English

Ireland has suffered many extraordinary changes during the last decades that have made the Emerald Isle a geographical point upon which all eyes are fixed. Despite this metamorphosis, the question is if its population and cultural heritage have been able to cope with the times. Known as a traditionally catholic and conservative country, many social aspects remain unchangeable and those that have evolved may still keep an inner glimpse of the old times that is not always easily recognizable. Undoubtedly, women and all subjects related to them have experienced a revolution. However, data show that true equality is still far from being reached. In this context, literature must be taken as a powerful cultural force that helps create stereotypes and a popular conscience. Thus, this article analyses the success of what has been called "women's literature", especially Marian Keyes' and Cathy Kelly's bestselling books. It also tries to examine to what extent the traditional ideologies of womanhood are present and by which means their female protagonists attach to the old stereotypes under a mask of modernity and economic boom. Finally, their effects on the female Irish population will also be studied in order to demonstrate that globalization and modern capitalism prove to be unable to change the old myths that lie beneath and keep women in a relegated position.

El paso del siglo XIX al XX vio un cierto cambio de objetivos y los conventos comenzaron a educar a las jóvenes en función de las posibilidades de empleo, si bien éstas solían quedar reducidas a funciones de secretariado y educación. Por ejemplo, a finales del siglo XIX la tendencia laboral de las mujeres irlandesas emigradas a América se decantaba por enfermería, secretaría, enseñanza y ventas, mientras que en Inglaterra sus posibilidades se veían algo más reducidas debido al espíritu anti-irlandés y anti-católico que se respiraba (Rossiter 1993 :188). Tras The Famine, el acceso de las mujeres a la educación se fue ampliando progresivamente en Irlanda.

The  teaching  of the  English  language  is infused  with  veiled  values  and policies  but  at  the  same  time,  it  offers  great  opportunities  for  raising  critical awareness  and for the  implementation of critical pedagogical strategies. Through
the  design  of  language  teaching  projects,  this  paper  investigates  the  combination of  Freire  and  Giroux's  critical  pedagogy  principles,  and  the  study  of  linguistic productions  that  fall  within  Kachru's  (1985)  “outer  circle”  classification  of English,  represented  by  Malala  Yousafzay's  testimony.  The  main  goal  is  to evaluate  the  suitability  of  this  combination  to  foster  critical  awareness  among  a
group  of  Spanish  pre-service  ELT  teachers.  A  series
  of  critical  pedagogical strategies are displayed under the form of a classroom blog so that reflection and
collaboration  among  the  pre-service  teachers  are  en
hanced.  Later,  assessment  of achievements  and  shortcomings  is  conducted  according  to  evidence  from  the
different  teaching  projects.  Finally,  proposals  for  a  more  effective  and  critical training and further research are also suggested.

A través del lenguaje construimos y reconstruimos experiencias y conceptos. Lejos de ser meras herramientas para la comunicación, los idiomas dan forma a los modos en que se lee y se entiende la sociedad. Por lo tanto, podemos afirmar que un idioma nunca es apolítico ni ahistórico, al contrario, está íntimamente imbricado en el contexto social en el que se produce. Por ello, es necesario cuestionar el papel del lenguaje en la producción y reproducción de los mecanismos de poder que conforman las sociedades, ya que el lenguaje es «el medio a través del cual se dan los procesos de (des)identificación» (Ramanathan y Pennycook, 2007: 26). Históricamente, la enseñanza de lenguas extranjeras ha sufrido un enfoque reduccionista y utilitario. El dominio de una lengua extranjera ha sido (y sigue siendo) considerado como una práctica instrumental, un sistema neutral para transmitir mensajes. Pero lo cierto es que la enseñanza de una lengua puede y debe ser analizada desde una perspectiva crítica y feminista. Las siguientes líneas presentan una experiencia educativa con una clase de estudiantes de Máster de Profesorado en la Universidad de Burgos que consistió en la denuncia de las desigualdades y la exclusión de género a través del desarrollo de un proyecto educativo inclusivo.

In an attempt to overcome the fragmentation of theoretical and practical post-structuralist strands applied to the teaching of EFL, this article explores how critical and feminist perspectives can inform the TESOL practice through the inclusion of the voices and experiences of those who have been excluded from dominant discourses according to the World Englishes classification. After exposure to basic readings on feminist and critical pedagogies, a group of pre-service teachers enrolled in the Master's degree in teaching at the University of Burgos in Spain, were asked to design teaching activities for the selected authentic materials. Malala Yousafzai's speech to the UN in 2013 was selected so that the pre-service teachers would face nonnative texts. Through the didactic exploitation of her discourse, gender, power, identity and violence issues were addressed. Results indicate that coalition of World Englishes, feminist, and critical pedagogies enhance resistance to dominant discourses, foster awareness in teaching practices and contribute to social transformation. Further scholarly reflection and classroom practices are suggested on the relationship between the use of English as a globalized language for training purposes and its relationship with the particular struggles of the oppressed.

In the central decades of the 20 th century, the feminine icons of "Mother Church" and "Mother Ireland" were set as conduct models to follow by Irish women. Simultaneously, legal, moral and economic forces collaborated in limiting the scope of their agency. In order to elicit where women situated and how female expressions of belonging and not belonging took shape, this article uses intersectionality to look into the short story "Park-Going Days" authored by women's rights activist and writer Evelyn Conlon. The plot displays the ambivalent feelings of the newcomer, a childless married woman, towards the other women in the community and her difficulties fitting in. At the same time, this story provides the reader with the unspoken personal experiences of these women in relation to marriage, work and motherhood. Thus, the analysis will show how this situation is constructed and understood by the author. Besides, the use of intersectionality will allow a multi-level analysis to unveil the interdependence of structures, social categories and representations that result in socially constructed forms of differentiation and exclusion for (some) women, and the consequent forms of resistance and consent. Finally, new paths for literary analysis are suggested within the frame of intersectionality.

