From Text to Context: The Social Impact of Contemporary Literary Themes in Multicultural Communities
Downloads
Background. Contemporary literature increasingly functions as a social medium through which multicultural communities negotiate identity, belonging, and coexistence. In plural societies shaped by migration, cultural hybridity, and social inequality, literary themes extend beyond aesthetic concerns to engage with lived social realities and communal interactions.
Purpose. This study aims to examine how contemporary literary themes influence social awareness, intercultural understanding, and community dynamics within multicultural contexts.
Method. The study employs a qualitative interpretative approach using textual analysis and sociocultural criticism. Selected contemporary literary works representing diverse cultural backgrounds are analyzed to identify dominant themes and their social implications within multicultural communities.
Results. This study concludes that contemporary literature contributes meaningfully to social cohesion and intercultural engagement by translating textual narratives into broader social contexts. Literary works not only reflect multicultural realities but actively participate in shaping inclusive social imaginaries and communal understanding.
Conclusion. This study has significant implications for instructional practices in TFL settings and for L2 lecturers in the classroom. By understanding learners’ preferences for OCF, educators can tailor their instructional approaches to meet the specific needs of their students.
Abdulrahim, N. A. (2024). Troubling teacher preparation: Intersections of identity, diversity, and inclusive practice. Teaching and Teacher Education, 138, 104414. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2023.104414
Al Farisi, M. Z., Maulani, H., Hardoyo, A. B., Khalid, S. M., & Saleh, N. (2024). Investigating Arabic language teaching materials based on Indonesian folklore: An ethnographic study on the folktale of “Bandung.” Asian Education and Development Studies, 13(2), 134–149. https://doi.org/10.1108/AEDS-07-2023-0082
Alblooshi, F., Al Tenaijy, M., & Al-Batineh, M. (2025). Visual narratives: Cultural framing and representation in the book covers of Hanan al-Shaykh’s Arabic and English fiction. Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 11, 101624. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2025.101624
Alesaily, Z., & Albialy, A. (2025). Urban identity: A bibliometric review, 1969–2024. Alexandria Engineering Journal, 128, 724–746. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aej.2025.07.016
Arcadu, M., Reyes-Espejo, M. I., Romoli, V., & Migliorini, L. (2025). Food and eating practices in migration processes: A scoping review. Appetite, 215, 108248. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2025.108248
Banou, C. (2025). Chapter 2—Through the page: The evolution of the visual identity. Dalam C. Banou (Ed.), The Visual Identity of the Book (hlm. 21–120). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-443-19167-1.00002-4
Bella, B. R. F., Mayasari, A. D., & Alfina, A. (2024). Etiquette and Protocol in Public Relations Activities. Humanities Research Sustainability, 1(1), 41–48. https://doi.org/10.70177/jhrs.v1i1.1002
Benabbes, S., & AbdulHaleem Abu Taleb, H. (2024). The effect of storytelling on the development of language and social skills in French as a foreign language classrooms. Heliyon, 10(8), e29178. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e29178
Cammarota, A., Avallone, F., Marino, V., & Resciniti, R. (2024). Taking a stand or standing aside? How to conceptualize the emerging phenomenon of university activism. The International Journal of Management Education, 22(3), 101014. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijme.2024.101014
Cénat, J. M., Broussard, C., Jacob, G., Kogan, C., Corace, K., Ukwu, G., Onesi, O., Furyk, S. E., Bekarkhanechi, F. M., Williams, M., Chomienne, M.-H., Grenier, J., & Labelle, P. R. (2024). Antiracist training programs for mental health professionals: A scoping review. Clinical Psychology Review, 108, 102373. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2023.102373
Cerda-Smith, J., Grant, C., Yust, P., Mathews, C., & Mulvey, K. L. (2026). “A different pair of glasses”: Impacts of a school-based antiracist program on student and teacher critical race consciousness. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 84, 102429. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2025.102429
Chen, D. L., & Yeh, S. (2025). How do rights revolutions occur? Free speech and the First Amendment. Social Science Research, 128, 103155. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2025.103155
Díaz-Vera, J. E. (2025). The situatedness of aesthetic emotions: A review of the literature and a proposal for its study in variationist linguistics. Language Sciences, 111, 101744. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.langsci.2025.101744
Eldar, D. (2024). Negotiating Danish identity with(in) Copenhagen’s postcolonial landscape of commemoration. Journal of Historical Geography, 84, 37–48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhg.2024.04.004
