Journal of Letters

The Virtual Landscape of German Language Learning and Teaching in Social Media

Akra Chowchong — Tue, 27 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0700

This paper aims to study the linguistic landscape in the virtual domain of online language instruction. It analyzes the various semiotic forms used by language teaching Facebook pages in their materials and advertisements. The corpus of the study consists of 10 Thai Facebook pages that teach German as a foreign language. The analysis includes 36 profile pictures, 59 cover photos and a total of 1,879 posts. The findings indicate that the majority of these pages predominantly use semiotic elements that index Germany when teaching or discussing German, despite the fact that German is also an official language in Austria and Switzerland. The most frequently found semiotic elements are images and emojis of the German national flag, as well as the black-red-gold colors that appear on the flag. This phenomenon reflects a widely held language ideology, namely the concept of "one language, one nation."

Translation of Thai Rice Dishes’ Names into Chinese from a Lexical Semantics Perspective:

Yao Zumin; SIRIWAN LIKHIDCHAROENTHAM, KANOKPORN NUMTONG — Thu, 26 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0700

This paper aims to investigate various translation challenges and methodologies inherent in the translation of Thai rice dish names into Chinese from a lexical semantics perspective, focusing on Chapter 2 of the recipe book Mae Krua Hua Pa as a case study. The researcher translated 44 Thai rice dish names into Chinese, dividing them into rice dishes and desserts. The research findings indicate two main principles:
1. The dish names whose lexical surface structure directly reflects the cooking method and main ingredients can be translated literally. 2. The food names whose meanings may be unclear can be divided into four sub-types: (a) dish names with semantic fuzziness, which lack clarity regarding the nature of the dish,
(b) dish names with phonetic borrowings, which may incorporate loanwords from other languages, necessitating additional investigation, (c) dish names with semantic generalization, which do not encapsulate the specific details of the dish beyond its general category, and (d) dessert names, which often employ rhetoric and may lack specific ingredient information, requiring examination of preparation methods or consultation of relevant literature for an accurate understanding of the dish names. When translating these dish names into Chinese, a combination of translation strategies is typically employed. Additional information may be incorporated into the dish name to emphasize the main ingredient or flavor. Simultaneously, efforts should be made to faithfully convey the significant semantic features from the original dish names to maintain consistency.

Expressing Opinions with Verbal Irony on the Illegal Acts in the Case of Flares and Football Cheering

Siravast Kavilanan — Thu, 26 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0700

Verbal irony is a statement with an opposite meaning. This research aimed to study the characteristics and functions of verbal irony used to express opinions on the illegal acts in the case of flares and football cheering based on the pragmatics approach. Data was collected from June 25, 2023, to December 31, 2023. The analysis results revealed that the Facebook users used six types of verbal irony, namely contradictory adjacent expressions, echoic irony, irrational expressions, overly exaggerated expressions, inappropriate language, and comparison. These types of verbal irony were used to express sarcasm, tease, instruct, and criticize. It is the function of expressing negative feelings to allow the page admin to recognize bad feelings towards setting off flares at the stadium.

Production of Routine Formulae by Chinese Learners of Thai

Radarat Sripunvoraskul, Natthaporn Panpothong — Thu, 26 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0700

Routine formulae are expressions used repeatedly in specific situations. While the use of routine formulae is common knowledge for native speakers, second-language learners often find it challenging. This research aims to examine the production and communication problems associated with routine formulae used by Chinese learners of Thai. The study adopts the perspective of interlanguage pragmatics and employs DCT for data collection. Participants include 33 Chinese learners of Thai, ranging from B2 to C2 proficiency levels, and 30 native speakers of Thai. In-depth interviews were also conducted with 30 native speakers. The results reveal that even though they are intermediate to advanced L2 learners, their usage of routine formulae appears to have two main problems. Firstly, learners use routine formulae significantly less frequently than native speakers. Secondly, they also use expressions rarely adopted by native speakers, especially in situations aimed at expressing emotions or goodwill. Some of these differences may lead to various types of communication problems, including issues related to intention, politeness and interpersonal relationships, suitability for interlocutors, and naturalness. Additionally, the findings reflect the influence of the learners' mother tongue on their language use.

