Reflecting back as a graduate on why I chose to study Arabic and what I have learnt from this experience

by Zoe Spencer, Warwick SMLC graduate and PG student in the Warwick MA in Translation and Cultures. Happy start of term to everyone!

مرحباً! أنا اسمي زوي

Hi! My name is Zoe. I graduated with first class honours from the University of Warwick this summer with a BA in Modern Languages. I joined Warwick in 2019 as a student of French and Hispanic Studies and chose to enrol in the Arabic for Beginners course with the Language Centre.

Whilst searching for universities, Warwick stood out to me because of the range of languages offered as I knew that I wanted to take up something new and distant from my language learning experience thus far. I attended an Arabic taster session with Mohammed during an open day, and my decision was made.

I was often met with surprise when asked about my language combination (it was mostly the fact of studying three languages that perplexed non-linguists in particular). “But how are you finding writing from right to left?” seemed to be the most common question. I found this funny because I’m left-handed. It was easier. The real difficulty as a beginner was learning how each letter joins (or doesn’t join) onto the next, but that was explained over many classes at the start of first year.

Throughout the course, a range of topics were covered, from the basics of family and education in first year, sport and music personalities in second year, to more complex themes in final year such as women’s rights and literature. I also enjoyed the cultural module that was delivered as part of the course during final year as this allowed me to apply some of the language acquired to discussions of current affairs and historic events in the Arab world.

I’ve learnt throughout my degree that Arabic is a language surrounded by a rich history, as well as scientific and literary importance. Although grammar was the bane of my life, as with every language, establishing patterns between groups of words and their meaning gave me a real appreciation of the simplistic yet complex nature of the language. Most words stem from a 3-letter root. Once the meaning of this root is established, it is possible to understand a whole wealth of unknown vocab, simply through identifying these patterns. The more I learnt, the more it all seemed to click into place.

Next year, I will be studying an MA in Translation and Cultures at Warwick and plan to keep up my Arabic language in my free time as I will be using my major languages during this programme of study. However, upon attending the London Book Fair this year, I had the chance to speak with and attend many talks by translators, including a literary translator from Arabic into English. This event inspired me to continue developing my Arabic language skills. Moreover, the transferable skills that I will acquire next year in translation will allow me to seek out more opportunities to put these skills into practice in the future.

I am looking forward to being back on campus next year and learning more about translation, languages, and cultures as part of the SMLC.

A Report on the SMLC Postgraduate Symposium ‘Peripheries and Questions of Power’

After nearly two years of having to adjust to doing conferences and symposiums online due to the pandemic, it was great to have a hybrid format for the SMLC’s Postgraduate Symposium on 26th May. The theme, ‘Peripheries and Questions of Power’, was selected to encourage students to submit papers that explored research or groups of people on the margins and to interrogate people and concepts placed at a given ‘centre’ of society.

The symposium opened in the morning with remarks by Director of Graduate Studies at SMLC, Professor Ingrid de Smet, and Director of CADRE, Professor Jenny Burns. Following this was our keynote speaker, Professor Fabienne Viala Manicom, who spoke of the intersections between the social and ecological erosion that continues to plague the Caribbean landscape. Her research is delving into more recent Caribbean literatures that tackle the critical issue of climate change and how it affects the islands and the people who live on them.

After a short break there was our morning panel which centred around displaced subjects and voices. My paper (Miriam Gordon) dealt with several marginalised characters and power dynamics on the margins in Alfred Alexandre’s Bord de Canal. Raghad Melfi’s paper explored Saudi feminist films as an emerging trend seeking to centre female voices in a way that counters reductive or stereotypical narratives about Arab women. Raghad analysed how subtitling can enable or inhibit this endeavour. Zhen Yang’s paper (online) demonstrated the marginality of research into refugees having access to higher education in the UK. She examined how NGO support in the UK could impact and empower refugees as they access higher education and how this in turn affects the refugees’ identity construction.

After lunch, our afternoon panel included papers exploring marginality and the visual arts. Silvia Vari looked at comics as an art form mobilised and politicised in Italy’s countercultural movement in the 1960s and 70s. Matthew Allen’s paper examined the Austrian-Hungarian art historian Josef Strzygowski and his antagonism towards the centring of Ancient Greco-Roman art in place of peripheral artistic developments in the Middle East and Africa. Neil Malloy examined marginal acts of resistance to the growing intrusion of neoliberalism by a group of young people in Maylis de Kerangal’s Corniche Kennedy.

The symposium provided an excellent opportunity for PGR students and staff in the department to interact with one another and discuss ideas in person. The hybrid format also allowed for presenters and attendees to participate around the world. This led to many enriching discussions both during the panels and in the breaks.

As the event’s organisers, Silvia, Neil and I would like to thank all those involved in making the day a success- those who gave papers, chaired panels, attended online or in person and the catering team. We are also grateful to CADRE for the financial support which made the event possible.

‘Studying Arabic Opens your Horizons’

Second-year student Becky offers us four excellent reasons to study Arabic at Warwick…

1. It opens your horizons

This may sound obvious, but it’s worth pointing out. Studying Arabic opens your horizons, and not just geographically. Arabic is unlike the Latin-based and Germanic languages that are most commonly offered for study in the UK. It’s interesting, different and challenging, with enough similarities to prevent you getting completely lost, and a wealth of new concepts to dive right into.

Courtyard of the Süleymaniye Mosque, Istanbul (Creative Commons)

2. You have wider career options

When I was young, I wanted to be a pilot.  I remember reading about Harrier Jump Jets in a book, and thinking they were cool. Unfortunately, I have a fear of heights, so that particular career path never really took off. Since then, I’ve been rather unsure about what I want to do in the future — but here’s the good thing about studying languages: the possibilities are endless. There’s more you can do with a languages degree than language teaching. Language students have the potential to become lawyers, accountants (or even the next James Bond?). Warwick students with Arabic have even ended up working with refugees. Learning Arabic opens up a world of new opportunities.

Eighteenth-Century Arabic Manuscript (Wikimedia Commons)

3. It’s full of fascinating patterns

Arabic, on one level, is a language made of patterns. And that is brilliant. As someone who hates learning vocab, I’ve found the root-and-stem system to be my best friend. Using this system — and starting from only three letters — I can make numerous new words on the spot. Similarly, I will never forget the moment in my first year when one of my friends pointed out that the Arabic word for ‘seven’ and ‘week’ looked suspiciously similar… My mind was blown, and I’ve been in love with these patterns ever since.

4. The tutors are lovely

They didn’t pay me to say that; I promise. Before I started my course, I was rather nervous and not at all sure of what to expect, especially concerning Arabic. Fortunately, I needn’t have worried, as both Nabila and Mohammed are wonderful. They care not only about student progress but also about individual wellbeing. So, if you’re coming to Warwick unsure of what to expect, rest assured that all you need is to try your hardest, and your tutors will have your back every step of the way.

Language Learning in the SMLC

Grace, a second-year Modern Languages student, gives us her view on what it’s been like to develop her existing languages and to learn a few new ones…

When I came to Warwick for my degree in Modern Languages, I was nervous at first about the difficulty of the course – especially for French, because I came with a DELF qualification rather than A-Level and hadn’t been studying French for a very long time. But first year was super effective in bridging the gap from arriving at university to the more advanced grammar and writing skills covered in second year; there have been lots of opportunities for feedback as well, which has been great. Studying German with the SMLC has also been useful and confidence-boosting, especially since we’ve been focused more on the practical use of German in second year (dealing with job applications, interviews, bureaucracy, dialects), to better prepare us for the Year Abroad.

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