Hedging: An exploratory study of pragmatic transfer in nonnative English readers' rhetorical preferences

  1. Alonso Alonso, María Rosa
  2. Alonso Alonso, María
  3. Torrado Mariñas, Laura
Revista:
Ibérica: Revista de la Asociación Europea de Lenguas para Fines Específicos ( AELFE )

ISSN: 1139-7241

Ano de publicación: 2012

Número: 23

Páxinas: 47-64

Tipo: Artigo

DIALNET GOOGLE SCHOLAR lock_openDialnet editor

Outras publicacións en: Ibérica: Revista de la Asociación Europea de Lenguas para Fines Específicos ( AELFE )

Resumo

This paper aims at analysing the role of pragmatic transfer in the use of the rhetorical strategy of hedging in academic writing in English as a second language (henceforth, L2). Two groups of Spanish researchers (n=30) took part in the study, performing two different experiments. The first one consisted of reading two versions of the same passage, one hedged and the other unhedged, and they were asked to decide which text they considered more academic and why. The second experiment consisted of identifying hedges in a passage. The results indicate that Spanish researchers apply pragmatic transfer, either frequently failing to identify hedges in the L2 or considering them as negative evasive concepts.

Referencias bibliográficas

  • Bou Franch, P. (1998). “On pragmatic transfer”. Studies in English Language and Linguistics 0: 5- 20.
  • Brown, P. & S. Levinson (1987). Politeness: Some Universals in Language Usage. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Clemen, G. (1997). “The concept of hedging: origins, approaches, definitions” in R. Markkanen & H.Schröder (eds.), 235-249.
  • Clyne, M. (1991). “The sociocultural dimension: The dilemma of the German-speaking scholar” in H. Schröder (ed.), Subject-Oriented Texts, 49-68. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
  • Crompton, P. (1997). “Hedging in academic writing: Some theoretical aspects”. English for Specific Purposes 16: 271-289.
  • Crompton, P. (1998). “Identifying hedges: definitions or divination”. English for Specific Purposes 17: 303-313.
  • Fitzpatrick, T. & P. Meara (2004). “Exploring the validity of a test of productive vocabulary”. Vigo International Journal of Applied Linguistics 1: 55- 74.
  • Haverkate, H. (2002). The Syntax, Semantics and Pragmatics of Spanish Mood. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
  • Hu, Z., D.F. Brown & L.B. Brown (1982). “Some linguistic differences in the written English of Chinese and Australian students”. Language Learning and Communication 1: 39-49.
  • Hübler, A. (1983). Understatements and Hedges in English. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
  • Hyland, K. (1998). Hedging in Scientific Research Articles. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
  • Hyland, K. & M. Bondi (2006). Academic Discourse across Disciplines. Bern: Peter Lang.
  • Kasper, G. (1992). “Pragmatic transfer”. Second Language Research 8: 203-231.
  • Lakoff, G. (1972). “Hedges: A study in meaning criteria and the logic of fuzzy forms”. Journal of Philosophical Logic 2: 458-508.
  • Markkanen, R. & H. Schröder (1997). Hedging and Discourse. Approaches to the Analysis of a Pragmatic Phenomenon in Academic Texts. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
  • Martín Martín, P. (2003a). “A genre analysis study of English and Spanish research article abstracts in the experimental social sciences”. Ph.D. thesis. URL: ftp://tesis.bbtk.ull.es/ccssyhum/cs143.pdf [10/10/09].
  • Martín Martín, P. (2003b). “The pragmatic rhetorical strategy of hedging in academic writing”. Vigo International Journal of Applied Linguistics 0: 57-72.
  • Martín Martín, P. (2008). “The mitigation of scientific claims in research papers: A comparative study”. International Journal of English Studies 8: 133-152.
  • Mulder, G. (1991). “Aproximarse y evitar: estrategias de cortesía en castellano”. Foro Hispánico 2. Exploraciones semánticas y pragmáticas del español 2: 69-80.
  • Myers, G. (1989). “The pragmatics of politeness in scientific articles”. Linguistics 10: 1–35.
  • Namsaraev. V. (1997). “Hedging in Russian academic writing in sociological texts” in R. Markkanen & H. Schröder (eds.), 64-79.
  • Odlin, T. (1989). Language Transfer. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Prince, E.F., J. Frader & C. Bosk (1982). “On hedging in physician-physician discourse” in R. di Pietro (ed.), Proceedings of the Second Annual Delaware Symposium on Language Studies, 83- 97. Norwood: Ablex Publishing Corporation.
  • Salager-Meyer, F. (1994). “Hedges and textual communicative function in medical English written discourse”. English for Specific Purposes 13: 149- 170.
  • Vassileva, I. (1997). “Hedging in English and Bulgarian academic writing” in A. Duszak (ed.), Culture and Styles in Academic Discourse, 141- 157. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter
  • Wishnoff, J.R. (2000). “Hedging your bets: L2 learners’ acquisition of pragmatic devices in academic writing and computer-mediated discourse”. Second Language Acquisition Studies 19: 119-148
Fonte de datos: Dialnet