Abstract (eng)
Clearly, modern societies have been considerably shaped by the phenomena of globalisation and migration and are now characterised by cultural and ethnic diversity. As a reaction to such developments, xenophobic and racist tendencies tend to increase. Thus, it appears to be of high relevance to foster transcultural learning in the sense of educating tolerant and socially competent individuals with informed attitudes towards the phenomena of migration and globalisation. Also within the vivid and theoretical discussion evolving around the concepts of transcultural learning, intercultural learning and Fremdverstehen, the significant relevance of those learning processes remains undebated. In connection to those concepts, literature is frequently claimed to be a suitable tool for contributing to inter- and transcultural learning processes. However, corresponding research rarely focuses on the potential of specific genres for more specific purposes. Hence, the purpose of this thesis is to determine the potential of British young adult fictions of migration for introducing a transcultural learning process in the Austrian EFL-classroom at the end of lower secondary level. On the basis of a thorough theoretical framework, the young adult novel The Weight of Water by Sarah Crossan is analysed as an example of British young adult fictions of migration with regard to its potential to contribute to the domain of ‘attitudes’. In a final step, the results of the analysis are explicitly connected with a model of intercultural learning. The results of the analysis suggest that British young adult fictions of migration indeed have a considerable potential for initiating transcultural learning processes on the part of young adults. For the specific example analysed, this potential lies primarily in its immediate representation of the inner perspective of the protagonist, the well-balanced portrayal of familiar (teenage-specific issues) and unfamiliar (migration-specific issues) elements, its account of cultural hybridity as well as its evident support of transcultural tendencies in general.