The oral performance of Spanish future teachers of English is an essential linguistic aspect that requires thorough attention. This aspect is not only important but also vitally necessary, as achieving adequate oral performance on a daily basis is crucial for teachers of English. This study addresses emotional stressors in the form of anxiety or frustration, as well as mistakes related to their mother tongues' influence, which affect the demographic and, hence, determine the use of appropriate pedagogical strategies. In order to tackle these two issues, a classroom intervention was performed with a group of 20 students enrolled in a Bachelor of Teaching program. Before attempting any pedagogical innovation, a semi-structured questionnaire was conducted to gather data about their difficulties and motivations. The results led to a twofold intervention; first, sets of pedagogical strategies were tailored to improve their attitudes towards participation in oral English instruction; secondly, an array of participatory activities were designed and implemented in order to correct their most common oral mistakes. The success of the intervention indicates that improving classroom engagement is possible by working on the student teachers' oral competence; this, in turn, promotes improvements in attitude and increased confidence in oral skills.

The oral performance of Spanish future teachers of English is an essential linguistic aspect that requires a thorough attention. Emotional stress in the form of anxiety or frustration and mistakes related to their mother tongue influence determine the use of pedagogical strategies. In order to tackle these two issues, a classroom intervention was performed. Before attempting any pedagogical innovation, a semi-structured questionnaire to elicit data about their difficulties and motivation was passed around. Its outcome led to a twofold intervention. Firstly, a set of pedagogical strategies were tailored to improve their attitudes for participation in oral English instruction. Secondly, a battery of participatory activities were designed and put into practice in order to correct their most common oral mistakes. The successful outcomes indicate that improving the classroom's engagement as well as working on the students' oral competence help fostering a better attitude towards a more confident use of oral skills.

Contemporary Irish literature has shown a noticeable interest in women´s diasporic experiences in the 20 th century. This article analyses the construction process of a new society in America in four selected novels, focusing on the physical and emotional (dis)locations undergone by their female characters. The underlying tensions between their actual experiences and the Irish national discourse are studied from a gender perspective. The depressed Irish context and the existing networks overseas are detected as determinant factors that shape the construction of a gendered society overseas.

In this interview, Professor Inés Praga Terente reviews the evolution of AEDEI from its origins to the present. As a founding member and its Chairperson until 2007, Professor Inés Praga has been a key force in the creation of AEDEI at a time when Ireland was not considered a field of study in the Spanish academia. In this interview, she recalls that a personal event in her life became the turning point that would lead her academic career towards Irish literature. Also, she recalls the timid and humble attempts made by her and a group of scholars to explore Irish literature and culture. Overcoming the difficulties and challenges that entailed the launching of an association, they finally succeeded in 2001 and AEDEI was born. In a personal and vivid style, she displays the clues that have made AEDEI not only a renowned forum for national and international lecturers, scholars and students, but also a community where passion and inspiration in Irish Studies are shared. Resumen. En esta entrevista, la profesora Inés Praga Terente revisa la evolución de AEDEI desde sus orígenes hasta la actualidad. Como miembro fundador y su presidenta hasta 2007, la profesora Inés Praga ha sido un elemento clave en la creación de AEDEI en un momento en el que Irlanda aún no era considerada como campo de estudio académico. Según relata en esta entrevista, un evento personal de su vida fue el punto de inflexión que orientaría su carrera académica hacia la literatura irlandesa. También recuerda los primeros tímidos intentos de explorar la literatura y la cultura irlandesas desde su profesión hasta que, tras superar las dificultades y desafíos que conllevaba el lanzamiento de una asociación, AEDEI nació en 2001. En un estilo personal y distendido, la profesora Praga Terente desvela los elementos que han hecho de AEDEI no sólo un foro de renombre para profesores, académicos y estudiantes a nivel nacional e internacional, sino también una comunidad donde la pasión por los estudios irlandeses son compartidos.

The aim of this study is to analyze how the elements of Irish culture and society transmitted by Edna O'Brien in her debut novel, The Country Girls (1960), have been translated to the readers in Spanish. First of all, a contextualization of the translation of the novel will be provided. Next, a section on literary translation and cultural references, as well as translation strategies in this field will be included. Thirdly, a descriptive study will be applied comparing extracts from the source text and the target text. Fourthly, the strategies used and their adequacy for the cultural transposition of the ST into the TT will be assessed. In the concluding section we will reflect on whether the degree of cultural transposition resulting from the translation into Spanish allows the transgressive nature of the novel to have a similar impact on the recipient culture as a contemporary edition of the original text in English. Resumen La recepción de The Country Girls en España: estrategias de traducción para superar las diferencias culturales El objetivo de este estudio es analizar cómo se han traducido al español los elementos de la cultura y la sociedad irlandesa transmitidos por Edna O'Brien en su primera novela, The Country Girls (1960). En primer lugar, aportamos una contextualización de la traducción de la novela. A continuación incluimos un apartado sobre traducción literaria y referencias cul-turales, así como estrategias de traducción en este campo. En tercer lugar, llevamos a cabo un estudio descriptivo para comparar extractos del texto original y del texto meta. En cuarto lugar, evaluamos las estrategias utilizadas y su adecuación para la transposición cultural del TO en el TM. En el apartado final reflexionamos sobre si el grado de transposición cultural resultante de la traducción al español permite que el carácter transgresor de la novela tenga un impacto similar en la cultura receptora al tratarse esta de una edición contemporánea del texto original en inglés. Palabras clave: Referencias culturales; estrategias de traducción; traducción literaria; Edna O'Brien; literatura irlandesa