Farros, A. A., Wijayanti, I., & Agustiar, A. (2024). Meaning Recognition Terms in Arabic Semantic Studies. Humanities Research Sustainability, 1(1), 23–33. https://doi.org/10.70177/jhrs.v1i1.907
Fatima, K., & Batta, A. (2025). Postcolonial London: Revisiting marginal voices and myths of Englishness in The Emperor’s Babe. Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 11, 101462. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2025.101462
Gedecho, E. K., & Kim, S. (Sam). (2024). Exploring the spiritual well-being experiences of transnational religious festival attendees: A grounded theory approach. Tourism Management Perspectives, 53, 101289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tmp.2024.101289
He, S., Jiao, Z., & Zhang, R. (2026). “Who Lives in the Future”?: A toolkit for imagining inclusive and posthuman future characters as an approach to design fiction. Futures, 175, 103735. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.futures.2025.103735
Hossain, K. I. (2024). Literature-based language learning: Challenges, and opportunities for English learners. Ampersand, 13, 100201. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amper.2024.100201
Johnson, M. W., Johnson, A., Clark, L., Howe, J. E., Jefferson, T., McClendon, D., Crooms, B., & Thomas, D. J. (2024). A doctorate doesn’t make you a “Doc”: The educational and sociocultural embodiment of culturally relevant pedagogies. Journal for Multicultural Education, 18(4), 343–358. https://doi.org/10.1108/JME-10-2023-0115
Li, J. (2025). A cross-sectional content analysis of Chinese/English bilingual children’s picture books: Language, culture, and gender contexts. International Journal of Educational Research, 134, 102815. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2025.102815
Lin, C.-H., Zhou, K., Li, L., & Sun, L. (2025). Integrating generative AI into digital multimodal composition: A study of multicultural second-language classrooms. Computers and Composition, 75, 102895. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compcom.2024.102895
Mahmudi, mahmudi, & Khoiruddin, M. A. (2024). Improving Student Life Skills Through the Ma Plus Skills Program at MAN 4 Kediri. Humanities Research Sustainability, 1(1), 16–22. https://doi.org/10.70177/jhrs.v1i1.995
Makkar, M., Appau, S., & Belk, R. W. (2025). Value outcomes in Airbnb as a chronotopic service. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 42(1), 55–73. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijresmar.2024.05.008
Malgoubri, I. (2026). Empowering teachers and reclaiming agency through culturally sustaining arts-based pedagogy in English language teaching. Teaching and Teacher Education, 171, 105328. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2025.105328
Mani?, N. (2026). Translation as a form of language activism: An ecolinguistic perspective. Language Sciences, 113, 101770. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.langsci.2025.101770
Mondal, S., & Samaddar, K. (2025). Exploring cybernetic approaches to sustainable co-working spaces in emerging economies: A sentiment analysis. Facilities, 43(13), 1053–1072. https://doi.org/10.1108/F-03-2025-0047
Muqit, F. A., & Putra, A. W. (2024). Delving Into Existential Fatigue and The Search for Meaning in The Play “kapai-kapai” by Arifin C. Noer. Humanities Research Sustainability, 1(1), 34–40. https://doi.org/10.70177/jhrs.v1i1.929
Rezk, W. A. (2024). Dreams of mirage in Khawla Hamdi’s expatriation of the Jasmin (2015) and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Americanah (2013). Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 9, 100770. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2023.100770
Salam, N. E., Yasir, Y., Firdaus, M., Azwa, R., & Lubis, E. E. (2024). Tourism Communication Model in Developing Heritage City Tourism in Siak Sri Indrapura Regency, Riau, Indonesia. Humanities Research Sustainability, 1(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.70177/jhrs.v1i1.876
Saunders, R. A. (2024). Black + Brown ? Green: The absent presence of the Anthropocene in Wakanda Forever. Political Geography, 111, 103092. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polgeo.2024.103092
Shah, W. A., Jatoi, Q., & Shah, U. R. (2025). De-centering the anthropocentric worldview in language textbooks: A posthumanist call for discursive reparations for sustainable ELT. Linguistics and Education, 86, 101397. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.linged.2025.101397
Varco, M. (2024). Volk utopia: Racial futures and ecological politics on the German far-right. Geoforum, 153, 103823. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2023.103823
Wu, F. (2025). Participating with foreign culture: The audience and their motivations of Chinese theatre in the UK. Arts and the Market, 15(1), 11–30. https://doi.org/10.1108/AAM-07-2024-0047
Zhang, H. (2025). Construction of a Research Model for Overseas Dissemination of Chinese Literature Based on Deep Learning Models. International Journal of Distributed Systems and Technologies, 16(1). https://doi.org/10.4018/IJDST.375389
Copyright (c) 2026 Prima Dewi Kusumawati, Lucy Lidiawati Santioso, Noorhani Dyani Laksmi

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

















