College of Languages Organizes a Symposium on Issues of Contemporary English Literature
The Department of English at the College of Languages organized a symposium entitled “Contemporary English Literature” in which Asst. Prof. Hala Salman Hassan, Ph.D., Inst. Maysaloon Khaled Ali Ph.D., and Inst. Rabie Amer Saleh contributed as lecturers in the presence of a number of college staff members and employees.
The symposium aimed to enhance a deep understanding of what the contemporary English novel deals with, to reflect on the role of science in English literature, and to encourage critical and analytical argumentation, as well as to examine the strategies employed in translating literary texts and highlight the role of the translator as a cultural mediator. The symposium addressed a number of themes, the first discussed the issue of sexual discrimination and gender equality, along with making a reference to struggle for independence and personal identity, and the smart employment of science in daily life. The second touched upon social issues such as “fatherhood and influence of the family, and struggle for social change”. The third the explored those important linguistic and conceptual challenges in translating English literature.
Eventually, the call was made for exploring the ways in which a novel addresses topics such as gender, science, and identity within a broader context of modern literature, as well as posing essential questions of how science can be handled as a literary subject and how enrichment of modern literature may be achieved via adding an educational and philosophical dimension. Further, an investigation was made of aspects in terms of which a novel intersects with contemporary issues such as gender equality and overcoming difficulties in work environments.
