalies, which are referred to with the neuter reference because they are deemed borderline beings. Men are more often positively and negatively regarded than women, as women appear significantly less frequently than men in the entries, regardless of the role examined. Men do, however, appear in the roles of victims more often. Gender-stereotypical professions were associated with men, whereas women were associated with professions similar to those of men, indicating a shift from gender stereotypes. Sexism is reflected in the form of gendered slurs. No other socially constructed genders were found in the SCP entries.
Keywords: SCP Foundation, SCPs, language, gender, gender stereotypes, slurs
Published in DKUM: 15.09.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 16
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Abstract: As the climate crisis escalates, educators find themselves frequently having to engage with this issue in a classroom context. A significant contribution that educators, especially language teachers, can make is connected to communicating about environmental questions and helping learners develop the critical skills and competences to engage with such questions fully. In this contribution, we present a series of tasks drawing upon the medium of stories – both fiction and non-fiction, for younger and older learners – which are designed to develop a number of key competences: enhance vocabulary in English relating to climate issues; develop awareness of the key themes regarding these issues; increase learners' critical thinking (regarding the use of language specifically) concerning information available on climate change and related issues.
Keywords: climate fiction, communicating climate crisis, stories in the classroom, didactics, language teaching
Published in DKUM: 26.08.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 5
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Abstract: The deepening of the environmental crisis brings an increased need for clear and targeted communication about environmental issues, leading to greater environmental awareness and encouraging the necessary changes in people’s behaviour. The way the media frames reports on environmental issues, such as climate change, plays a crucial role in the efficient communication of these issues. This paper examines how sea level rise was reported in the digital editions of The Guardian and The New York Times in 2022, utilizing framing theory – a theory that is used in textual linguistics to study texts on socially important topics in public discourse. The study identifies the predominant generic frames in the headlines and subheads of these articles, which are the key framing locations. A comparative analysis also reveals differences in the framing of sea level rise in the two newspapers.
Keywords: climate changes, framing, generic frames, news headlines, sea level rise
Published in DKUM: 26.08.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 4
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Abstract: The thesis explores the theme of nostalgia in George Orwell’s novel Coming Up for Air from various analytical perspectives. The research is made possible by the novel’s detailed story, which captures the tensions between the individual and a rapidly modernising world in pre-World War II Britain. The work is structured into three main sections. First, the theoretical framework provides an overview of different definitions and interpretations of nostalgia from literature, history, and cultural studies. Second, various philosophical perspectives examine the relationship between nostalgia, personal identity, and the individuals’ ways of approaching the memory. From the standpoint of existentialism and the self, the thesis investigates how the protagonist, George Bowling, experiences nostalgia as a mechanism for self-definition. The thesis argues that nostalgia distorts the temporal order, merging past and present into a seamless but fictional continuum. The political philosophy and modernity perspectives place the main character’s nostalgia within the broader socio-political status of 20th century Britain. Orwell employs nostalgia to critique the oppressive forces of industrialisation, totalitarian governance, and capitalist consumerism. Third, the linguistic analysis applies Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL), using the discourse system framework developed by authors Martin and Rose (2007), to examine how Orwell’s language constructs the protagonist’s nostalgic experience. The analysis looks at how Orwell’s linguistic features show Bowling’s emotional attachment to the past and his disappointment with the present. Engagement is analysed to reveal how the protagonist’s reflections position the reader within his subjective perspective.
Keywords: Nostalgia, George Orwell, Coming Up for Air, Existentialism, Memory, Self-Identity, Political Philosophy, Systemic Functional Linguistics, Time, History.
Published in DKUM: 29.05.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 30
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Abstract: This master's thesis examines the inclusion of field-related elements in the coursebook High Note 1 for hairdressing students at the secondary vocational school of design in Maribor. The theoretical part of the thesis provides an overview of the development of English for Specific Purposes (ESP), early theories of the communicative approach, the communicative approach defined by the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) and first foreign language programs in Slovenia. The empirical part of the thesis includes the analysis of the coursebook High Note 1 and its appropriateness for hairdressing students as well as two online questionnaires, for both students and their ESP teachers, with analysis of the results and the interpretations of results collected through the questionnaires. The thesis aims to explore the inclusion of ESP elements in the coursebook as well as to highlight the importance of not having sufficient field-related elements incorporated into the students' coursebooks. The thesis also provides a suggestion unit on how ESP and general English elements could be incorporated into a tailored coursebook that would cater to the students' needs.
Keywords: English for Specific Purposes (ESP), Student Needs Analysis, Professional Communication, Inclusion of ESP Elements in Coursebooks, Vocational Education, Hairdressing.
Published in DKUM: 30.01.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 27
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