Poetic Qualities in Ancient India and Their Legacy in Rabindranath Tagore’s Aesthetic Theory

Nipat Yamdate — Fri, 27 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0700

Poets in ancient India have been recognized as sages, instructors, and individuals who uplift humanity’s spiritual cultivation through their literary creations, which are enlightening, beautiful, and full of profound philosophical and religious insights. Kāvyaśāstra, which refers to ancient Indian treatises on poetic theories, holds that the qualities of a true poet are creative power (pratibhā) and the skill or talent (śakti) to transform ordinary language into beautiful poetry. However, even though poets are able to create works that are valuable and timeless, judgment of poetic qualities also depends on reader or audience, who must use empathy in order to comprehend the author’s motives (Sahṛdaya). This article points out that from ancient times in India, poets and literary critics have laid the foundations for systematic and complex theories of literary composition and reading. Ideals of poetic qualities and literary creations have existed in Indian literary culture for ages and have been inherited by Rabindranath Tagore’s aesthetic theory. The study found that Tagore’s works, such as “Gītānjalī” and “The Victory,” are examples of literary works that inherit these ideals, like those of ancient Indian poets recognized as having value by the literary world. Tagore’s writings prompt us to ponder the qualities of the poet and the values of poetry that cannot be taken lightly as in today’s rapidly changing society. In contrast, a poet who creates works needs to have necessary qualifications, and the reader who interprets the poet’s intentions needs to have spiritual sensitivity and look deeply into the poetic world in order to understand the essence of the work and experience its vast aesthetic power.

The Erotic Sentiment in Nāṭyaśāstra

Pitchayawut Kumpiro — Fri, 27 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0700

Śṛṅgārarasa, the erotic sentiment, is the first and most significant of the eight sentiments in the sentiment theory in the Nāṭyaśāstra, the foremost treatise on Sanskrit drama, which also strongly influences the treatise on Sanskrit poetic writing, or the Alaṅkāraśāstra. As dramas ultimately aim to entertain readers and audiences, and the art of writing is one of the essential elements of creating dramas, a poet who thoroughly understands the theory of the bhāva (emotion) and rasa (sentiment) will firmly succeed
in creating dramas.

This article provides an in-depth explanation of the theory of the bhāva and rasa of Śṛṅgārarasa, covering their meaning, components, importance, relationship, and examples. The study indicates that the erotic in the Nāṭyaśāstra brings auspiciousness, happiness, and hope for life. It is the love of a woman and man that arises from beautiful natural environments and gentle treatment of each other in a loving relationship. There are two types of love in the Nāṭyaśāstra: successful and disappointed.

Assessment of Coffee Yields Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Techniques

Sawitree Chansing — Fri, 27 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0700

The objective of this research is to study factors related to coffee yields and to develop a model for assessing the productivity of Arabica coffee based on data obtained from unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in Ban San Charoen, Tha Wang Pha District, Nan Province, during the 2021-2022 harvest seasons. The researchers used variables which are plant height, canopy size, trunk circumference, and visible atmospherically resistant index (VARI). These variables are related to coffee yields using linear regression analysis and evaluated statistical reliability using the coefficient of determination (R²), and the root mean square error (RMSE) were employed. The research findings revealed that the equations of coffee-yield estimation for all four study areas, using plant height, canopy size, trunk circumference and visible atmospherically resistant index (VARI), were able to explain 74-88% of yield variations, with all variables significantly affecting coffee-yield estimation at a 95% confidence level. The most influential factor in yield predictions was trunk circumference (0.582), followed by the VARI vegetation index (0.411), canopy size (0.406), and plant height (-0.401). When analyzing the average yield per plant for all study areas, the RMSE value was found to be 2.12 kilogram per plant. Additionally, the researchers tested the coffee yield estimation model for average yield per plant on
a validation area and found the root mean square error (RMSE) value of 2.37 kilogram per plant on average. This research can serve as an example of using UAV data for future Arabica coffee production.

Literature in the Evolutionary Framework

Rawitawan Sophonpanich — Fri, 27 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0700

This article aims to examine the role of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution in literature, considering its influence on Victorian writers—particularly in the realist novels of Charles Dickens and George Eliot—and extending to the emergence of evolutionary literary theory in the 20th century. The author applies this theory to analyze John Milton's Sonnet 7. The analysis results demonstrate that Darwinian evolutionary literary theory has strengths in explaining character behavior through the lens of adaptation for survival but is limited by its neglect of historical and cultural contexts. The experimental reading of Milton's Sonnet 7 clearly reflects this limitation, as the theory fails to comprehensively explain the religious and spiritual dimensions of the poem. However, this study suggests that Darwinian evolutionary literary theory can be a useful supplementary tool in literary analysis but should be used in conjunction with other critical methods to achieve a more complete understanding.

Editorial

Naya Sucha-xaya — Fri, 27 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0700